WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Citing an "irreconcilable difference," the attorney for the wife of a Jupiter father who kept his adopted son in a box-like structure in their garage asked a Palm Beach County circuit judge to be removed from the case.
Tracy Ferriter, 47, was not present in the courtroom during Friday morning's hearing.
Defense attorney Jennifer Marshall initially filed a motion asking to withdraw as the attorney of record for Ferriter because she had accepted a position with a state agency.
However, she told Judge Howard Coates after filing an amended motion to withdraw that "circumstances have arisen that have caused an irreconcilable difference between my client and I."
Although Ferriter's financial means were expected to be a topic of discussion during the hearing, a motion to declare the defendant indigent for court costs was withdrawn.
Coates granted Marshall's motion to withdraw "based on the fact that there's a conflict that's been represented to the court."
But he also denied a motion to continue the case until Ferriter retained a new attorney.
Coates said Ferriter's new attorney should be prepared to address the court as he intends to move forward with a January trial date.
"Given the fact that any attorney taking this case is going to be taking it with the knowledge that it's already currently set for trial, I'm going to want to inquire very significantly as to, if they take the case and they know they can't go in early January, why they took the case," he said.
Ferriter is the wife of Tim Ferriter, who was convicted last month on charges of child abuse, child neglect and false imprisonment. She faces the same charges in a separate trial.
Prosecutors in October convinced a Palm Beach County jury during Tim Ferriter's trial that he treated his 14-year-old adopted son like a prisoner in their Jupiter home, forcing the boy to sleep in an 8x8 windowless room in the garage 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.
Coates sentenced Tim Ferriter to five years in prison, which was less than what the state had sought but more than his attorneys had requested.
Defense attorneys unsuccessfully sought to have Tim Ferriter released from jail while he awaited sentencing, but Coates denied the request.
They're currently asking that Tim Ferriter be released from jail pending an appeal of his conviction and prison sentence.
Tracy Ferriter was in court throughout her husband's trial, often sitting in the row directly behind the defense table.
Coates set a status check for Dec. 15, the same day that Tim Ferriter's attorneys will seek to convince the judge that their client should be released on bond pending an appeal of his conviction and prison sentence.
He'll likely hear from defense attorney Prya Murad and appellate attorney William R. Ponall on a fabricated job offer from Mazda of Palm Beach that was originally submitted to the court in a motion requesting Tim Ferriter's release.
That motion was modified after it was revealed that no such offer existed.
WPTV reported last month, citing the court filing, that Ferriter had job offers from Mazda of Palm Beach and Dream Outdoor Properties.
However, Joshua S. Talcovitz, an attorney for Mazda of Palm Beach, 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 has maintained that she was unaware the job offer had been fabricated.