Christine Ferretti and Tom Greenwood / The Detroit News
Shelby Township -- Two men are dead and a woman critically injured in what police are calling an apparent murder-suicide.
Shelby Township police say Suzanne Moore had been planning to ask her husband for a divorce. That conversation apparently occurred late Monday before neighbors of Kenneth and Suzanne Moore heard desperate screams for help and five gunshots that left 50-year-old Kenneth Moore, and the pair's acquaintance, Steven Zahn, 59, dead.
Shelby Township Police Chief Robert Leman said officers responded to the couple's home on Burning Bush Court at the Shelby West Mobile Home Community after 10 p.m. Inside they found Suzanne Moore, 55, critically injured with a gunshot wound.
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Zhan had been shot three times with a shotgun and Kenneth Moore died of a single self-inflicted gunshot wound, Leman said.
Leman said Suzanne Moore has told investigators that she was planning to seek a divorce from her husband. She remains hospitalized in critical but stable condition at Henry Ford Macomb Hospital.
Next door neighbor Stacey Kopchak said she and her husband Jason were watching television last night when they heard a "high-pitched scream" and then Suzanne Moore called to her neighbor for help.
"She yelled 'help me, God, Jason please help me,' " said Kopchak, 34. "We heard blood-curdling screams. Then we hit the floor and heard five shots. We had no idea what was going on."
Kopchak said her husband forced her to hide in a closet. He then barricaded himself in a bedroom with their three children.
She later crawled from her hiding spot to retrieve her cell phone and called police, Kopchak said.
Police say Zhan had been staying with the Moores for a couple months after a recent illness.
Leman said it is not known at this time if there was a relationship between Suzanne Moore and Zhan that may have prompted the attack.
Kopchak said the couple was always friendly. Suzanne Moore works for Home Depot, she said, and her husband stayed home. He hadn't worked for about 20 years after he lost part of his leg in a motorcycle accident, Kopchak said.
The two lived next door for about a year and a half. Jason Kopchak sometimes played video games with Kenneth Moore and the Moores even shared juice boxes and cookies with the Kopchak's three young children.
"There was never any indication of violence," Kopchak said.
Kopchak added she and her husband noticed recently that Kenneth Moore had become "withdrawn."
Hours before the shooting, a neighbor saw Suzanne Moore entering the home with suitcases.
tgreenwood@detnews.com (313) 222-2023
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Dorchester, MA: Man Charged In Wife's Strangulation Death
Dorchester Man Faces Charges
POSTED: 4:04 pm EDT September 7, 2010
UPDATED: 4:28 pm EDT September 7, 2010
BOSTON -- A Dorchester man accused of strangling his wife was ordered held without bail Tuesday.
Roger Paron Jr., 51, is accused of killing Victoria Paron on Saturday in the home they shared on Bicknell Street.
Police began an investigation into Victoria Paron's well-being and Roger Paron’s whereabouts on Saturday afternoon. The next day, police found Roger Paron near the intersection of Talbot Avenue and Blue Hill Avenue.
When asked where his wife was, officials said Paron told police, "She's dead. I killed her."
Police said Roger Paron told them that she was inside their home. Police responded to the residence a short time later and found his wife's body.
"More than almost any other crime, domestic violence afflicts people of every age, ethnicity, income, and orientation," District Attorney Dan Conley said. "If you're in an abusive relationship, or if you know someone who is, we’re ready to help. No one should have to live in fear of an intimate partner."
Conley urged victims of any crime, including intimate partner violence, to call 911 in an emergency. SafeLink, a statewide domestic violence hot line, can be reached at 877-785-2020.
POSTED: 4:04 pm EDT September 7, 2010
UPDATED: 4:28 pm EDT September 7, 2010
BOSTON -- A Dorchester man accused of strangling his wife was ordered held without bail Tuesday.
Roger Paron Jr., 51, is accused of killing Victoria Paron on Saturday in the home they shared on Bicknell Street.
Police began an investigation into Victoria Paron's well-being and Roger Paron’s whereabouts on Saturday afternoon. The next day, police found Roger Paron near the intersection of Talbot Avenue and Blue Hill Avenue.
When asked where his wife was, officials said Paron told police, "She's dead. I killed her."
Police said Roger Paron told them that she was inside their home. Police responded to the residence a short time later and found his wife's body.
"More than almost any other crime, domestic violence afflicts people of every age, ethnicity, income, and orientation," District Attorney Dan Conley said. "If you're in an abusive relationship, or if you know someone who is, we’re ready to help. No one should have to live in fear of an intimate partner."
Conley urged victims of any crime, including intimate partner violence, to call 911 in an emergency. SafeLink, a statewide domestic violence hot line, can be reached at 877-785-2020.
Monday, September 6, 2010
Brownsville, TX: Family, friends seeking peace after Brownsville teen's slaying
September 06, 2010 3:37 PM
Jazmine Ulloa
The Brownsville Herald
Tiffany Galvan had a passion for singing.
She played the guitar at church on Sundays and would sometimes compose her own hymns, her mother said from her home in northeastern Brownsville.
Without her bubbly presence, the house is quiet.
“I am never going to forget the brutal way in which my daughter was taken from me,” Maria Esther Galvan said. “I can resign myself to the fact that she is gone, but not to the way she died.”
Galvan was found dead Aug. 25 in a remote area near Benavides Park outside Brownsville, two days after she had celebrated her 17th birthday, the same day she started her senior year at Los Fresnos High School. Investigators say they believe her ex-boyfriend brutally stabbed her 23 times.
As a 16-year-old boy heads to court this week, charged with killing Galvan, the girl’s mother, friends and relatives all say they are trying to cope with the horrifying loss. A group of counselors stationed themselves in the high school library after Principal Ronnie Rodriguez broke the news of Galvan’s death to the staff and faculty. Rodriguez said Galvan was a good student who loved to dance. Myliss Parker, director of Guidance and Counseling for the Los Fresnos school district, served as her counselor in elementary school.
“She was just one of those people you just can’t help being happy with, because she was always happy,” Parker said.
BIG IMPACT
Advocates at a local shelter for women say Galvan’s death made a big impact on the community, especially because of the violent way she was killed.
