Man accused of murder “to the point of tears” after case dismissed

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) – Six people accused of murder are now back on the streets because Chatham District Attorney (DA) Shalena Cook Jones dismissed their cases.

They were handled by two indicted Savannah Police officers accused of misconduct.

A lawyer representing one of the freed men, Stanley Hall, talked exclusively with WSAV.

Michael Schiavone said his client was, “to the point of tears. I mean, this is somebody that had this hanging over his head for several years.”

According to Schiavone, former SPD Detective Daryl Repress knew Hall. Repress is accused of creating evidence against one of the other co-defendants. Hall’s case never got to that point. Charges were also dropped against Jerrell Williams and John Baker.

Schiavone says his client had an alibi and wasn’t at the crime scene.

“The unfortunate thing about our system of justice is that you don’t have a choice when you’re accused of a crime. You’re simply put into that position. And innocent people get accused on occasion, not all the time, but it happens,” he said.

Schiavone addressed some of the criticism now directed at the DA.

“When the DA makes this decision, it comes across sometimes to the community as if she’s not doing her job or that somebody is walking away from a very serious offense. When the fact of the matter is, she is doing her job by seeking justice; by making sure that she doesn’t prosecute somebody that’s innocent. And that is some of the hard decisions that the district attorney has to make,” he said.

Schiavone says there is no statute of limitations in murder cases, so they are never closed.

Anyone can be accused of a crime. When asked if he thought Hall would be back in a courtroom for this crime, Schiavone says its unlikely.