Solicitor Drops Case Without Seeing Evidence

[VAEngineer]

My question involves criminal law for the state of: SC

My mother was assaulted by her two sisters. A warrant was issued for their arrest based upon a statement given by my mother, witness statements and photos of her injuries.

During a pretrial hearing an assistant solicitor, to the surprise of my mother, decided there was not enough evidence to proceed. My mother asked what evidence he had. The only information in the file was a statement from one of the perps husbands, denying the assault took place. The photos were missing, my mother's statement was missing and a witness' statement confirming my mother's story was missing. The case was moved from one district to another and these pieces of evidence were apparently lost in the move. Nevertheless the assistant solicitor refused to proceed with the trial.

Can an assistant solicitor drop a case without even reviewing the evidence that led to the arrests of the perps?

Also, this assistant solicitor had two meetings with the defense but none with my mother. We have a letter saying that he was assigned to the case. I asked the assistant solicitor in an email why he wouldn't even try to obtain the missing evidence before deciding to drop the case. I received this response which is completely contradictory to the facts above:

"I appreciate the opportunity to try to explain this situation to you. As I tried to explain to your family on Tuesday, neither me nor my office have any involvement whatsoever in this matter. I do not represent your mother and never have. This is solely a matter between your mother, her sisters, and a judge and jury. She had them arrested and charged with a crime and is seeking punishment. I was simply present in court on other cases, and as I often do as a courtesy for the court, I attempted to explain the upcoming procedural aspects of how the court would set a trial date and notify your mother of it. Nothing has changed or developed since this original incident happened. I advised your mother to speak to an attorney about her options and the trial process. "

Something stinks here. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[kist]

Sounds to me like they don't think they can win. If they feel like they can't win they drop the case. It's likely the evidence is inadmissible because of the way it was obtained.

[VAEngineer]

A statement from the perp's husband is admissable but the victim's statement to the police when she reported the assault is not? If my house is broken into, I need to consult a lawyer before I call to report it to the police because the evidence collected by the police during the original investigation may be inadmissable in court and the charges could be dropped? Is that correct? I'm not being sarcastic, I am sincerely confused.

[lwpat]

According to the statement, the case has not been dropped. Contact the clerk of court to check on the status. It may still be on the docket.

[VAEngineer]

As we understand it, the case hasn't been dropped but the solicitor will not handle it. If she wants to proceed she has to represent herself. I don't see how she can represent herself against a defense lawyer, especially when the solicitor's office has "misplaced" key evidence. Seems like a losing battle. We think her chances of winning are much higher with the assistant solicitor. All we asked is that he hold off on his decision to handle it or not handle it until we/they find the missing evidence so that he can review it. However he refused.

She has also been threatened with a countersuit. She is worried she will lose and that the defense will file charges against her for "false arrest". Whether or not this can happen we have no idea, but it has been thrown out there.

The perps have a history of domestic abuse and both have spent time in jail for assault. One of them was convicted of trying to stab her husband with a red hot poker from the fireplace. My mother has no criminal history. You would think with the perps' histories, the assistant solicitor would at least try to find the key evidence in the case before dropping it.