Appeals court gives Etowah prosecutors additional time to file response to court filings

Joyce Hardin Garrard

A state appeals court has given Etowah County prosecutors more time to respond to legal challenges in the case of a woman charged in her granddaughter’s running death.

The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals says prosecutors have until next week to answer arguments filed by attorneys representing  Joyce Hardin Garrard. Defense attorneys filed motions asking that the case be dismissed because of what they see as potential problems with the autopsy.

The state asked for more time to file documents that were supposed to be due last week.

Garrard is charged with capital murder in the February 2012 death of her 9-year-old granddaughter, Savannah Hardin. Prosecutors claim the woman made the girl run until she collapsed as punishment for a lie about eating candy bars.

Garrard argues that her rights have been violated by a nearly three-year wait for trial, and that the doctor who performed the autopsy was later fired by the Department of Forensic Science over allegations which included possible falsification of documents and dereliction of duty. In their motions, the lawyers contend the physician has failed to testify in other cases and may not be available to testify in Garrard’s trial.

Her attorneys, Dani Bone and Sam Bone, contend in court documents that the child died because of long-standing health problems. The court filings state that testimony about the girl’s physical condition and the autopsy could be vital at trial. The lawyers have asked the appeals court to order Etowah County Circuit Judge William Ogletree to throw out the charge.