Former Granville deputy claims DAs' text messages conflict of interest in corruption investigation

A former Granville County deputy facing corruption charges wants the case charges dropped over what he considers a conflict of interest.

The Granville County District Attorney recused himself from the case because of concerns about a conflict of interest. Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman took over the case for prosecution.

Coffey’s defense team points to texts they uncovered showing Granville County D.A. Mike Waters still talking about the case with Freeman. Coffey’s team calls that a clear conflict of interest since Waters had political and legal connections with the sheriff’s office.

Despite the pending motion, Freeman spoke with WRAL Investigates about the accusations. Asked f it was appropriate for her to talk to Waters about the case, Freeman said that is up to the court, but she believes everything is above board.

"I think that is exactly what this motion before the judge is going to determine," she said. "Clearly we believe this case was handled appropriately."

In one exchange revealed in the text messages, Freeman uses profanity after Waters sends her Facebook posts from Coffey’s wife attacking the DA. In a text response, Freeman tells Waters that Coffey needs to understand that she’s not "f***ing around."

"I’m human, and sometimes when people make allegations against me I might say or use tones I wish I hadn’t used. That’s the situation here," Freeman said. "Certainly, I regret the tone."

Defense attorneys and Waters both declined to comment on this motion. A judge is scheduled to air all this out in a Raleigh courtroom on Tuesday.