Defendant in DUI death to be tried 3 years later

Defendant in DUI death to be tried 3 years later

The taped conversations have recently been made public.

It was within those transcripts that South found part of her answer why her husband’s accused killer had not gone to trial in November.

South said her niece found the transcripts on the Internet. South read over the section of transcripts her niece sent to her.

“It was like a dream,” South said. “My niece kept asking me if I was all right.”

The conversation was recorded on Nov. 1 — the day Balducci allegedly dropped off the final payment to Lackey and was later arrested by the FBI. During their conversation, Balducci brings up the case against Minor.

Balducci: “This one, this one’s kinda tailor made … for, for, for this sort of deal.”

He explains the relationship between Minor and his uncle.

“Big politicos. Got money. You know? Been around for a while … Darron Minor, Bill’s nephew, is just a habitual (expletive). I mean just, there’s no other way to say it … Just drugs, alcohol I mean just a … been involved you know, never been arrested for felony, but has had just all kinds of damn DUIs and simple possession of marijuana.

“Darron is involved in a vehicular manslaughter … gets indicted for it … Early one morning, bad, heavy fog, he’s going down the road and he crosses over the center line, hits a man head on and causes a collision. Then another car trailin’ ’em rams in from the rear and hits that car. OK? Man died. OK?”

Balducci goes on to describe how the Mississippi Highway Patrol officer working the wreck orders a blood test on Minor, but unfortunately, he ordered it under an old statute that was deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. The test, according to Balducci, was positive for amphetamines and methamphetamine.

Balducci: “I mean, our guy’s tanked up. But the DA’s office has conceded that that’s an illegal test, OK, that they can’t use that as basis of his prosecution.”

Minor was apparently hurt in the wreck and while being treated at the hospital, was given a urine test that came back positive for methamphetamine. A year after the wreck, he was indicted.

On the transcript, Balducci and Lackey discuss how the second test could be considered privileged since the urine was gathered while Minor was being cared for medically without permission and that Balducci plans to ask the court to dismiss the charge against Minor.

Balducci said Minor’s family paid Langston $30,000 for his firm to represent Minor, but Balducci said that when he left the firm, the $30,000 was not paid to him. He told Lackey he planned on going back to Minor’s family and asking for another $20,000 since he never got paid by Langston.

He offers Lackey $10,000 to rule in his favor.

Commercial Appeal
3/16/8