DECATUR COUNTY, Tenn. (WTVF) — A biased judge and an unfair jury.
Those claims are the basis of an appeal filed by Holly Bobo's convicted killer.
It's been more than two years since the conviction of Zach Adams.
But now he's asking for a new trial.
In the appeal, Adam's lawyer cites 56 instances where she says a serious mistake was made during the murder trial.
"It would be malpractice not to appeal a case where somebody gets life in prison without possibility of parole," Adams' attorney Jennifer Thompson said just after her client was convicted in the murder of Holly Bobo.
And now, finally, two and half years later she's filed this appeal asking that Adams get a new trial.
"There are quite a few issues in this case. It was a long case," Legal analyst Nick Leonardo said.
He co-anchored Newschannel5's gavel-to-gavel coverage of the two week Bobo trial back in 2017 and reviewed the appeal.
He cites some of the highlights: Adams first challenges the judge's decision to only move the trial from Decatur to Hardin county -- which is right next door. The appeal argues that the jurors in such close proximity were still biased against Adams.
"The change of venue is significant," Leonardo said.
The appeal also alleges the judge allowed the prosecution to spring surprise evidence, for example: An incriminating photo line-up.
"The defense was unaware they had that that photo line-up and they did not get it in discovery so you have evidence that comes in that the defense has never seen," Leonardo said.
And thus, they couldn't prepare for it at trial.
The appeal also claims the judge sided with the prosecution time and again unfairly. In one instance, denying the defense a break at the end of a long day ..."It was summer and hot and six o'clock and they wanted to start the next morning and the judge said no to push through it," Leonardo said.
Again, those are just three of 56 objections asking for a new trial.
The appellate court must decide if one or more of the alleged mistakes did enough to deny Adams a fair trial.
The motion for appeal will first be heard by Judge Creed McGinley.
After that it is expected to be sent to the Tennessee Court of Appeals where a decision will take at least six months.
