Another appeal will delay trial for Jason Dalton, accused in mass shooting

The defense is asking the Michigan Supreme Court to consider a challenge to admission at trial of statements made by accused mass murderer Jason Dalton.

The appeal will further delay the trial of Dalton, 47, charged with killing six people and wounding two more during a shooting spree in Kalamazoo County on Feb. 20, 2016.

Defense attorney Eusebio Solis said he expects the appeal may delay the trial until early next year although Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting said Wednesday he doesn't know how long the trial may wait.

Solis sought a ruling from the Michigan Court of Appeals but the court refused last month to hear the case. He will ask the high court to consider preventing admission of the statements at the trial.

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Solis is challenging a ruling by Circuit Court Judge Alexander Lipsey to allow portions of interviews conducted with Dalton within 24 hours of his arrest by officers of the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety and the Michigan State Police.

The defense argument is that Dalton told police the night of his arrest he didn't want to talk to them and he wanted an attorney.

Police said they continued to question Dalton under a public safety provision to determine if there were other victims who had not been found. Solis argued police went far beyond what is permitted under that exception.

And he argued that a second interview by a state police detective the next day also should not have been conducted because Dalton had asked for his constitutional right to an attorney.

Prosecutors argued the statements should be admitted at trial because they fell under the public safety exception and because the state police were a second department and Dalton eventually agreed to talk with the detective.

Lipsey agreed to surpress portions of the interviews but said the bulk could be introduced by prosecutors at trial.

Solis said Wednesday he decided to continue the appeal asking the high court to consider his arguements.

"Our position is that it's critical and a constitutional violation and that the facts are there and the Court of Appeals should have taken a look at it," he said.

Judge Lipsey has agreed to release $1,500 to pay Kalamazoo attorney Anastase Markou to work with Solis to prepare the appeal for the supreme court.

Markou was paid $5,000 to prepare the original appeal and briefs for the appeals court because Solis does not have the experience in appeals.

Markou said some additional work must be done to prepare the appeal for the Supreme Court and that will probably be completed in about three weeks.

"The Michigan Supreme Court has specific criteria," he said.

In addition to the original arguments the defense must show why the Court of Appeals was wrong not to consider the case but the majority of the arguments remain the same.

"Fundamentally this is an argument that (the police) are violating the constitution," Markou said.

The high court does not have to consider the case although both Solis and Getting said if the issue is decided now it may prevent an appeal on the issue if Dalton is convicted.

"It's a double edge sword," Getting said Wednesday. "It is good that it is being addressed even though I feel bad for the victims in this case because of the delays and that has an impact on them.

"But the other side of addressing these issues is that it won't come up post conviction and in a way that could cause that we would have to retry this case years down the road. It is important that we litigate these issues and that the case is thouroughly developed. We are hoping that the Michigan Supreme Court will take action as quickly as possible because we are anxious for this case to go to trial.

Contact Trace Christenson at 269-966-0685 or tchrist@battlecreekenqurier.com. Follow him on Twitter: @TSChristenson