The arraignments of Dr. Arnold Smith and two men accused of conspiring with him to kill Greenwood attorney Lee Abraham were postponed again Monday because Judge Richard Smith recused himself from presiding over the proceedings.
The arraignments of Smith, Derrick Lacy and Cordarious Robinson were scheduled to take place Monday morning at the Leflore County Courthouse.
Judge Smith told the public that the arraignments would not be held at all that day because the lawyers for the defense had failed to appear in court.
He also said that Arnold Smith and Lacy would be arraigned at the Leflore County Justice Center rather than the courthouse because they were in jail.
The lawyers were waiting at the Justice Center. The judge met with defense lawyers and their defendants before recusing himself.
All four judges in the county have recused themselves from presiding over the Arnold Smith case based on a conflict of interest. The Mississippi Supreme Court has been called upon to appoint an outside judge.
Prosecutors have accused Dr. Arnold Smith, a Greenwood oncologist, of offering Keaira Byrd $20,000 to kill Abraham. Arnold Smith is charged with capital murder in the death of Byrd, who was shot and killed by an attorney general’s agent at Abraham’s office on April 28.
Lacy and Robinson are accused of conspiring with Smith in separate plots against Abraham. Robinson was released on bail; Smith and Lacy are still jailed.
• Contact Jeannie Riess at 581-7235 or jriess@gwcommonwealth.com.
