SPRINGFIELD, Ill., Oct. 20 (UPI) -- A defense lawyer should be prevented from abusing Illinois state funds for death penalty cases as he did in a 2004 case, officials say.
Illinois Rep. Kurt Granberg said lawyer John Paul Carroll allegedly "cheated" state taxpayers by spending $2 million in a 2004 case involving convicted child killer Cecil Sutherland, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch said Monday.
"I'm appalled by it," the Democrat said after learning Carroll will once again defend a death penalty case. "People like this should not be allowed to come in here and cheat the taxpayers."
Carroll was appointed in June to represent homicide suspect Darren Denson, who is facing the death penalty. Therefore Carroll may once again use the Illinois Capital Litigation Fund to pay for the man's legal defense.
Kati Phillips, a spokeswoman for Illinois Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, told the Post-Dispatch Carroll's 2004 case prompted changes to the fund, but those changes likely won't prevent unnecessary spending.
"(John Paul Carroll) is the poster boy for capital litigation abuse," Phillips alleged. "Despite the changes to the law that he prompted ... there is still potential for abuse."
