Eric Miller, 54, was convicted in May of felony animal cruelty and petty theft for shooting a neighbor's Akita mix and burying it on his property near Rollinsville in October.
Eric Zale, Miller's attorney, alleges in court filings that Gilpin County Commissioner Linda Isenhart failed to speak up during jury selection when asked if she knew Miller — who was a contract employee for the county — and did not voluntarily offer her opinions regarding his guilt or innocence.
However, in an email sent about two weeks after the shooting — and the day after Miller was charged — Isenhart wrote, "This is horrible. And (sic) worse yet that Miller works for our community development department. I hope that we sever ties with this person immediately."
On the same day, Isenhart also responded "agreed" to an email with the subject line "Re: murderers should not be employed by Gilpin," and, in another email, wrote, "Yes and I hope that neither of my dogs ever encounter evil of this kind."
Also on the same day, Isenhart wrote that, "Perhaps Mr. Miller could have called the Sheriff's office when feeling threatened. Burying the dog rather than returning it to the owner is wrong."
About six weeks later, Isenhart laid out the basic allegations of the case in another email, inquired about its progress and wrote, "I don't think we should be doing business with Mr. Miller," according to court records.
During the trial, Isenhart received an email from a county employee expressing surprise that she hadn't been recused from serving on the jury since Miller is a contract employee, and the county was reviewing an animal control ordinance.
Isenhart responded that one of the defense attorneys asked her whether Miller worked for the county, and she replied that he was a contractor, but not a county employee. She added, "I'll be glad when this is over."
The emails were included in Miller's motion seeking a new trial and were obtained by his attorney under the Colorado Open Records Act.
Zale, who declined to comment, unsuccessfully sought to have Isenhart taken off of the jury panel during jury selection because of her connection to Miller through the county. He argues in court filings that she never intimated during jury selection that she had preconceived notions regarding Miller's guilt.
Isenhart could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
The dog's owner, Joshua Davis, told the Daily Camera in October that friends of his who were on his property heard gunshots and a dog whimpering followed by more shots. His friends reported seeing Miller with what appeared to be an AR-15 rifle, but he denied shooting any dog.
Davis said he found his dog, Ragnar, the following day after returning to Miller's property and following a blood trail to a shallow grave, where the dog was buried.
The jury deliberated about 50 minutes following a day of testimony and arguments before convicting Miller. Court records were not clear as to whether he's been sentenced yet, but he is due in court Aug. 26 on his motion seeking a new trial.
He remains in custody in Gilpin County.
(Daily Camera - Aug 2, 2016)
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