LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — A date has been set for the retrial in the case against Carol Ann Hignite, but after six years, the victim's family feels like the court system is failing them.
A public defender for Carol and Fayette County prosecutors will have nine months to prepare for trial on October 21.
Carol was arrested and charged with the murder of her husband in 2017. In 2022, during an initial jury trial, prosecutors argued she used a hammer to assault her husband, Leon Dewayne Hignite, at a time when his health was failing.
They argued Carol set the house on fire during an investigation after Leon was hospitalized. He was allegedly left for days on the floor without her calling an ambulance.
It's why October 21 is not just a date on the calendar for Leon's son, Jason Hignite. He says it's more representative of everything that's led to that point.
Jason says each year in court has weighed a little more on him financially and mentally.
"It's just depressing. It's hard to have a good attitude. I feel like I've been let down by the entire system, a system that I believed in," said Jason.
He says delays, also called continuances, have had a significant impact.
"I understand that COVID put a wrench in everybody's plan for the trial and everything, but still," said Jason.
In January, there was another delay due to a request from Carol for a new public defender she wrote hadn't been doing their job.
October 21, 2024, the new proposed date, will make seven years.
"I'm gonna keep my hope up, but I look forward to it being postponed again myself," said Jason.
Jason blames the defense for most of the continuances.
What is the right balance between speed and due process?
That question we learned has been often asked, especially since the pandemic.
Data from the Kentucky Court Administration shows a decrease in the average number of criminal cases closed every year since COVID-19 began in 2020.
Three years before the pandemic started, an average of 1,641 cases were closed. Three years later, the average is 1,320 - a 20% decline.
Most counties across the state experienced a similar trend with fewer cases filed, but the ratio of cases filed to closed remained less.
Some states set standards. In Illinois, the case processing time for criminal felonies is 98% within two and a half years. In Kentucky, there are no specific rules on when a case has to be disposed of or completed.
Fayette Commonwealth's Attorney Kimberly Baird confirmed that there is no specific time frame or rule for when a case is to be concluded, which is why she says some of them take such a long time.
There can be exceptions:
- If a person assets their constitutional right to a speedy trial
- If a defendant is in prison and is served a new charge
- If there's a case where the victim is less than 16 and it is a sexual offense
A report by the National Center for State Courts on timely justice in criminal cases found that nationally, the average time to disposition is 256 days for felony cases and 193 days for misdemeanor cases, with considerable variation among courts.
Researchers looked at 91 jurisdictions and reported that effective case management, number of hearings, and number of continuances were the "most influential factors in case duration." However, their study was published in August 2020 and doesn't consider the aftereffects of the pandemic.
