Special prosecutor appointed in dragging-death case

Special prosecutor appointed in dragging-death case
By JEFF CARLTON
Associated Press
Nov. 13, 2008, 4:38PM

DALLAS — The district attorney prosecuting a racially charged dragging death in East Texas has recused himself because he once represented one of the murder suspects, leading to the appointment of a special prosecutor, officials said Thursday.
Before he held public office, Lamar County and District Attorney Gary Young was the court-appointed lawyer for one of the suspects in the September death of 24-year-old Brandon McClelland. Authorities said that suspect and another man, who are both white, purposely ran over McClelland, a black man, following an argument on the way home from a late-night beer run Sept. 16.
McClelland's body was dragged about 70 feet beneath a pickup truck and dismembered by the trauma near Paris, about 95 miles northeast of Dallas.
McClelland's mother, members of the New Black Panther Party, the Nation of Islam and other groups have compared the killing to the notorious dragging death of James Byrd 10 years ago in Jasper. Activists have planned a Monday rally at the Lamar County Courthouse.
In 2003, Young defended Shannon Finley, who was charged with murder and eventually pleaded guilty to manslaughter for fatally shooting a friend in the head. Finley served four years in prison.
Activists said the appointment of former Dallas prosecutor Toby Shook is a victory for McClelland's family, who had argued that Young's prior defense of Finley should disqualify him. Young had originally assigned the case to an assistant, but McClelland's mother said she thought the DA would still be able to exert influence.
"I think he should have recused himself," said Brenda Cherry, a Paris community activist who is close to McClelland's mother. "I had a concern he wouldn't be fair."
Shook agreed with Young's decision, saying "it's usually best in these situations to recuse yourself, although he didn't necessarily have to do so."
Lamar County spokesman Allan Hubbard declined to comment. There was no answer at the home of McClelland's mother, and McClelland's father did not immediately respond to a message from The Associated Press.
Finley and Charles Crostley remain in the Lamar County Jail on bonds totally $800,000 and $525,000, respectively, according to online jail records.
They have not been indicted. The grand jury met Thursday but Shook did not present the case because he said he is still getting familiar with its details. The grand jury next convenes Dec. 11, and Shook said he expects to seek indictments then.
Shook is a former assistant district attorney in Dallas County. He successfully tried the escaped prisoners who became known as the notorious "Texas Seven" after they killed an Irving police officer while they were on the lam in 2000. Shook lost the 2006 election for district attorney to current Dallas County DA Craig Watkins and is now in private practice.
The special prosecutor said he has not decided whether he believes the McClelland killing was racially motivated. In Texas, a determination of racial bias in a crime can increase penalties, but not for murder charges. Such a finding, however, would be a symbolic victory for McClelland's family and activists, who said he was targeted because he was an African-American.
Deric Muhammad, a Nation of Islam member who is monitoring the case, praised the Shook appointment as "a step in the direction of justice."
"If this case is prosecuted fairly and not tinged with the racism and bias that has haunted Paris and Lamar County for decades, it could very well represent a start in a healing process for Blacks, as well as concerned Whites in Paris," Muhammad wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
Shook said he is not worried about taking over such a charged case.
"It doesn't bother me to step into a case with a lot of emotion in it," Shook said. "Most murder cases do have a lot of emotion."

Source:

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/6111023.html