Defense lawyers for Patrick McDowell file 20 motions in run-up to trial

NASSAU COUNTY, Fla. – Defense lawyers for Patrick McDowell, the man accused of killing Nassau County Deputy Joshua Moyers, have filed 20 motions in the run-up to the trial that could be years away.

Some of the motions have to do with the death penalty -- including asking the judge to block prosecutors from seeking the death penalty, declaring Florida’s death penalty law unconstitutional, and declaring lethal injection cruel and unusual punishment.

Related: Traffic stop to trauma scene: Desperate efforts to save Deputy Joshua Moyers revealed in reports | State’s evidence against Patrick McDowell includes video showing chase, deadly confrontation

There are also two motions that go toward “Victim Impact Statements.” The first asks that since the judge denied the motion -- to preclude them, then to have them only presented to the judge. And second, McDowell’s lawyers are asking the judge not to allow the statements to be presented to the jury.

Nassau County Deputy Joshua Moyers was shot twice during an early morning traffic stop last September on US 301 in Yulee.

Related: Timeline of events following shooting of Deputy Joshua Moyers, leading to arrest of Patrick McDowell

McDowell’s next court date is June 23.