At the request of the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, 176th District Judge Shawna Reagin of Houston yesterday dismissed an arson charge and a criminal mischief charge against Francisca Medina, the wife of Texas Supreme Court Justice David Medina. The two felony charges were dismissed due to insufficient evidence. In April 2008, Francisca Medina was indicted in connection with the June 28, 2007, fire that damaged the Medinas’ home and a neighboring home in Spring. Steve Baldassano, the assistant DA handling the case since January, says his office didn’t have sufficient evidence to prove arson. “We couldn’t eliminate an electrical malfunction,” says Baldassano. Francisca Medina’s attorney, Dick DeGuerin, says that last week he provided the DA’s office with a report prepared by independent fire experts who found that the evidence did not prove arson. “Our experts believe that it could not be called an arson fire,” DeGuerin says. Baldassano says the fire investigators DeGuerin hired are often used by the DA’s office, and “you have to keep an open mind to see if new evidence comes up.” The dismissal averted a trial set for October. DeGuerin, a partner in DeGuerin & Dickson, gives DA Pat Lykos’ administration credit for doing the right thing by dismissing the charges. “The fact is she [Francisca Medina] should have never been indicted,” DeGuerin says. In January 2008, Justice Medina was indicted by a Harris County grand jury along with his wife, but those charges were quickly dismissed after former DA Chuck Rosenthal’s office determined there was insufficient evidence. Francisca Medina was indicted three months later after a second grand jury heard evidence in the case.
UPDATE: Justice David Medina says of the dismissal, “We’re absolutely elated with that great news. . . . There’s nowhere we can go to get our name back. We’ll continue to live our life and move forward. It’s a new beginning. We’re thankful to God and to our friends throughout the country who prayed for us. Those friendships never wavered during these difficult times.” Medina declines to say specifically how much money the couple spent fighting the criminal charges. "It’s a lot of money. It’s a substantial amount of money.”
-- Brenda Sapino Jeffreys and John Council
It's great to hear from you and see what you've been up to. In your blog I feel your enthusiasm for life. thank you.
Posted by: Links of London UK | March 04, 2012 at 02:22 AM