The teen years are a time of change, emotionally and physically, said Claudia Cerda, a primary prevention coordinator for the Friendship of Women shelter in Brownsville. A relationship can be additional stress, and teenagers often do not report abuse.
Sometimes, the signs of abuse are hard for teenagers — and their parents — to recognize, she said.
“Always get help, talk about the abuse, if not to your parents, then a counselor or teacher,” Cerda said.
Principal Rodriguez said students slowly are coping and moving ahead with their lives.
“I am very proud of the students and how supportive they have been of the Galvans,” he said.
Yvette Rocha, Galvan’s friend since elementary school, said she and other friends visited the counselors shortly after Tiffany’s death.
“The day after we found out, we went to school and it did not feel the same,” Rocha said. “I was in shock, in denial. I did not want to believe it was true.”
Rocha said Galvan had not talked to her about her boyfriend. Galvan had once posted pictures herself with the boy on MySpace, a popular social networking site, but later took the photos down. Galvan’s status updates on Facebook, another popular site, were sad and seemed to be directed at the boy, Rocha said.
A day before she died, Galvan had written publicly on her Facebook page that she was having trouble with an ex-boyfriend. In previous postings, she had said she was pregnant and believed the boy would soon have to take responsibility as the father. The autopsy results have not been released yet, but Galvan’s mother said she was not pregnant, though they had been worried that she was.
Rocha, who almost always had lunch with Galvan, said she likes to pretend Tiffany is still around. She and other friends still post messages on her Facebook wall, talking about their day.
FEW DETAILS
Police have released little information about the case.
Maria Esther Galvan said her daughter seemed sad when she broke up with her boyfriend, but her energetic personality did not change.
The mother said she is grateful to detectives at the Cameron County Sheriff’s Department, the chief of police at the Port of Brownsville, and to Juan Sierra, director of the Treviño Funeral Home, for helping her through the trauma of her daughter’s death.
She has been unable to sleep, she said, and has not been able to visit the place where her only daughter was slain. Some day, when she feels stronger, she will go, she said.
Until then, she is relying on the strength of her family and friends to help her through one of the worst things that could happen to a mother.
“My daughter had lots of dreams,” Maria Esther Galvan said. “She will always be in my heart.”
___
Jazmine Ulloa is a reporter for The Brownsville Herald.
Jazmine Ulloa
The Brownsville Herald
Tiffany Galvan had a passion for singing.
She played the guitar at church on Sundays and would sometimes compose her own hymns, her mother said from her home in northeastern Brownsville.
Without her bubbly presence, the house is quiet.
“I am never going to forget the brutal way in which my daughter was taken from me,” Maria Esther Galvan said. “I can resign myself to the fact that she is gone, but not to the way she died.”
Galvan was found dead Aug. 25 in a remote area near Benavides Park outside Brownsville, two days after she had celebrated her 17th birthday, the same day she started her senior year at Los Fresnos High School. Investigators say they believe her ex-boyfriend brutally stabbed her 23 times.
As a 16-year-old boy heads to court this week, charged with killing Galvan, the girl’s mother, friends and relatives all say they are trying to cope with the horrifying loss. A group of counselors stationed themselves in the high school library after Principal Ronnie Rodriguez broke the news of Galvan’s death to the staff and faculty. Rodriguez said Galvan was a good student who loved to dance. Myliss Parker, director of Guidance and Counseling for the Los Fresnos school district, served as her counselor in elementary school.
“She was just one of those people you just can’t help being happy with, because she was always happy,” Parker said.
BIG IMPACT
Advocates at a local shelter for women say Galvan’s death made a big impact on the community, especially because of the violent way she was killed.
The teen years are a time of change, emotionally and physically, said Claudia Cerda, a primary prevention coordinator for the Friendship of Women shelter in Brownsville. A relationship can be additional stress, and teenagers often do not report abuse.
Sometimes, the signs of abuse are hard for teenagers — and their parents — to recognize, she said.
“Always get help, talk about the abuse, if not to your parents, then a counselor or teacher,” Cerda said.
Principal Rodriguez said students slowly are coping and moving ahead with their lives.
“I am very proud of the students and how supportive they have been of the Galvans,” he said.
Yvette Rocha, Galvan’s friend since elementary school, said she and other friends visited the counselors shortly after Tiffany’s death.
“The day after we found out, we went to school and it did not feel the same,” Rocha said. “I was in shock, in denial. I did not want to believe it was true.”
Rocha said Galvan had not talked to her about her boyfriend. Galvan had once posted pictures herself with the boy on MySpace, a popular social networking site, but later took the photos down. Galvan’s status updates on Facebook, another popular site, were sad and seemed to be directed at the boy, Rocha said.
A day before she died, Galvan had written publicly on her Facebook page that she was having trouble with an ex-boyfriend. In previous postings, she had said she was pregnant and believed the boy would soon have to take responsibility as the father. The autopsy results have not been released yet, but Galvan’s mother said she was not pregnant, though they had been worried that she was.
Rocha, who almost always had lunch with Galvan, said she likes to pretend Tiffany is still around. She and other friends still post messages on her Facebook wall, talking about their day.
FEW DETAILS
Police have released little information about the case.
Maria Esther Galvan said her daughter seemed sad when she broke up with her boyfriend, but her energetic personality did not change.
The mother said she is grateful to detectives at the Cameron County Sheriff’s Department, the chief of police at the Port of Brownsville, and to Juan Sierra, director of the Treviño Funeral Home, for helping her through the trauma of her daughter’s death.
She has been unable to sleep, she said, and has not been able to visit the place where her only daughter was slain. Some day, when she feels stronger, she will go, she said.
Until then, she is relying on the strength of her family and friends to help her through one of the worst things that could happen to a mother.
“My daughter had lots of dreams,” Maria Esther Galvan said. “She will always be in my heart.”
___
Jazmine Ulloa is a reporter for The Brownsville Herald.
Fairfax, VA: Murder Yields 14-Year Sentence
Woman sentenced for killing boyfriend.
By Bonnie Hobbs
Monday, September 06, 2010
Before his client was sentenced for killing her boyfriend, last year, inside her Centre Ridge apartment, defense attorney Peter Greenspun asked the court for mercy.
“It was a domestic incident,” he said. “Mrs. Tizon is not a general risk to the community.”
But Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Kathy Stott disagreed. “She is 64 and has no prior criminal record,” said Stott. “But this court cannot ignore the fact that, on Aug. 15, 2009, this defendant fired two shots into the victim, ending his life at age 34.”
After a four-day trial in May, a jury found Centreville’s Maria De Las Mercedes Tizon guilty of second-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and recommended she receive 14 years in prison. And on Aug. 20, Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Dennis Smith imposed the full sentence.
The victim was Alexandria resident Ahmed Chouaib, who’d come to the U.S. from Morocco in 2002. He and Tizon had met at Inova Fairfax Hospital when they’d both worked in its cafeteria, and they’d been involved romantically for three or four years.
At Tizon’s trial, her neighbor, Pam Parnell, told what happened, the day of the murder. Parnell had just returned home from work when there was a knock at her door. “Maria was crying, so I opened the door and stepped out,” testified Parnell. “When I asked what was wrong, she said, ‘I shot my boyfriend; I killed him.’ Then she pointed down to a gun outside my door.”
Parnell took Tizon inside her apartment and called 911. “Maria was really shaken,” she said. “I asked, ‘Did he hit you?’ and she said, ‘He pushed me in the heart.’ Then she lost it and was crying and rocking back and forth.”
When police arrived, Parnell directed them to Tizon’s apartment, some 15 feet away, where they found Chouaib’s body. But there were no signs of a struggle.
Parnell said Tizon never denied shooting him. “While I was on the phone with 911, Maria said, ‘They should take me,’” said Parnell. “She was very emotional.” The neighbor also noted that Tizon had no injuries.
After seeing the body, Police Officer William Coulter asked Tizon what had happened. He testified that she answered, ‘He messed with my head; he takes my car and never returns it.’”
Explaining a possible motive for the murder, Officer Marta Goodwin also testified, repeating spontaneous statements Tizon had made to her. Said Goodwin: “She said [Chouaib] took her car to see other women and had assaulted her and been violent toward her.” However, no evidence of any maltreatment of Tizon at Chouaib’s hands was presented.
Police found the victim’s body, half in the bathroom and half in the hallway of Tizon’s home. He’d been shot twice, and one bullet was still in him. “The gun found outside Parnell’s apartment was the one that fired the bullets that killed him,” said Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Erin Mellen, during the trial. “On July 8, five weeks earlier, Tizon bought that gun.”
Dr. Shane Chittenden, with the Virginia Medical Examiner’s Office, performed the autopsy on Chouaib and testified that the first bullet entered above the right side of his chest. The second bullet, he said, entered from his back. Chittenden also determined that both bullets were fired from no more than 3 feet away.
The weapon used was a Taurus .38 special, double-action revolver, and firearms expert Gary Arnsten testified that, for Chouaib to be shot twice, Tizon had to fire the gun two, separate times.
When Tizon returned to court for sentencing, Aug 20, a year had passed since the tragedy. But time hadn’t dulled the pain still felt by Chouaib’s friends, and two of them took the stand at the outset of the proceedings.
First was an elderly man named Omar Moufti, who was retired and had taken an interest in helping Chouaib, who had shown kindness to both him and his wife. “I knew Ahmed six years,” said Moufti. “I discussed his college courses with him, and I told him it was better to work for himself than for others, so he and another man started their own gutter-cleaning business.”
On snowy days, said Moufti, Chouaib cleared off Moufti’s and his wife’s cars before they even got up. Crying, he said, “There’s no day goes by that I do not think about how this young man’s life was wasted. I did not have a son of my own and I thought of him as a son.”
Under questioning from Greenspun, Moufti said he’d never met Tizon and that Chouaib never told him about his intimate relationship with her because “he knew that I’d object to it vehemently.”
Another friend, Abdelhamid Ja, knew Chouaib’s family in Morocco for 20 years and said Chouaib “was like my family here. We did everything together. If I was sick, he’d take care of me. I’m missing him all the time.”
Stott then asked Judge Smith to impose the jury’s sentence recommendation — 11 years for murder, plus a mandatory three years for the firearms charge — in its entirety. She said the 11 years is close to the low end of the state sentencing guidelines and “it’s not unreasonable, based on all the evidence before this court. Ahmed Chouaib had a positive impact on his community and his friends, and they are less because he is gone.”
Greenspun said Tizon had just retired, two weeks before the incident. He said the shooting “wasn’t malice, but happened out of a passionate relationship between [the couple].”
Tizon then stood and broke down into tears while apologizing to her family, the court and everyone involved in the case. “I’ve been working all my life and have never had any situation like this,” she said. “I’m very sorry for my actions; please have mercy on me.”
Smith noted that she’d led a good life and had made contributions to society. But, he added, “You felt like you were being wronged by [Chouaib] and you intended to kill him. Your relationship was problematic; you felt abused in it and took action.”
In sentencing Tizon, said the judge, he considered her possible rehabilitation, but he also had to punish her for what she did. “You took a life intentionally, and that’s the worst thing someone can do,” said Smith. “I don’t know that you might not do it again.”
Smith told her that the jurors represented a group of individuals drawn from the community, and “they gave that 11 years thought. I don’t find [that sentence] to be out of line regarding appropriateness and, independently, that’s about what I’d have given you, too.”
He then imposed the whole 14 years, plus three years post-release supervision. “You have a right to appeal,” he told Tizon. “And you are remanded to the custody of the sheriff.”
By Bonnie Hobbs
Monday, September 06, 2010
Before his client was sentenced for killing her boyfriend, last year, inside her Centre Ridge apartment, defense attorney Peter Greenspun asked the court for mercy.
“It was a domestic incident,” he said. “Mrs. Tizon is not a general risk to the community.”
But Deputy Commonwealth’s Attorney Kathy Stott disagreed. “She is 64 and has no prior criminal record,” said Stott. “But this court cannot ignore the fact that, on Aug. 15, 2009, this defendant fired two shots into the victim, ending his life at age 34.”
After a four-day trial in May, a jury found Centreville’s Maria De Las Mercedes Tizon guilty of second-degree murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and recommended she receive 14 years in prison. And on Aug. 20, Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Dennis Smith imposed the full sentence.
