Waco – The apparently charmed actions of incumbent elected District Attorney Abel Reyna continue to draw chain lightning in the black and gold case of Matthew Clendennen, who was arrested at Twin Peaks on May 17, 2015, wearing a Scimitars cut.
Though he no longer owns a hog or is a member of a club affiliated with the Cossacks, he’s still facing indictment for engaging in organized criminal behavior and a superseding charge of conspiring to commit capital murder.
In a filing for the immdidate order to show cause why Reyna “should not be held in contempt of court of court,” defense attorney F. Clinton Broden hammered on the fact that though Visiting Judge Doug Shaver ordered Reyna to immediately take down ads on his Facebook page and on the air that depict the arrest of Clendennen on the fateful day, Reyna continues to “thumb his nose” at the directions of the Court.
In a hearing Monday morning – primary election eve – Judge Shaver said he was not sure if a gag order issued prior to Reyna’s self recusal by 54th Criminal District Judge Matt Johnson would still apply, the Judge said were he sure, he would order him taken into custody.He told Reyna he “should be ashamed of yourself.”
As of 3:30 pm the same day, Reyna had not complied with his order, an action Broden said would take only a “few mouse clicks” for anyone with even “rudimentary” computer skills.
As to the applicability of the gag order to Reyna, Broden noted in his motion that,
The Court was worried that, because Reyna’s office recused itself from the case, that the ‘gag order’ might not cover Reyna. Mr. Clendennen notes that the ‘gag order’ covers ‘witnesses…who have testified in investigative or adjudicative proceedings’ in the case. In fact, Reyna’s purported reason for recsing himself in this case was that he has testified in an adjudicative proceeding in the case.
So, the famous “gag order” so often cited by cops and robbers, lawyers and defendants throughout the Twin Peaks saga seems to apply to everyone but the “elected Criminal District Attorney,” Abelino Reyna, who faces a “coin flip,” do-or-die decision today at the polls in a primary election with his single challenger, home town lawyer Barry Johnson, recently returned from a 30-year career as manager of a Dallas law office.
In denying a motion for a speedy trial on Monday, Judge Shaver ordered a trial date of October 5, according to Broden, who had sought dismissal of the case due to repeated delays imposed by Reyna’s stalling tactics over discovery.