Prosecutors in the trial of the State vs Anthony Scott have been ordered to speak during a criminal contempt of court inquiry filed this week in the Superior Court Of Carroll County.
The court is investigating the way prosecutors handled the case, which was ruled a mistrial in May by Judge John Simpson.
Former Georgia State Trooper Anthony “A.J.” Scott faced multiple charges in court including vehicular homicide after investigators said that while on duty he had driven 90 mph in a 55-mph zone moments before crashing into a Nissan Sentra with four teenagers inside.
In declaring a mistrial, Simpson alleged that prosecutors failed to turn over all evidence in the case to the defense, violating ScottÂ’s right to a fair trial.
The Court has ordered District Attorney Herb Cranford, Assistant DAÂ’s Lara Myers and Matthew Swope, as well as State Troopers Chad Barrow and Brandon Stone to appear for the inquiry. Barrow and Stone had met with the District AttorneyÂ’s office before the trial had begun and presented a new theory in the crash. ScottÂ’s defense claimed they had no knowledge of the new information until after closing arguments and jurors were in deliberation.
According to documents obtained by WLBB Radio, the purpose of the hearing will be to inform the court whether contempt proceedings will move forward against any or all of those called as witnesses. The court is seeking information regarding a video presented during the StateÂ’s closing argument and the details of the circumstances giving rise to the ultimate mistrial. The court filing states at this hearing, the Court will conduct an inquiry into the potentially contumacious actions of Cranford, Myers and Swope, that occurred before, during and after the trial of AJ Scott.
The criminal contempt of court inquiry is set for July tenth.
District Attorney Cranford and Judge Simpson declined comment on Wednesday.
