Scrutinized “Craigslist Cases” delayed another year due to continued investigation of FBI agent
Four years of controversy will carry over into five -- maybe even six -- years after the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit’s district attorney was granted a one-year continuance on three pending child sex cases in Catoosa County Superior Court on Saturday, Oct. 29.
The three cases are part of the highly publicized “Craigslist Cases,” child sexrelated cases that were initially handled by the now-disbanded FBI Northwest Georgia Crimes Against Children Task Force, which was headed up by FBI special agent Ken Hillman, who continues to be the main cause for all the delays.
All the cases fell on Hillman’s watch, with the validity of the cases coming into question and falling under subsequent scrutiny in February 2013.
That February, an investigation was launched due to claims that Hillman allegedly abused his power over the course of two years by influencing local officers to look the other way during instances where he was pulled over on suspicion of drinking and driving.
One such incident in Ringgold in October 2012 involving then-Sgt. Tom Evans led to an internal investigation by the Ringgold Police Department and resulted in Evans being fired for driving Hillman and two women out of state to a condo. That investigation also revealed that one of those women was Hillman’s girlfriend, Angela Russell, and that she had been allowed to work with the task force and even handcuffed suspects in at least one instance.
That series of events, which ultimately led to Hillman’s suspension from the FBI and subsequent investigation from federal prosecutors, has delayed the cases currently hanging in the balance due to the domino effect of Hillman’s alleged transgressions.
Cobb County Superior Court Judge Grant Brantley, who was appointed to preside over the cases in 2013 after all the judges in the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit recused themselves, listened to District Attorney Herbert E. “Buzz” Franklin and three different defense attorneys argue over the status of the cases, which were scheduled to finally go to trial on Nov. 14.
Franklin wants to wait a year to give the FBI a chance to conclude its investigation, while defense attorneys are ready to try the cases.
“They’ve been telling us they’re wrapping things up, they’re wrapping things up, and they haven’t wrapped it up,” Franklin said. “I don’t think they’re ever going to reach a conclusion.”
Franklin’s says he wants to push the cases back a year, because by that time, the FBI will have to make a decision about its Hillman investigation.
“There’s a fiveyear statute of limitation,” Franklin said. “They (the FBI) can’t say they’re still investigating after October 2017.”
Attorneys McCracken Poston, Cindi Yeager, and Shawn Bible represent the three remaining defendants, who were all arrested in 2012.
Poston says he’s tried tirelessly to get the cases to trial, but that he keeps hitting roadblocks.
“We’ve been trying for literally years to get agent Hillman to court,” Poston said. “Because of this FBI investigation, there’s a wealth of discovery we’re entitled to, and
Michael David Nease of Kennesaw.
Nease was walking south along the shoulder when the Shelton’s 2006 Mazda ran off the roadway.
The vehicle struck Nease and then hit a
guardrail before rolling over and stopping back on its wheels.
Shelton and her passenger, 24-year-old Nicholas Spurgeon, were taken to the hospital for evaluation.
After being released from the hospital, Shelton was taken into custody on the collection of charges.