Joseph Buffey: West Virginia; Bulletin: Attorneys spar over whether Buffey's prior lawyers can testify - as his trial, set to begin on October 11, draws near...He was sentenced to 70 years in prison and had served about 14 years of that when the state Supreme Court last November decided Buffey would be permitted to withdraw his guilty pleas. One of the most persuasive arguments for Buffey: The Allan N. Karlin & Associates law firm of Morgantown, and the New York-based Innocence Project, developed a perpetrator who was convicted in 2015. In February, Buffey, who insists he’s innocent, officially withdrew his pleas, sending the case back to square one."..."Marks also intervened in an evidence-sharing issue between Karlin and Romano involving interviews of individuals by police during the prosecution of Adam Derek Bowers, the man convicted in 2015 of the attack. Karlin believes the police may have interviewed individuals who could help establish that Buffey and Bowers, now 30 years old, and 16 at the time of the crime, didn’t know each other back in late 2001. Romano indicated he believes they’ve shared all potentially exculpatory materials with the defense, but he agreed to file something with the court to respond to Karlin." Matt Harvey: Assistant Managing Editor: The Exponent Telegram;

"The case of a Harrison County man accused in a 2001 rape, robbery and home invasion has taken another twist, as the attorneys spar over whether the defendant’s prior legal counsel can testify next month at his trial. Joseph A. Buffey, now 33 and of Enterprise, pleaded guilty at age 19 in 2002 to two counts of first-degree sexual assault, and one count of first-degree robbery, in the Nov. 30, 2001, attack of an 83-year-old woman. He was sentenced to 70 years in prison and had served about 14 years of that when the state Supreme Court last November decided Buffey would be permitted to withdraw his guilty pleas. One of the most persuasive arguments for Buffey: The Allan N. Karlin & Associates law firm of Morgantown, and the New York-based Innocence Project, developed a perpetrator who was convicted in 2015. In February, Buffey, who insists he’s innocent, officially withdrew his pleas, sending the case back to square one. Assistant prosecutors Dave Romano and James Armstrong have signaled their intent to put on the stand two of Buffey’s attorneys from 2002, when he pleaded guilty. And they also have listed as a witness another attorney who represented Buffey in a legal challenge of his imprisonment from 2003-2004. Bailey Glasser LLP lawyer Isaac Forman, who will be among several lawyers representing Buffey at trial, argued Tuesday that Harrison Circuit Judge John Lewis Marks Jr. would be committing reversible error by allowing the attorneys to testify.........Marks also intervened in an evidence-sharing issue between Karlin and Romano involving interviews of individuals by police during the prosecution of Adam Derek Bowers, the man convicted in 2015 of the attack. Karlin believes the police may have interviewed individuals who could help establish that Buffey and Bowers, now 30 years old, and 16 at the time of the crime, didn’t know each other back in late 2001. Romano indicated he believes they’ve shared all potentially exculpatory materials with the defense, but he agreed to file something with the court to respond to Karlin. The judge also ordered the state to provide medical records of the victim to Buffey’s lawyers. Karlin said the records could show that the woman, now in her late 90s and unable to testify due to dementia, was in the early stages of the disease at the time of the attack. Or, they might show that she wasn’t suffering from dementia during Buffey’s first legal challenge of his imprisonment, in 2003-04, and therefore could have testified at that time, Karlin indicated. The sides also sparred over whether the state should have to specify which phone records from prison it plans to use. The state has turned over a huge amount of recordings from Buffey, Bowers and another prisoner, Karlin told the court.........Marks will decide both the law and the facts in the trial, which is to start the morning of Oct. 11 and last at least four days."

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