Judge Orders Official Silence on Georgia Crematory

A local judge late Thursday issued a gag order preventing law enforcement officials from discussing their investigation into the hundreds of bodies buried or stored at the Tri-State Crematory here.

The order, signed by Walker County Superior Court Judge William Ralph Hill Jr., came shortly after Tri-State’s operator, Brent Marsh, hired a former Georgia state lawmaker as his defense attorney. Marsh’s arraignment is scheduled for today.

Marsh, 28, faces 16 felony counts of theft by deception. Authorities said they intend to file dozens more charges to match the number of corpses identified. As of Thursday, that number was 54 of the 283 remains recovered from pits, mounds and steel vaults at the 16-acre crematory and outside Marsh’s nearby home.

The case continues to spread, said officials. They’ve identified 30 funeral homes within a 200-mile radius that sent bodies for cremation to Tri-State, and they are receiving 800 to 900 calls a day from concerned families. An additional 100 to 150 families have shown up in person to ask if their relatives were recovered from the grounds.

On Thursday, a contingent of state lawmakers toured the operation while in Atlanta, and Gov. Roy Barnes requested federal aid to help pay for an investigation that involves 500 employees and is expected to last eight months. The state has paid $5 million for the first five days alone.

Marsh hired McCracken “Ken” Poston, a former state representative from neighboring Catoosa County, to represent him in a case that has rocked the community and generated intense media attention. Hill cited the publicity, as well as his responsibility to protect Marsh’s right to a fair trial, in issuing the wide-ranging order.

“For a trial judge to predict what information may in fact undermine the impartiality of jurors is difficult if not impossible,” Hill wrote. “The difficulty of drafting an order that will effectively keep prejudicial information from prospective jurors is similarly difficult but is within the responsibility of a trial judge.”

Hill’s order applies to all county and state employees engaged in the investigation. They include the Walker County sheriff, Walker County coroner, Walker County district attorney, Georgia medical examiner and Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

It prohibits them from discussing Marsh’s “character or reputation” or the identity of prospective witnesses, or from making “any personal remarks concerning potential evidence or statements by witnesses.”

The order was delivered late Thursday by Dist. Atty. Herbert “Buzz” Franklin, who interrupted a news briefing by state and local authorities for the 80 reporters and photographers covering the case.

Dr. Kris Sperry, the state’s chief medical examiner, stopped in mid-sentence as Franklin distributed copies of the gag order, prompting officials to shut down the news conference.

After reading the order, Sheriff Steve Wilson said he interpreted it to mean he and other officials couldn’t hold news briefings. Reached at home, Hill declined to comment.

“Read the order. . . . I don’t have anything further to say. You have a good day,” he said.

*

Times researcher Edith Stanley contributed to this report.