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Local Prosecutor Comes Under Additional Scrutiny The Criminal Appeal Of Ray & Wayne Greenlaw |
October 9, 2015 |
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Your Father's Justice System Is Fading Away Our country has in theory - one of the best, if not the best, system of justice in the world. The key words in the last sentence are - "in theory" - because in practice, our system of justice has been coming up short - with particular attention given to the Central Florida area. VolusiaExposed submits for your review - our argument, that too many of the officials that we have elected to safeguard our most cherished founding priniciples of liberty and fairness have betrayed those very same priniciples. Whether it is a Brevard circuit judge finding the sixth amendment to the U.S. Constitution to be too inconvenient, OR, as will be discussed in this article - a Volusia County assistant state attorney using inappropriate comments or legal arguments to gain criminal convictions - OUR local criminal justice system has been so basterized, it now sits outside the Constitutional mandates that were first set in place by this country's founding fathers. (Our Opinion)  |
Scroll Down To Review The First 20 Pages Click Here To Review The Entire Brief (50 Pages)                     |
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According to two recently filed appellant briefs (see above and below scroll boxes) with the Florida 5th District Court of Appeal - the prosecutorial tactics of Assistant State Attorney J. Ryan Will has once again come under the legal scrutiny of his professional peers.
Recently, in another unrelated murder prosecution (Jerry Crew), the Florida Bar found a viable complaint against ASA Will for somewhat similar allegations. This matter will be further discussed later in this article. The two subject appellant briefs were filed by attorneys that represent brothers - Wayne & Ray Greenlaw. The Greenlaws were convicted in February 2015 for the October 2011 murder of Brian Leverett, and the attempted manslaughter of Justin Riley. VolusiaExposed.Com attended and video recorded the complete Greenlaw trial. Web links to those videos are available from this web article (see below). Shifts The Burden Of Proof To The Criminal Defendant Interestingly - both legal briefs discuss issues regarding the validity of the jury selection process attached to the Greenlaw trial. Both briefs argue that a statement from one prospective juror during the Voir dire process, tainted the objectivity of the entire jury pool. This particular juror stated that she was aware of the case via Facebook - and from what she had read - the Greenlaws were guilty of murder (see page 43 of the above brief). However, in our opinion, the most disturbing argument against ASA J. Ryan Will's handling of the Greenlaws' murder trial - is his (Will) instructions to the jury that it is their job to listen to both sides of the story and then to determine innocence (Will's statements have been paraphrased - read brief or view trial videos for exact statements). (see pages 5 & 27-29 of the above listed brief). While no one here at VolusiaExposed.Com has a law degree - we are left wondering what law schools are teaching their law students? From our best recollections of 7th grade civics class - the defendant is not obligated to provide a version of his or her "story" or the burden to prove his / her innocence. Actually, the defendant has the presumption of innocence until the prosecutor has proven his / her case beyond a reasonable doubt. Our (VolusiaExposed) opinion is in line with our understanding of the public defender's appellant brief (Ray Greenlaw). ASA Will attempts to strip Mr. Greenlaw of his presumption of innocence - while at the same time - ASA Will attempts to shift the burden of proof from the prosecutor's table to the criminal defense's table. |
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A Recurring Theme Within The Greenlaw Prosecution VolusiaExposed has been in existence for a little over five (5) years now, and the Greenlaw trial, and their convictions are the most disturbing examples of injustice - that we have reported on thus far. The Jerry Crew murder trial and conviction comes in as a very close second - regarding injustice within the Seventh Judicial Circuit. The common denominator in both prosecutions (Greenlaws and Crew) is Assistant State Attorney J. Ryan Will. ASA Will was the assigned prosecutor in both murder trials. ASA Will is the son of Circuit Judge J. Will - a well respected jurist within the Seventh Judicial Circuit. Some have the opinion, that since passing the Bar in 2006, that ASA Will has been placed on a fast track to join his father as a judge within the Seventh Judicial Circuit. We (VolusiaExposed) are not concerned IF ASA Will is being fast tracked for a judicial position - as long as he meets the required qualification standards. What we question, and are concerned about - is whether ASA Will is being allowed to compensate for any possible lack of experience - by not strictly adhering to well established Constitutional priniciples, in order to secure criminal convictions in furtherance of Will's professional ambitions. |
