LOCKPORT – The trial of a Niagara Falls man accused of raping a 15-year-old girl last year, which was to begin Monday, was postponed indefinitely Wednesday as public defenders had to withdraw from the case.
Assistant Public Defender Christopher A. Privateer told Niagara County Judge Sara Sheldon Farkas that he was responsible for not discovering sooner that the alleged victim had once been represented by the Public Defender’s Office herself, thus creating a conflict with their representation of Isaac L. McDonald, 29, of 24th Street.
McDonald, a Level 3 sex offender because of past convictions, is facing a potential life prison term if convicted in the current case. He will be assigned an attorney from the county Conflict Defender’s Office.
Assistant Public Defender Christopher A. Privateer told Niagara County Judge Sara Sheldon Farkas that he was responsible for not discovering sooner that the alleged victim had once been represented by the Public Defender’s Office herself, thus creating a conflict with their representation of Isaac L. McDonald, 29, of 24th Street.
McDonald, a Level 3 sex offender because of past convictions, is facing a potential life prison term if convicted in the current case. He will be assigned an attorney from the county Conflict Defender’s Office.