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The double murder trial of Ernie Scherer III continued on Wednesday with his attorney suggesting there is not enough evidence to convict the poker player.
Scherer III is accused of bludgeoning to death his parents, Charlene Abendroth and Ernest Scherer Jr., in their Castlewood Country Club, California home in March of 2008. Prosecutors argue that the younger Scherer was after his parents $1.5 million inheritance.
"The investigation into the murders of Charlene Abendroth and Ernest Scherer Jr. took a crucial wrong turn from the start," deputy public defender Richard Foxall told a jury on Wednesday. "They focused on a motive. "... They spent those resources chasing after a theory they already decided on."
Foxall also referenced a mystery DNA sample found at the murder scene and the lack of evidence linking his client.
"There will be insinuations. There will be aspects of Mr. Scherer's lifestyle that you may not approve of," Foxall told the jury. "But there will be no proof (of his guilt in the murders)”.
Reports have since surfaced that Scherer III posted ads for women on Craigslist and carried out a two-year affair behind his wife’s back. One of the witnesses expected to testify in trial is a woman who claims that Scherer acted violently towards her between the time of the murders and his arrest. Scherer is also being painted as a degenerate gambler who ran up significant debts.
A DNA sample found at the scene of the murder did not match either Scherer III or his father. Foxall attempted to present an alternative motive, noting that Scherer’s sister claimed their parents kept gold bricks in a safe in their home.
The defense also attempted to portray the father and son as being very close. Both were known on the poker circuit.
- Christopher Costigan, Gambling911.com Publisher
