AUBURN – The man who threatened to kill himself in a police standoff while parked outside a Lewiston hospital last month is seeking to move his trial out of the Twin Cities.
Edward Leo Fitzherbert is claiming media coverage of his actions on Feb. 14 created “so great a prejudice” against him that he wouldn’t receive a fair trial if it were held locally.
The 61-year-old Poland man was scheduled to go to trial on sex abuse charges that day, but became despondent and drove past the Androscoggin County Superior Courthouse to St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center. A parade of police cars gave slow chase.
He parked his van outside the emergency room entrance with a gun to his head off and on for more than an hour.
The standoff ended peacefully after a state tactical team surrounded him. Fitzherbert was handcuffed, then escorted into the hospital where doctors evaluated his mental health. He was later taken to Androscoggin County Jail where he’s been held without bail.
Fitzherbert’s lawyer, Thomas Goodwin, wrote in court documents that the “extensive and pervasive” media coverage of his case has colored the thinking of jurors who might be picked for his April trial.
Prosecutors disagreed.
Writing for the state, Assistant District Attorney Deborah Cashman said Goodwin failed to offer testimony about or examples of media coverage that support his claim.
“The news media in the instant case was an accurate representation of the events” of that day, Cashman wrote.
Goodwin said the media also reported on his client’s pending sex charges and criminal history to buttress his case for a change of venue.
But Cashman countered that the local newspaper made no specific references to the facts of the case going to trial. Moreover, the story didn’t cite any evidence that would be used against Fitzherbert in court.
Any bias should become apparent during jury selection, she wrote.
Goodwin also filed court papers asking that the state return nearly $3,000 in cash his client was carrying the day of the standoff. The money was seized after his arrest. The state hasn’t made any claims that the money is connected in any way to his arrest, Goodwin wrote.
A judge is expected to rule on the motions at an April 4 hearing.
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