The victim was Alexandria resident Ahmed Chouaib, who’d come to the U.S. from Morocco in 2002. He and Tizon had met at Inova Fairfax Hospital when they’d both worked in its cafeteria, and they’d been involved romantically for three or four years.
At Tizon’s trial, her neighbor, Pam Parnell, told what happened, the day of the murder. Parnell had just returned home from work when there was a knock at her door. “Maria was crying, so I opened the door and stepped out,” testified Parnell. “When I asked what was wrong, she said, ‘I shot my boyfriend; I killed him.’ Then she pointed down to a gun outside my door.”
Parnell took Tizon inside her apartment and called 911. “Maria was really shaken,” she said. “I asked, ‘Did he hit you?’ and she said, ‘He pushed me in the heart.’ Then she lost it and was crying and rocking back and forth.”
When police arrived, Parnell directed them to Tizon’s apartment, some 15 feet away, where they found Chouaib’s body. But there were no signs of a struggle.
Parnell said Tizon never denied shooting him. “While I was on the phone with 911, Maria said, ‘They should take me,’” said Parnell. “She was very emotional.” The neighbor also noted that Tizon had no injuries.
After seeing the body, Police Officer William Coulter asked Tizon what had happened. He testified that she answered, ‘He messed with my head; he takes my car and never returns it.’”
Explaining a possible motive for the murder, Officer Marta Goodwin also testified, repeating spontaneous statements Tizon had made to her. Said Goodwin: “She said [Chouaib] took her car to see other women and had assaulted her and been violent toward her.” However, no evidence of any maltreatment of Tizon at Chouaib’s hands was presented.
Police found the victim’s body, half in the bathroom and half in the hallway of Tizon’s home. He’d been shot twice, and one bullet was still in him. “The gun found outside Parnell’s apartment was the one that fired the bullets that killed him,” said Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Erin Mellen, during the trial. “On July 8, five weeks earlier, Tizon bought that gun.”
Dr. Shane Chittenden, with the Virginia Medical Examiner’s Office, performed the autopsy on Chouaib and testified that the first bullet entered above the right side of his chest. The second bullet, he said, entered from his back. Chittenden also determined that both bullets were fired from no more than 3 feet away.
The weapon used was a Taurus .38 special, double-action revolver, and firearms expert Gary Arnsten testified that, for Chouaib to be shot twice, Tizon had to fire the gun two, separate times.
When Tizon returned to court for sentencing, Aug 20, a year had passed since the tragedy. But time hadn’t dulled the pain still felt by Chouaib’s friends, and two of them took the stand at the outset of the proceedings.
First was an elderly man named Omar Moufti, who was retired and had taken an interest in helping Chouaib, who had shown kindness to both him and his wife. “I knew Ahmed six years,” said Moufti. “I discussed his college courses with him, and I told him it was better to work for himself than for others, so he and another man started their own gutter-cleaning business.”
On snowy days, said Moufti, Chouaib cleared off Moufti’s and his wife’s cars before they even got up. Crying, he said, “There’s no day goes by that I do not think about how this young man’s life was wasted. I did not have a son of my own and I thought of him as a son.”
Under questioning from Greenspun, Moufti said he’d never met Tizon and that Chouaib never told him about his intimate relationship with her because “he knew that I’d object to it vehemently.”
Another friend, Abdelhamid Ja, knew Chouaib’s family in Morocco for 20 years and said Chouaib “was like my family here. We did everything together. If I was sick, he’d take care of me. I’m missing him all the time.”
Stott then asked Judge Smith to impose the jury’s sentence recommendation — 11 years for murder, plus a mandatory three years for the firearms charge — in its entirety. She said the 11 years is close to the low end of the state sentencing guidelines and “it’s not unreasonable, based on all the evidence before this court. Ahmed Chouaib had a positive impact on his community and his friends, and they are less because he is gone.”
Greenspun said Tizon had just retired, two weeks before the incident. He said the shooting “wasn’t malice, but happened out of a passionate relationship between [the couple].”
Tizon then stood and broke down into tears while apologizing to her family, the court and everyone involved in the case. “I’ve been working all my life and have never had any situation like this,” she said. “I’m very sorry for my actions; please have mercy on me.”
Smith noted that she’d led a good life and had made contributions to society. But, he added, “You felt like you were being wronged by [Chouaib] and you intended to kill him. Your relationship was problematic; you felt abused in it and took action.”
In sentencing Tizon, said the judge, he considered her possible rehabilitation, but he also had to punish her for what she did. “You took a life intentionally, and that’s the worst thing someone can do,” said Smith. “I don’t know that you might not do it again.”
Smith told her that the jurors represented a group of individuals drawn from the community, and “they gave that 11 years thought. I don’t find [that sentence] to be out of line regarding appropriateness and, independently, that’s about what I’d have given you, too.”
He then imposed the whole 14 years, plus three years post-release supervision. “You have a right to appeal,” he told Tizon. “And you are remanded to the custody of the sheriff.”
Atlanta, GA: Convicted antifreeze killer dies in Ga. prison
(AP) – Aug 30, 2010
ATLANTA — A woman who killed her husband and later her boyfriend by poisoning them with antifreeze has died in an Atlanta prison.
Georgia Department of Correction spokeswoman Sharmelle Brooks says 42-year-old Lynn Turner was found unresponsive in her cell Monday morning and could not be revived.
Brooks says she doesn't know how Turner died. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation's medical examiner's office is looking into it.
The former 911 operator was sentenced to life without parole in 2007 after a jury found her guilty in the 2001 killing of her boyfriend, firefighter Randy Thompson.
Turner was already serving a life sentence for the 1995 death of her husband, police officer Glenn Turner. She had maintained her innocence.
ATLANTA — A woman who killed her husband and later her boyfriend by poisoning them with antifreeze has died in an Atlanta prison.
Georgia Department of Correction spokeswoman Sharmelle Brooks says 42-year-old Lynn Turner was found unresponsive in her cell Monday morning and could not be revived.
Brooks says she doesn't know how Turner died. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation's medical examiner's office is looking into it.
The former 911 operator was sentenced to life without parole in 2007 after a jury found her guilty in the 2001 killing of her boyfriend, firefighter Randy Thompson.
