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Judge recuses herself after clashing with defense lawyer

It's the latest twist in a case in which a former Tampa police officer accused of molesting two girls will get a new trial.

By JAMIE THOMPSON
Published December 14, 2005

LARGO - The latest turn in an already bizarre legal drama: Circuit Judge Linda Allan has recused herself from hearing the case of Ernesto Hedges, a former Tampa police officer accused of molesting two 9-year-old girls at a family gathering.

Days after ordering a new trial for Hedges, Allan sat in her chambers and wrote an order recusing herself from the case. The move came 15 minutes after a heated exchange between Allan and Hedges' new defense attorney, Steve Romine, during a hearing Monday to set Hedges' bail.

Allan declined Tuesday to discuss her decision. Generally, judges recuse themselves when they feel they cannot be fair to both sides in a case.

Romine said the judge did the right thing and that if she had not recused herself, he would have filed a motion asking that she do so. Allan presided over a jury trial in August during which Hedges, 50, was convicted on two counts of lewd and lascivious molestation. She sentenced him to 25 years in prison.

Hedges then hired a new defense attorney, Romine, who filed a 96-page motion asking that Hedges receive a new trial because of ineffective counsel. When Romine argued his case on Friday, he and Allan clashed several times.

Allan repeatedly told Romine that unlike him, she had sat through the trial and did not need to hear about what had happened in court. But Romine continued to discuss the previous trial. He noted later that he wanted to preserve the court record in case of an appeal.

The judge also seemed annoyed when Romine asked his expert witness, criminal attorney Denis de Vlaming, to explain certain aspects of the law.

"I don't need Mr. de Vlaming to go through every point of law with me," she told Romine.

Friday's hearing stretched on for 12 hours. That evening, the judge gave Romine what he wanted - a new trial for Hedges. She said Hedges' Tampa attorneys in his first trial, James Thomas and Jorge Chalela, had not seemed to understand the law and that Chalela had made numerous bizarre comments that seemed to horrify jurors.

On Monday, when the court reconvened to set bail for Hedges, the discord between Allan and Romine peaked.

Prosecutors asked that Hedges not have any contact with the alleged victims or witnesses. Romine didn't object but told the judge he wanted to make sure the ruling applied to Hedges and not to him.

Allan got visibly angry. She said it would be improper for Romine to attempt to talk to the 9-year-old alleged victims without appropriate adult consent. Prosecutors, she noted, already had concerns about attempts to change witness testimony.

Romine said he had a duty to try to speak with any witness and that if the girls voluntarily wanted to talk to him, and one of their parents consented, he should be able to do so. But Allan ordered that neither Romine nor his client have any contact with any witness under 18 unless prosecutors were present. She said it was her duty to make sure no one tampered with or attempted to intimidate witnesses.

Allan set Hedges' bail at $150,000 and ordered electronic monitoring. Tuesday evening, he posted bail and left the jail.

Now the case is in Pinellas-Pasco Judge Thomas McGrady's hands. Romine said he plans to contest Allan's order about the witnesses. Prosecutors, he noted, had full access to them.

"The court is supposed to treat both sides equally," Romine said.

Jamie Thompson can be reached at 727 893-8455. Send e-mail to jthompson@sptimes.com

[Last modified December 14, 2005, 00:13:09]