Sokoloff steps down

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Daily Dunklin Democrat

Heather Ellis is shown alongside her mother, Hester Ellis, outside the Justice Center at Bloomfield last month following her pre-trial hearing in a case that has gained national attention. At right is Ellis' attorney, Timothy Hunsaker from the St. Louis firm of Rosenblum, Schwartz, Rogers and Glass. Also pictured (at left) is an unidentified member of the American Civil Liberties Union.
(Staff photo by Noreen Hyslop)

[Order this photo]

Prosecutor recuses himself from Ellis case stating reason was 'to remove any possible basis for a claim of bias'

A motion filed in a Dunklin County courtroom brings a new twist to the case against Heather Ellis, a case that has garnered national media attention.

Ellis, an African-American woman from Kennett, is charged in connection with an incident at the Kennett Walmart in 2007 during which she was arrested and charged with two counts of the Class C felony assault on a law enforcement officer, one count of the Class B misdemeanor peace disturbance and one count of the Class A misdemeanor resisting arrest. Ellis was charged as a result of a scuffle that broke out in a checkout line at the store, following Ellis being accused by associates employed by Walmart of cutting in line.

The motion in question, filed by Ellis' attorney on November 2, involves Ellis' legal representation requesting Dunklin County Prosecuting Attorney Stephen Sokoloff to recuse himself from the case.

Sokoloff is accused by Ellis' camp of "...making extrajudicial comments that have a substantial likelihood of heightening public condemnation of the accused."

According to the three-page document, Sokoloff replied to a story written on the case by Michael I. Niman of Progressive Populist.

The article, entitled "Felony charge for cutting in line while black in Missouri," tells Ellis' side of the story in which she claims to have been racially targeted by both Walmart employees and Kennett police officers. The story also accuses a police officer of intimidating her family with a Ku Klux Klan (KKK) business card.

Sokoloff wrote a two-page letter in response to the article in which he accused Niman of having done no background research and spoke of his "disregard for objective facts and its reliance on biased and purposefully misleading statements and outright lies."

He also suggested that Niman speak with any of Ellis' three fired attorneys who withdrew following "threats from her family."

Sokoloff goes on to state that one officer allegedly received a split lip from a "punch thrown by the 'innocent' Ms. Ellis."

In his defense, Sokoloff said in a written statement, that "over the last several months, the defendant and her supporters have made a concerted attempt, through the traditional media and the internet, to portray me as an overly aggressive and racially biased prosecutor."

"They have distorted the facts and my record to try to divert the public's attention from her (Heather Ellis') conduct," Sokoloff alleged.

The prosecuting attorney also explained that the statements he made regarding the case were contained in a private email to the author of an article about the case that was not public, not intended for publication.

On November 5, after a hearing on Ellis' request for Sokoloff's recusal, the judge presiding over the matter, Joe Satterfield, denied the request stating there was no legal basis for it.

According to Sokoloff, the court found that the statement(s) he made, were properly made under the Missouri Supreme Court Rules relating to pre-trial publicity as it was made to correct misinformation disseminated by Ellis or others on her behalf.

"Now that the judge has found there was no impropriety on my part, I have considered the matter at some length," Sokoloff said following Satterfield's decision. "I have determined that to remove any possible basis for a claim of bias, either at trial or in any future appeal, and to refocus attention on the actual issues and facts of the case, I will voluntarily recuse myself."

The Dunklin County Prosecutor said he has already filed notice of this voluntary motion through the courts, which records support, and that a request was also made to appoint a special prosecutor to try the case in his absence.

"It is my understanding that the court has appointed an experienced and competent prosecutor to carry the matter forward to trial or other resolution," Sokoloff added.

Court records indicate the attorney filling Sokoloff's shoes in the case will be Morley Swingle, the elected prosecutor of Cape Girardeau County.

"It is my hope and expectation that the case will go forward as scheduled, so that the matter can be fully and finally resolved," Sokoloff said.

Although Judge Satterfield did make a decision to deny Ellis' request to recuse Sokoloff from the case, another motion filed by the defendant remains undecided upon by the judge, according to court records. That motion is a response to the state's motion in limine, a motion to withhold or allow evidence, which was filed last month.

Among the requests made by the state are that the following not be allowed as evidence: the general reputation of the victim (law enforcement officers alleging assault), dishonesty of witnesses, evidence of other complaints or accusations against victims relating to previous arrests, any evidence of matters claimed to have arisen at the police station after the arrest, evidence of the purpose of Ellis' trip to Walmart, character evidence of defendant except by general reputation in the community, testimony on the impact of the incident on the defendant and asks to strike the testimony of three witnesses who have reportedly been uncooperative.

The order also requests that Ellis refrain from "wearing or displaying any religious symbols or religion-specific clothing or any testimony relating to the defendant's faith, religious beliefs or training."

