Judge says murder case against MSD driver will not be influenced by feelings for the LMPD victim
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) -The man charged in the fatal traffic accident that killed LMPD detective Deidre Mengedoht was back in court Tuesday.
The otherwise routine hearing produced some unexpected comments from the judge.
“Cases don’t get resolved based on who the victim is, who the defendant is,” Circuit Court Judge McKay Chauvin said. “We all know that. But I’m not sure people believe that. So I’m just going to say it out loud. Cases resolve because of facts and law. Period.”
Roger Burdette faces a variety of charges, including murder, after the Metro Sewer District truck he was driving hit Mengedoht’s cruiser, killing her on Christmas Eve, 2018.
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There were more than a half dozen uniformed officers in the courtroom including LMPD Chief Steve Conrad.
“Everybody’s trying to do the right thing,” Chauvin said. “We don’t always agree on what the right thing is, but everybody’s trying to do the right thing. And in doing the right thing, at some point they’re going to have to assess is the right thing going to trial or is the right thing resolving this by a plea agreement? And I’m confident that everybody’s going to do their job in this case and we’ll either end up with a plea agreement or we’ll end up at trial. But where ever we end up that’s where we’re supposed to be. And it’s not because of who anybody is.”
Both sides agreed to return to court in mid-October.
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