Some statements from defense attorney in Kelley case unsealed
Greg Kelley’s lawyers are fighting to keep statements by Kelley’s first trial attorney secret, saying that they fall under attorney-client privilege and shouldn’t be made public.
But Patricia Cummings says she wants to reveal exactly why she defended her client the way she did because her name is being dragged through the mud as his new legal team works to free Kelley from prison.
In a hearing Tuesday afternoon, state District Judge Donna King unsealed some of Cummings’ statements — those referring to an alleged conflict of interest in her defense of Kelley. But the judge made no decision about whether to release a sealed affidavit in which Cummings explains the reasons behind her legal strategy in Kelley’s trial.
Attorney Keith Hampton, who now represents Kelley, told King that the release of the documents would be detrimental to his client.
Meanwhile, Michael Morton — who spent 25 years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of the murder of his wife — attended the hearing to stick up for Cummings, one of the lawyers who helped free him. But he also lent his support to Kelley, saying he believes Kelley is innocent and was wrongfully convicted by a system gone awry.
“I have always, from my very first beginnings in this, known that these are very difficult cases,”