Slaying witness a no-show; mistrial declared

By Matt Pordum (contact)

Thursday, Dec. 9, 2004 | 11:17 a.m.

Alleged murderer Joe Armstead has been granted a mistrial after an alleged eyewitness to the slaying with which he was charged failed to appear in court to answer questions from Armstead's defense attorney.

April Register, who said she saw 63-year-old Armstead shoot 48-year-old David "Indian Dave" Leal on July 17 at Leal's trailer home, had testified Tuesday after the district attorney's investigators found her playing video poker at a 7-Eleven, according to Armstead's lawyer, Special Public Defender David Schieck.

Schieck said Register had failed to respond to a subpoena to testify and investigators had been looking for her for weeks. After contacting her by cell phone the investigators heard video poker and slot machines in the background as well as a sound they recognized as that of a convenience store door opening.

Acting under the belief she would be at a convenience store near the area in which investigators believe she lives, the investigators began searching store after store in the area of Charleston and Lamb boulevards. The investigators found her at a 7-Eleven, "cleaned her up" and got her on the witness stand within an hour of finding her, Schieck said.

Although she testified on Tuesday, she failed to appear on Wednesday and subsequently denied Armstead his right to confront an eyewitness via cross-examination of his attorney.

Schieck said a new trial date has been scheduled before District Judge Valorie Vega on Jan. 31.

After talking to the jury after the mistrial was granted, Schieck might have wished the trial continued.

"I talked to the jury afterward and they said if they (the prosecutors) could prove he (Armstead) brought the gun with him (to Leal's trailer home) they were prepared to acquit him," Schieck said.

Prosecutors allege Armstead came to Leal's trailer at the Desert Paradise Mobile Home Park at 4070 Las Vegas Blvd. North, and fatally shot him in the chest after an argument.

Deputy District Attorney Christopher Lee said witnesses heard Armstead telling Leal to give him money.

Lee said the witnesses would also testify that before Armstead fled, he stood over Leal's body still holding the gun.

Schieck argued Armstead was guilty of nothing aside from getting into a "struggle" with the deceased.

Schieck said Armstead didn't bring a gun to Leal's home and that none of the four eyewitnesses the prosecution would call could testify to seeing Armstead arrive with a gun.

He had argued that the gun belonged to Leal and during the struggle the gun went off leaving Leal dead.