Trial continued for Myrtle Beach couple charged in Heather Elvis disappearance

The trial for a Myrtle Beach couple facing charges of murder and kidnapping in the disappearance of Heather Elvis has been continued, according to an order filed Tuesday with the Horry County Clerk’s office.

It is unclear when the trial may be rescheduled or why it was continued from the previously set date of May 11.

The order was signed March 18 by Circuit Court Judge R. Markley Dennis issuing the continuance of the trial for Tammy Moorer and Sidney Moorer in the Elvis case.

Kirk Truslow, who represents Sidney Moorer could not be reached Wednesday for comment about the continuance.

Greg McCollum, who represents Tammy Moorer, declined to comment citing a gag order in effect preventing attorneys and police from discussing the case.

“No trial date has been set at this time. The gag order remains in effect; there is no other information at this time,” 15th Circuit Solicitor Jimmy Richardson said in a release about the continuance.

Attorneys in the case are under a gag order, signed on March 21, 2014, by Circuit Court Judge Steven John, which prohibits any prosecutors, defense attorneys or their staffs and members of law enforcement, who have investigated the case, to publicly speak or release documents regarding the case.

Horry County police have charged Tammy Moorer and Sidney Moorer with murder and kidnapping in February 2014 in connection with Elvis’ disappearance. The couple were each released on $100,000 bail in January following a hearing before Dennis in Charleston.

Elvis, who was 20 at the time, was reported missing Dec. 19, 2013, after Horry County police found her car, which was registered to her father, parked at the Peachtree boat landing. Elvis’ keys, cellphone and purse were not found in the locked car and she remains missing.

In January, prosecutors filed the paperwork to call the case to trial and asked the Horry County Clerk of Court to summon a panel of 800 possible jurors for the case.

In the order filed Wednesday, Dennis ordered Horry County’s Clerk of Court to mail juror summons regarding the case for the week of May 11, which will remain open for any and all pretrial motions in the case, according to court documents.

During a March 17, 2014, bond hearing for the couple, prosecutors pointed to cellphone records and video surveillance to build their case against the couple. But defense attorneys said the evidence is circumstantial, with no link to tie the couple to Elvis’ disappearance.

John denied to set bond for the couple on the charges of murder and kidnapping during that hearing.

On March 21, 2014, an Horry County grand jury indicted the Moorers on the murder and kidnapping charges, according to court records. Also on that day, Circuit Court Judge Steven John issued a gag order, which prohibits any prosecutors, defense attorneys or their staffs and members of law enforcement, who have investigated the case, to speak publicly or release documents regarding the case.

The couple also face two counts of indecent exposure and one count of obstructing justice, according to court records.

In June 2014, state officials charged the couple with making a false statement on an application for Medicaid and obtaining a signature or property under false pretenses with a value of $10,000 or more, authorities said.

Earlier this month, prosecutors filed a memorandum that alleged McCollum had violated the gag order at least three times.

A hearing on a motion filed by McCollum to lift the gag order had been set for March 4 but Dennis canceled it because John issued the order. It is unclear if another hearing will be scheduled for attorneys to discuss the gag order and alleged violations with John.

This story was originally published March 25, 2015 at 12:14 PM with the headline "Trial continued for Myrtle Beach couple charged in Heather Elvis disappearance."