Meus Case Gets Boost From Appeals Ruling

WAUCHULA - Trucker Jean Claude Meus' fight to have his 15-year prison sentence overturned or reduced received a big boost Wednesday afternoon.

In a written opinion, Judge Douglas A. Wallace, of the Florida Second District Court of Appeals, suggested that Meus received ineffective counsel during his postconviction trial in 2005 at the Hardee County Courthouse.

"(The opinion) was written very precisely," said defense attorney John H. Trevena, of Largo, who represents Meus. "Given its wording, I believe that it will give Mr. Meus an opportunity for a new trial."

Meus is currently sitting in a state prison after being convicted of vehicular homicide in 2003 for the much publicized death of Nona Moore, 40, and her 8-year-old daughter Lindsey. The accident happened in 2001.

During Meus' criminal trial, prosecutors said that he fell asleep at the wheel of his tractor-trailer, driving through a stop sign and eventually overturning his vehicle onto Moore's van at Seven Mile Point, just outside of Wauchula. Prosecutors maintained that Meus fell asleep shortly before the accident, but Meus maintained throughout his trial that a vehicle had cut him off, forcing him to swerve into Moore's van.

The case generated national publicity as many special interest groups paid close attention to the case, feeling like Meus was given a disproportionate sentence because he is Haitian.

Also fueling the publicity was the fact that Moore's daughters who survived the accident, as well as Moore's sisters, publicly supported Meus, saying they believed what happened was an accident, and if they were given the opportunity to testify during his criminal trial they would have testified on his behalf.

The Opinion

More than four years after his criminal trial and after numerous appeal denials, Meus may have his best opportunity to get out of prison.

In the appeal court opinion's conclusion, Wallace suggested that during Meus' postconviction trial, he was not granted an evidentiary hearing, which would have led a key witness, John Otero, to testify during his trial.

Otero was a volunteer firefighter with the Zolfo Springs Fire Department at the time of the Meus accident and would have been a crucial witness because he was one of the first emergency personnel officials to reach the scene.

Otero was off duty at the time of the crash and reported it to authorities. According to the motion filed, which the appeals court based its opinion on, Otero had practical knowledge of crime scene reconstruction and semi-trailer experience, and would have testified that theories that Meus fell asleep at the time were inconsistent with his own observations.

The Future

Because of the opinion, Trevena said that Meus' appeal now will have to be sent back to the Hardee County Courthouse for an evidentiary hearing.

Trevena said he will be in contact with officials at the courthouse to schedule a date for the hearing.

"At the hearing, I would expect that whoever hears the case will rule that (Meus) was not granted a fair postconviction trial," said Trevena.

Trevena said that he would expect the court to rule in favor of his client because the appeals court set precedence in its written opinion, but given the state's history of fighting his client's appeals, anything could happen. And even if Meus is ruled in favor of, the state could still appeal the ruling at the appeals court.

Chip Tullberry, of the State Attorney's Office, said that jumping to any conclusions with regards to Meus' appeal status would be premature.

"I think it's still too early to tell where things are at," said Tullberry. "(The state) can't make any judgments until the evidentiary hearing actually takes place."

According to Trevena, if a judge decided to rule in favor of Meus during his evidentiary hearing, Meus' conviction could be overturned and he could be brought to court again for a new trial.

Trevena also said if the court rules against his client, he will appeal again, and given the court's written opinion, things would probably favor Meus.

Trevena said that he will begin working closely with prosecutors over upcoming weeks on what he called a "global resolution," where he will seek to have Meus' conviction erased so he could plead to lesser charges and get released for time already served in prison.

Tullberry made it sound as though a door may be open for a plea.

"In any case that goes on, before the trial there are certainly forms of negotiations," said Tullberry. "Right now we just have to accept the opinion (of the appeals court) and move forward."

The Reaction

Meus' fiancée, Rebecca Chenoweth said that she was trying to contact Meus Thursday afternoon to give him the good news.

"He doesn't know yet," said Chenoweth. "This is the first time something has gone our way since he has been in prison -- it's been almost three years."

"In any case that is appealed, there is never a 100 percent certainty that things are going to be upheld," said Tullberry.