The retrial of a former Tulsa police officer charged with killing his daughter's boyfriend is back on track after defense claims of mishandled evidence.
At issue is a small plastic bag a property clerk accidentally released to Lisa Kepler along with the rest of Jeremy Lake’s belongings when she claimed her ID a year and a half ago.
The defense said they just learned of the bag while reviewing photos and believe it contained drugs because of a black residue inside of it. They wanted police Chief Chuck Jordan and a city attorney to testify in court about why it wasn’t tested or for the case to be dismissed.
Prosecutors said the defense knew about the bag for two and a half years and are just now asking for it to be tested.
Judge Sharon Holmes halted jury selection Wednesday over the matter.
Holmes ruled Thursday morning jurors may be told about the bag during the trial, and jury selection resumed.
Shannon Kepler was convicted of two misdemeanor gun charges in November, but jurors came back 11–1 for a conviction on a first-degree murder charge over Lake’s death. That resulted in a mistrial.
