Man accused in beating death wants new lawyer

Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2005 | 9:44 a.m.

A man accused of beating to death a retired Air Force major in a Wal-Mart parking lot asked for a new attorney Monday, claiming his current lawyer is "in cahoots with the district attorney's office."

District Judge Sally Loehrer scheduled an evidentiary hearing for Friday to determine whether Raymond Garrett can continue with Special Public Defender David Schieck as his attorney.

Garrett, 37, faces charges of murder and robbery in the death of 51-year-old Michael Born, who was attacked in a Wal-Mart parking lot at Stewart Avenue and Nellis Boulevard on June 2, 2004.

Born, a retired Air Force major and father of a young daughter, died June 15, 2004, at University Medical Center after being on life support for more than two weeks.

On Monday Garrett said Schieck and Chief Deputy District Attorney Chris Owens are "hiding pictures from the court, making deals with each other, and it just ain't right."

He told Loehrer that without a new attorney he will become another innocent man found guilty.

"I have a lot of friends who are found guilty that are innocent," Garrett said. "He (Schieck) just hides stuff from me on purpose, like police reports and medical reports. They (Schick and Owens) are in cahoots."

Loehrer said the closed hearing will occur outside the presence of Owens and feature testimony from Garrett, Schieck, all investigators and anyone who has worked on Garrett's case to determine if the defendant is being represented ineffectively.

The hearing is closed to Owens because the strategy expected to be employed by Schieck in his defense of Garrett as well as other sensitive issues involving attorney-client privilege are expected to be discussed.

Loehrer said Friday's hearing will be recorded and then sealed, but would become a public record if Garrett were to be convicted.

The judge said her decision to hold the hearing was based on the case of Terrell Young.

A Clark County jury convicted Terrell Young in 1999 in the killings of 20-year-old Tracey Gorringe, 20-year-old Peter Talamantez, 19-year-old Matthew Mowen and 19-year-old Jeffrey Biddle.

But the Nevada Supreme Court, however, ordered a new trial for Young, saying District Judge Joseph Pavlikowski failed to properly address Young's contention that there was animosity and a lack of communication between Young and his court-appointed lawyer, Lew Wolfbrandt.

Young is representing himself for his retrial.

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