Defense lawyer: Deputy secretly taped conversation

FLORENCE, S.C. (AP) — State agents will investigate a defense lawyer’s claim that a Florence County deputy taped her conversation with a prosecutor without her knowing it.

WBTW-TV (http://bit.ly/qi0fik ) reports that a judge asked for the State Law Enforcement investigation on Wednesday during a hearing where the attorney asked for two murder charges to be dropped against her client because of the taping.

Rose Mary Parham says she was talking to Solicitor Ed Clements when she suddenly heard their conversation from moments before coming from the pocket of an evidence custodian with the sheriff’s office. Parham says the officer told her someone at the sheriff’s office asked him to tape the meeting.

Parham represents Hiralkumar Gopaldas, who is charged with killing his wife and mother-in-law in June.

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Information from: WBTW-TV, http://www.wbtw.com