Attorneys seek new bond for EMT accused in Moore death and family's lawyer remarks removed

An amended motion filed by the attorney for a Springfield paramedic accused of the first-degree murder of Earl L. Moore Jr. on Dec. 18 is again seeking to have her $1 million bond reduced.

W. Scott Hanken, who represents Peggy Jill Finley, also wants to have statements made by attorney Jennifer Hightower on behalf of Moore's family at a Feb. 6 hearing stricken from the trial record.

Finley and co-defendant Peter Cadigan, an emergency medical technician who also worked for LifeStar Ambulance Service, Inc., appeared before Circuit Court Judge Robin Schmidt via camera from the Sangamon County Jail Monday afternoon.

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Finley now has an April 5 court date during which both sides will argue the bond reduction motion filed Friday. Finley and Cadigan have a pre-trial hearing over two motions filed by prosecutors last month.

There also is a 9:30 a.m. court hearing in Springfield Wednesday on the wrongful death lawsuit filed against Finley, Cadigan and LifeStar.

Schmidt refused to lower both defendants' bonds at the Feb. 6 hearing.

Justin Kuehn of Belleville, appearing for Cadigan Monday, said he didn't intend to file a motion to have Cadigan's bond, also set at $1 million, reduced.

Moore died of compression and positional asphyxiation, according to a forensic pathologist.

Finley and Cadigan responded to Moore's North 11th Street home after being summoned by Springfield Police early on the morning of Dec. 18. The state has alleged the paramedics strapped Moore tightly to a gurney and then slammed his face into the prone position, which is how he was transported to HSHS St. John's Hospital. Footage from body cameras worn by three police officers was released to the public.

In the amended motion, Hanken said allowing Hightower to make any statement to the court was "highly improper, unsupported by law and completely out of the scope of (the Crime Victims Bill of Rights)."

Hanken and attorneys for Cadigan had objected to Schmidt at the Feb. 6 hearing to letting Hightower speak. Hightower, who works for a Corpus Christi, Texas, law firm, is one of the attorneys representing Moore's family and estate, along with civil rights attorney Ben Crump, in the wrongful death lawsuit.

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Last month, Sangamon County state's attorney Dan Wright filed two motions in the case, one calling out Hanken and Cadigan's attorneys for ignoring the principle that "parallel criminal, civil and administrative proceedings are not mutually exclusive."

Hightower, a former Madison County judge, spoke about the impact Moore's death has had on his family. Moore's mother, Rosena Washington, and two of his sisters, Chatara Moore and Mahogany Moore, were at Feb. 6 hearing.

"This family is devastated," Hightower told the court.

Hightower said while bond "is not punitive," the case was being allowed to proceed as a first-degree murder charge.

Hanken's motion stated there is no law to support a private attorney not representing the State or the defense making a "victim impact statement" prior to a sentencing hearing.

Hanken argued the address in the criminal case was in "conflict" because Hightower has a financial stake in the wrongful death lawsuit.

"We didn't believe (the statement) was proper then and don't believe it's proper now," Hanken said Saturday. "It was over and above what a victim impact statement would be anyway if it was proper at that juncture."

Hightower did not immediately respond for comment. Wright did not comment for the record on the motion.

Because Hightower's statement was made at a bond hearing, Hanken wants that issue reassigned before a different judge if the record is struck.

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As he did at the Feb. 6 hearing, Hanken noted in the motion that he didn't think a cash bond was necessary for Finley, 46, to appear for future court dates. He added that she doesn't pose "any legitimate danger to the community or any individual...and she is not a flight risk."

Hanken has called the of filing first-degree murder charges against Finley and Cadigan "a stretch" and that the State was trying to turn "an alleged medical malpractice into a crime."

If bond is reassigned, Hanken asked it to be lowered to $600,000, 10% of which would apply to have her released.

Hanken said Finley was scheduled to have a non-elective surgical procedure in January that was postponed due to her arrest. The motion is seeking a private discussion between Finley and Schmidt about the matter.

Contact Steven Spearie: (217) 622-1788, sspearie@sj-r.com, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Peggy Jill Finley's attorneys again seek to have her bond reduced