The judge has officially thrown out two charges being leveled at Atlanta attorney Tex McIver, who is currently on trial in connection with his wife's shooting death.
Fulton County Superior Court Chief Judge Robert McBurney threw out counts 6 and 7 - both connected to witness tampering.
Judge McBurney delivered a direct verdict that said the state didn't prove McIver tampered with witnesses in two cases: one when he asked Bill Crane to retract a Black Lives Matter statement and another when he left a voicemail for Dani Jo Carter's husband. Both Crane and Carter were considered close friends of the McIvers.
Crane was acting as a go-between for Tex and the media, and he said Tex told him to lie to reporters after they crafted a statement. The statement Tex approved said he was scared of what he thought were Black Lives Matter protesters when they were driving near Piedmont Park, but when Crane said it was poorly received, Tex told him to take it back. However, the judge said it wasn't witness tampering because lying to the media is not a crime – only lying to the police is.
As for that voicemail to Dani Jo Carter's husban, the judge tossed that count because he said Tex was trying to compel him to talk. That's why Tex sent a car to pick him up and left the voicemail asking him to talk to the media.
That still leaves five counts standing so far in the trial, including one witness tampering for asking Carter to lie. Carter was driving the night the shooting happened. Among the other counts is one of malice murder.
The jury will now have to decide if these remaining counts lead to a conviction.
McIver is accused of intentionally killing his wife, Diane McIver, on Sept. 25, 2016. Diane McIver died after being shot in the back with a handgun while in the passenger's seat of an SUV. Tex was riding behind her and had a loaded revolver in his lap.According to Tex, the revolver fired on its own and claims that the shooting was "a horrible accident."
Tex is an attorney with the Fisher and Phillips law firm. He is also on the advisory committee of the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Gun Violence.
Photos: Motions hearing being held for Tex McIver's bond
He was originally charged with misdemeanor reckless conduct and felony involuntary manslaughter in September 2016. He was released on a $200,000 bond with conditions that included wearing an ankle monitor, surrendering his passport and having no contact with anyone employed with Diane's business. At the time, he was also told he was not allowed to carry any weapons.
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