FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 15, 2023
MOBILE, Alabama – The Mobile County District Attorney’s Office begins a new trial season this week in pursuing justice for the citizens of Mobile County.
This new trial season marks the first season with two prosecutors in each Circuit Court room. The additional prosecutors were made possible by funding over the next three years from the City of Mobile and Mobile County earlier this year to allow the Mobile County District Attorney’s Office to responsibly serve the citizens of Mobile County at a higher capacity and bring swift justice to victims.
Since the beginning of District Attorney Keith Blackwood’s administration in January, his prosecutors and staff have tried 33 jury trials, 28 of which were violent felonies. In District Court, cases continue to move at an increased rate. There are over 500 fewer cases pending in Circuit Court, which translates to nearly 4,162 resolved Circuit Court criminal counts since January. This pace exceeds the average rate of prosecutions, including pre-covid. With the addition of more prosecutors, the Mobile County District Attorney’s Office anticipates surpassing that rate in the months moving forward.
“We are ready for trial and thankfully our judges have a continued commitment to push these cases to trial,” says Keith Blackwood Mobile County District Attorney. “We are confident that fully implementing this plan will make the backlog a thing of the past.”
Here’s a snapshot of this week’s trial docket:
- Alexis Young – Capital Murder
- Anthony Orr – Murder
- Jeffrey Lewis Stanley – Rape 1st
- Samuel Nichols entered a blind plea to Manslaughter on Monday. His sentencing is set for September 26, 2023.
- Barron Morris pled guilty to Murder on Monday and was sentenced to 20 years.
- The trial of State vs. Ralph Darnell Barnes began mid-Monday and by the end of the day, a jury convicted him on all four charges (Trafficking Fentanyl, Trafficking Heroin, Possession with intent to distribute Cocaine, Possession with intent to distribute Methamphetamine.) Sentencing is set for Barnes September 27, 2023.