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Defendant in Belfry double murder case seeks separate trial¸
PIKEVILLE, Ky. — One of the three Cincinnati men charged in connection with a 2023 double murder in Belfry has renewed his request for a separate trial, arguing that a newly disclosed statement he gave prosecutors could unfairly prejudice both him and his co-defendants.
In a memorandum filed Thursday in Pike Circuit Court, 28-year-old Orlando Pack’s attorney says the Commonwealth recently turned over a proffer statement Pack made during mediation. The filing argues that the disclosure “materially changes the severance analysis” because introducing the statement in a joint trial could create constitutional issues and encourage co-defendants to shift blame onto Pack.
Pack, Jolon McCree, 25, and Devon Overstreet, 29, are charged with two counts of murder, one count of attempted murder and one count of first-degree robbery. They are accused of killing Jacob Adair, 28, of Belfry, and Rodney Estep, 38, of Lexington, as well as trying to kill Chasity Adair, 28, of Belfry, on Oct. 6, 2023.
Pack had previously asked the court to sever his trial from those of his two co-defendants because of concerns over conflicting defenses and prejudicial evidence. His attorney argues the newly disclosed statement now provides a “concrete basis for severance” rather than a speculative one.
Pack’s attorney contends that if prosecutors seek to use the statement at a joint trial, the other defendants would be unable to cross-examine Pack if he does not testify, raising concerns under a 1968 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that prohibits the admission of a non-testifying co-defendant’s confession or statement that inculpates another defendant in a joint trial. The motion also argues Pack would be unfairly prejudiced because the statement could become “the focal point for co-defendant blame-shifting and argument.”
Pack’s attorney argues that simply redacting the names of co-defendants would not solve the problem because jurors could still identify them based on references to their alleged roles, locations or sequence of events.
The motion further argues that a limiting instruction telling jurors to consider the statement only against Pack would not adequately protect the defendants’ rights, saying “once the jury hears an accusation, the prejudice cannot be reliably unrung by admonition.”
Pack is asking the court to separate his trial from those of his co-defendants. If the court declines to do so, the defense asks that prosecutors be prohibited from introducing or referencing the proffer statement unless the judge first reviews it privately and rules on its admissibility before trial.
The filing represents the defense’s arguments only. The Commonwealth had not filed a response to the motion, and the court has not ruled on the request.
All three men are currently scheduled to go on trial Aug. 31.
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Judge rejects plea for leniency, sentences Kimper woman to 45 years for child porn
LEXINGTON, Ky. — A federal judge has rejected a Pike County woman’s plea for leniency after she pleaded guilty to producing child pornography.Instead, if she completes her sentence, she will have spent as much time in prison than out.
Pamela Denise Sargent, 45, of Kimper, pleaded guilty back in March to two counts of producing child pornography. In exchange for her plea, the prosecution agreed to drop two additional charges.
In her plea agreement, she admitted to producing a sexually explicit video of herself with a toddler-aged boy and another of two toddler-aged boys with each other. Police discovered her activities while investigating a child porn case in Missouri, where a man obtained videos from her.
In a sentencing memorandum filed this week, her attorney asked the judge to show leniency in her case. He described Sargent as someone who has an IQ of only 51 and who lived a very sheltered life prior to the case. He further said that Sargent was under the belief that the man to whom she sent the videos would harm her and her family if she didn’t comply with his requests.
The attorney noted Sargent could be sentenced to up to 60 years in the case, but argued that a 15-year sentence would be more appropriate.
U.S. District Judge Karen Caldwell chose neither path, instead sentencing Sargent to 30 years for one count and 15 years for the second. Those sentences will run consecutively, for a total of 45 years.
Sargent is currently being held in the Grayson County Detention Center, awaiting transfer to the federal prison system.
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