DARLINGTON - About a month before 32-year-old Armin Wand III allegedly set a deadly house fire, he and his wife hired a Monroe attorney to draft them a will.
A judge ruled Wednesday, Oct. 24, that conversations the attorney, Scott Thompson, had with the couple are subject to open inquiry - pending a waiver of attorney-client privileges from the wife's guardians while she remains in a coma.
At issue during the motion hearing Wednesday was the relative strength of attorney-client privilege in a case such as the one of Armin Wand III and his 27-year-old wife, Sharon Wand. He and his brother, Jeremy, 18, face homicide charges that they conspired to burn the older brother's house in Argyle on Sept. 7 to kill his family and collect on the life insurance. Sharon Wand was severely burned in the fire and remains hospitalized.
The state prosecutor argued the criminal charges have turned the couple into adversaries and the usual rules regarding attorney-client confidentiality "would not survive" these circumstances.
"Clearly, if Sharon Wand were not in a coma as a result of the alleged actions of the defendant, she would be able to tell us what occurred in the meetings with Attorney Thompson," prosecutor Richard DeFour argued in a brief.
She should be able to retain that right, through Thompson's testimony, he added.
Defense attorney Guy Taylor argued the state's request "is a stretch beyond normal stretches."
"The attorney-client privilege must be respected in this matter," he said.
Judge William Johnston sided with the state. He clarified, however, that anything Armin Wand III said to Thompson out of the presence of his wife remains confidential.
The judge's order pertains only to conversations Thompson had with Sharon Wand or with her and her husband together.
Letters filed this week with the court reveal the state is continuing to gather background information on the Wand brothers and on the older brother's four children, three of whom died in the fire.
Special agent James Sielehr wrote in a brief that the requested school records from the Argyle School District "will help to show the relationship between the father, Armin Wand III, and his children" and that any evidence of special needs education will "help to show the difficulties of raising the children, which will also help in corroborating the statement of Armin Wand III that he wanted a 'fresh start.'"
Additionally, the records will help determine if Jeremy or Armin Wand III have "psychological or emotional deficits," Sielehr wrote.
The brothers' preliminary hearing is Nov. 13.
A judge ruled Wednesday, Oct. 24, that conversations the attorney, Scott Thompson, had with the couple are subject to open inquiry - pending a waiver of attorney-client privileges from the wife's guardians while she remains in a coma.
At issue during the motion hearing Wednesday was the relative strength of attorney-client privilege in a case such as the one of Armin Wand III and his 27-year-old wife, Sharon Wand. He and his brother, Jeremy, 18, face homicide charges that they conspired to burn the older brother's house in Argyle on Sept. 7 to kill his family and collect on the life insurance. Sharon Wand was severely burned in the fire and remains hospitalized.
The state prosecutor argued the criminal charges have turned the couple into adversaries and the usual rules regarding attorney-client confidentiality "would not survive" these circumstances.
"Clearly, if Sharon Wand were not in a coma as a result of the alleged actions of the defendant, she would be able to tell us what occurred in the meetings with Attorney Thompson," prosecutor Richard DeFour argued in a brief.
She should be able to retain that right, through Thompson's testimony, he added.
Defense attorney Guy Taylor argued the state's request "is a stretch beyond normal stretches."
"The attorney-client privilege must be respected in this matter," he said.
Judge William Johnston sided with the state. He clarified, however, that anything Armin Wand III said to Thompson out of the presence of his wife remains confidential.
The judge's order pertains only to conversations Thompson had with Sharon Wand or with her and her husband together.
Letters filed this week with the court reveal the state is continuing to gather background information on the Wand brothers and on the older brother's four children, three of whom died in the fire.
Special agent James Sielehr wrote in a brief that the requested school records from the Argyle School District "will help to show the relationship between the father, Armin Wand III, and his children" and that any evidence of special needs education will "help to show the difficulties of raising the children, which will also help in corroborating the statement of Armin Wand III that he wanted a 'fresh start.'"
Additionally, the records will help determine if Jeremy or Armin Wand III have "psychological or emotional deficits," Sielehr wrote.
The brothers' preliminary hearing is Nov. 13.