Defense: Police misled courts for search warrants against Durham teen charged in dad's death

The teen said he found his father unconscious in the theater room of the family home near Hope Valley Country Club with a dog leash wrapped around his neck and the dog still on the leash, according to records in the case. The leash wasn't on Bill Bishop when paramedics arrived at the house.

During a pre-trial hearing on Thursday, defense attorney Allyn Sharp accused Tony Huelsman, Durham police's lead investigator in the case, of including "knowing misstatements or reckless disregard for the truth" in his applications for search warrants in the case.

Huelsman mischaracterized Alexander Bishop's comments to first responders about his father and that gold bars were missing from the home when he sought warrants to search the home and the teen's phones and computers, Sharp argued.

Alexander Bishop told first responders who went to the home following a 911 call that his father emotionally abused him and that he feared what his father would do if he survived, according warrant applications. Sharp said Huelsman neglected to include the portion of the statement in which the teen said he was fearful because he had left the leash on the dog.

Warrant: Police suspect teen, mother grabbed gold from dead Durham businessman's safe

Huelsman acknowledged on the witness stand Thursday that he was incorrect, saying he later realized Bill Bishop had sold the gold. But, he added, there is still about 50 ounces of gold unaccounted for.

Hoping to get the evidence obtained through the search warrants suppressed in the case, Sharp argued that Huelsman “specifically and intentionally misled the court” in order to obtain the warrants, saying he knew the allegations he was making in the applications were false.

Huelsman denied that his omissions or inaccuracies were deliberate, and Durham County Assistant District Attorney Beth Hopkins Thomas said the defense hadn't shown any intent or bad faith by police in the case.

Hudson didn't rule on the search warrant motion Thursday, and the hearing is expected to continue on Monday. A defense motion for investigators to return all electronics seized in the case to the Bishop family also is expected to be heard Monday.

Police previously searched the laptop computer that Durham Academy had assigned to Alexander Bishop and also found suspicious information on the teen's cellphone, such as searches for calculating the value of an estate, transferring bank accounts after a death and the prices of gold, according to court documents.