The Murder of Mickey Bryan Part 3: Reasonable Doubt

Gone Cold - Texas True Crime

Vincent Strange

True Crime, Society & Culture, News

4.6 • 1.8K Ratings

🗓️ 1 July 2024

⏱️ 28 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

As the State of Texas V. Joe Dale Bryan got underway, the prosecution was pulling no punches. Witnesses from Texas Ranger Joe Wiley to victim Mickey Bryan’s brother Charlie Blue had damning indictments of Joe Bryan. But on cross-examination, defense attorney Charles McDonald, during these two witnesses particularly, didn’t hold back and pointed out at least some of the big holes in the state’s case. There was reasonable doubt all over the place, and it’s especially easy to see in hindsight, but with upstanding law enforcement officer and upright citizens testifying against Joe, would jurors see it?

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Sources: innocencetexas.org, The Clifton Record, The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, The McAllen Monitor, The Austin American-Statesman, The New York Times, The Waco Tribune-Herald, The Corpus Christi Times, court appeal documents, and 20/20 ABC.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	The Gone Cold Podcasts may contain violent or graphic subject matter.
0:06.0	Listener discretion is advised.
0:09.0	One thing was unanimously agreed upon in the 1986 trial, the state of Texas versus
0:16.7	Jodale Bryan.
0:18.4	The 45-year-old murder defendant was an exemplary member of the community, as was the victim, fourth grade teacher
0:26.0	at Clifton Elementary, 44-year-old Mickey Brian.
0:30.9	Joe had no history of violence whatsoever and not one of belligerence or even unfriendliness.
0:38.3	No one had anything negative to say about him or his relationship with Mickey. No one. Even law enforcement had nothing bad to report,
0:48.9	though they joined right alongside prosecutors in painting the picture of a greedy man with a hidden lifestyle
0:56.0	that could not be corroborated by any witnesses or evidence whatsoever.
1:01.1	But that was only the first step to developing the murder narrative they had in mind.
1:08.1	Bosky County District Attorney Andy McMullen, special prosecutor hired by the victim's brother, Gary Lou Ellen, and the several
1:16.2	law enforcement officers called to testify, portrayed Joe as a liar, a methodical and brilliant murderer who committed almost the perfect crime, had it not been for a number of disastrously idiotic mistakes and missteps. It was a contradictory narrative, and though their theories and highly speculative determinations
1:40.0	about how the murder of Mickey Brian went down made some sense.
1:44.8	It was primarily only on the word of those reiterating
1:49.1	the state's story, especially when masterfully, orrated by super lawyer and special prosecutor Gary
1:56.2	Luellen during cross-examination.
2:00.0	Joe Bryan's attorney Charles McDonald continually objected to the prosecution And
2:05.0	Joe Brian's attorney Charles McDonald continually objected to the prosecution's constant speculation and conjecture,
2:08.0	but got nowhere with Judge James Morgan and sometimes failed to cross-examine the state's witnesses about holes that simply could
2:16.1	not be filled.
2:18.4	McDonald based the majority of his defense, it seemed, on only his client's good character.
	...

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