Blaine County 5th District Court Judge Robert J. Elgee has disqualified himself as presiding judge in the high-profile Sun Valley rape case against Jeffrey J. Marsalis.
Elgee confirmed Tuesday to the Idaho Mountain Express that he signed the order on Friday and forwarded it to the 4th Judicial District in Boise, where the case was transferred following a change of venue granted by Elgee last December.
The order does not state a reason for the judge removing himself from the case. The 4th Judicial District had still not officially received Elgee's order on Tuesday and still listed him as the presiding judge in the case. It was not clear when a new judge would be appointed.
The Marsalis trial is scheduled to start on April 20.
Elgee issued a written statement Tuesday afternoon to the Idaho Mountain Express.
"Marsalis is a case with a lot of media attention," Elgee wrote. "That is why the attorneys agreed to have it heard in Boise. In those types of cases, everything gets magnified. In view of current events, I did not want there to be even the appearance of impropriety, so I stepped away from the case."
Elgee's decision comes amidst blanket disqualifications against him on felony cases in Blaine and Twin Falls counties. Blaine County Prosecuting Attorney Jim Thomas and Twin Falls County Prosecuting Attorney Grant Loebs have disqualified Elgee from every felony case that's come to 5th District Court in their respective counties since last November.
Under Idaho judiciary rules, prosecutors or defense attorneys can disqualify one district court judge per felony case without stating a reason why. The disqualification motion must be filed within 14 days from the time the case is transferred from a magistrate court to district court, so the rule could not be used on the Marsalis case, which originated in 2005.
Marsalis is charged in Blaine County with raping a then-21-year-old woman at his Sun Valley condominium on Oct. 9, 2005. A grand jury indictment against Marsalis alleges that the woman was incapacitated at the time, either by alcohol or a so-called "date rape drug."
Marsalis remains incarcerated in the Blaine County jail. He was extradited to Idaho last August from Pennsylvania, where he is serving a 21-year prison sentence for convictions in Philadelphia in 2007 on two counts of sexual assault and one count of unlawful restraint.
Neither Thomas nor defense attorney Douglas Nelson could be reached for comment by press deadline Tuesday.
Terry Smith: tsmith@mtexpress.com
Blaine County 5th District Court Judge Robert J. Elgee has disqualified himself as presiding judge in the high-profile Sun Valley rape case against Jeffrey J. Marsalis. The trial is scheduled to start on April 20 in Boise. Photo by Mountain Express
