Judge rejects ex-doctor's new-trial bid

Dr. Randeep Mann
Dr. Randeep Mann

Former Russellville physician Randeep Mann, who is serving a life sentence in a Feb. 4, 2009, grenade explosion in West Memphis, received a fair trial, a federal judge said Friday in denying all 20 grounds that Mann cited in a petition seeking a new trial.

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The 40-page opinion written by Chief U.S. District Judge Brian Miller rejected the post-conviction petition filed Oct. 20, 2014, in which Mann made several claims, including that his attorneys were ineffective and that federal prosecutors withheld exculpatory evidence.

Mann was convicted by a federal jury Aug. 9, 2010, on seven charges: conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction; destroying a vehicle by means of an explosive that resulted in personal injury; possession of unregistered grenades; two counts of possessing an unregistered machine gun; conspiring to obstruct an investigation; and aiding and abetting the concealment of documents to impair their use in an official proceeding.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis affirmed most of the convictions, though it directed Miller to set aside one of the machine-gun charges as duplicative.

The victim of the grenade explosion, Trent Pierce, was then the chairman of the state Medical Board, which was investigating complaints about Mann. On top of previous complaints for which the board had sanctioned Mann, the investigation threatened to lead to the permanent revocation of his medical license.

As Pierce was preparing to drive to his West Memphis office and a state Medical Board meeting on the morning of Feb. 4, 2009, he moved a spare tire that he found leaning against his vehicle. The movement caused a grenade taped to the underside of the tire to explode, severely injuring Pierce, who among other things permanently lost part of his vision, part of his hearing and his sense of smell.

Pierce and his wife, Melissa, later won a $122.5 million civil judgment against Mann as a result of the bombing.

Meanwhile, a forfeiture petition in which the government seeks to permanently seize 94 of Mann's firearms that were left behind when he went to prison is currently pending. The guns weren't used in the grenade conspiracy, but prosecutors contend they should have been turned over to a federal firearms licensee before they were removed from the home by federal agents, and that their continued possession constituted a crime for which no one was charged. Mann had been a federal firearms licensee and could legally own the weapons until his conviction.

Pierce has opposed the petition on the grounds that the guns, which are collectors' items and are estimated to be worth between $1 million and $2 million, should be sold so that the proceeds can be applied to the civil judgment, which remains unpaid. Mann's wife, Sangeeta Mann, also wants the guns to be sold, but wants half the proceeds to go to her. She contends they were purchased during the marriage and constitute marital property, of which she is entitled to half.

The government has maintained that because Mann's petition for a new trial was still pending, his criminal case wasn't over, and the firearms should remain in federal custody.

Regardless of whether Mann appeals the dismissal of his petition to the 8th Circuit, Miller is expected to rule in the near future on the fate of the 94 guns. He canceled a scheduled trial on the forfeiture petition, saying he will issue a written ruling based on joint stipulations and briefs from all sides.

Metro on 08/27/2016

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