Hearing to dismiss homicide conspiracy charge continued
The attorney for a Butler man accused of helping burn and hide a woman's body after his friend allegedly shot her is asking a Butler County judge to dismiss a felony charge of criminal conspiracy to commit homicide.
James E. Howard-George, 23, was charged with conspiracy to commit homicide and misdemeanor counts of abuse of a corpse and tampering with physical evidence after allegedly helping Ishemer Ramsey, 21, dispose of the remains of Melissa Barto, 26, after Ramsey allegedly shot her to death on June 8.
On June 12, Barto's partially burned body was found by a farmer in a field in Lawrence County.
A hearing was scheduled Friday before President Judge Thomas Doerr, after Howard-George's attorney Assistant Public Defender Charles Nedz filed a motion in October to quash the homicide conspiracy charge, but the hearing was continued. A new date has not yet been scheduled.
That motion states that the homicide conspiracy charge is not supported by the allegations made by prosecutors because Howard-George's alleged involvement came after Barto was already dead.
The motion also contains a request for additional time to file pretrial motions, on the argument that discovery — consisting of 668 pages of documents and a thumb drive containing numerous interview, videos, photographs and cell phone records — was received by the defense Oct. 5, and additional time is needed to review that information and determine what issues should be raised.
Assistant District Attorney Terry Schultz told Doerr that additional discovery — in the form of autopsy photographs and ballistics reports — would be forthcoming and provided to the defense.
Doerr allowed the extra time, setting the filing deadline for March 1.
Nedz also requested an additional status conference be scheduled, which Doerr set for Feb. 22.
Howard-George continues to be held without bail in Armstrong County Prison, where he was transferred Monday.
