Can this case get anymore screwy?

[William769]

McInerney Lawyers: Judge Biased Against Them, Against Gays Too

Attorneys for Brandon McInerney, on trial for the slaying of California gay youth Lawrence King, have filed a motion to have Judge Charles Campbell removed from the case, claiming he is biased toward the prosecution and also harbors antigay sentiments — against defense attorney Robyn Bramson (pictured, center, with co-counsel Scott Wippert, left), among others, the Ventura County Star reports.

Bramson, who described herself in court as "not a heterosexual," and Wippert filed their motion at the end of court proceedings Thursday. Campbell, a Ventura County Superior Court judge, denied the motion, but Bramson said she will appeal it. According to the Los Angeles Times, under such circumstances, the judge who is challenged is allowed to continue hearing the case but must file a response within 10 days. A judge chosen by both sides in the case or by the California Judicial Council then makes the final decision on removal.

McInerney, 17, is charged as an adult with murder and a hate crime for shooting King to death in 2008 in a computer lab at E.O. Green Junior High School in Oxnard. King was 15 at the time and McInerney 14. King had often come to school in feminine clothing and makeup and flirted with McInerney. As there is no question that McInerney pulled the trigger, arguments by his attorneys have centered on his motives. Testimony has involved the abuse he suffered at home, neo-Nazi dogma he was exposed to, and the idea that King’s behavior caused McInerney to “snap.” The defense attorneys say the lesser charge of manslaughter would be more appropriate than murder.

In their motion, the defense attorneys say Campbell has been rude toward them and allowed the prosecution more leeway than the defense. They also claim that he was angered when they insisted Wednesday on asking one witness, an expert on hate groups, why McInerney did not shoot a lesbian classmate if he was supposedly under the sway of vicious anti-LGBT bias. The judge ultimately allowed the question, but according to the filing, he warned the defense team that he would allow the prosecution to reveal that McInerney's mother, Kendra, is a lesbian. Bramson reiterated this in Los Angeles Superior Court Thursday, the Star reports:

http://www.advocate.com/News/Daily_News/2011/08/19/McInerney_Lawyers_Judge_Biased_Against_Them_Against_Gays_Too/

[dsc]

1. I have no clue what to make of that

[William769]

2. Me either.

[Kalidurga]

3. Ok I read this a couple of times...

I still don't get it...maybe it is because I have the flu and can't process simple information or this is really really weird.