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Use immunity was granted for a witness testifying Tuesday during a robbery trial in Kosciusko Circuit Court.
Michael Alan Cavender, 33, is charged with robbery in connection with a Jan. 28, 1998, incident in which a North Webster American Legion employee allegedly was robbed of the club's deposit. Russell Griffin suffered abrasions to his head when he was reportedly struck from behind and robbed of the money he was planning to take to the bank.
Cavender, Ray James Skelton, 33, and David Walter Hawthorne, 25, all of Syracuse, were charged with robbery after the attack on Griffin. Skelton and Hawthorne were apprehended the same night and Cavender was arrested on a warrant a few days later. Witnesses to the crime told police that one of the men had a gun in his back pocket, but no weapon was recovered.
When Skelton took the stand Tuesday afternoon as a witness for the state, attorney Mike Reed objected from the gallery and advised his client to invoke his Fifth Amendment rights. Charges in the case against Skelton remain pending.
The jury was excused from the courtroom after Reed's objection, and Judge Rex Reed listened to Prosecutor Chuck Waggoner's motion for use immunity for Skelton. Granting of use immunity allowed Skelton to relate his version of the events of that night without incriminating himself.
Evidence already known by the prosecution can be used against Skelton at his trial, but testimony about anything the state might not have known in the matter cannot be used to convict Skelton when it is his turn to be on trial if the information is in response to direct questioning.
Griffin also testified Tuesday before the seven-woman, five-man jury.
Hawthorne was the next state witness scheduled to testify today and Waggoner said he expected the same scenario to unfold regarding objections and use immunity. Hawthorne's attorney is Jay Rigdon. David Kolbe is Cavender's attorney.
The trial is expected to conclude this afternoon.
