Trial delayed for ex-Tarrant deputy charged with murder; defense files to dismiss case

A mistrial was declared in October before opening statements as the defense argued it was presented with new evidence after jury selection that would change their strategy significantly.

With the victim, 46-year-old Leslie Hartman, having died on Aug. 26, 2020, the murder case has been pending for over two years. It was previously delayed due to COVID-19 and the death of its lead detective, as investigators worked to re-create the detective’s evidence.

Beck said the state does not believe trying Rotter now would be double jeopardy.

Rotter’s defense attorneys, Navid Alband and Bill Lane, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday. Their firm’s home webpage says their goal is “to fight for dismissal or reduction.”

Brody Shanklin, 211th District Court judge, will hold a hearing to rule on the motion in the near future. As of Tuesday morning, court records did not yet indicate that the trial had been rescheduled or that a hearing is scheduled.

If Shanklin does not grant the motion for dismissal, Rotter’s defense would have the opportunity to appeal the decision to the 2nd Court of Appeals, which covers Denton and nearby counties. The appeals process could delay the trial for months.

Mistrial

In the first trial, Shanklin declared a mistrial after the defense argued they had received “mitigating and exculpatory” video evidence from the state that they had not previously seen.

Lead defense attorney Alband said the evidence included video of Hartman’s mother saying she believed Hartman’s death was a suicide. The defense said it would have changed their strategy and how they conducted jury selection.

“It’s a matter of making sure your client gets an absolutely fair shake and not knowing exactly [how] that three hours of video and audio by the detective fits into the bigger picture — you need to have the opportunity to look at that,” Alband said in an October interview. “... In a situation where we’ve got a strong belief we have an innocent client, we really need to look before we leap.”

There was about a terabyte of evidence from a laptop belonging to the case’s lead detective. When the detective, Rodney Mooneyham of the Denton Police Department, died from COVID-19 in 2021, it became a challenge to work through his evidence collection, Beck said.

The affidavit

An affidavit for Rotter’s arrest alleges he had a history of substance abuse, shot Hartman and allegedly bragged about it in an online messaging platform. Rotter, however, alleges Hartman shot herself with his duty weapon.

At about 11:34 p.m. on Aug. 26, 2020, Denton police received a 911 call from Rotter, who reported his girlfriend had shot herself in the 2400 block of Robinwood Lane. An affidavit states he said she was beyond help and “she is done.”

The affidavit states he was crying, yelling and cursing at the 911 operator, and when the operator asked him a question, he would stop sobbing to answer. He said the shooting occurred about 90 seconds before the 911 call, according to the affidavit.

Rotter told the operator he and his girlfriend were hugging when the shot was fired and that she took the gun and shot herself. He said he would have stopped it if he could have.

Denton police arrived about six minutes after the call was placed and located the deceased woman, 46-year-old Leslie Lynn Hartman, in a bedroom. The affidavit states she was lying next to a wheelchair on the floor with an apparent gunshot wound to the side of her head.

The affidavit states there were bloodstains in the bathroom, living room and hallway, as well as blood on Rotter’s body and clothing.

Detectives later interviewed Rotter at the Denton Police Department. He alleged Hartman retrieved his duty weapon from a storage bin without his knowledge.

Rotter said the two were watching a show in the bedroom. He alleged he was sitting in the chair to the right of Hartman — who was paralyzed and used a wheelchair. He alleged that after Hartman shot herself, she slumped over onto his lap.

When asked, Rotter allegedly denied detectives access to his phone. Detectives stepped out of the room, and they later viewed footage of Rotter allegedly taking his cellphone from his pocket and resetting it back to factory settings.

Detectives reviewed video footage with audio captured by a neighbor’s security camera. It revealed that a loud noise believed to be a gunshot was heard at 11:04 p.m., according to the affidavit.

The affidavit states that a search of Hartman’s phone revealed messages that suggested Rotter was “in a mood” and was having trouble with the amount of drugs he was consuming. The last message on Hartman’s phone was sent at 11:12 p.m. and referenced the weather.

A search of Rotter’s computer recovered data from Discord, a group-chatting platform. The affidavit alleges messages from Rotter at about 11:06 p.m. stated, “I killed that milk bomb” in the backyard. Detectives found a shell casing — which was the same brand and caliber as the handgun and casings from the bedroom — in the backyard and a bottle of milk in the trash can, the affidavit states.

The affidavit states there was also a message that said, “I sent a 9 millie in this f---in hippie.” The affiant alleges this refers to Hartman, as she was eco-friendly and used psychedelic drugs.

The affidavit states it is believed Rotter shot the milk bottle at about 11:04 p.m. and Hartman at 11:34 p.m.

Rotter was arrested on Sept. 14, 2020, and remained in the Denton County Jail until his release on June 2, 2021.

The range of punishment for first-degree murder is five to 99 years or life imprisonment, with a possible fine of up to $10,000.