DICKSON, Tenn. (WTVF) — A jury convicted Joseph Daniels of murdering his 5-year-old son Joe Clyde. It is a story so many of us have followed and boy's body still has not been found.
Daniels is serving life and, so far, his appeals have failed. But there's a new effort to get this convicted killer a new trial.
Joseph Daniels has already lost appeals challenging the evidence against him that he killed his son Joe Clyde.
But now he's making the case that his lawyer did a lousy job.
That would Jake Lockert -- a well-known and respected attorney in Middle Tennessee.
He took on the Daniels case. Five-year-old Joe Clyde had disappeared from his Dickson home in 2018.
His body was never found.
No physical evidence, but Lockert told this reporter before trial he had a client who talked too much and confessed.
"You know the only reason your client is charged with homicide right now is the confession? Oh absolutely," said Lockert.
Daniels later recanted the confession to no avail and Lockert argued that Daniels had been coerced.
"If you have a person who is very suggestible and has mental health issued then the techniques police use," said Lockert.
Lockert said it all added up to a false confession.
Beyond that, Daniels -- against Lockert's advice -- also made several phone calls from his jail cell -- all which were recorded.
"When your client made the initial confession and then continued to make phone calls and ride with cops and try to tell them where the body is and write letters and make calls from prison it was making it extremely difficult to defend his case," said Lockert back in 2022.
Considering all that you wonder, what is the basis for Daniels' latest appeal?
In a nutshell, that Lockert did not do enough or call the witnesses needed to challenge the prosecution's case that he beat Joe Clyde to death and disposed of the body ...
Remember, there was no physical evidence -- just the confession and a circumstantial case.
Lockert will be called in the near future to answer question raised by the appeal in court. Joseph Daniels is currently serving a life sentence.
Joe Clyde's mother Krystal is about half was through a 13-year sentence for aggravated child abuse.
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