Lawyers for Limestone County Sheriff Mike Blakely filed several motions Tuesday to get charges against him dropped.
In August, Blakely was indicted on 13 charges that cover a range of conduct over multiple years.
He was arrested, booked into and released from his own jail.
In one of Tuesday’s filings, attorneys say the Alabama Ethics Act should be declared unconstitutional because it is vague. As the act was used as part of Blakely’s indictment, attorneys say the entire indictment should be thrown out.
Another filing asks that one of the 13 counts be thrown out because the alleged offense took place outside of the statute of limitations for theft of property.
And, finally, a motion accuses the state of Alabama of giving the defendant a “data dump” of paperwork and electronic files. The defense wants a ruling that orders the state to give it a better idea of what evidence it plans to use.
Of Blakely’s 13 counts, the first four charge him with four separate thefts from his campaign account that total $11,000.
Counts five through 10 charge Blakley with theft or ethics charges stemming from his illegally taking money from Limestone County funds, including from the Sheriff’s Law Enforcement Fund.
Count 11 charges Blakely with soliciting a $1,000 wire transfer from a subordinate other than in the ordinary course of business.
Finally, counts 12 and 13 charge Blakely with using his official position or office to acquire interest-free loans. Specifically, count 12 charges Blakely with using his official position or office to obtain interest-free loans in the form of a $50,000 cashier’s check and/or a $22,189.68 credit.
Count 13 charges Blakely with using his official position or office to obtain interest-free loans by taking money from a safe that was used to store the Limestone County inmates’ personal funds.
Blakely continues to serve as sheriff.