Aaron Fisher’s Attorney Quits, Child Abuse Case Drags On

LACLEDE COUNTY, Mo. — In a Laclede County Courtroom on Monday, an adoptive mother addressed Judge Richardson with an impassioned and eloquent appeal, asking the court to deny Aaron Fisher’s attorney’s request to withdraw from the case in which he is accused of abusing his biological daughter.

Defense attorney for Aaron Fisher, Kimberly Kollmeyer, filed her Motion to Withdraw on June 27, 2017. When questioned by Judge Richardson, Kollmeyer explained that Fisher’s inability to pay made it impossible for counsel to “adequately prepare and proceed to trial” and conduct an adequate defense. Her motion listed the gravity of the charge against Fisher, the impending trial in two weeks, the need for depositions, the need for expert review of medical records, the need for an investigation of the circumstances, and the defendant’s lack of resources to pay for any of the above necessities. Kollmeyer’s motion stated this made it impossible for counsel “given these limitations.”

The victim’s adoptive mother spoke in a voice, sometimes breaking. She told of the emotional drain on a family that has been dealing with the aftermath of the abuse that Aaron Fisher admitted committing against his infant daughter in 2009. She argued that allowing the current attorney, Kollmeyer, to withdraw at this late date would surely cause a lengthy delay in resetting the trial date. The trial had been set for July 31, 2017.

If the proceeding is strung out even longer by what appeared to be a well-timed strategy or a “game” on the part of the defense, the adoptive mother said, the strategy would be “a slap in the face” for a family trying to heal. She further stated that the defense attorney had been well aware of the defendant’s inability to pay when she accepted Fisher as a client, making the timing seem suspicious at this late date. She closed by stating that the family “just wanted this to be over.”

Prosecuting Attorney Ben Winfrey, of Miller County, in the State’s Response to Motion to Withdraw argued, among other points, that the defense filed a motion on March 28, 2017, “..seeking a continuance…for the purpose of…further discovery…interviewing and deposing witnesses and examining victim’s medical records.”

Winfrey closed the State’s Response by noting, “While the State does not doubt the sincerity of counsel’s Motion, the aura of gamesmanship by the Defendant cannot be completely removed from the case.”

Judge Richardson listened attentively and with sympathy to the mother's remarks and questioned both the defendant and Kollmeyer about the lack of resources to properly prepare for trial. Judge Richardson also questioned Fisher pointedly about his previous request for speedy trial and the certain delay as a new attorney becomes familiar with the case. Fisher repeated that he understood the danger of delay. Judge Richardson explained that if he could not gather the resources for a defense attorney, he must make application to the public defender’s office for counsel.

In the end, Judge Richardson explained to the family that even though the court is sympathetic to the family’s emotional distress and fully aware of the horrendous circumstances upon which this case is based, the court can only make a decision based upon the current case, not the previous charges or court proceedings over the last nine years. Also, according to Judge Richardson, the court cannot expect an attorney to fund the defense out of his own pocket with no hope of being paid for the work. Judge Richardson explained that denying the motion and forcing the attorney to prepare under those circumstances would be excellent grounds for a successful appeal, causing the case to be retired in the lower court.

In the end, Judge Richardson sustained the defense motion, allowing Attorney Kollmeyer to withdraw, leaving Aaron Fisher without an attorney and without a fixed trial date in the immediate future. Fisher remains incarcerated in Laclede County.