Judge Involved In Search Of Lawyer's Office Taken Off Case


Collin County District Judge Mark Rusch signed a search warrant that allowed Frisco police to raid the office of defense attorney Keith Gore. According to court papers, Rusch had police bring the evidence to his house.

I've never seen it happen, I've never heard of it happening, and I've never read of it happening," said Rick Hagen, president of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association.

Gore represents Mark Bell, who is accused of shooting Craig Nail to death in his home in December 2007 as part of a murder-for-hire plan.

According to police affidavits, Bell wrote letters to his wife while in jail and instructed her to hang on to items "crucial to his defense." His wife gave the items, which included documents and a shoebox with a receipt, to Gore, according to police affidavits.

Prosecutors intercepted Bell's letters and considered the items evidence. Instead of waiting for a prescheduled hearing, they asked Rusch to give them a search warrant for Gore's office.

"This is the equivalent of going to another team's locker room and stealing the playbook," Hagen said.

According to court documents, the evidence seized from Gore's office was taken to Rusch's home instead of a crime lab.

A witness for Rusch acknowledged the judge inspected letters and documents and handled the box, but said the judge did not unseal the box.

But Frisco detectives said Rusch unsealed the box, which was closed with bar-coded tape, using a knife.

Hagen said the handling of evidence raises major chain of custody issues and directly implicates the judge in the investigation of Bell.

Those issues and information prosecutors may have learned about the case during the raid could lead to a dismissal of the charges against Bell, Hagen said.

"When you're talking about trying to stick a needle in their arm and kill a person, you better play by the rules," he said.

Bell is one of three co-defendants in the case.

Police said they believe he fired the shot that killed Nail. Bell was also identified by Nail's girlfriend, who survived the attack, police said.

Prosecutors and Frisco police would not comment about the judge's dismissal from the case.

Rusch also would not comment on the matter.

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