Turner was already serving a life sentence for the 1995 death of her husband, police officer Glenn Turner. She had maintained her innocence.
Wilmington Island, GA: Two Recent Domestic Violence Incidents Highlight Need To Seek Help Before Problem Escalates
SAVANNAH, GA --
Two shootings in Savannah in less than two weeks allegedly began as domestic violence. In one the shooting victim died...in the other, the shooting victim is hospitalized in critical condition. How does the problem get to that point and where can victims find help before it does?
On Saturday - Savannah recorded it's first domestic violence homicide of the year. Metro Police say a woman shot and killed her husband during a dispute at their home on Wilmington Island. That incident follows another less than two weeks ago in which a woman shot her husband during a dispute at their home in Windsor Forest. He remains hospitalized in critical condition. Neither woman has been charged. In the earlier case, police identified the husband as the primary aggressor. Cheryl Branch, Director of Savannah’s Safe Shelter says, “In battered wife syndrome, the victim literally doesn't think there's any other way out.” But it doesn't have to get to that point. Help is available...though Branch it's often hard to get those abused to seek it out, “Victims I think for one thing - they tend to minimize their situation - they really do and I think the other thing is - they really think it's gonna get better.”
That's why Safe Shelter works closely with Metro Police and the District Attorney's office to get help to victims before it's too late. A pilot program called a "lethality assessment" is seeing some success according to Branch, “All police officers - when they go to a domestic violence scene, they have to talk to the victim, do this assessment and then they can say to her - based on this lethality assessment - you are in grave danger - please let me call safe shelter for you.” It’s a small window of opportunity to get the victim help when he or she may be more likely to accept it. The D.A.'s office can also use the assessment to move forward with prosecuting a case even without the victim's statement. An example of Safe Shelter, police and the D.A. - all working together to save victims who sometimes don't feel able to save themselves says Branch, “Because they're different you know, you don't have another crime with a victim trying to bail her attacker out of jail, going to see him in the hospital you know - the dynamics of these - they're criminal offenses, but the dynamics are so different.”
The number to call for help 24 hours a day, seven days a week is (912)629-8888. The Safe Shelter will also provide help for men in domestic violence situations. In both these cases - one of the people involved was a soldier. A spokesperson for Ft. Stewart says the military provides safe shelters for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault and their children. They can stay in a designated shelter until it is safe to return home or to another secure location.
Two shootings in Savannah in less than two weeks allegedly began as domestic violence. In one the shooting victim died...in the other, the shooting victim is hospitalized in critical condition. How does the problem get to that point and where can victims find help before it does?
On Saturday - Savannah recorded it's first domestic violence homicide of the year. Metro Police say a woman shot and killed her husband during a dispute at their home on Wilmington Island. That incident follows another less than two weeks ago in which a woman shot her husband during a dispute at their home in Windsor Forest. He remains hospitalized in critical condition. Neither woman has been charged. In the earlier case, police identified the husband as the primary aggressor. Cheryl Branch, Director of Savannah’s Safe Shelter says, “In battered wife syndrome, the victim literally doesn't think there's any other way out.” But it doesn't have to get to that point. Help is available...though Branch it's often hard to get those abused to seek it out, “Victims I think for one thing - they tend to minimize their situation - they really do and I think the other thing is - they really think it's gonna get better.”
That's why Safe Shelter works closely with Metro Police and the District Attorney's office to get help to victims before it's too late. A pilot program called a "lethality assessment" is seeing some success according to Branch, “All police officers - when they go to a domestic violence scene, they have to talk to the victim, do this assessment and then they can say to her - based on this lethality assessment - you are in grave danger - please let me call safe shelter for you.” It’s a small window of opportunity to get the victim help when he or she may be more likely to accept it. The D.A.'s office can also use the assessment to move forward with prosecuting a case even without the victim's statement. An example of Safe Shelter, police and the D.A. - all working together to save victims who sometimes don't feel able to save themselves says Branch, “Because they're different you know, you don't have another crime with a victim trying to bail her attacker out of jail, going to see him in the hospital you know - the dynamics of these - they're criminal offenses, but the dynamics are so different.”
The number to call for help 24 hours a day, seven days a week is (912)629-8888. The Safe Shelter will also provide help for men in domestic violence situations. In both these cases - one of the people involved was a soldier. A spokesperson for Ft. Stewart says the military provides safe shelters for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault and their children. They can stay in a designated shelter until it is safe to return home or to another secure location.
San Francisco, CA: Cops: Eight story plunge was attempted murder-suicide
By: MIKE ALDAX
August 30, 2010
Investigators are classifying the death of a woman who plunged from an eighth-floor apartment in the Tenderloin that was engulfed in flames Sunday as an attempted murder and suicide, police said Monday. (Cindy Chew/The Examiner)
A woman’s gruesome death-plunge from an eighth-floor Tenderloin apartment that was engulfed in flames Sunday is being classified as an attempted murder and suicide, police investigators said Monday.
The woman apparently started the fire before leaping to her demise — landing upon a small street-level tree before striking the pavement — at Trinity Towers Apartments, 888 O’Farrell St., around 5:30 a.m.
Fire crews responding to the apartment blaze found the woman lying on the pavement. Inside the apartment, sitting in the doorway, they found a man in his 30s suffering from burns and smoke inhalation, police said.
He was expected to survive, they said.
Police would not reveal more details about the gruesome death. The department has a policy to not report details on suicides or information exposing victims of domestic violence, Sgt. Troy Dangerfield said.
Initial reports indicated that a mattress might have been the source of the fire, but the cause has not been revealed.
The fire did not affect neighboring units and was contained within 15 minutes.
The Trinity Towers is a modern high-rise with hundreds of studios and one- and two-bedroom apartments.
The identities of the man and woman have not been released.
August 30, 2010
Investigators are classifying the death of a woman who plunged from an eighth-floor apartment in the Tenderloin that was engulfed in flames Sunday as an attempted murder and suicide, police said Monday. (Cindy Chew/The Examiner)
A woman’s gruesome death-plunge from an eighth-floor Tenderloin apartment that was engulfed in flames Sunday is being classified as an attempted murder and suicide, police investigators said Monday.
