Published: April 28, 2009 06:06 pm      

Update: Judge recuses himself in new trial motion

San Marcos — District Judge Jack Robison recused himself on Tuesday from an action involving a motion for a new trial in a steroid case, citing the possibility that the matter could develop into charges being pressed against an officer of the court.

At issue was testimony from Hays County Assistant District Attorney Lynn Peach, who said on the stand that she believed some elements of an affidavit for a search warrant were misrepresented or even false.

"We have investigated the allegations made by Ms. Peach and feel strongly that the law and the facts show no misconduct in the prosecution of this case," District Attorney Sherri Tibbe said in a press release Tuesday afternon. "The guiding principal of this office is to ensure that justice is administered in a fair and ethical manner."

Defendant Shawn Shipman was arrested in October 2007 for possession of illegal steroids and in March of this year he pled guilty and was sentenced to a state jail.

Shipman filed the motion for a new trial April 7 through his attorney David Watts.

But Peach, called in to help fellow Assistant District Attorney Chris Johnson and San Marcos Police Detective Laray Taylor, said elements of the affidavit that claimed to be from a “concerned citizen” sounded more like the work of a “confidential informant.”

Peach said someone classified as a “concerned citizen” usually has long-term ties to the community and has a higher “degree of reliability,” than a “confidential informant,” which she described as someone “inherently unreliable” who often has ties to the criminal activity on which they are reporting.

A “confidential informant,” she said, “is someone who is involved in the drug trade who is getting something for what they’re giving.”

Peach testified she asked Taylor who the concerned citizen was and he identified her as a former girlfriend of Shipman’s who had been arrested on drug charges.

She further testified that she didn’t believe Johnson when he told her he did not know who the concerned citizen was. “I thought, holy smokes, he’s lying. He knows exactly who that girl is.”

Peach testified the girl had been arrested for possession of drug paraphernalia on Sept. 25, 2007 and Shipman was arrested Oct.. 27. “Part of my concern was that short period of time,” she testified.

Under questioning from Watts, Peach testified that she believed both Johnson and Taylor were involved in the misrepresentations.

Because of her concerns, she said she felt “obligated” to notify Watts.

Under his questioning, Peach admitted she’s in an awkward position. When Watts asked if she felt she’d “blown the whistle,” she responded, “I guess so.”

Peach testified that after she informed Watts of her concerns, there were a number of “closed door meetings,” and “a lot of activity” within the district attorney’s office.

“I’m not going to sit as a judge, it’s not proper,” Robison said, cutting off Assistant District Attorney Cathy Compton before she could cross-examine Peach. Robison added it was a matter of legal procedure, and his recusal wasn’t meant to reflect whether or not Peach’s testimony was truthful.

Peach testified that she has been a prosecutor since 1994, and came to the Hays County DA’s office in February.

"Our office and our prosecutors are held to the highest ethical standard. We are confident that, at the conclusion of this hearing, the Court will agree that there was no misconduct," Tibbe said.

Watts declined to comment outside the courtroom.