[ad_1]
The Burlington County couple accused of abusing $ 400,000 raised in a Gofundme campaign to help homeless veteran Johnny Bobbitt find himself soon charged and without legal representation, according to a motion of their own lawyer.
Ernest E. Badway, the couple's lawyer, on Friday asked a judge to suspend Bobbitt's civil lawsuit against his clients, Kate McClure, 28, and Mark D'Amico, 39, while waiting for the Outcome of a possible criminal case. Burlington County Superior Court Judge Paula Dow granted the suspension on Monday.
Thursday – two days after Bobbitt's lawyer, he had learned that none of the $ 400,000 fund had been left – the investigators executed a search warrant at McClure's home and D & # 39; Amico in the canton of Florence, grabbing a black BMW and other objects.
Badway wrote in Friday's motion, "… given that we expect one or both of the defendants to be probably charged, my company and I will not be able to continue to represent them in this case ".
Ask Alexa
The Burlington County District Attorney's Office confirmed Monday that no charges had been filed against Amico or McClure, but declined to comment. Badway declined to comment on Monday.
Badway wrote that the police executing the search warrant seized "anything that was of value," including money, vehicles, jewelry and all the couple's financial records. The seizure prevented McClure and Amico from defending against the civil lawsuit against them, writes Badway, in which Bobbitt's lawyers sought to know how the money had been spent.
Badway joined the search warrant application on Friday. In granting the search warrant last week, a judge noted that there were sufficient probable grounds to continue investigating to determine whether the couple had committed crimes, including deception, misapplication of property and computer crime. .
Among the items listed in the search warrant evidence log were several Louis Vuitton bags, "various casino chips", documents and receipts. Much of the document was illegible.
Dow J. granted the stay until December 7.
McClure launched the online fundraiser for Bobbitt last November, after Philadelphia's homeless man gave McClure his $ 20 when she ran out of gas on Philadelphia's I-95 latest. The wellness story became viral and the campaign raised more than $ 400,000, but Bobbitt accused both people of wasting holiday gifts and other personal expenses.
The couple says they spent more than $ 200,000 on Bobbitt, buying a used truck and a trailer on his property, but withheld the rest of the money because he blew drugs. In an appearance on "Megyn Kelly Today", they said that there was $ 150,000 left.
However, after the Cozen O & # 39; Connor law firm in Philadelphia filed a lawsuit on behalf of Bobbitt on August 27 and a judge ordered the couple to return what remained to an escrow account, the Bobbitt's lawyer said that Badway.
Badway said his clients were considering invoking the 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination.
Gofundme announced last week that it would ensure that Bobbitt gets all the money owed, whether or not the civil suit gets money. The website has deposited $ 20,000 into a bank account set up by Bobbitt's legal team to help support Bobbitt as the case continues.
Bobbitt's lawyers said last week that they thought $ 75,000 of Gofundme's money had actually gone to their client. They acknowledged that he was struggling with addiction and said last week that Bobbitt was checking a 30-day drug recovery program.
Reached by telephone on Monday, one of the lawyers, Jacqueline Promislo, said that the suspension had been granted but that she had not been able to discuss the case further because she was working on an urgent matter.
Rebecca Everett can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @rebeccajeverett. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips
[ad_2]
Source link
