KINGWOOD — Motions for an acquittal and a new trial were denied for a Kingwood man Tuesday. George Elmer Dumire was indicted by the March Grand Jury for delivery of a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of a school, delivery of a controlled substance (Percocet), aiding and abetting/delivery of a controlled substance and two counts of child neglect creating substantial risk of bodily injury.
Belinda Haynie, attorney for Dumire filed motion for acquittal and a new trial. She said the verdict order had mistakes in it, and argued the 10 day rule to file motions for acquittal and a new trial did not begin until the written order was filed.
“We could go months and months without a written order,” Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Megan Allender said. “The deadlines to file the orders were April first and May the 20th. The court doesn’t have jurisdiction outside the rules.”
Allender told the court a motion for judgment of acquittal must be filed within 10 days after the jury is discharged. She said a motion for a new trial must be filed 10 days after a verdict is reached. She said the motions were not filed within that time limit.
“Now the issue comes, does the court permit post-trial motions or deny them and have Mr. Dumire incarcerated?” Judge Steven Shaffer said. “And a Habeas gets filed and we come back in a year or two. I’m going to let you argue your post trial motions.”
Shaffer told Haynie he did not know how previous judges handled the issue of post-trial motions. “I want to make it perfectly clear … In the future the court is going to adhere to rule twenty nine and twenty three.”
Haynie also argued against a recidivist filed by the prosecution. She said a life sentence violates the West Virginia Constitution and is cruel and unusual punishment. She said her client has only three felonies on record, a 37-year -old manslaughter case, a 28-year-old grand larceny case in which the state added a burglary charge and the current court case. Haynie said she believed the recidivist should be dismissed because listing all three felonies was prejudicial against her client.
“I researched that and four, five or ten can be added,” Shaffer said.
He set sentencing for Oct. 10 at 3 p. m.
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