By ANDY LYONS
Muleskinner Managing Editor
The man accused of murdering Warrensburg bar owner William “Blaine” Whitworth has had his trial moved from February to April after submitting an open letter to his court-appointed attorney, Craig Napier, and Judge R. Michael Wagner requesting a new court-appointed attorney.
Singletary requested a new attorney because of a “lack of professional work, interest, time and concern that (Napier) has shown (Singletary) over the past 15 months,” according to his letter. The letter states how much contact Napier has had with Singletary, which Singletary views as inadequate.
Singletary wrote that he and Napier talked about court proceedings, but Napier would not share those conversations in front of the judge.
“Even after Mr. Napier and I take the time to talk about something and agree on a plan of action he gets in front of the judge and does not relay anything that was discussed between us,” the letter states. “Instead he folds like a deck of cards without even a whisper of what I was told that would be addressed in Court. I can no longer participate in this treatment where I have to ask the Court to speak on my own (behalf). Everyone is entitled to adequate representation and I am not receiving it.”
He then requested an attorney from the Kansas City Office and requested no one from the Harrisonville office be assigned to the case due to the “lack of staffing and problems with scheduling, which has been the excuse given to (Singletary) for several months now.”
The trial is now scheduled for a case hearing at 3 p.m. Feb. 3 and jury trial at 9:30 a.m. April 29. Singletary is being held at the Johnson County Jail on a $1 million bond. He told police after he was arrested in September that he shot Whitworth with a handgun in exchange for money, according to court records.