Jury pools from two counties will be called instead of moving bribery case
Judge doesn’t grant change of venue for Amanda Milsap, but comes up with backup jury plan for a case that got tangled up in an alleged plot to kill Judge Steve Meyer.
Support for this edition comes from State Bank. Since 1910, State Bank has helped local businesses grow and communities move forward. With decisions made right here and relationships built for the long term, their team works alongside businesses across Greater Lafayette to turn plans into progress. Learn more about how State Bank supports local businesses at https://www.statebank1910.bank/business-tippecanoe
Support for this edition also comes from the Purdue Presidential Lecture Series. Purdue University invites the Greater Lafayette community to the Presidential Lecture Series featuring Shantanu Narayen, chair and CEO of Adobe, on March 25 at 4 p.m. in Stewart Center’s Fowler Hall. The conversation will explore the next wave of artificial intelligence and how it’s reshaping the future of creativity, productivity and digital experiences across industries. This event is free and open to the public, with a general admission ticket required. Learn more and reserve your free ticket: https://www.purdue.edu/president/lecture-series/a-conversation-with-shantanu-narayen/
First up, this week’s 20% off deal on your first year of Based in Lafayette continues through Friday. That’s one more day. The offer is good on monthly or annual full-access subscriptions, including today’s edition. To get it, here’s the way in …
JURY POOLS FROM TWO COUNTIES WILL BE CALLED INSTEAD OF MOVING BRIBERY CASE
Two jury pools, one in Tippecanoe County and another from Cass County, will be called for the April trial of Amanda Milsap, a Lafayette woman accused of bribing a witness in an alleged effort to derail a trial of her former husband, a judge said Thursday.
Judge Lisa Swaim – a special judge from Cass County assigned to Milsap’s case and those of four charged with attempted murder in a Jan. 18 shooting of Tippecanoe County Superior Court 2 Judge Steve Meyer and his wife, Kim – said the plan allowed her to hold off on Milsap’s request to move the trial away from high-profile headlines and social media surrounding the case.
Swaim said the arrangement would be a way to keep a trial in Tippecanoe County, where she said it should be, while setting up a backup plan if picking an impartial jury from a local pool proves to be too difficult.
A trial that had been set to start April 8 will move to April 6 to accommodate the two-jury pool, according to a schedule set Thursday.
“I think it’s a great idea,” Earl McCoy, Milsap’s attorney, told Swaim during a pre-trial hearing held in Tippecanoe Circuit Court – the first session held in Lafayette since arrests were made in late-January.
“We may be wasting an extra day,” McCoy said. “But as long as we have a backup jury from Cass County.”
Milsap attended Thursday’s hearing in jail scrubs and shackles, under heavy security. She didn’t testify Thursday, but she turned frequently to smile to family members she hasn’t been allowed to see since she was charged. She’s been held on $500,000 cash and $1 million surety bonds with conditions that she could have no communication with anyone beyond her attorney while awaiting trial.
Milsap, who requested a speedy trial, is aimed to be the first to face a jury for her role in what was alleged to have turned into an extended plot.
Thursday’s hearing sorted out more than questions about where the trial would be held.
