In October, Georgia attorney Claud “Tex” McIver shot his 63-year-old wife in the back, leading to Diane McIver’s death. At the time, McIver explained, according to sources close to him, that he did so accidentally because he had drawn his gun while riding in the back seat of a car because he was worried about Black Lives Matter. It was an astounding position to take when you realize that someone saying it is implying that this was somehow a reasonable reason to draw a loaded gun while driving down the road.
McIver is now accused of murder, and prosecutors claim he’s reaching out from his jail cell to try and influence the case against him:
Fulton County Assistant District Attorney Clint Rucker said authorities recorded three recent phone calls by McIver from jail. In one, he speaks about providing a car to a potential witness and in another soliciting a favor from a judge.
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If this is true, then how, exactly, did a lawyer think this was (a) OK and (b) not going to be recorded? Seriously, you don’t need a law degree, you just need to have watched Law & Order once to know not to do any of that. Prosecutors aren’t charging McIver with any crimes based on these calls, but they did ask the judge to withhold bail. The judge declined to make a decision until he had an opportunity to listen to the tapes.
McIver’s team claims those contacts were innocent, which maybe they were, but when you’re on trial for murder, that’s a good time to start getting concerned about “the mere appearance of impropriety.”
The trial is on pace for September.
Tex McIver pleads not guilty in wife’s murder [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]
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Earlier: Biglaw Partner Killed His Wife, Allegedly Because Of ‘Black Lives Matter’
Joe Patrice is an editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news.