Ellis took issue with a number of the requests.

In response to the state's request regarding religious attire, it states that Ellis "objects to any attempts by the state to restrict the religious attire of members of the public who may attend the trial. Those members have a constitutional right to freedom of religion and expression that should not be restricted by the state. A member of the public attending the trial should be at liberty to wear appropriate religious garments if they choose."

The paragraph goes on to state that Ellis should be permitted to address religion and religious training during voir dire, jury selection, to ensure a fair jury is selected.

Satterfield will have to make a public ruling on those specific motions before it is determined whose arguments will stand.

The Ellis trial is currently scheduled to be heard by a jury in a Dunklin County courtroom before Judge Joe Satterfield at 9 a.m., on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2009. The Daily Dunkin Democrat will attend and report any developments in the case.

Daily Statesman Staff Writer Corey Noles and Daily Dunklin Democrat Managing Editor Deanna Coronado contributed to this report.

Comments

Note: The nature of the Internet makes it impractical for our staff to review every comment. If you feel that a comment is offensive, please Login or Create an account first, and then you will be able to flag a comment as objectionable. Please also note that those who post comments on dddnews.com may do so using a screen name, which may or may not reflect a website user's actual name. Readers should be careful not to assign comments to real people who may have names similar to screen names. Refrain from obscenity in your comments, and to keep discussions civil, don't say anything in a way your grandmother would be ashamed to read.

I think this whole case is odd... seem to me this young girl has gotten herself into trouble and is saying everything said about this case is racially intended...

I think this has nothing to do with this case and what she is being accused of..

All this over "cutting line at Wal-mart" come on... we have paid this young lady enough attention... for God Sake we have young men and women over seas fighting for your country, where is there attetion from the paper...where is the papers write up about Fort Hood...

Lets put things in perspective

-- Posted by bootheelraised on Tue, Nov 10, 2009, at 2:59 PM

THIS IS ONE OF MANY CASES IN THE LAST YEAR THAT SOKOLOFF HAS HAD TO REMOVE HIMSELF FROM. WHAT IS THAT ALL ABOUT?? ONE DAY, WHAT'S DONE IN THE DARK WILL COME TO THE LIGHT!

-- Posted by angry citizen on Tue, Nov 10, 2009, at 3:02 PM

wrong is wrong and dear ms. Ellis you were wrong, it is even worse to say everything is racially based.you are wasting tax payers money

-- Posted by spud on Tue, Nov 10, 2009, at 5:06 PM

This is so over rated. Nothing but bad publicity for Kennett again. Wrong is wrong, she is not going to jail for cutting in line, she is going to jail for assaulting police officers. No matter what color your skin-that is a crime!!!! This family has never been anything but trouble, always calling the race card and sueing whoever they can. FACT. case.net hold court records. She and her family should be ashamed for bring such trash to the national news about this community. More serious problems need attention. Plus as far as being a racist town, then why are there so many mixed marriages, relationships and children. This town is the future of many children who don't need this as a part of their history. Shame on you and your family Ms. Ellis

-- Posted by happymadison on Tue, Nov 10, 2009, at 6:43 PM

Well, let's see here....we all know what family she is from...I am sick of people pulling the race card. That is the excuse EVERY time there is something going on where white and black are involved. I AM NOT racist one bit. One thing I would like for people to see is that pulling that race card, make YOU look prejudiced! If you broke in line then you lacked respect for other people, which is not a crime. HOWEVER, assaulting a police officer is a crime.

-- Posted by susiequ on Tue, Nov 10, 2009, at 9:02 PM

Let's see; we have an attorney from a high-powered St. Louis lawfirm and a hippie from the ACLU (picture above.) Where'd all the money come from? Give me a break.

-- Posted by JungleJim on Tue, Nov 10, 2009, at 10:24 PM

I have another comment....look at the expressions on mom and daughter's face...are they mad at the world?

-- Posted by susiequ on Wed, Nov 11, 2009, at 6:35 AM

All races have individuals who cast a bad light on the majority - good and decent members of the same race. This is a prefect example. This family (Ellis) is an embarrassment!

-- Posted by happy-is-a-choice on Wed, Nov 11, 2009, at 9:53 AM

I was born and raised in Kennett, not a racist and always have tried to be fair and honest. I am not defending anyone involved in this situation, but I will say that there has always been racial discrimination in this area. If you are young and african american, in order to accomplish your dreams and goals, you have to move away from Kennett, because when you find a place where there are no or very few african americans in the post office, banks, courthouse, welfare/ss/and employment agencies, "that's a problem". Yes I know some positions require testing and there have been many straight "A" african american students that graduated from KHS. Even when I graduated from school, there was no such thing as an african american cheerleader; so to say there is not a problem with race is far from the truth. Now on the other hand, the family involved in this dispute has always been known as "hell-raisers"; The shame in this is that it has nothing to do with race, but with spiritual values. The Good News is, GOD is not in any of this, but he is going to judge all those involved. My advice... make sure you are doing the right thing!!

