After choosing to represent herself in a murder trial, Crystal Mangum has now requested a court-appointed attorney.
Mangum, the Durham woman who falsely accused three Duke lacrosse players of rape in 2006, has been on trial since 2011 for the alleged murder of her then boyfriend, Reginald Daye. In a court hearing Thursday morning, Mangum said she wanted the court to appoint her attorney Scott Holmes of lawfirm Brock, Payne and Meece. Superior Court Judge Paul Ridgeway, who presided over the hearing, denied Mangum’s request to appoint Holmes specifically, stating that she is allowed a court-appointed lawyer but cannot choose her own.
Mangum was previously assigned attorney Woody Vann, a managing partner of The Law Offices of Edward J. Falcone and H. Wood Vann, but chose to dismiss him last fall due to “trust issues.” Mangum chose in October 2012 to represent herself instead, a decision met with surprise from the legal community.
Sam Buell, a professor at the School of Law, said that when people choose to represent themselves in court, “it usually goes badly.” He added that the law does not guarantee a right to choose a particular court-appointed lawyer.
“The [U.S.] Constitution guarantees you representation in that if you can’t afford a lawyer, the government will pay for one,” said Buell, who is not involved in the case. “But because you’re getting an appointed lawyer, you don’t get to say, ‘I’d prefer to have this one rather than that one.’”
Mangum—who faces charges of first degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon and larceny—asserts that she attacked Daye in self-defense. He died at Duke Hospital 10 days after the stabbing.
Holmes and Ridgeway could not be reached for comment.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.