Judge to determine if woman gets conviction overturned
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – A judge in Tennessee will determine if a woman convicted of killing her husband should get a new trial because of the misdeeds of the judge who presided over her case.
The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that Senior Judge Paul Summers wrapped up the three-day hearing in the case of Raynella Dossett Leath on Wednesday and said he will issue a ruling in the coming weeks.
Leath was convicted in the shooting death of her second husband, David Leath. Attorney Rebecca Legrand, who represents Leath, has argued that Knox County Criminal Court Judge Richard Baumgartner’s drug addiction tainted her client’s 2010 trial.
An investigation by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation found that Baumgartner was addicted to opiates. Legrand also argued that Baumgartner was asleep on the bench during the trial.
