Lengthy hearing in Turlock murder could end next month

A preliminary hearing that began nearly 16 months ago could come to an end next month in the case of Modesto Attorney Frank Carson and five others charged in the slaying of Korey Kauffman.

Judge Barbara Zuniga on Tuesday afternoon scheduled closing arguments in the preliminary hearing to begin March 7. The hearing’s purpose is to determine whether there’s sufficient evidence for the defendants to stand trial.

Carson is being prosecuted with his wife, Georgia DeFilippo; her daughter, Christina DeFilippo; Baljit Athwal and his brother Daljit Atwal; and former California Highway Patrol Officer Walter Wells. Christina DeFilippo is charged with conspiracy to obstruct justice and being an accessory; the other defendants each face a charge of murder.

Kauffman, a 26-year-old Turlock man, went missing in late March 2012. His remains were found in August 2013 in the Stanislaus National Forest in Mariposa County.

Carson is accused of being the ringleader of a criminal conspiracy to thwart thieves from repeatedly stealing antiques and scrap metal from his property on Ninth Street in Turlock.

The prosecution believes Carson recruited a group of people to send a violent message to burglars, which resulted in Kauffman’s death after he was caught stealing. The defense believes this is a case of wrongful prosecution by vindictive prosecutors intent on ruining a prominent criminal defense attorney who has been successful in defending his clients.

Zuniga said she anticipates making a ruling for two or three of the defendants as soon as arguments end. The judge said she’ll need two or three days to consider the arguments and the evidence before returning with her ruling.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Marlisa Ferreira said her closing argument should last up to a day and a half. Percy Martinez, Carson’s attorney, said he would need about the same amount of time for his closing argument.

Martha Carlton-Magaña, Baljit Athwal’s attorney, and Hans Hjertonsson, Daljit Atwal’s attorney, said they each would need about half of a day for their closing arguments. Timothy Rien, Wells’ attorney, will need a few hours, the judge said.

Robert Forkner, Christina DeFilippo’s attorney, told the judge he’ll need two hours, and Jesse Garcia, Georgia DeFilippo’s attorney, said he’ll need an hour.

On Tuesday morning, an audit was completed on all the evidence the prosecution has collected in the case. The court had ordered the prosecution to examine its case files and determine whether all evidence for the preliminary hearing had been handed over to the defense.

Ferreira said an independent auditor worked with prosecution officials, examining seven computer hard drives and analyzing 98,094 video and audio recordings. The prosecutor said she can say with certainty that 1,095 computer disks with information have been handed over to the defense, along with 32,000 documents.

“I believe that covers everything,” Ferreira told the judge.

On Tuesday morning, the prosecutor read through a list of evidence that had not been given to the defense but had been offered in other formats, such as video recordings and written transcripts. Prosecutors began handing over the evidence on Dec. 30. Ferreira also said they found on Tuesday morning phone records and reports not previously provided to the defense, which would be handed over by the end of the day.

In late December, Judge Zuniga abruptly released Carson, Atwal and Athwal on their own recognizance after prosecutors revealed they had located more evidence not handed over to the defense. Wells was released from jail Dec. 13 on $50,000 bail after the prosecution said it will only seek felony charges of conspiracy to obstruct justice and acting as an accessory after the alleged murder was committed.

Carlton-Magaña on Tuesday argued that the newly discovered evidence from the prosecution was not provided in a timely manner, and the defense can no longer appropriately use it to impeach witnesses. She said all the information the prosecution has recently handed over included exculpatory evidence.

The defense attorney offered to waive her client’s right to present closing arguments and asked the judge to decide immediately whether a trial is needed. “I wish this preliminary hearing to end. I want a ruling now,” Carlton-Magaña said in court.

The judge asked the other attorneys how they wanted to proceed. Zuniga reminded the defense attorneys to advise their clients of their rights to present closing arguments and more time to examine the newly discovered evidence.

Forkner said he was ready to proceed as soon as they could examine an interview from Robert Lee Woody, who also was charged in Kauffman’s death but has agreed to a plea deal in exchange for his testimony against his co-defendants. But Forkner later changed his mind and asked the judge for a ruling on Tuesday morning.

Zuniga quickly responded to the defense attorneys “Be careful what you wish for, folks.”

By Tuesday afternoon, the defense attorneys agreed to delay the hearing for a few weeks.

This story was originally published February 7, 2017 at 4:18 PM with the headline "Lengthy hearing in Turlock murder could end next month."