Court: D.A.'s book deal disqualifies him

INDIANAPOLIS, Nov. 16 (UPI) -- A court has barred an Indiana district attorney from any role in a third murder trial for a former state trooper because he negotiated a book deal.

The state appeals court said Keith Henderson, the district attorney in Floyd County, has "an actual, irreversible conflict of interest with his duty to the people of the state of Indiana," The (Louisville, Ky.) Courier-Journal reported. Henderson made the deal for a book, later canceled, while David Camm was appealing his second conviction for killing his wife, son and daughter.

The court ordered a special prosecutor. The state has not yet decided whether to appeal.

Camm was arrested soon after the bodies of his wife, Kimberly, and their children, Bradley, 7, and Jill, 5, were found in the garage of their home in 2000. He was convicted twice by juries and won two appeals on the grounds that prosecutors introduced prejudicial evidence.

Defense attorney Stacy Uliana said Tuesday she is now hopeful "we're finally going to get a fair trial."

Henderson was district attorney at the time of the second trial. His book had the working title "Sacred Trust: Deadly Betrayal."

A lower court judge ruled against Camm's lawyers. But Judge John Baker, writing for the appeals court, described the book contract as "a bell that cannot be unrung."