A federal judge on Thursday accused suspected drug kingpin Brian Hicks of repeatedly complaining about his attorneys and implied he may be trying to delay the start of his trial on cocaine charges.
Hicks stood up in the middle of a hearing and told U.S. District Chief Judge Wiley Y. Daniel that he was upset about his lawyer’s strategy.
“I apologize, but there is more evidence that Ms. (Leslee) Barnicle and I agreed to submit at this hearing and she has not done it,” Hicks said. “It’s not happening here, it is not happening with the previous witness and not happening with this witness. . . . I don’t know what is going on and I want to make a record with the court. I don’t know if I can proceed like this.”
Daniel granted Hicks a 15-minute recess with Barnicle to discuss the issues. When the recess was over, Daniel warned Hicks that Barnicle is his fourth attorney on the case.
“I am tired of it,” the judge said.
Hicks shook his head.
“There is a pattern here and the pattern disturbs me,” the judge continued. “We are moving forward on this case and going to trial on this case and if we can’t get past motions, we cannot get to trial.”
Hicks did not say what evidence he wanted to challenge and told the judge he did not have his notes with him.
Barnicle told Daniel she felt that their disagreements could be resolved.
Hicks tried to say more, but the judge told him he wouldn’t hear him and also told Hicks not to send him any letters.
Barnicle also represents Hicks on a more serious state case alleging he conspired with Willie Clark and Shun Birch to kill Kalonniann Clark, who was a witness.
Kalonniann Clark was set to testify that Hicks fired a gun at her outside a Denver nightclub in 2005. She was shot to death inside her home in December 2006.
While Hicks was in jail on his drug case, his sport-utility vehicle was used in the New Year’s Day 2007 drive-by killing of Denver Broncos player Darrent Williams.
Prosecutors have named Willie Clark as the shooter in that case.
During Thursday’s hearing, police officers from the Metro Gang Task Force testified about Hicks’ Nov. 9, 2006, drug arrest so the judge can determine whether evidence should be suppressed before trial.
Officers said they captured Hicks making a drug deal on a wiretapped cellphone and went to an auto-body shop in Denver where the deal was supposed to take place.
As Hicks and two other men left the shop in a black Lexus SUV, police tried to stop them and the driver took off.
During a chase, police said a person riding in the SUV threw four single- kilogram bricks of cocaine that were inside a black satchel out of the window and into an alley.
Daniel was scheduled to hear testimony about evidence recovered from a search warrant in the Hicks case, but he delayed the hearing to Aug. 19 because of the conflict between Hicks and his lawyer.
Felisa Cardona: 303-954-1219 or fcardona@denverpost.com
