Attorney for man charged in death of HPD officer motions to withdraw

HUNTSVILLE, Ala (WHNT) — One of the lawyers for Juan Laws, the man charged in the shooting death of Huntsville Police officer Garrett Crumby, is asking to withdraw from the case.

In a motion filed Monday, Defense Attorney Bruce Gardner asked to be allowed to withdraw as second chair in the case. Gardner said the motion came after he received a second letter from Laws dismissing him as counsel.

In a handwritten letter filed by Gardner with his motion, Laws said he wrote to Gardner to “inform you on my decision to withdraw for your [Gardner’s] counsel.”

The letter is dated August 16.

Laws is facing capital murder charges for the shooting death of Huntsville Police Department Officer Garrett Crumby on March 28, 2023 .

Crumby, along with fellow officer Albert Morin, was shot when HPD responded to a shots fired call at the Governors House Apartments. There they located a female victim.

The department said two responding officers, Crumby and Morin, were shot by Laws and taken to Huntsville Hospital with life-threatening injuries. Crumby later died from his injuries. Morin was later released from the hospital after recovering from his injuries.

The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) charged 24-year-old Laws with capital murder of a law enforcement officer. He was booked into the Madison County Jail just before 11 p.m. that night.

In an order on Monday, Circuit Court Judge Alison Austin set a hearing to discuss the motion to withdraw on Sept. 3 at the Madison County Courthouse.

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