The woman apparently started the fire before leaping to her demise — landing upon a small street-level tree before striking the pavement — at Trinity Towers Apartments, 888 O’Farrell St., around 5:30 a.m.
Fire crews responding to the apartment blaze found the woman lying on the pavement. Inside the apartment, sitting in the doorway, they found a man in his 30s suffering from burns and smoke inhalation, police said.
He was expected to survive, they said.
Police would not reveal more details about the gruesome death. The department has a policy to not report details on suicides or information exposing victims of domestic violence, Sgt. Troy Dangerfield said.
Initial reports indicated that a mattress might have been the source of the fire, but the cause has not been revealed.
The fire did not affect neighboring units and was contained within 15 minutes.
The Trinity Towers is a modern high-rise with hundreds of studios and one- and two-bedroom apartments.
The identities of the man and woman have not been released.
Austin, TX: Texas MMA Fighter Dead in Apparent Murder-Suicide
by Anthony Pace on Sep 6, 2010 5:26 PM EDT 1 comment
According to the Austin NBC affiliate:
Police are investigating what they're calling a murder-suicide this Labor Day holiday.
Kenneth Bryan Trevino, 26, and his girlfriend - 23-year-old Tiffanie Perry - were found dead Sunday night.
Police were called to the 9900 block of McNeil and 2222 around 11 p.m. Sunday night. Police say they received a call from a family member or friend of Trevino's living outside of Austin who warned them Trevino might be suicidal.
The caller said Trevino was despondent over a recent breakup with his girlfriend, Perry.
When officers arrived at Trevino's home at the Alexan Ribelin Ranch Apartment Complex, they found them dead.
Both bodies had obvious signs of trauma.
Trevino was an MMA Fighter .
According to the Austin NBC affiliate:
Police are investigating what they're calling a murder-suicide this Labor Day holiday.
Kenneth Bryan Trevino, 26, and his girlfriend - 23-year-old Tiffanie Perry - were found dead Sunday night.
Police were called to the 9900 block of McNeil and 2222 around 11 p.m. Sunday night. Police say they received a call from a family member or friend of Trevino's living outside of Austin who warned them Trevino might be suicidal.
The caller said Trevino was despondent over a recent breakup with his girlfriend, Perry.
When officers arrived at Trevino's home at the Alexan Ribelin Ranch Apartment Complex, they found them dead.
Both bodies had obvious signs of trauma.
Trevino was an MMA Fighter .
Bolivia, NC: Police name victims in NC double murder-suicide
BOLIVIA, N.C. — Police have identified the victims in what they say was a double murder-suicide in a coastal North Carolina town.
The StarNews of Wilmington reported Monday that the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office says the Sunday night incident began as a domestic argument.
The shooting took place near the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission’s boat launch in Bolivia.
Police found 52-year-old Dennis Blalock dead in the driver’s seat of a car. They also found 34-year-old Sheryl Hickman Warr in the car.
The third victim, 29-year-old Brandon Warr, was found on the ground outside the vehicle.
Police say they’re still investigating the circumstances of the shooting.
The StarNews of Wilmington reported Monday that the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office says the Sunday night incident began as a domestic argument.
The shooting took place near the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission’s boat launch in Bolivia.
Police found 52-year-old Dennis Blalock dead in the driver’s seat of a car. They also found 34-year-old Sheryl Hickman Warr in the car.
The third victim, 29-year-old Brandon Warr, was found on the ground outside the vehicle.
Police say they’re still investigating the circumstances of the shooting.
Article: The Economic Factor in the Rash of Murder-Suicides
The author examines the economic factor in recent murder-suicides
Published on September 6, 2010
The average number of suicides in a given year in the U.S. is 1,000 to 1,500 according to the Violence Policy Center. Because they have been so rare in the past, the numbers of whole family murder-suicides (familicides) have not been counted and therefore are unknown. Ninety-five percent of all murder-suicides are male-on-female crimes; the majority take place following a threatened break-up by the female wife or partner. According to Jacqueline Campbell who has conducted extensive interviews with the families of victims of domestic homicide, access to guns and male unemployment are key risk factors involved. If suicidal ideation is present, the result likely will be a murder-suicide.
Today we have a rash of murder-suicides, as a google search of this topic instantly reveals. Since the Recession of 2008, the numbers of familicides are unprecedented. Before exploring the economic factor in these and other forms of homicide-suicide, I want to look at domestic violence in general and at how underlying psychological insecurity may predispose certain individuals to react to personal crises in highly destructive ways.
Psychiatrist James Gilligan, author of Violence: Reflections on a Mass Epidemic has studied why some men want to establish absolute control over their wives and partners. "I can only conclude their desire for omnipotence," he writes. "is in direct proportion to their feeling of impotence." Following Gilligan, I argue that batterers' underlying sense of powerlessness, insecurity, and extreme emotional dependence on their partners is the root of the violent outbursts that they inflict upon others.
In murder-suicide cases, the mere threat of a break-up may be enough to trigger a desire to "end it all". This extreme behavior is an example of all-or-nothing thinking such as predominates in the minds of persons who commit suicide following a sense of failure. We can infer this from their decision to destroy themselves and their loved ones when a major crisis occurs.
The Economic Factor
Unemployment rates today are staggering, especially if you consider all the people who have stopped looking and don't count in the statistics. These rates are reflected in the unprecedented numbers of housing foreclosures across the United States. In Michigan and Nevada, states in which the impact of the recession is in strong evidence, newspaper accounts describe multiple cases of murder-suicide. In Las Vegas, for example, August 2010 saw five murder-suicides. Victims' families blamed the killings on financial stress. In the Lansing area of Michigan, three family murder-suicides took place over a 14-month period.
Sociologist Neil Webscale has recently written a book on familicide, From his study of over 100 cases, his conclusion is that depression plus a personal sense of shame and failure plays a pivotal role in taking the male family member over the edge. Employment difficulties are pronounced in the backgrounds of the perpetrators in those cases. Interestingly, around half of the family murder-suicides were carried out by men with no known history of domestic abuse. Typically these men had been successful members of the community who found their lives unraveling. Investigation into their backgrounds showed that these husbands and fathers were often in situations of seemingly insurmountable economic crisis.
