Defense Seeks Judge’s Recusal In Darius Miles Capital Murder Case

TUSCALOOSA, AL — Defense attorneys for capital murder suspect and former University of Alabama basketball player Darius Miles asked a Tuscaloosa County Circuit Court judge on Thursday to recuse himself from presiding over Miles’ upcoming capital murder trial, arguing the judge’s past remarks and handling of key hearings create an appearance of bias.

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In a motion filed on Thursday, defense attorney Mary Turner of Turner Law Group contended that Tuscaloosa County Circuit Judge Daniel Pruet has “engaged in conduct that would lead a reasonable person to question [his] impartiality."

Miles has been held without bond in the Tuscaloosa County Jail since Jan. 15, 2023, for allegedly providing Michael Lynn Davis the gun used in a shootout on Grace Street that resulted in the death of 23-year-old Birmingham resident Jamea Harris.

As Patch previously reported, Judge Pruet presided over the murder trial for Davis, which saw a Tuscaloosa County jury find him guilty of capital murder. He was also sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole shortly after the jury returned its verdict.

Despite being co-defendants in the murder of Harris, the two cases have been tried separately.

The filing on Thursday points to exchanges at immunity, bond, and suppression hearings where the court allegedly curtailed or rushed defense arguments while allowing broader presentation by the state.

Here's one such exchange provided in the filing that occurred on Aug. 21, 2023, at an immunity hearing for Miles:

JUDGE PRUET: “As the defense was leaving, the defense, not being happy with the ruling — which is fine — noted that it was being ‘picked on’ … If you think the defense is being picked on, file a motion. That is an inflammatory and egregious statement. If it’s just something said in the heat of a hearing, there’s no need to file anything on it. But if you really think that, file something about it. … So do you think you are being picked on?”

MARY TURNER: “I do.”

JUDGE PRUET: “How?”

MARY TURNER: “I have sat through so many trials, Judge, so many trials, while I had to watch everything that the State of Alabama admitted. They were never told to speed it up. They were never told to stop. They were never told any of that.”

JUDGE PRUET: “I could not disagree with your assessment more. I just can’t. If you want this court to recuse, file a motion. I will not necessarily grant it. But do not just make inflammatory statements. I could not tell you — [the] distinction between this and a trial; there is a vast chasm between the two.”

In another instance, Turner Law Group argued that Judge Pruet demonstrated judicial bias by engaging in a "continuous pattern of silencing the defense mid argument while allowing for the state to make voluminous arguments without interruption."

An example of this provided by the defense occurred during a hearing on Oct. 3.

Turner alleges that Judge Pruet allowed the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s Office Attorney Jay Stuck to argue for several minutes completely without interruption, while cutting off the defense mid-sentence no less than five times in a similar span.

"While you are there — I am going to cut you off," Turner quoted Judge Pruet as saying, citing the transcript from the hearing.

Turner Law Group also highlighted statements the defense believes reflect premature credibility judgments about Miles, including language from an order denying immunity that allegedly discounted relying on Miles’ statements.

This includes Judge Pruet's comments about denying bond for Miles when the judge cited the "probability of conviction" as a factor in his ruling.

In a separate hearing, Turner Law Group quotes Judge Pruet as saying, “I haven’t, nor do I hope to review a transcript,” when the defense attempted to rely on prior proceedings. The motion argues that those remarks, along with limits on questioning and evidence, contribute to an appearance of partiality.

The defense went on to note that Judge Pruet presided over pretrial proceedings in Davis' case with overlapping evidence, claiming that the circumstance “creates a bias against the defendant and an undue burden” as the case moves toward trial.

Turner Law Group says that under Alabama’s objective recusal standard, a judge should step aside when “his impartiality might reasonably be questioned,” with defense attorneys emphasizing that the question is not actual bias but the appearance of impropriety.

If granted, Judge Pruet would recuse himself from the case and reassign the matter.

Jury selection for the trial is set to begin Dec. 1.

A hearing for the motion to recuse is set for 9 a.m. Friday morning.

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