Legal Case Study Of Frost's Case

M6A1
Timothy Sibley
CJ298
December 3rd, 2017

M6A1
On August 31, 1986 in Union Parish, Louisiana, William and Callie Frost were found dead in their home. Both victims were shot once in the head with a .22 caliber weapon. Further investigation revealed the shots were fired from outside of the house and through a window. The Frost’s were known to keep money on their persons rather than in bank accounts. A suitcase used to hold their money was discovered to be missing from under their bed where they kept it.
Ronnie Burrell’s ex-wife met with the Union Parish Sheriff’s Office in relation to a meeting she had with Mr. Burrell over a custody agreement she had with him concerning their son. During her meeting with Mr. Burrell, on the night of the

The basis for a retrial rested on several issues found throughout the original trial. Although being charged with a capital offense, Mr. Burrell was appointed a lawyer with no capital offense experience in a court. The conviction of Mr. Burrell was based solely off of witnesses who had personal motives to testify against him, one being his ex-wife, who wanted custody of their child. The jury was “unaware” any of the witnesses who testified at trial had any personal issues against Mr. Burrell. The link of physical evidence between Mr. Burrell and the crime was non-existent.
Several years after the conviction of Mr. Burrell attorneys interviewed the prosecutor in the trial. It was discovered that he believed the evidence was too weak and recommended not prosecuting the case. Dan Grady, the prosecutor, also testified that “he was pressured by the Union Parish district attorney to prosecute Mr. Burrell in order to not embarrass the recently elected sheriff” (Burrell | Innocence Project - New Orleans, 2011). The witnesses eventually renounced their testimony given during trial as well. The charges against Mr. Burrell were dismissed after it was discovered that the prosecution withheld information from the defense. Most notably, that the inmate who testified against Mr. Burrell, their “star” witness, had his own charges reduced for testifying that Mr. Burrell admitted to him, while in jail, that he committed the murders. It was also withheld that he was found not guilty by reason of insanity in a previous