Judge denies defendant's plea to switch lawyers, saying public defendant not on his side
TAMPA, Fla. - The man accused in a deadly New Year's Eve shooting in Tampa wants to fire his public defender, saying they "do not see eye to eye."
Joseph Ervin Brown, 27, is accused of the shooting death of 24-year-old Isaiah Lee Morrison on North Nebraska Avenue December 31, 2018.
Brown told the judge during a hearing conducted over Zoom Monday that his Hillsborough County public defender, Jamie Kane, has told him they will lose the trial, called him names, and refused to file a 'stand your ground' motion in the case.
"I’m very uncomfortable with him representing me. We have numerous visits throughout the time that he’s been representing me. We have been arguing throughout. We do not see eye to eye," said Brown. "I have told him multiple times what happened that day. I was defending myself but he has called me a liar multiple times and said we would lose at trial."
Jamie Kane ttold a slightly different version of his conversations with his client.
"The accusation of name-calling, I think Mr. Brown knows I have never called him a liar," Kane said. "I’ve never told him that we are absolutely going to lose. I told him as it stands the witnesses and physical evidence support we have a very daunting task in this case."
Brown made one more push to get a new attorney.
"It terrifies me to go to trial with him because I have only one chance to go to trial. Jamie Kane is not going to take the blows of me losing," said Brown.
In the end, Hillsborough County Judge Laura Ward denied Brown's pleas and kept Kane on the case.
Brown is charged with first-degree murder and a weapons charge.