Opinion ID: 2567455
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: factual setting of the state's motion to disqualify mr. maughan's lawyers

Text: ¶2 Wade Maughan was charged with murder in the first degree, a capital offense, and aggravated robbery for killing Bradley Perry, a convenience store clerk in Perry, Utah, in May 1984. Mr. Maughan awaits trial on these and other charges in Box Elder County, Utah, while his choice of counsel remains in doubt. ¶3 Mr. Maughan came to the attention of law enforcement authorities after DNA testing matched blood at the murder scene to that of Glen Griffin. During their investigation of the Griffin case, Box Elder County detectives interviewed Mr. Maughan in Spokane, Washington. Mr. Maughan told the detectives that he helped Mr. Griffin plan the robbery of the convenience store and was present when Mr. Griffin killed Mr. Perry. With this statement in hand, the State charged Mr. Maughan with murder in the first degree, a capital offense, and aggravated robbery. ¶4 Mr. Maughan is an indigent individual facing a possible capital sentence, and rule 8 of the Utah Rules of Criminal Procedure guarantees him the assistance of at least two court-appointed defense attorneys who are proficient in the trial of capital cases. Richard Mauro and Scott Williams, both members of the disappointingly small corps of attorneys in Utah who have sought and attained eligibility to represent defendants in capital cases, agreed to take on Mr. Maughan's representation. ¶5 On December 5, 2005, within hours of being engaged to represent Mr. Maughan, Mr. Mauro and Ted Cilwick, an investigator, traveled to Spokane to interview those close to Mr. Maughan, including Mr. Maughan's girlfriend, Lorraine Rima, and another friend, Randy Wagar. At the same time, the Spokane Police Department, at the request of the Box Elder County Sheriff's Office, also sought out the same witnesses. ¶6 Mere hours before Mr. Mauro and Mr. Cilwick's flight was scheduled to arrive in Spokane, Detective Mark Burbridge of the Spokane Police Department interviewed Ms. Rima. During the interview, Ms. Rima identified Mr. Wagar as a mutual friend of Mr. Maughan's and hers. She said that during a visit at the jail, Mr. Maughan told Mr. Wagar that he had been present during the robbery and murder of Mr. Perry. Ms. Rima told Detective Burbridge where to find Mr. Wagar. After concluding the interview with Ms. Rima, Detective Burbridge went to Mr. Wagar's residence and, failing to contact him there, left a business card. ¶7 That same evening, Mr. Mauro and Mr. Cilwick met with Ms. Rima, Mr. Wagar, and Alta Raney, Mr. Wagar's mother. The details of their conversation are a matter of some dispute. Mr. Mauro and Mr. Cilwick apparently advised the three individuals against talking to anyone, which allegedly was taken to include the police. ¶8 The next day, Detective Burbridge received a voicemail from Mr. Wagar expressing a willingness to talk. When Detective Burbridge and a colleague met with Mr. Wagar later that day, Mr. Wagar had changed his mind. By Detective Burbridge's account, Mr. Wagar said that Mr. Maughan's attorneys advised him not to talk to the police. After Detective Burbridge explained that, as a witness, Mr. Wagar could be charged with obstruction of justice for refusing to talk to the police, Mr. Wagar relented. He told the detectives that Mr. Maughan had said that he, Mr. Griffin, and an unnamed third man had entered the convenience store and that Mr. Griffin had stabbed Mr. Perry after an argument over ten dollars. Detective Burbridge returned to Ms. Rima's house and discovered that she, too, had met with Mr. Maughan's attorneys and was unwilling to talk to the police. ¶9 A Spokane police officer contacted Mr. Mauro and Mr. Cilwick that evening to question them about their contact with the witnesses. Mr. Mauro allegedly refused to discuss the matter. The police officer arrested Mr. Mauro and Mr. Cilwick, accusing them of witness tampering. The men were later released. According to the State, the State of Washington was required to charge Mr. Mauro and Mr. Cilwick within ninety days of their arrest. More than two years have now passed since the arrest, and no charges have been filed against either man. ¶10 The Spokane detectives returned to Mr. Wagar's house two days later and learned that additional members of the defense team-Mr. Williams and an investigator named Charles Schlessingerhad visited Mr. Wagar. According to Mr. Wagar, Mr. Williams and Mr. Schlessinger explained that there had been a misunderstanding and that Mr. Wagar should feel free to talk to the police. Whatever the precise content of the conversations between the witnesses, Mr. Maughan's lawyers, and investigators may have been, all of the witnesses were soon willing to, and in fact did, talk freely to the police.