1/28/13 - An attorney has formally requested that the Michigan Court of Appeals to reverse a local decision disqualifying him from representing two women charged with illegally selling synthetic marijuana in Genoa Township. Defense Attorney Timothy Corr filed the appeal on Friday. It follows a November ruling by 53rd District Court Judge Suzanne Geddis, which deemed it would be a conflict of interest for him to represent both clients - the owner of Smokers Depot, 41-year-old Ronda Lee Roszak as well as the storeâs manager, 27-year-old Melissa Ann Dzierwa. Geddis made the ruling after the Livingston County Prosecutorâs Office said it planned to offer a plea deal to one of the two suspects. Corr originally appealed that ruling to Livingston County Circuit Court Judge Michael Hatty, but he upheld it. In his filing (posted below) with the state appeals court, Corr said that the circuit court had âerroneously construed the law, and perpetuated the district court's abuse of discretion,â in violation of his clients rights under the Sixth Amendment. Corr says both women have already consulted with separate attorneys and have no plans to accept any plea deal and none has been formally offered. They maintain that the material which State Police confiscated during a raid last April had been purchased at a trade show along with a lab report indicating it did not contain any illegal chemicals. In the meantime, their preliminary exam is on hold. (JK)
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