After months of delays, motion hearings scheduled in Marion County Pagan’s murder case
Esteban Fernandez, Times West Virginian, Fairmont
Sat, July 19, 2025
https://www.yahoo.com/news/months-delays-motion-hearings-scheduled-134600686.html
FAIRMONT — Almost three months after a marathon of motion hearings in the Ryan Lane murder case, Marion County Circuit Court Judge Patrick Wilson is set to hear more on Tuesday.
Lane was set to go to trial April 30 for the murder of Henry Silver, in a case the Marion County Prosecuting Attorney argues is tied to Lane’s role as a member of the Pagan’s Motorcycle Club. However, the defense and prosecution continue going back and forth with each other, each seeking the most favorable footing before trial begins. Silver was shot and killed October 2022 at the Carolina Arbors Apartment in Carolina.
Lane’s attorney, Elgine McArdle, seeks to have a key witness who was used in the four previous trials connected to Silver’s murder removed.
The testimony comes from a child who overheard a meeting among the defendants the prosecution alleges was used to sanction the Silver murder. However, the child was upstairs at the time and allegedly overheard details of the meeting through the floor or a vent. The problem is, the child was wearing a gaming headset in some capacity when the prosecution alleges he overheard the meeting. There’s also a question of whether the child was even inside when the meeting took place, and not outside riding his bike.
The witness’s credibility is one McArdle continuously hammers in her court filings.
“State has conceded in a pleading that the minor child cannot identify ‘who made the alleged statements in the garage,’” one filing states. “Which has prompted some additional motions [State’s motions to preclude Lane from calling witnesses at pretrial.]”
McArdle intends to call witnesses to argue her case at the pretrial hearing on Tuesday. However Assistant Marion County Prosecuting Attorney Sean Murphy argued in a filing that the testimony of any of the witnesses McArdle wants to call has no bearing on the motions that are scheduled to be heard on Tuesday. Arguments hinge around whether or not hearsay applies. Murphy argues that statements made by co-conspirators during and in furtherance of the conspiracy which are offered against an opposing party are not hearsay.
However, McArdle points out that much of the state’s conspiracy charge against Lane relies solely on the child’s testimony. She also argued determining whether a statement is hearsay depends on knowing the identity of the person who made a statement. Since the state has admitted to not know who made the statements related to Silver’s murder, and the child’s testimony is unreliable, it should be excluded.
Murphy expressed a concern that Lane’s defense will try to conduct unauthorized discovery with their motion hearings. Murphy argued the rules of evidence state the credibility of a witness may be impeached by any party, including the party calling the witness, but the rule across the land is that one may not call a witness solely for the purpose of impeaching a witness.
“This appears to be precisely what the defendant is attempting to do and it is clearly improper and should not be permitted,” Murphy wrote in a court filing.
McArdle also accused Murphy of not following Judge Wilson’s order from May 14, 2025. She filed a motion to compel the state’s compliance on July 9. She alleged the State hasn’t provided some reports Judge Wilson ordered be turned over, that the State has made no effort to schedule a discovery conference ordered by the judge and that no one would be able to review discovery until after Aug. 4, 2025.
As for some key letters that contain the confession of one of Lane’s co-defendants, Judge Wilson ordered the defense turn over the letters to the State for examination, which would allow McArdle to arrange someone to deliver the letters to Charleston for examination. However, she alleged no one from the Marion County Prosecuting Attorney’s office ever contacted defense counsel for the purpose of conducting an examination of the letters.
McArdle is also trying to exclude from evidence a group photo of the Pagan’s Motorcycle Club from trial, that Murphy has used in the previous trials.
On the motions to compel the state’s compliance and the photograph, the state sent a one sentence response.
“The defendant’s motion is without any factual or legal basis, was not brought in good faith, is not in compliance with the West Virginia Trial Court Rules and thus must be denied,” Murphy wrote.
The hearing is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m.
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