Appointed attorney of Juan Laws provides update on legal process

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) - The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency arrested Juan Laws and charged him with capital murder after two Huntsville Police officers were shot on Tuesday.

Attorney Larry Marsili told WAFF 48 he was appointed by Judge Donna Pate to represent Laws.

“The law presumes that everybody charged in the case is not guilty,” Marsili said. “That is the legal presumption at this point. It is way early on in this process, and there’s a number of things to explore before this case unfolds. We don’t anticipate that it would come to trial until at least two or three years down the road.”

Marsili said his client is going through the legal process as it develops.

“He was formally advised of what he’s charged with,” he said. “The fact that he has no bond set was explained to him. He acknowledged and understood what he was charged with, and that’s the purpose of the 72-hour hearing. Truly, that’s about the extent of it at this point.”

He says that he knows very little about the investigation at this time but he is preparing for anything the state may provide.

“For this case, we’re anticipating that the state will be seeking the death penalty. There’s not been any formal declaration of that, but until the state declares that they are not seeking the death penalty, we will be taking all of the appropriate steps moving forward with the defense of Mr. Laws to make sure the process is fair, and it moves the way it’s supposed to.”

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