Lawyer Limbo
Defendant In City Murder Case Lags In Hiring Attorney
Posted: January 17, 2013
HARRISONBURG — With less than a month before his preliminary hearing, murder defendant Dallas Chaplin has yet to hire an attorney, he told a judge Wednesday during a hearing in Rockingham County General District Court.
Chaplin, 19, of Staunton, is charged with first-degree murder in the slaying of Ben Graessle, a 2011 Spotswood High School graduate. Chaplin also faces a charge of felony use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
If convicted on the murder charge, he faces up to life in prison.
During his first court appearance on Dec. 28, he told Judge Richard Claybrook he planned to hire his own attorney, rather than have a court-appointed lawyer.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Marsha Garst asked for Wednesday’s hearing after she became concerned that no attorneys had notified her that they were representing Chaplin. She noted the preliminary hearing is set for Feb. 7.
When Claybrook questioned whether one has been hired, Chaplin said his family is in charge of arranging that.
“They’re in the process of doing that now,” he told the judge.
He said they are attempting to retain Staunton attorney William Little. A message seeking comment for this story left for Little wasn’t returned.
Garst told the judge she will try to contact Little and find if Chaplin’s family is in the process of hiring him. If they aren’t, she said, she will schedule another hearing to address the issue. It’s likely that Chaplin would qualify for court-appointed counsel.
Police say Chaplin shot and killed Graessle around 1 a.m. on Dec. 23 outside an apartment building where the victim lived at The Commons, located in the 800 block of Port Republic Road in Harrisonburg.
Harrisonburg police identified Chaplin as the murder suspect and issued a warrant for his arrest on Dec. 26. He was captured the next day at a home in Staunton following a three-hour standoff with police.
A co-defendant, Givi Dudunia, 19, is also scheduled to be in court for a hearing Feb. 7.
Police say he hid the alleged shooter and the suspected murder weapon at his home on Terrace Street in Staunton.
Dudunia is charged with misdemeanor accessory after the fact to first-degree murder and misdemeanor accessory after the fact to felony use of a firearm in commission of a felony.
Both are being held in Rockingham County Jail without bond.
Contact Pete DeLea at 574-6278 or pdelea@dnronline.com
Chaplin, 19, of Staunton, is charged with first-degree murder in the slaying of Ben Graessle, a 2011 Spotswood High School graduate. Chaplin also faces a charge of felony use of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
If convicted on the murder charge, he faces up to life in prison.
During his first court appearance on Dec. 28, he told Judge Richard Claybrook he planned to hire his own attorney, rather than have a court-appointed lawyer.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Marsha Garst asked for Wednesday’s hearing after she became concerned that no attorneys had notified her that they were representing Chaplin. She noted the preliminary hearing is set for Feb. 7.
When Claybrook questioned whether one has been hired, Chaplin said his family is in charge of arranging that.
“They’re in the process of doing that now,” he told the judge.
He said they are attempting to retain Staunton attorney William Little. A message seeking comment for this story left for Little wasn’t returned.
Garst told the judge she will try to contact Little and find if Chaplin’s family is in the process of hiring him. If they aren’t, she said, she will schedule another hearing to address the issue. It’s likely that Chaplin would qualify for court-appointed counsel.
Police say Chaplin shot and killed Graessle around 1 a.m. on Dec. 23 outside an apartment building where the victim lived at The Commons, located in the 800 block of Port Republic Road in Harrisonburg.
Harrisonburg police identified Chaplin as the murder suspect and issued a warrant for his arrest on Dec. 26. He was captured the next day at a home in Staunton following a three-hour standoff with police.
A co-defendant, Givi Dudunia, 19, is also scheduled to be in court for a hearing Feb. 7.
Police say he hid the alleged shooter and the suspected murder weapon at his home on Terrace Street in Staunton.
Dudunia is charged with misdemeanor accessory after the fact to first-degree murder and misdemeanor accessory after the fact to felony use of a firearm in commission of a felony.
Both are being held in Rockingham County Jail without bond.
Contact Pete DeLea at 574-6278 or pdelea@dnronline.com