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Brantley, awaiting appeal, to receive mental health treatment

Tampa Tribune (FL) - 10/1/2014

Oct. 01--TAMPA -- While she's free during her appeal, Cortnee Brantley will receive mental health treatment at taxpayers' expense, a federal judge ruled Wednesday.

Brantley was the driver of a car involved in a motor vehicle stop that ended when Dontae Morris murdered two Tampa Police officers, David Curtis and Jeffrey Kocab, on June 29, 2010. Morris has sentenced to death for the murders.

Brantley was convicted last year of under the rarely invoked charge of misprision of a felony, with the government alleging she took steps to conceal that Morris was committing the federal offense of being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.

U.S. District Judge James Moody sentenced Brantley to a year and a day behind bars, but granted her bail to allow her to remain free while she appeals. In granting her release, the judge cited "unusual facts and a very close question of law."

Moody convened a hearing Wednesday in response to a defense request that Brantley receive mental health treatment. Defense lawyer Grady Irvin said a mental health evaluation conducted at his request resulted in recommendations for treatment and medication. The specific findings remained confidential.

Assistant U.S. Attorney James Preston said he had no objection to the mental health services being provided, so Moody authorized the court's Pretrial Services to arrange them at no cost to Brantley.

Brantley was not in court; Irvin said she was admitted to a hospital for tests after complaining of numbness on her right side. Irvin said the symptoms were unrelated to the mental health issue. He expects her to be released from the hospital on Thursday.

Coincidentally, Irvin said he filed his appellate pleadings on Wednesday.

Moody has said reasonable judges could disagree with his decision to uphold Brantley's conviction.

In 2010, Moody initially dismissed the indictment on the grounds the prosecution could not demonstrate that Brantley committed a specific "act of concealment" of Morris's crimes. Moody held that Brantley had a constitutional right to remain silent when questioned by detectives after the murder.

But the indictment was reinstated by the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, which said the judge acted prematurely. Brantley then stood trial twice, with the first jury deadlocking. The second jury convicted Brantley.

Ultimately, he ruled "by the thinnest of legal threads" that the jury's conviction was valid, although he found different legal grounds than announced by jurors.

esilvestrini@tampatrib.com

813-259-7837

Twitter: @ElaineTBO

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