A Boone County judge has appointed the Cooper County Prosecuting Attorney as the special prosecutor to review the case with the two officers involved in the incident outside of Harpo’s.
Judge Brouck Jacobs appointed Eric Phelps as special prosecutor on May 18 after Boone County Prosecuting Attorney, Roger Johnson, made the request. This type of request is common. Johnson said this action was the most ethical course of action because this case involved local officers who had recently been in Boone County court, testifying in other cases.
“We take it really seriously that because of our role in the system that we have to hold ourselves to really high ethical standards,” Johnson said.
Johnson also urged the public to trust the decisions being made.
“We’re working really hard to restore faith in the criminal justice system and make sure that we’re transparent, but make sure that we’re avoiding any favoritism,” he said.
Donald Weaver, the attorney representing the two officers, said he expected this would happen.
Weaver said Boone County Prosecutor’s Office typically works closely with police officers, so Judge Jacob’s decision is meant to avoid a biased outcome.
“That’s a long-standing practice of the Boone County Prosecutor’s Office,” Weaver said. “It allows them to avoid even the appearance that there’s any kind of bias or impropriety.”
