The court case of a man accused of assaulting Black Lives Matter protesters in Murray with a chemical spray last summer could enter mediation.
The Murray Ledger and Times newspaper reports the defense attorney Marc Wells, who represents David Frymire, said in a court hearing on Tuesday that he is willing to mediate with the prosecution to resolve the case ahead of a potential trial.
McCracken County Circuit Court Judge Tony Kitchen is overseeing the case as a special judge after another circuit court judge previously overseeing the case, Jamie Jameson, stepped away from the case, according to the report.
Wells had filed a motion to dismiss the case on the grounds that the prosecution had failed to meet a deadline to comply with the gathering of discovery. Kitchen denied the motion, arguing in part that a delay in discovery gathering wasn’t a reason to dismiss the case, according to the report.
In a phone interview, 42nd Circuit Commonwealth’s Attorney Dennis Foust said the next court hearing has been set for August 12 to allow time for a resolution “that works out for everyone” or to set dates for a potential trial.
“Something that the prosecution is comfortable with and the defense is comfortable with,” Foust said. “Anytime you can resolve a case and get an outcome that has certainty that is fair to everyone, then certainly we’d strive for that.”
Defense attorney Marc Wells did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the potential mediation.
Madeline Wesselmann contributed to this report.
Liam Niemeyer is a reporter for the Ohio Valley Resource covering agriculture and infrastructure in Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia and also serves Assistant News Director at WKMS. He has reported for public radio stations across the country from Appalachia to Alaska, most recently as a reporter for WOUB Public Media in Athens, Ohio. He is a recent alumnus of Ohio University and enjoys playing tenor saxophone in various jazz groups.