One of the most tragic murder-suicides that I describe in Death by Domestic Violence: Preventing the Murders and the Murder-Suicides bears this out. In this case from 2008, a former bank vice president committed suicide by crashing his van after killing his wife and four children with a baseball bat. The perpetrator, Steven Sueppel, was facing trial for embezzlement of over half a million dollars from the bank.
Although this case stood apart in Iowa, many of the family murder-suicides tend to cluster, a factor probably related to contagion. The pattern that we see, therefore, is of a psychologically vulnerable man who is overwhelmed by a sense of personal shame in his failure to provide for his family. Based on his warped and depressed reasoning, he decides they are all better off dead. As economic stress mounts, because we are a nation with a weak system of social supports, we can expect the wave of family murder-suicides to continue.
Published on September 6, 2010
The average number of suicides in a given year in the U.S. is 1,000 to 1,500 according to the Violence Policy Center. Because they have been so rare in the past, the numbers of whole family murder-suicides (familicides) have not been counted and therefore are unknown. Ninety-five percent of all murder-suicides are male-on-female crimes; the majority take place following a threatened break-up by the female wife or partner. According to Jacqueline Campbell who has conducted extensive interviews with the families of victims of domestic homicide, access to guns and male unemployment are key risk factors involved. If suicidal ideation is present, the result likely will be a murder-suicide.
Today we have a rash of murder-suicides, as a google search of this topic instantly reveals. Since the Recession of 2008, the numbers of familicides are unprecedented. Before exploring the economic factor in these and other forms of homicide-suicide, I want to look at domestic violence in general and at how underlying psychological insecurity may predispose certain individuals to react to personal crises in highly destructive ways.
Psychiatrist James Gilligan, author of Violence: Reflections on a Mass Epidemic has studied why some men want to establish absolute control over their wives and partners. "I can only conclude their desire for omnipotence," he writes. "is in direct proportion to their feeling of impotence." Following Gilligan, I argue that batterers' underlying sense of powerlessness, insecurity, and extreme emotional dependence on their partners is the root of the violent outbursts that they inflict upon others.
In murder-suicide cases, the mere threat of a break-up may be enough to trigger a desire to "end it all". This extreme behavior is an example of all-or-nothing thinking such as predominates in the minds of persons who commit suicide following a sense of failure. We can infer this from their decision to destroy themselves and their loved ones when a major crisis occurs.
The Economic Factor
Unemployment rates today are staggering, especially if you consider all the people who have stopped looking and don't count in the statistics. These rates are reflected in the unprecedented numbers of housing foreclosures across the United States. In Michigan and Nevada, states in which the impact of the recession is in strong evidence, newspaper accounts describe multiple cases of murder-suicide. In Las Vegas, for example, August 2010 saw five murder-suicides. Victims' families blamed the killings on financial stress. In the Lansing area of Michigan, three family murder-suicides took place over a 14-month period.
Sociologist Neil Webscale has recently written a book on familicide, From his study of over 100 cases, his conclusion is that depression plus a personal sense of shame and failure plays a pivotal role in taking the male family member over the edge. Employment difficulties are pronounced in the backgrounds of the perpetrators in those cases. Interestingly, around half of the family murder-suicides were carried out by men with no known history of domestic abuse. Typically these men had been successful members of the community who found their lives unraveling. Investigation into their backgrounds showed that these husbands and fathers were often in situations of seemingly insurmountable economic crisis.
One of the most tragic murder-suicides that I describe in Death by Domestic Violence: Preventing the Murders and the Murder-Suicides bears this out. In this case from 2008, a former bank vice president committed suicide by crashing his van after killing his wife and four children with a baseball bat. The perpetrator, Steven Sueppel, was facing trial for embezzlement of over half a million dollars from the bank.
Although this case stood apart in Iowa, many of the family murder-suicides tend to cluster, a factor probably related to contagion. The pattern that we see, therefore, is of a psychologically vulnerable man who is overwhelmed by a sense of personal shame in his failure to provide for his family. Based on his warped and depressed reasoning, he decides they are all better off dead. As economic stress mounts, because we are a nation with a weak system of social supports, we can expect the wave of family murder-suicides to continue.
Charlotte, NC: Man shoots pregnant girlfriend, then kills himself, police say
Posted: Sep 03, 2010 7:00 AM EDT
Updated: Sep 03, 2010 10:58 AM EDT
By Ron Lee
CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department says an east Charlotte man shot his pregnant girlfriend and then turned the gun on himself early Friday morning.
Police officers and the SWAT team was called out to reports of a shooting around 12:21 a.m. along the 600 block of North Wendover Road Friday morning.
Investigators told WBTV the incident started as a domestic dispute and the SWAT team was called out after officers encountered the pregnant shooting victim, with a gunshot wound to the leg.
Officers say the accused shooter, her boyfriend, refused to come out of the apartment, barricading himself into the building. His body was discovered around 2 a.m. with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
No names are being released at this time, and no word on the condition of the woman who was shot.
Updated: Sep 03, 2010 10:58 AM EDT
By Ron Lee
CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV) - The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department says an east Charlotte man shot his pregnant girlfriend and then turned the gun on himself early Friday morning.
Police officers and the SWAT team was called out to reports of a shooting around 12:21 a.m. along the 600 block of North Wendover Road Friday morning.
Investigators told WBTV the incident started as a domestic dispute and the SWAT team was called out after officers encountered the pregnant shooting victim, with a gunshot wound to the leg.
Officers say the accused shooter, her boyfriend, refused to come out of the apartment, barricading himself into the building. His body was discovered around 2 a.m. with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
No names are being released at this time, and no word on the condition of the woman who was shot.
Chicago, IL: Man charged with girlfriend's South Side murder
September 6, 2010
Sun-Times Media Wire
A man found kneeling over his girlfriend's body early Saturday on the South Side has been charged with her murder, police said.
Gerald Rufus is charged with one count of first-degree murder in the shooting death of his girlfriend.
Police said 23-year-old Theresa Russell was discovered shot at 2:32 a.m. Saturday inside an apartment in the same block where Rufus was arrested just hours later.
Russell, of the 7600 block of South May Street, was dead on the scene, the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office said. An autopsy Saturday determined she died of a gunshot wound to the arm and her death was ruled a homicide.
