BOISE, Idaho — The U.S Attorney's Office has asked a judge to deny a recently filed motion seeking an acquittal in the case against ex-Caldwell Police Department lieutenant Joseph Hoadley, according to court records.
Hoadley was originally charged with four federal crimes: deprivation of rights under the color of law; destruction, alteration or falsification of records in federal investigations; tampering with a witness by harassment; and tampering with documents.
A 12-person jury found him not guilty on the first count, but guilty on the other three. The Caldwell Police Department fired Hoadley in May after he was federally indicted.
On Oct. 7, Hoadley's attorney filed for an acquittal or a new trial, arguing that there was "insufficient evidence", and no reasonable juror could have found Hoadley guilty of the charges "beyond a reasonable doubt" because they didn't find him guilty on the initial charge.
In documents filed on Friday, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Idaho requested the court deny Hoadley's motion, claiming the evidence it presented in the trial was strong. The government said it satisfied the state's burden of demonstrating that a rational juror could - and did - find the "essential elements of the crimes" charged in three of the counts beyond a reasonable doubt.
If the judge denies the acquittal, Hoadley's attorney said a new trial would be warranted due to the government's production of several thousand documents prior to the trial. However, the U.S. Attorney's Office argued Hoadley insisted on going to trial, withdrew his motion to continue trial and rejected the court's offer to push the case back.
The judge has not yet made a decision on this new motion.
Hoadley was initially accused of hitting a man referred to as "B.H" while the man was handcuffed, and then writing a false report about it in 2017. The prosecution said during trial that he later wiped data from his laptop and cell phone during the ongoing FBI investigation, and that he intimidated a witness in the case.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
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