JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Federal prosecutors filed over the weekend to add three new names to a supplemental witness list for the trial of former JEA executives Aaron Zahn and Ryan Wannemacher.
The three proposed witnesses: Herschel Vinyard, who was the newly-appointed chief operating officer at JEA at the time of the botched sale effort at the center of the case; Jon Kendrick, JEA vice president of human resources at the time; and Camille Lee-Johnson, the only voting member of the JEA board not to testify.
Wannemacher's defense attorney, Jim Felman and Zahn's defense attorney, Eddie Suarez, petitioned the judge not to allow these witnesses to testify.
Both were concerned because they referenced the absence of these witnesses in their opening statements, implying to the jury that the government wasn't calling them for a reason.
Felman told the judge that it would hurt his credibility of the witnesses were called, and the jury may feel as if he deceived them.
Federal Prosecutor Tysen Duva said the government has requested to call these witnesses because of how they have been portrayed by Suarez and Felman so far in the trial.
The defense has portrayed all three witnesses as key to JEA's decision to greenlight a controversial bonus plan that led to Zahn and Wannemacher's federal charges. Duva told the judge he seeks to challenge that. He says Vinyard in particular has been portrayed as an experienced lawyer who was "running point" on the bonus plan and sale of JEA, but he believes that Vinyard had little sway over decision making.
If the witnesses are allowed to testify, Felman and Suarez asked that the jury be read a statement from Judge Bryan Davis, explaining to them that these witnesses were just added to their witness list.
Davis says he has not made a decision yet and he expects Tuesdays proceedings to go on as planned.