Scroll Down To Review The Entire Brief Click Here To Review PDF Copy Of Brief (15 Pages)                |
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Justin Riley, one of the Greenlaw brothers alleged victims is related to present and past members of the Volusia County Sheriff Department & the State Attorney's office. VolusiaExposed holds the opinion that the Greenlaw brothers' criminal prosecution was energized by the Riley family's connections to both agencies. Riley testified during the Greenlaw brothers' trial - and in our (VolusiaExposed) opinion, Riley's testimony is highly questionable. We invite you to review our video of Riley's testimony, as incorporated in our earlier February 23, 2015 article, so that you can independently draw your own conclusion regarding Riley's veracity. Justin Riley Testifies That He Has / Had Relatives Within The Ranks Of The VCSO & State Attorney Office
Watch Riley's Complete Testimony On Day 2 - Parts 7-9 And Judge For Yourself The Credibility of the State's #1 Eyewitness Against the Greenlaw Brothers NOW, if you are so inclined - feel free to watch the entire Greenlaw Brothers' Dog & Pony Show Trial. Florida Bar Finds Viable Complaint Against ASA J. Ryan Will Recently, VolusiaExposed posted an article detailing that the Florida Bar had found probable cause to suspect misconduct by ASA J Ryan Will regarding the Jerry Crew murder prosecution. From our read of the allegations against ASA Will, the Florida Bar, and the 5th District Court of Appeal (DCA) appeared to take issue with several of Will's statements and legal arguments presented during Crew's trial - similar in nature to the arguments now alleged in the Greenlaw brothers' appeal. Due to these issues - the 5th DCA has ordered a new trial for Mr. Crew. Crew's new trial should start later this year (2015). Due to ASA Will's open and pending Bar complaint - Will has been removed from the re-prosecution of Mr. Crew. A very smart move by State Attorney R.J. Larizza's - and kinda of a surprise - given the fact that Larizza's office initially fought tooth and nail to keep ASA Will on as the prosecutor when Crew's attorney requested his removal. Ref. Clerk.org records for supportive documentation
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Wayne Greenlaw's appellant attorney is an Orlando based private attorney who filed the attached fifteen (15) page brief to the 5th DCA. (see above scroll box) It's important to stress - that Ray & Wayne were tried together - during a seven (7) day trial. Therefore, any error or misconduct by the prosecutor should logically attach to both brothers. While both (private attorney and public defender) appellate briefs argued that the Greenlaws' jury pool was tainted by comments of a prospective juror during the Voir dire process - ONLY the public defender, in his 50 page brief, additionally argues the alleged inappropriate statements and legal arguments presented by ASA Will. (see above scroll box) |
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As many of our readers will already know - VolusiaExposed has a critical eye regarding many segments of our local criminal justice system. However, it has been our experience that the citizens of Volusia & Brevard counties have better than average public defender offices.
YES - without a doubt the PD offices could be better - but given the challenges (lack of funds, staffing and heavy caseloads - see attached John Oliver video) that they must overcome - they (PD) do put up a better than average fight in defending the rights of their clients. Not convinced? Let us offer you two examples - first, after reading both attached appellant briefs in the Greenlaw appeal - which attorney would you prefer to be representing you - the PD or the private attorney? For us (VolusiaExposed) the answer is easy - we would prefer the representation of the PD's office. Second - watch the attached John Oliver video - right around eight minutes into the video - watch the Brevard Public Defender literally take an ass beating from the judge, in defense of his clients' U.S. Constitutional right to a speedy trial (Sixth Amendment). |
Problems With The Public Defender System With A Focus On The Brevard County Scandal HBO - John Oliver |
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How many private attorneys do you know willing to take an ass beating in defense of their client's rights?
However, in fairness to the private attorney assigned to Wayne Greenlaw - he is an Orlando area based attorney that might be unaware of the past concerns attached to ASA J. Ryan Will. Having conversed with several local attorneys, VolusiaExposed is aware the ASA Will's practices are much better known within the local legal community. Let's see if we can't change that a bit ! |
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