LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A grand jury has declined to indict a defense attorney with the Louisville Public Defender’s office who was accused of improperly concealing key evidence in a death penalty case.
A special prosecutor out of Gallatin and Boone counties presented a case against Angela Ellemen for allegedly hiding bullet casings linked to the shooting of 15-year-old Gregory Holt for more than six years.
A Louisville grand jury issued a "no true bill" on one count of tampering with physical evidence Monday.
The investigation began in 2018 after Anthony Hogan told prosecutors with the Jefferson Commonwealth’s Attorney's office about the existence of the casings when they were talking with him about testifying against a co-defendant, James Mallory.
The Kenton Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office had the case for about a year before turning it over to Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Jason Hiltz in September. Hiltz said a Louisville Metro Police officer testified in front of the grand jury. He did not make a recommendation on whether to indict to the grand jurors.
The Mallory death penalty trial was delayed and is still pending, in part because of issues with the shells turning up shortly before trial. Mallory's attorneys asked for a criminal investigation into Elleman’s actions.
The attorneys now say Hogan's DNA, not Mallory's, has been found on the casings. The judge in the case has ordered more extensive testing.
Elleman and an investigator dug up the shell casings buried in a tree stump outside a bar in Louisville just months after the April 11, 2012, murder.
Elleman could not immediately be reached for comment Monday.
The former head of the public defender’s office, Dan Goyette, has defended the actions in a previous statement to WDRB News:
“After a careful review of the rather complex legal and evidentiary situation that arose in this case, it’s clear that the actions of Mr. Hogan’s attorneys were directed in the best interests of their client and were consistent with their professional obligations," Goyette said.
The public defender's office represents defendants who cannot afford an attorney.
After Elleman and an investigator dug up the shell casings, they were put in a safe at the public defender’s office.
Hogan claims he saw Mallory bury the shell casings after Holt was shot to death in his mother’s apartment near Dixie Highway and East Rockford Lane.
Elleman posted a picture on social media in 2013 showing her in the tree stump with the evidence.
Holt was a student at Farnsley Middle School. Prosecutors have said Holt’s mother, Kendra Wilson, participated in a robbery and attempted execution of Mallory hours earlier, and that Mallory shot the teen while trying to retaliate against Wilson.
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