Prosecutors allege conflict of interest in 2013 fatal Schenectady fire case

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Prosecutors in the 2013 fatal Schenectady fire case have filed a motion for a conflict-of-interest inquiry into Edward Leon’s attorney, according to court documents. The request comes as attorney Kevin Luibrand separately represents an agent involved in Leon’s case.

Filed on August 28, the motion stated that Luibrand is, in a separate employee discrimination and sexual harassment case, currently representing a former Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) special agent — identified as “Agent-V” — that had worked to arrest and charge Leon. The agent was reportedly in charge of obtaining police reports regarding several incidents between Leon and a victim involved in the case, as well as reviewing Leon’s social media, interviewing the victim and serving as the primary liaison between the victim and ATF.

According to prosecutors, the dual current representation of Leon and Agent-V may create “divided loyalties,” as he would be representing someone who worked to charge Leon with arson while also representing Leon against those charges. Authorities also said the dual representation would “create an ethical dilemma” if Agent-V was called to testify during Leon’s trial.

“If the United States decided to call Agent-V, either in its case in chief or in rebuttal, that would put Mr. Luibrand in the position of needing to cross-examine his own client,” court documents said. “Doing so could involve impeaching her credibility as a law enforcement officer, which would undoubtedly be at odds with his ongoing representation of her.”

Luibrand filed a response to the conflict-of-interest motion on Friday, arguing that his representation of Agent-V in an “unrelated” case did not classify as a conflict of interest in Leon’s case. He cited the court’s acknowledgements that Agent-V was typically assigned to “ministerial tasks” during Leon’s case, making her involvement “relatively limited.”

The attorney also quoted a letter he said he received from the Department of Justice prior to their motion, in which they stated that they did “not currently anticipate” calling Agent-V as a witness.

The court will conduct a hearing on the alleged conflict of interest on Friday at 1:30 p.m. If they determine that a conflict does exist, or could exist in the future, Leon can either “knowingly waive his right to conflict-free representation” or appoint a new attorney.

Leon is accused of starting a fire at a home on Hullett Street in Schenectady in 2013, killing father David Terry and three of his children. He has been charged with malicious use of fire to destroy property resulting in death and could face the death penalty if convicted. Leon’s trial is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. on February 2, 2026.