Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Hearing Is Today

A hearing was held this morning to address an issue brought before the court in the Keith Buchheit case.

Buchheit, who pled guilty to first degree murder in the beating death of Jake McKinnon Nov. 9, 1996, was sentenced to 32.5 years in the Arkansas Department of Corrections on Nov. 3, 1997.

However, on Nov. 25, 1997, he began the process to remove his plea of guilty. Buchheit contended he was not told he would have to serve 70 percent of his sentence, some 22 years and nine months, but was informed by his attorney, Jeff Rosenzweig of Little Rock, he would only serve one fourth or one third of the time.

Buchheit's appeal also states his attorney was not prepared to go to trial, and he (Buchheit), was not properly informed about the parole and transfer ramifications involved or he would not have pled guilty.

His original attorney, Paul Dickerson, removed himself from the case on April 2, 1997, after being arrested on drug charges. Dickerson, at the time, wrote a letter to 8th Judicial District Circuit/Chancery Judge Phillip Purifoy stating he would likely be surrendering his Arkansas law license.

Also in the McKinnon case, the trial of Johnny Wayne Cason is scheduled to begin Monday, March 16.

He will be the final of three defendants in the case.

Cason, 26, of Arkadelphia, was also charged with first degree murder in the case. This is a class Y felony carrying a sentence of 10 to 40 years or life.

The first defendant in the case, Toby Craig, was found guilty in a week-long trial and sentenced to 40 years in the Arkansas Department of Corrections, where he is currently serving

his time.