Nailah Franklin Murder Suspect to Represent Self

By Prescott Carlson in News on Oct 25, 2008 2:50PM

Citing the inability to pay for a private attorney and the lengthy delays that can occur when using a public defender, suspect Reginald Potts, Jr. has decided to represent himself in the murder trial of Nailah Franklin. Potts has been accused of murdering Frankin -- his ex-girlfriend -- and dumping her body in a Calumet City forest preserve. Potts has maintained his innocence since his arrest. He stated that this innocence is what gave him the confidence to be his own attorney, saying he "believed the truth would win out."

Understandably, Cook County Circuit Judge Thomas Gainer Jr. warned Potts of the folly of representing himself in a capital murder trial -- especially after he learned about why Potts thought he was qualified:

Potts has no legal experience but told the judge he has access to the Cook County Jail's law library one hour a week and has been studying up for his case. Gainer compared Potts' plan to defend himself to reading "Chess for Dummies" a couple of times before playing Garry Kasparov.

The trial will be scheduled to begin in approximately one month. Gainer is giving Potts that time to reconsider his decision and utilize a public defender, and "all [Potts has] to do is ask." [Trib]

Potts's picture from his MySpace page