FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Jan. 7 (UPI) -- A Florida judge barred county prosecutors from proceeding in a murder trial because prosecutors listened to phone calls between the defendant and his lawyer.
Judge Susan Lebow said that Brad Weissman and Julie Vogel with the Broward State Attorney's Office violated a rule that everyone who watches "Law and Order" knows, The Miami Herald reported. In a written opinion, she said that the "bells of common sense" should have sounded.
Lebow's decision leaves the trial of Luis Martinez in limbo. His lawyer, Chris Grillo, who would like the trial to continue with different prosecutors, called the situation "a big mess."
"I don't think anyone has answers right now," he said.
Martinez is charged with killing Charles Moretto in 2003, posing as a potential buyer for the businessman's house in Lighthouse Point and his Bentley.
Prosecutors plan to appeal Lebow's ruling. The trial could also go forward with a different State Attorney's Office supplying lawyers.
