Penalty phase delayed in Bell trial

• By STEVEN WARD
• Advocate staff writer
• Published: Apr 13, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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The penalty phase of convicted killer Anthony Bell’s murder trial was set to begin at noon Saturday, but was postponed to Monday after Bell decided to stop acting as his own attorney and have the judge reappoint two public defenders Bell fired in February.

A jury convicted Bell on five counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted first-degree murder late Friday night after four days of testimony and more than two hours of deliberations.

Bell was found guilty of killing four of his in-laws at the Ministry of Jesus Christ Church on Dallas Drive in May 2006 and then kidnapping his wife and shooting her to death at a nearby apartment complex.

Bell also was convicted of wounding with gunfire his mother-in-law, who was also the church’s pastor.

When court began Saturday, Bell asked District Judge Todd Hernandez to allow him to withdraw as his own defense counsel and to reappoint public defenders Greg Rome and Margaret Lagattuta to handle the penalty phase of the trial.

Prosecutors Mark Dumaine and Aaron Brooks are seeking the death penalty.

Because it’s Bell’s Sixth Amendment right to represent himself or be provided attorneys for his defense, Hernandez granted Bell’s request to reinstate Rome and Lagattuta as his attorneys.

However, prosecutors Dumaine and Brooks strongly objected to the move if would cause any kind of delay in the next phase of the trial.

Rome told Judge Hernandez he and Lagattuta were not prepared to take over Bell’s defense and need at least 60 days to get ready for the penalty phase of Bell’s trial.

“There is no way I can move forward on this judge. It would be unethical and impossible,” Rome said to Hernandez after Hernandez reinstated Rome and Lagattuta.

Rome also told the judge he and Lagattuta not only were not prepared to represent Bell, but they would be “totally ineffective” as legal counsel for the defendant if forced to take over the defense on such short notice.

Hernandez recessed the court and retired to his chambers and deliberated for more than two hours about what course of action to take.

When Hernandez returned to the bench, he told Bell, the defense attorneys and the prosecutors that he would postpone the penalty phase until 8:30 a.m. Monday.