Defense attorney Anastase Markou is confident a Michigan Court of Appeals ruling regarding accused Kalamazoo mass murderer Jason Dalton is going to stand. The appeals court this week ruled Dalton’s statements to police are inadmissible at trial because officers repeatedly ignored his request for an attorney. Markou said the claim by police that they didn’t allow an attorney to be present due to a danger to the public and the fear there were other victims isn’t valid in this case.
“The public safety exception is usually something that’s done right on the scene, immediate, when there’s an obvious and immediate danger that needs to be addressed,” says Markou. “That just wasn’t the case here.”
He doubts the Michigan Supreme Court would see it any differently if Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting appeals. Markou specializes in appellate cases and says he will be called in again if the case goes to the Supreme Court, but Dalton has another attorney to represent him at his trial. The Cooper Township man is accused of killing six people and wounding two others in an hours-long shooting spree in February 2016. Two victims were from Mattawan and one was from Baroda. Dalton is accused of carrying out the attacks while still picking up customers for Uber. He has claimed the app on his phone showed a devilish image that caused him to start shooting people.
