Saying he fears for the safety of the public and the defendant, Chief Superior Court Judge William E. Woodrum Jr. revoked bond Tuesday for Wade O’Neil Hall in a fatal car wreck.
Assistant District Attorney Brian Deal said Hall’s arrest Feb. 4 on a charge of possession of a drug-related object was “on the heels of this terrible collision,” and there’s no reason he should be free and endangering the safety of others.
Woodrum said when Hall was arrested, he was in a vehicle, which can be used as a weapon, and was under the influence of some sort of substance.
Springfield Police Cpl. Selton D. Morrow found Hall in a car parked in the farthest, darkest part of the parking lot at the Springfield library on Ga. 119, when the library was closed. Hall had three pipes with residue that appeared to be from marijuana or synthetic marijuana and a bag containing a substance that was labeled “Herbal Potpourri.”
Morrow testified Tuesday that the substance in the pipes and in the bag has been sent for testing and the results are not yet available.
Hall’s attorney, Ray Smith of Richmond Hill, noted that Morrow is the first cousin of the 18-year-old who died in the fatal wreck, Joshua Klayton Stafford.
Smith said Morrow knew who Hall was and should have let him go when he said he was waiting for a friend to get off work. Instead, he kept prodding until Hall admitted having the pipes.
Morrow testified that he only learned Hall’s identity when he asked him for identification that night. Morrow, who has been a police officer for four years, said he handled the case as he would any other.
He said he asked Hall what he needed the “Herbal Potpourri” for and Hall said, “To deal with his life.”
On Jan. 29, Hall, 20, pleaded not guilty to 14 charges stemming from the fatal wreck on April 18, 2011, including homicide by vehicle, serious injury by vehicle, driving under the influence of alcohol less safe, driving under the influence of alcohol under age 21, speeding and reckless driving.
Meanwhile, Deal said in court Tuesday that the state offered to let Hall plead guilty in exchange for a sentence of 10 years in prison and 10 years probation.
Deal said Hall refused the deal and the state has withdrawn the offer.
Woodrum heard arguments about a defense motion to repress blood evidence that the prosecution contends shows Hall was intoxicated the night of the accident.
Smith said Hall was conscious when he was flown to Memorial Hospital to be treated for injuries in the wreck. He said the state should have read Hall the Implied Consent Warning, telling him the consequences of refusing a drug test and that he could have his own, independent test done.
Deal said a search warrant was used to obtain Hall’s blood from the hospital where he was treated and “that takes Implied Consent off the table.”
Smith also asked to be able to conduct an independent test on the blood that the state used. Woodrum asked the prosecution to determine if there was any blood left that could be tested.
The judge did not say when he would rule on the motions.