Ron Wilkins

rwilkins@jconline.com

Cody Cousins is persistent in his efforts to fire his attorney.

Cousins, 23, is facing a murder charge. He’s accused of killing 21-year-old Purdue University student Andrew Boldt in the Electrical Engineering Building on Jan. 21.

His attorney, Robert W. Gevers II, filed a motion late last month to withdraw, but the motion was denied because it did not meet the state’s criteria for counsel to withdraw from a case after a specific court administrative date.

Gevers filed a second motion a few days after Tippecanoe Superior 2 Judge Thomas Busch denied Gevers’ first motion. In the second filing, Gevers stated, “... Mr. Cousins directly informed counsel that Mr. Cousins no longer desired counsel’s representation, and the attorney-client relationship has become irreparably deteriorated as a result of such conversations and encounters.”

That criteria fits one of the reasons for counsel to be granted permission to withdraw, which Busch cited in his order denying Gevers’ first motion.

But before Busch rules on Gevers’ second request, he set a hearing for 9 a.m. Thursday to vet Gevers’ motion and hear from Cousins about his effort to drop Gevers’ services.

Gevers was retained a day or two before Cousins’ Jan. 23 initial hearing. He also represented Cousins at a March 7 pretrial hearing, during which Cousins’ trial date was set for Oct. 6.

The Journal & Courier will cover Thursday’s hearing, and a story will be filed at jconline.com shortly after it concludes.

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