Over 60 pre-trial motions filed in Elwyn Crocker, Sr. case

EFFINGHAM COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) - Elwyn Crocker, Sr. was in an Effingham County courtroom Friday morning for a status hearing.

A judge heard the latest batch of what’s become a pile of more than 60 pre-trial motions filed on behalf of Elwyn Crocker Sr. alone. He was in the courtroom as all of those were being considered.

New requests from Elwyn Crocker, Sr.’s lawyers were still coming in Friday morning. The ones the judge heard today dealt with things like making sure the defense knows about all the evidence the state might use against Crocker.

There are a handful of motions that have been skipped, at least for now, because they will come up when Crocker’s two co-defendants, Kim Wright and Mark Anthony Wright, are also in the courtroom.

Friday, the judge set a date at the end of the October to bring the other defendants in for a joint hearing, but one of the defense attorneys explained why it might take longer than one to get through all the work that’s left to do.

“The first thing, the issue that came to my mind is that...it’s more than one day in order to do all of them. One of them, for example, is the grand jury challenge. And in regards to that we don’t have the documentation yet at this point fully,” said Jerilyn Bell, with the Georgia Capital Defender’s Office.

According to court officials, in capital murder cases like this, it’s normal for the defense to challenge the grand jury decision by questioning the makeup of the grand jury. The defense will look at things like the race and gender of each grand jury member to make sure their clients got a fair shake.

Crocker was last in court on June 10. He is one of five people charges in the deaths of Mary Crocker and her brother Elwyn Crocker, Jr.

This December marks four years since their bodies were found in the backyard of their family home.

All five people charged in the case have a family connection to the two children.

Elwyn Crocker Sr., Kim Wright, and Mark Wright all face murder charges in their deaths. All three also face the potential of the death penalty when this case goes to trial.

Roy Prater and Candice Crocker have both entered guilty pleas. Both have also agreed to testify when this case goes to trial.

You can view the family connections to the children below:

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