WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — One day after it was revealed that a court-submitted letter extending a job offer to Tim Ferriter was a "forgery," his defense attorney maintained that she didn't know the document was fabricated.
"We would not have submitted a letter, obviously, to the court but for believing in good faith that there was a job offer," defense attorney Prya Murad said Thursday morning during an interview with Court TV.
Murad and appellate attorney William R. Ponall filed a motion last week asking a Palm Beach County circuit judge to grant their client's release from jail on bond pending the outcome of an appeal of his conviction and prison sentence.
Ferriter, 48, was convicted last month on charges of child abuse, child neglect and false imprisonment.
Judge Howard Coates sentenced Ferriter to five years in prison, which was less than what the state had sought but more than his attorneys had requested.
In their motion, Murad and Ponall claimed that Ferriter has two job offers if he were to be released.
"Mr. Ferriter has made plans for his employment upon his release so that he can provide for his family," attorneys William R. Ponall and Prya Murad wrote. "Ferriter plans to work for Dream Outdoor Properties as a sales assistant in Jupiter, Florida."
Should that job "not work out, Mr. Ferriter has also been offered a sales position at Mazda of Palm Beach," the attorneys wrote.
Letters supporting those claims were included with the motion.
However, attorney Joshua S. Talcovitz sent a letter to WPTV advising that "such document is a complete and unequivocal forgery."
"At no time has Mr. Ferriter applied to Mazda of Palm Beach, let alone been given an offer of employment at the dealership," Talcovitz wrote. "Moreover, the letterhead appearing on the document is incorrect, as it is nothing more than a copy and paste of a website graphic."
Murad told Court TV that a notice of withdrawal was submitted to the court upon learning about it but couldn't say how she obtained the document in question. She said it was "provided to the appellate attorney by a number of friends and family."
She reiterated that she didn't know the job offer was not legitimate.
"It's the truth that I had no idea that there was no job offer from Mazda, and neither did the other attorney, or we would not have submitted it," Murad said.
Murat was asked if Ferriter's other job offer was valid.
"Yes," she said.
Prosecutors convinced jurors during his trial that Ferriter treated his 14-year-old adopted son like a prisoner in their home, forcing the boy to sleep in an 8x8 windowless room in the garage of their Jupiter home with nothing but a mattress, a desk and a bucket in which to defecate. The only time he was allowed out was to go to school.
Defense attorneys unsuccessfully sought to have Ferriter released from jail while he awaited sentencing, but Coates denied the request.
Meanwhile, a January court filing revealed that Ferriter is being sued by his former attorney, Nellie King. The complaint alleges that Ferriter "retained new counsel to represent him" in October 2022 "and has refused to pay the final installment of $62,500" as required under the agreement he signed with King shortly after his March 2022 arrest.
Ferriter's wife, Tracy Ferriter, is facing the same charges and still awaiting trial. She was expected in court next week for an indigency hearing.
The Fourth District Court of Appeal will decide whether Tim Ferriter should receive a new trial.