SKOWHEGAN (NEWS CENTER Maine) — After the jury selection concluded in the Tieman case, defense attorneys came out of the gate firing.
Luc Tieman's defense lawyer Stephen Smith filed a motion that he wants to present an alternative suspect theory during his defense presentation to the jury, according to Doug Harlow of the Morning Sentinel.
► RELATED | MORNING SENTINEL ARTICLE | Defense attorney enters motion to include alternative suspect in Luc Tieman murder trial
Luc Tieman was arrested and charged in September of 2016 with his wife Valerie's murder after officials uncovered her body in a shallow grave on the couple's property.
According to the Morning Sentinel, Smith entered the motion immediately after jury selection was completed. According to the paper, the jury is comprised of eight men and six women, including two alternates.
► RELATED | Timeline of the Valerie Tieman murder case
According to the report, Smith told Justice Robert Mullen that there are alternate suspects, focusing on one man in particular.
The Morning Sentinel reports Smith said, “That gentleman had access, he had motive.” Smith also told Mullen that the main suspect has “a drug history and has had a drug issue.”
Assistant Attorney General Leanne Zainea, the prosecutor in the Tieman case, stated that "mere speculation" isn't enough to present an alternate theory, according to the Morning Sentinel.
The paper said Maine law allows for an alternate suspect if the proof is admissible at trial and if "is of sufficient probative value to raise a reasonable doubt as to the defendant’s culpability,” by connecting the alternate suspect to the crime.
Tieman's trial begins Monday, April 2nd.