-- Posted by gapeach on Wed, Nov 11, 2009, at 11:32 AM

I think if WalMart has the security video from that day this would probably be solved already.

-- Posted by mcoram on Wed, Nov 11, 2009, at 11:47 AM

Wonder how long it will be before Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton put in an appearance?

-- Posted by beechcornerleda on Wed, Nov 11, 2009, at 2:54 PM

Only the US hating ACLU can make this stuff happen. This is not about cutting in line, it is about being disrepectful and then assaulting police officers. It is about always shifting responsiblity from one's own misbehavior by using race.

Is there prejudice in Kennett? Absolutely. Does this prejudice go across racial lines? Absolutely. Does it also go across socioeconic status? Yes.

I may also add, that this prejudice does not often lead to discrimination. We have laws that prevent much of that. I also add....it is not just Kennett or Missouri or Mississippi and it works both ways.

But none of that has anything to do with this case. This is simply a case of a troublemaker and bully being supported by the communist group...the ACLU.

-- Posted by gobler on Wed, Nov 11, 2009, at 4:40 PM

Oh I agree that Kennett is a most racist town; that is one reason I don't live there anymore. I think everyone should leave Kennett! You gapeach had an excellent answer. Yes, the women in this family have always been hellraisers. It is sad to say that none of them have broken the cycle yet...I know three generations of them and they gather with each other to raise hell. Money isn't going to buy their way into heaven.

-- Posted by susiequ on Wed, Nov 11, 2009, at 8:51 PM

A new day...a new attitude; Just wanted to add a comment or two. Gobler you stated being prejudice does not "often" lead to discrimination; maybe not often because "often" people do not want to go through the messiness of it. When you are living in a place where everybody in the judicial system stick together right or wrong...many choose not to go thru the hassle and yes we do have laws that prevent these types of things, but be honest...the justice system does not always work. This one is for "Mawmaw", I know you are glad to be out of there..It was one of the best moves I've made in life and for the "hell raisers", sometimes I wonder, will they ever wake up and realize all that energy used was negative energy, which brings a lot of sadness in life!

-- Posted by gapeach on Thu, Nov 12, 2009, at 12:33 PM

well anyone with that has any politeness about them would have simply apologized for the possibility of cutting in line and let it go. But instead she had to show her but. Now she needs to suffer the consequences of her actions. It doesn't matter if she is african american or pokie dotted. She acted ignorant, and now ignorance should be prosecuted. I'd hope that when she does get prosecuted (and she will) that it would teach people (all people) that acting this way is unacceptable. BUT IT WILL NOT! THIS WILL CHANGE NOTHING. IGNORANT PEOPLE WILL REMAIN IGNORANT, BECAUSE THEY KNOW NOTHING DIFFERENT, AND DON'T HAVE ENOUGH INTELLIGENCE TO LEARN ANY BETTER! NOR DO THEY WISH TO LEARN TO BE CIVILIZED! IT IS JUST PART OF SOCIETY THAT WE AS "NORMAL" CIVILIZED HUMAN BEINGS OF SOCIETY WILL HAVE TO "ACCOMMODATE" WEATHER WE LIKE IT OR NOT!

-- Posted by crappiegal on Thu, Nov 12, 2009, at 1:04 PM

Who among us have not jumped a line? But 15 years? God shall judge and execute!!!

-- Posted by seemesoon on Fri, Nov 13, 2009, at 2:09 PM

Prosecuting Attorney Stephen Sokoloff removed himself, got that, he WAS NOT removed, from this ridiculous woman's case. Mr. Sokoloff has served this county without a hint of racial bias for years. To whoever is orchestraing this ridiculous, ludicrous, absurd, silly, outrageously bizarre, "March Without A Cause," I say you should hang your head in shame. Yes, it is a shame to bring undeserved national attention this generally unbiased community. The behavior of the want-to-be "victim" is pathological, as well, as criminal. When she is convicted, and clearly she's violated the law, one hopes she'll be confined in a facility that has good mental health facilities.

-- Posted by Skeptisch on Fri, Nov 13, 2009, at 6:50 PM

This ridiculous woman has started this MESS WITHOUT A CAUSE at the prompting of the females in the family, I am sure. We have all seen them in action in the past. They are ludicrous and THEY are a racist bunch themselves. Like I said earlier, look at the expression on mom and daughter's face. This is a look known by all of us who know them.

