Jury Demands Harris Case Papers
- Share via
SAN DIEGO — The six lawyers who defended executed killer Robert Alton Harris have been ordered to submit documents to a federal grand jury investigating the testimony of a key witness, sources said Monday.
None of the six lawyers is a target of the grand jury, which has been at work for at least a month investigating inconsistencies in the testimony of witness Joey Dee Abshire, sources said.
Abshire, 45, is a career criminal and jailhouse informant whose testimony helped convict Harris of first-degree murder in 1979. Harris was put to death April 21 in the gas chamber at San Quentin.
In a hearing last May on one of Harris’ last appeals, Abshire testified that he had been coached by prosecutors to pump Harris for information when they shared a cell in 1978. The grand jury is investigating whether Abshire lied at the appeal hearing.
Sources said the six lawyers are resisting the court order to turn over the files.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
