Court documents in the case of Raymond Clark III, the Yale lab technician charged with the murder of Annie Le GRD ’13, are expected to be unsealed this morning.
The documents will provide the fullest account to date of the investigation leading to Clark’s arrest and the evidence against him. But a New Haven police official familiar with the case said the documents are unlikely to contain any major revelations.
“I think people are going to be very disappointed,” said the official, who requested anonymity because he was not authorized to comment.
Rejecting the arguments of both the defense and the prosecution, New Haven Superior Court Judge Roland Fasano ruled that the public has the right to see a redacted version of the search and arrest warrants, which have not been released to the public since Clark’s arrest Sept. 17.
“Clearly a blanket sealing of the affidavits, under the circumstances here, would not be appropriate,” Fasano wrote.
In an interview Thursday, Joseph Lopez, a public defender who is representing Clark, said he expects the search warrant to be heavily redacted. Fasano wrote in his ruling that six sections of the materials would be redacted because he deemed them inflammatory, prejudicial or invasive of privacy.
The ruling comes after four news organizations, led by the Hartford Courant, filed a motion last month to make the documents public. Earlier this month, both the defense and prosecution asked the court to keep the documents sealed to ensure a fair trial and protect the privacy of Le’s family.
But last Friday, Fasano ruled that the court materials would not interfere with Clark’s right to a fair trial. Although the defense lawyers had argued that the information would taint the pool of potential jurors, Fasano said the high level of publicity already surrounding the case makes juror bias unlikely.
Lopez said he agrees with Fasano’s decision to redact.
“It’s a balancing act,” Lopez said. “He is showing respect for the rights of the defense, prosecution and the public.”
University President Richard Levin declined to comment because he said has not read the documents that are being released. Deputy Secretary Martha Highsmith, who oversees Yale security, deferred comment to the New Haven State’s Attorney’s Office, which did not return repeated requests for comment Thursday.
Four days after Le’s body was found hidden behind a wall in the basement of the Yale research building at 10 Amistad St., police arrested Clark and charged him with her murder. He is being held at the MacDougall-Walker Correctional Institution in Suffield, Conn., on a $3 million bond.
Clark’s next court appearance is set for Dec. 21.
Nora Caplan-Bricker contributed reporting.
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