At a status conference hearing in the McLennan County 19th District Court on Friday, the District Attorney's office said the DA's office is re-evaluating the remaining Twin Peaks cases.
Judge Ralph Strother called 27 Twin Peaks defendants and their attorneys for the status hearing to get an update on where the cases will go from here. Strother said he would like to finish some of the cases so the new district attorney, who would take office in January, won't have to deal with hundreds of cases.
As Judge Strother checked in with each defendant at the hearing, prosecutors said several attorneys had not picked up all of the evidence provided to them for the cases.
At the hearing, the DA's office told Strother they are re-evaluating the cases and hope to dismiss enough cases to only have somewhere between 25 and 30 cases go to trial. A decision on which cases could be dismissed may come as soon as next Friday.
Strother said after the DA's office makes decisions, he will start to set trial dates for some of the cases.
"In other words, we're finally going to have our day in court and let the chips fall where they may," Defense Attorney Paul Looney said.
Looney filed a motion on Friday for a speedy trial for his client Phillip White.
"This case has been pending for three years and he's got a right to be heard at a reasonable time and this is way past that. If we're ever going to set a trial, we want him to be set next," Looney said.
White is a former Cossack. Looney said he was severely injured in the shootout.
"His role was that a victim. He was standing and got shot in the mouth before he knew anything was happening. He immediately ran to the bathroom and bled all over everything. And that's the sum and substance of everything he did," Looney said.
Strother said he would put White's case at the top of the list when he sets trial dates.
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