Fawley defense to hire experts
MATHEWS, Va. – Attorneys for an amateur photographer charged with killing a Virginia Commonwealth University student were given permission Wednesday to hire a computer expert and private investigator.
Mathews Circuit Judge William H. Shaw III granted the defense team a maximum of $7,000 to pay for the experts to help them defend Benjamin Fawley on second-degree murder charges in the death of 17-year-old Taylor Behl.
MATHEWS, Va. – Attorneys for an amateur photographer charged with killing a Virginia Commonwealth University student were given permission Wednesday to hire a computer expert and private investigator.
Mathews Circuit Judge William H. Shaw III granted the defense team a maximum of $7,000 to pay for the experts to help them defend Benjamin Fawley on second-degree murder charges in the death of 17-year-old Taylor Behl.
Fawley, 38, is accused of killing Behl and dumping her body in a shallow ravine in rural Mathews County last fall.
Johnson asked for the computer expert to search the Internet and computer hard drives seized from Fawley’s apartment. A private investigator will track down and interview witnesses, court-appointed defense attorney Bill Johnson said.
“We do not have the resources or counsel to investigate this case to the fullest,” said Johnson, who told Shaw the state has millions of dollars and multiple agencies to investigate the case.
Mathews Commonwealth’s Attorney Jack Gill did not oppose the hiring of a computer expert, but opposed a private investigator because the defense would have access to police interviews of witnesses.
