Legal Question in Criminal Law in South Carolina

How long should this take

Hello,

These is the case, a friend of mines is currently in jail and has been locked up going on 7 or so months, it is a murder charge that has been pinned on him, yet recently he has went to court in SC and they have found no evidence against him, because there is None to be found? Why do they still have him sitting around and how long can they keep him without evidence? His lawyer is a public deffender and he is not devoted to this case as i believe he should be to make things move faster especially because there is NO evidence, what can my friend do from where he is at to speed up his release process? who can he contact by mail?that might be able to look further into his situation? He is tired of sitting around and from the looks of it will be spending his 21st birthday behind bars THANK YOU for your insight.


Asked on 9/18/03, 2:32 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Robert Johnston Law Offices of Robert J. Johnston

Re: How long should this take

Its a little hard to answer the first part of your question, because I don't know what type of court proceding he went to. There are different court appearances prior to trial, such as a preliminary hearing, discovery hearings, scheduling hearings, etc. As far as speeding things up, a motion for a speedy trial can be filed. However, murder cases typically do not go to trial quickly due to the magnitude of the cases and all of the legal issues that must be addressed. As far as the public defender is concerned, they are all competent attorneys. However, your friend always has the right to hire a private lawyer if he choses. Your welcome to call if you care to discuss any of this. Robert J. Johnston 843-828-1137

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Answered on 9/18/03, 10:45 pm


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