Attorney: Did Mawhinney cut deal to help Dulos case?

The attorney for Michelle Troconis is asking a judge to compel state prosecutors to turn over any evidence showing whether Kent Mawhinney was offered a deal to settle domestic violence charges involving his estranged wife in exchange for his cooperation in the Jennifer Dulos case.

In a motion filed Monday in state Superior Court in Hartford, Troconis’ attorney, Jon Schoenhorn, said Hartford State’s Attorney Sharmese Walcott refused to provide the information without a court order.

In the motion, Schoenhorn “asserts that defendant Mawhinney has been identified as a cooperating state’s witness who will be called in the prosecution of cases currently pending against (Troconis) in the Stamford-Norwalk Judicial District in an effort to implicate her in criminal activity.”

The Office of the Chief State’s Attorney did not respond Monday to a request for comment about the motion.

Troconis and Mawhinney have each pleaded not guilty to charges in connection with the May 2019 death and disappearance of Jennifer Dulos.

Fotis Dulos died by suicide in January 2020 while facing murder, kidnapping and other charges after police said he attacked his estranged wife in the garage of her New Canaan home. Jennifer Dulos’ body has never been found, but police said the mother of five is presumed dead based on the evidence they found.

At the time of the disappearance, Mawhinney, a longtime friend and attorney for Fotis Dulos, was facing a sexual assault charge in connection with a January 2019 incident involving his estranged wife in South Windsor. Mawhinney was then charged in July 2019 with violating a protective order.

Mawhinney was charged in January 2020 with conspiracy to commit murder in the Dulos case and held on $2 million bond. Mawhinney, who is accused of trying to create an alibi for Fotis Dulos, was released on a reduced bond in October 2020 — less than two months after Schoenhorn said he spoke with state police investigators. Prosecutors have since said Mawhinney could testify against Troconis if her case goes to trial.

Schoenhorn is trying to discern if Mawhinney was offered a deal in the domestic violence cases in exchange for implicating Troconis, court documents show.

Troconis, who is also free on bond, is facing conspiracy to commit murder, tampering with evidence and hindering prosecution charges.

Schoenhorn said in the motion that Mawhinney is “properly characterized as a ‘jailhouse informant’ whose testimony is automatically suspect.” He also pointed out that the Hartford domestic violence charges “remain active and unresolved” and claims he’s entitled to any information that could question Mawhinney’s credibility to the jurors in the Troconis case.

Schoenhorn is seeking all police reports, statements, admissions, calls or written correspondence from the state Department of Correction between Mawhinney and others when he could have complained about his conditions of confinement and any “tangible” evidence, including recordings, books, papers, documents or photographs collected during the investigation into the domestic violence cases.

Schoenhorn also wants any communications between Mawhinney and prosecutors discussing the possibility that he would get a lighter sentence if he cooperated by providing testimony or evidence against Troconis.

A date has not been set for a hearing on the motion. Mawhinney is scheduled to appear Dec. 22 for a virtual hearing in Hartford Superior Court for the domestic charges.