"All the relevant evidence gathered and preserved points squarely at Mr. Naposki and Mrs. Packard," argued Bogardus, who said that although the defense claims "sound forceful," they are "little more than paper tigers."
Bogardus called records of the 8:52 p.m. phone-call alibi "speculative" and urged Froeberg not to hand prosecutors "the ultimate punishment"—dismissal—based on "notoriously riddled speculation."
Eric Naposki
Nanette Ann Packard
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He also asked rhetorically: Why should prosecutors be blamed after the defense lost its copies of the supposedly exculpatory records?
Yet Gragg—a powerful, accomplished courtroom advocate—sees sinister conduct.
"They deliberately let this [pay-phone-call] evidence disappear," she said. "There was an alibi that we can't put in front of a jury anymore. That's prejudice."
Froeberg listened patiently to both sides and said he'll decide in the coming days if defense complaints have case-ending merit.
This column appeared in print as "Illegal Procedure? Cops lost key alibi evidence in a Newport Beach murder case involving an ex-NFL player, defense lawyers say."