About to start live chat about the Hannah Graham case from Charlottesville.
Morning, all. Here's what's happened this morning....
Jesse Matthew's name was called in Albemarle Co Dist Court, for his reckless driving charges...
After a moment or two, the judge moved onto the next case. matthew did NOT appear by video, and his attorney Jim Camblos was NOT in court
Afterwards, we learned that Camblos and prosecutors had exchanged emails, and this hearing is postponed to Dec1
You'll remember the Abduction hearing was postponed until Dec 4
So, this doesn't change much. Jesse Matthew remains in jail, with no bond, until his preliminary hearing on Dec 4. Glad to take your questions.....
Betty, to be honest at this point there's not much rush in the prosecution, even though the search for Hannah remains crucially time sensitive.
Police say Matthew isn't talking. If he has anything to share his attorney knows to pick up the phone. With so many loose ends,the prosecution is gathering evidence, and the defense wants to know what the prosecution has. Sadly, the prosecution will likely happen long after hannah Graham's fate is determined.
Betty, re Morgan Harrington. State police say there's a forensic link to the Graham case. They haven't specified what that link is, or actually even whose DNA it is. It's more than likely Matthew. At this point, prosecutors give just enough evidence to make their point. It's unclear whether more evidence connects Hannah to Morgan.
Here are a few comments/observations from a few folks joining us this morning.
OK back to questions. Here are two about the search efforts.
Deb. Yep, unfortunately lots of missing people in this area. Some stories capture attention more than others
Good questions, B. Police aren't inviting reporters along on searches. They search private property with permission, and many areas where matthew has been known to frequent. He's lived here in Chatlottesville most of his life, was a cab driver, so it's a large amount of area to cover
Jean -- ironically I was wondering that as I drove down this morning. I don't know, don't believe so. I know police chief Longo is in touch with them often though
Hoping and B -- yep, police impounded the car he drove to Texas (his sisters) and there have been at least three searches of Matthew's apartment. The forensics from either his burnt orange car or his apartment provided the info to make police and prosecutors file the attempt to defile charge.
Louise -- Randy Taylor's lawyer was here in court. Outside court, he made some news. The attorney has now sent a letter to the Nelson County Comminwealths Attorney, asking that Jesse Matthew's DNA be checked against all the unidentified DNA in the Taylor case, for killing Alexis Murphy. The attorney says he realizes it's a fishing expedition, but it doesn't hurt to do it. Prosecutors earlier have said there's no link to Matthew.
To recap: Even though Nelson County prosecutors say there is no connection between Matthew and Murphy, the defense attorney for the man convicted in Murphy's death essentially says, we do don't know for sure.
We have a few questions about Matthew's right to remain silent.
Remember, Alexis Murphy's body was never found, and Randy Taylor was convicted. He's appealing his case. You don't need a body to prosecute for murder in Virginia. And if other cases are proven, this could be a capital murder case, with the killing of a number of victims over a span of time.
EPC, prosecutors don't have to divulge all their evidence until weeks before trial. The process is a long one. In my opinion, it generally works the way it should.
Thanks for all the great questions. We'll do it again soon. In the meantime, keep in touch on Twitter @AugensteinWTOP. Bye for now.
