The DUI trial of suspended Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch has been put on hold while the Georgia Court of Appeals considers a challenge to evidence that prosecutors intend to use against him.
Couch’s lawyer, Blake Poole, said a hearing scheduled for Monday would not go ahead. No replacement date has been set, with the timetable dependent on the outcome of the appeal.
The Georgia Court of Appeals agreed on 24 August to hear Couch’s challenge to parts of a pre-trial ruling by Hall County State Court Judge Charles E Auslander III. The case has been placed on the court’s December term, although no date for oral arguments has been listed.
The appeal follows a ruling on 9 July that excluded evidence obtained during a warrantless search of Couch’s county-issued Chevrolet Tahoe. The judge found prosecutors had not established a legal exception that would have made the search lawful.
However, the judge rejected other elements of Couch’s attempt to suppress evidence, finding that officers were entitled to enter his property, had not unlawfully prolonged the stop and that he voluntarily took part in field sobriety tests and provided a blood sample.
Couch was arrested on 27 February after deputies and Georgia State Patrol troopers stopped him in the driveway of his home. He faces charges of driving under the influence, failing to maintain a lane and possessing an open container.
Prosecutors have said officers observed erratic driving before entering the driveway. They have also referred to hospital records showing Couch had been treated for severe alcohol intoxication several hours before his arrest, as well as a subsequent blood test that allegedly showed an alcohol concentration above the legal limit alongside impairing medication.
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp suspended Couch from office in March following an executive committee review. The criminal case remains pending and the appeal will not determine whether he is guilty or innocent.