-- Posted by susiequ on Fri, Nov 13, 2009, at 7:34 PM

If at all possible, maybe the best recourse for the city, oounty, AND this young woman would be for her to have to repay every cent this will cost the taxpayers. Usually the best way to get to someone is through their "pocketbook". Whether it be through wages collected during prison time or paycheck garnishment, it's going to be an extravagant bill when all is said and done. I belieive she might think twice before she showed her temper the next time in public. Possibly a good lesson for others too.

-- Posted by mimisop on Sat, Nov 14, 2009, at 8:59 AM

When she is found guilty...if she is...you know it will be because the judicial system is racially biased....just like it was in the OJ case.

-- Posted by gobler on Sun, Nov 15, 2009, at 5:56 AM

omg why does it always boil down to using the race card?? Obviously the lady caused a big fight and assaulted police that are here to protect us and u know this is on video yet she claims its b/c she's black..

Well Im using the white card to say that I was injustly not able to get in my college of choice b/c i REFUSED to take Spanish.. I live in america which speaks English

-- Posted by sj83 on Sun, Nov 15, 2009, at 10:39 PM

Yet another example of a black who thinks just because they are black they are entitled to preferential treatment (entitlement mentality). I see this kind of junk all the time, and it seems to have gotten worse since the Holy One was annointed, I mean, elected. Until black folk make their minds up to treat others as they themselves want to be treated, there will never be any progress in race relations. It is obvious to any unbiased observer that this woman did just what she is accused of doing and is now playing the race card in order to draw attention away from her criminal, not to mention boorish (ghetto) behavior. I hope she goes to jail.

Bob

-- Posted by Tiny Bob on Mon, Nov 16, 2009, at 6:18 AM

This is just a prime example of young people in today's society that think that they are above reproach. You may not be accountable at

home for your actions because parents rarely discipline their children, but you are held accountable in society for your actions. Heather, you broke the law when you assaulted an officer of the law, not when you cut in line. This is not about the color of a person's skin. Heather, you seem to believe that because of the "color of your skin" that you are above the law and that if you complain long and hard enough and get enough people to tell your side of the story that this will all be erased. The sad part is that we are all equal in God's eyes. Behave honorably and society will treat you honorably.

-- Posted by newco on Mon, Nov 16, 2009, at 8:51 AM

Police report...

http://cnnac360.files.wordpress.com/2009...

Hope she gets some jail time so she can learn an appropriate lesson.

-- Posted by about_stupidity_not_race on Mon, Nov 16, 2009, at 8:52 AM

where is walmarts security tapes? Lets let the black and white cards go and let the law get to the whole truth.If she assalted a officer that needs to be dealt with, but if she was discrimanated against due to race that too needs to be dealt with

One crime does not make another one right.

I would like to comment on some thing else that was written and I do have to agree for all any one has to do is look around to see. We do not have as many blacks, spanish or any other race in offices as compared to whites. However this is not just Kennett or Dunklin county look at Pemiscott co. too.

Oh yeah do not through a black card at me for I am white and so is my spouse. This is 2009 people of all races need to come together and work as a nation not a color.

I hope all involved equal and fair justice in this situation.

-- Posted by enough is enough on Mon, Nov 16, 2009, at 10:35 AM

Like others have said this has nothing to do with Race. She assaulted an officer. Why make things worse then what they are. Find Wal Marts security cameras.

-- Posted by bootheelnative on Mon, Nov 16, 2009, at 12:25 PM

Guilty.

-- Posted by about_stupidity_not_race on Sat, Nov 21, 2009, at 8:10 PM

I have to agree that the racial comments from this lady is outrageous , it is being used more as a cop out these days than anything to get around certain issues in ones life and to take focus off the real picture .

Although , i do agree with her about Sokoloff , I have seen the courthouse packed with people that he has brought there to prosecute and it seems to only get worse , Are there that many BAD people in Kennett/Dunklin County ? Is it a race to see how many people he can put behind bars ? Is it for the money that he gets off of the Dunklin County residents ?

I have never had any problems that amounted to anything until i came across Dunklin County Prosecutor Sokoloff , I know he has a job to do as he is to provide residents with Justice when wronged but what about the wrongly accused , the ones that didnt do what was reported , the ones that do not have the money to fight back for what they know to be the honest to Gods truth , the ones that have to settle for a Public Defender that holds no interest in their clients ,only to get them a plea bargain for something that never occurred.

I have seen first hand on how Sokoloff treats people , do i think he is racist ? That ,i do not know to be true or false but i DO know that black or white if you end up in court against him even if you are innocent , plan on going to jail , plan on the truth not meaning squat , plan on being treated without respect or even given the benefit of doubt for when it is all said and done , You are Guilty until proven Innocent !!!

-- Posted by ManOfHonor on Sun, Oct 3, 2010, at 3:50 AM

Home