The attorney for Kendall Batchelor, the daughter of a prominent San Antonio businessman Ken Batchelor, has filed a motion asking for a venue change ahead of her trial on intoxication manslaughter charges, slated to start May 15.
In a May 1 filing in Kendall County District Court, Batchelor’s high-profile San Antonio-based DWI attorney, Louis D. Martinez, argues that “negative” press coverage will affect the outcome of the trial.
However, in a response to the motion, Kendall County Assistant Criminal District Attorney Robert F. Lipo wrote that news coverage of the pending case has been neither inflammatory, inaccurate nor sensational.
Kendall County Judge Kristen Cohoon will make a ruling Tuesday afternoon on the change-of-venue request.
In his filing, Martinez argues that an April post in the private Facebook group “Boerne Area Informed Citizens” shared media reports on the Batchelor case, therefore tainting Kendall County’s small jury pool. The thread included a Current report about a December 2021 hit-and-run incident involving Batchelor.
Batchelor — the daughter of the founder of Ken Batchelor Cadillac — is accused of driving intoxicated on the wrong side of the road on State Highway 46 outside of Boerne on June 2. Authorities said her Ford F-250 slammed into a car driven by 49-year-old David Belter, who died instantly.
Because the Facebook group has some 11,000 members, Martinez maintained that the single post about the case tainted 40% of all potential jurors in Kendall County. He further argued that all who read the post came away with a negative view of his client.
However, in his response to Martinez’s motion, Lipo noted that nearly 43,000 residents are eligible for jury duty in Kendall County. Even if Martinez is correct about the post’s tainting effect, only 26% of the jury pool could have been swayed by negative media coverage, the DA added.
“Just because a case receives a high level of media attention does not automatically establish such prejudice that a defendant is entitled to a change of venue,” Lipo wrote in the response filed May 3.
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This article appears in May 3-16, 2023.
