One of the accused murderers in the Rhoden slaying has filed his own court motion behind prison bars.
Billy Wagner, the patriarch of the Wagner family filed the one page motion with the Pike County Clerk of Courts on Wednesday.
The motion is in Billy’s own handwriting on a notebook piece of paper. It says that he “hereby moves the court in demand of a speedy trial as the constitution guarantees.”
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Wagner and his sons George and Jake, along with his wife, Angela are facing murder charges for the 2016 slayings of the Rhoden family.
Billy initially waived his right to a speedy trial when he entered his not guilty plea after being indicted in 2018. He’s been incarcerated ever since.
His lawyers, Mark Collins and Thomas Hayes could not be immediately reached for comment Wednesday afternoon, however, the motion is signed by Wagner and said he is “pro se,” which means he is acting without legal counsel. The court has no record of Wagner firing his court appointed lawyers and there are no motions on file with the clerk that his lawyers have withdrawn from the case.
Shortly after the Guardian broke the story, Collins called the Guardian.
“This is not uncommon [for incarcerated defendants to file their own motions]; no issue, the motion will be rescinded,” said Collins in a call to the Guardian. Collins said Wagner was frustrated with how the case was progressing and filed the motion on his own without consulting his lawyers. The court appointed lawyer said he has spoke with the Clerk’s office and the motion is going to be vacated before a hearing can be held.