Defendant's attorney had argued he was being held in poor
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| Tavon White leader of the Black Guerrilla Family |
By Ian Duncan,
The Baltimore Sun
May 17, 2013
Tavon White, the alleged leader of the Black Guerrilla Family at the Baltimore City Detention Center, will await trial in federal custody out of state, his attorney said Friday.
A federal judge ordered him moved from state custody Friday after a hearing on the conditions of White's detention. His lawyer Gary E. Proctor complained earlier this week about the conditions he faced at a Maryland prison in Cumberland.
In a court order, U.S. Magistrate Judge Susan K. Gauvey cited the "allegations of corruption among the Division of Correction's staff in at least one of its correctional institutions." It is not clear how those allegations factored into her ruling.
White is accused of leading a smuggling operation at the city jail, and is charged in an indictment along with 13 female corrections officers who federal prosecutors say aided him.
Proctor argued in a court filing that White was being held without his personal belongings and was unable to receive visitors. His conditions, Proctor wrote, could hurt his client's ability to get ready for a trial.
State officials have said they had worked to meet Proctor's requests and that White's property had been turned over to him once it arrived in Cumberland.
Neither the U.S attorney's office, which is prosecuting the corruption case, nor the State's Attorney's Office for Baltimore City, which is pursuing an attempted murder charge against White, objected to his being moved, according to the court order
"The defendant is to remain in the custody of the United States Marshal Service and not be returned to the custody of the State of Maryland," Gauvey wrote.
The parties agreed earlier this week to begin a two-month trial in the federal case next June. In the meantime, plea negotiations between the government and defense lawyers have started, according to a filing in the case.
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