TULSA, Okla. -- Defense attorneys for the four Bixby High School football players accused of second-degree rape by instrumentation filed new documents asking the Court of Criminal Appeals to remove the Rogers County District Attorney’s office from the case.
This stems from an alleged incident involving four Bixby High School football players who were charged with penetrating another football player with a pool cue at the former superintendent's home.
Four young lives have sparked media attention for months.
“Many people think that juvenile records are always sealed and never can be unsealed and that’s just not the case," Defense attorney Paul DeMuro said.
No matter the outcome, Colten Cable, Isaiah Lakin, William Thomas and Joe Wood will be forever impacted.
“This has been a life-changing event already for joe," Paul DeMuro said.
The defense attorneys filed new documents May 11th.
"It’s something that asks the court to look at quickly so that the proceedings below can get on with it," DeMuro said.
The defense claims Assistant Rogers County District Attorney Kali Strain has “close personal connections” with the victims family. Strain admitted to having a close relationship with the victim’s family in April at a hearing saying she had previously babysat the victim.
“I think it’s safe to say though the court of appeals thought that the issue was serious enough argument that it warranted a closer look," DeMuro said.
Now, the court is waiting for the state to respond, which ultimately pushed back the date for the preliminary hearing.
“There is no set timeframe for when the court of criminal appeals has to rule," DeMuro said.
If the Rogers County DA's office is removed, the attorney general could take the case or reassign the case to another DA office. The Rogers County DA’s office tells 2 Works for You they don’t comment on open cases.
“Only time will tell," DeMuro said.
Now the teenagers are taking it one day at a time.
The state wants to try the teenagers as adults but the defense asked for them to be tried in Juvenile court. At this time, the judge has not made a decision. The next court date is Monday, June 25th.
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