Attorney in Jimmy Ray Rodgers appeal in Sievers murder case awaiting payment for services

The court-appointed attorney representing an appeal by Jimmy Ray Rodgers in the Teresa Sievers murder case is awaiting word on getting paid.

Attorney Samantha Stevins appeared before Lee County Court judge Robert J. Branning for a hearing on a motion permitting payment in excess of the statutory fee limit of $1,875.

Her motion, filed in late March, listed her bill for services in the Rodgers case as $38,049.20.

Rodgers, 32, of Missouri, is one of three men convicted in the 2015 bludgeoning death of Bonita Springs doctor Teresa Sievers.

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Due to Rodgers' indigent status for appeal, Stevins was court-appointed in July 2020 to handle his case. Rodgers was convicted of second-degree murder in October 2019 and filed the appeal less than two weeks after conviction.