Defense attorney for accused killer Tangela Parker requests medical records and cell phone of victim

Tangela Parker appeared in Catawba County Superior Court.

Defense attorney Victoria Jayne is representing Parker. The two were in Catawba County Superior Court to hear motions, filed in March, addressed.

Jayne requested the medical records of Michelle Marlow, as well as an opportunity to examine Marlow’s cellphone.

Parker is charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Marlow. Marlow was shot and killed at TCS Designs in Hickory on Jan. 13, 2021. Parker and her husband, Eric Parker, were also TCS Designs employees. The Parkers were arrested in Arizona six months after the shooting, according to police reports.

The first motion was to have access to a phone reportedly belonging to Marlow, which is in the custody of the Hickory Police Department. District Attorney Scott Reilly’s Office did not oppose the motion.

The second motion was for access to all of Marlow’s pharmaceutical and medical records, which the district attorney’s office did oppose. This motion was denied by Superior Court Judge Michael O’Foghludha as being too broad. The defense was given access to Marlow’s records from her primary care doctor.

Jayne said lamotrigine and amphetamine were found in Marlow’s system. After receiving a toxicology report from the autopsy, Jayne said she contacted Wilkie Wilson, a pharmacologist in Durham associated with Duke University, who provided her with a toxicology reporting index.

Jayne said according to the chart she was given, the maximum therapeutic limit is 100 nanograms of amphetamine. She said the autopsy found .17 milligrams per liter in Marlow’s system. The defense obtained Marlow’s pharmaceutical records from CVS Pharmacy through a subpoena, which gave the name of Marlow’s doctor, what medications she had been prescribed and when the medications were prescribed, Jayne said.

Jayne said she did not know if any of the medical records would be relevant to the defense but she would consider herself ineffective if she did not explore every option.

Jayne said in court that Marlow seemed to have a desire to get Parker fired from TCS Designs. Jayne said the level of drugs in Marlow’s system could explain some of Marlow’s behavior, but she would need to know why Marlow was taking the medication to make any determinations.

“This case boiled down to the fact that this defendant (Parker) was suspended for three days by her employer when she returned back to work,” Assistant District Attorney Lance Sigmon said. “That’s when she approached our victim (Marlow). She brought a gun to work and then approached the victim and basically shot her without warning.”

Eight of Marlow’s family members were present at the hearing. The family wore bright orange shirts with a large photo of Marlow printed on the front and #JusticeForMichelle written on the back in teal.