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Judge won’t recuse herself from Hannah Graham’s murder trial

Posted at 12:29 AM, Jun 26, 2015
and last updated 2015-06-26 12:46:47-04

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — An Albemarle judge refused to recuse herself from the capital murder trial of Jesse Matthew.  Matthew’s defense team argued Judge Cheryl Higgins could not be fair or impartial.  Judge Higgins denied their motion. Matthew’s trial date was set for July 5, 2016. It was expected to run until July 29.

Higgins, the defense said, authorized 25 of the 54 search warrants early on in the case.  Capital Defense attorney Douglas Ramseur, displayed a binder and told the judge his team had a "voluminous" amount of evidence to review in this case.   Albemarle Commonwealth's Attorney, Denise Lunsford argued, only five of those warrants, phone taps, directly impacted Matthew.

"Out of an abundance of precaution she (Judge Higgins) would allow another judge to hear any issue related to search warrants that were issued by her.  She did not feel like she was unable to make a decision and the Commonwealth appreciates her consideration of these matters," said, Lunsford.

Lunsford, who wore an "HG" pin in honor of Hannah Graham, and all of those who searched for her and worked to apprehend a suspect in this case, stressed the importance of reassuring the community that the matter is being presided over by a judge who is in the community.

"The Commonwealth thought it was important that the regularly sitting Albemarle County Circuit court judge, who is Judge Higgins, be the judge in this case," stated, Lunsford.

Ramseur, also argued, Judge Higgins has a "child exactly situated as Miss Graham was." Judge Higgins has a daughter who is a second year student at the University of Virginia and her daughter attended a vigil for Graham one week after she was reported missing.  Higgins said, she had no knowledge of her daughter attending the vigil until asked by the defense in its motion to recuse.  Her daughter, Higgins said, was simply supporting a fellow University of Virginia student.

When initially questioned about her ability to be fair, Higgins said that to the best of her knowledge, neither family members nor herself were involved in the investigation, nor did they have a personal or professional relationship with the Grahams.  Matthew is accused of murdering Graham last fall.

Lunsford argued, that the undergraduate student body at UVa exceeds 14,000, and that Higgins' having a daughter the same age at the same school does not create an implication of bias against the defendant.

Ramseur stated, this case "is under a microscope" and that "a cloud will always be over this case" if Higgins did not recuse herself.  He urged Higgins, to get the case off on the "right foot."  While objecting to Higgins ruling to not recuse herself, Ramseur stated, your honor needed to be in whole or nothing and that it would be "inviting error when none was needed."  Ramseur said the case could be "infected."

Jesse Matthew's mother, sister, father and girlfriend were in court Thursday.  Hannah Graham's parents were not present.

Gil Harrington, the mother of murdered Virginia Tech student Morgan Harrington, attended the pre-trial hearing along with Morgan's former professor, Jane Lillian Vance and lifelong friend, Lindsey Crisp.  Matthew has been linked by DNA to Harrington on the 2009 night she disappeared after leaving UVa's John Paul Jones Arena.  Matthew has not been charged in that case.

"I'm trying to hold on to disappointment.  In a way it made me feel like bursting into tears, because, I feel like this has gone on so long and I really want to get to a place of completion," said, Harrington.   "I realize also though, it's never going to be over for us.  I'm always going to be without my daughter, so, as long as girls are safe from this sexual predator, however long it takes to find justice. I have to accept it," added, Harrington.

"It was weird seeing a man I have only seen on TV and having the sense he was strangely familiar at that moment," said Morgan's friend Lindsey Crisp.  "I would describe him, and this was a strange experience for me sitting in there, I would describe him as human, and that scares me as well because when I looked at him, I didn't see anything different than humans walking around and that scared me," added Crisp.  "I don't know if it's ever going to possible for me to put in a sentence what Morgan meant to me, and I look forward to spending the rest of my life getting clear on that because she's changed my life and there's just not words right now," Crisp added.

Matthew's next hearing is set for August 20 at 1:30 p.m. at the Albemarle County Circuit Court. Seven other motion hearings will follow before trial:

Seven other motion hearings will follow before trial:

September 30, 2015  2:00 pm

November 10, 2015   2:00 pm

January 5, 2016         1:30 pm

March 2, 2016            1:30 pm

April 19, 2016             1:30 pm

May 9, 2016              10:00 am

May 25, 2016              1:30 pm

Earlier this month, Matthew was convicted of attempted capital murder and sex crimes against a woman in Fairfax County. Matthew entered an Alford Plea. He faces life in prison when he is sentenced in the Fairfax case in October.

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