Rufus was picked up after he was seen on top of the victim, who suffered a gunshot wound under the left armpit. He initially told police Russell was shot in front of the building in the 6400 block of South Morgan Street and he had taken the victim upstairs to the kitchen area, a police report said.
The man then changed his story and said the gunmen shot into the second floor apartment from the back door on the porch, the report said.
The man was taken into custody because witnesses gave statements indicating they heard a single shot fired inside the apartment and there was no evidence that a shooting happened in front of the building.
Police later learned Russell was shot dead after arguing with Rufus.
Rufus was scheduled to appear for a bond hearing on Monday, although court information was not immediately available.
Wentworth Area detectives are investigating.
Sun-Times Media Wire
A man found kneeling over his girlfriend's body early Saturday on the South Side has been charged with her murder, police said.
Gerald Rufus is charged with one count of first-degree murder in the shooting death of his girlfriend.
Police said 23-year-old Theresa Russell was discovered shot at 2:32 a.m. Saturday inside an apartment in the same block where Rufus was arrested just hours later.
Russell, of the 7600 block of South May Street, was dead on the scene, the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office said. An autopsy Saturday determined she died of a gunshot wound to the arm and her death was ruled a homicide.
Rufus was picked up after he was seen on top of the victim, who suffered a gunshot wound under the left armpit. He initially told police Russell was shot in front of the building in the 6400 block of South Morgan Street and he had taken the victim upstairs to the kitchen area, a police report said.
The man then changed his story and said the gunmen shot into the second floor apartment from the back door on the porch, the report said.
The man was taken into custody because witnesses gave statements indicating they heard a single shot fired inside the apartment and there was no evidence that a shooting happened in front of the building.
Police later learned Russell was shot dead after arguing with Rufus.
Rufus was scheduled to appear for a bond hearing on Monday, although court information was not immediately available.
Wentworth Area detectives are investigating.
Columbia, MO: Man killed, ex-girlfriend wounded in Columbia shooting
COLUMBIA | Police in Columbia say a 21-year-old man died and his former girlfriend was wounded in a shooting at an apartment building.
Neighbors called 911 shortly after 11 a.m. Monday after hearing shots fired and people yelling inside the woman's apartment.
Police said the woman's current boyfriend apparently fired the fatal shot. That man was cooperating with investigators.
The victim's name was withheld while relatives were notified.
The 22-year-old woman was taken to University Hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg. Police were uncertain who fired the shot that struck the woman.
The apartment is located in a building near Stephens Lake Park.
Neighbors called 911 shortly after 11 a.m. Monday after hearing shots fired and people yelling inside the woman's apartment.
Police said the woman's current boyfriend apparently fired the fatal shot. That man was cooperating with investigators.
The victim's name was withheld while relatives were notified.
The 22-year-old woman was taken to University Hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg. Police were uncertain who fired the shot that struck the woman.
The apartment is located in a building near Stephens Lake Park.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Hattiesburg, MS: Man wanted in connection with girlfriend's death
Posted: Sep 04, 2010 8:42 PM EDT
Updated: Sep 04, 2010 10:16 PM EDT
HATTIESBURG, MS (WLBT)-. A person wanted for the murder of his girlfriend is on the run
Police say Lonnie Eugene Ulmer is wanted for the shooting death of his girlfriend Bobbie Jo-Ann Muir. Authorities found the 31-year-old victim shot in the head in a south Hattiesburg apartment complex.
Muir is a Pennsylvania resident and was last seen with Ulmer. Ulmer was last seen in Hattiesburg driving a 2005 blue Chevy Impala with the tag number JNJ770.
If you have any information please contact Hattiesburg Police at 601-545-4911 or Crime Stoppers at 601-582-7867.
Updated: Sep 04, 2010 10:16 PM EDT
HATTIESBURG, MS (WLBT)-. A person wanted for the murder of his girlfriend is on the run
Police say Lonnie Eugene Ulmer is wanted for the shooting death of his girlfriend Bobbie Jo-Ann Muir. Authorities found the 31-year-old victim shot in the head in a south Hattiesburg apartment complex.
Muir is a Pennsylvania resident and was last seen with Ulmer. Ulmer was last seen in Hattiesburg driving a 2005 blue Chevy Impala with the tag number JNJ770.
If you have any information please contact Hattiesburg Police at 601-545-4911 or Crime Stoppers at 601-582-7867.
Tampa, FL: Tampa man arrested for stabbing to death his girlfriend
Posted: 10:48 AM
Last Updated: 1 hour and 54 minutes ago
By: Vicky Benchimol
TAMPA, Fla. - A Tampa man has been arrested for stabbing to death his girlfriend.
Tampa Police say 52 year-old Kenneth Leroy Shivers stabbed his girlfriend 50 year-old Gina Wanda Smith last night at her home on Chelsea Street.
Family members drove Smith to Tampa General Hospital where she died.
The first officer on scene encountered Smith as he was leaving the home. Shivers was arrested without incident.
Last Updated: 1 hour and 54 minutes ago
By: Vicky Benchimol
TAMPA, Fla. - A Tampa man has been arrested for stabbing to death his girlfriend.
Tampa Police say 52 year-old Kenneth Leroy Shivers stabbed his girlfriend 50 year-old Gina Wanda Smith last night at her home on Chelsea Street.
Family members drove Smith to Tampa General Hospital where she died.
The first officer on scene encountered Smith as he was leaving the home. Shivers was arrested without incident.
Alburquerque, NM: Ex-Boyfriend Charged in Woman's Death
Ex-Boyfriend Charged in Woman's Death
By Jeff Proctor
Journal Staff Writer
Homicide suspect Dorall Smith had a history of threats and violence against his ex-girlfriend, 19-year-old Dawn Monique Vigil, whose bloody body was discovered Thursday morning.
In May, Smith, 32, allegedly hit Vigil with a telephone, then punched her in the face, court records state. He fled the residence before police arrived, and a warrant was later issued for his arrest after he failed to appear in court.
In the days after that incident, Vigil told her mother that Smith had threatened her, saying "if she was ever with anyone else, he would kill her," court records state.
According to police, Smith followed through on his threat.
He saw Vigil driving down Central Avenue with another man Wednesday evening, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court. Smith screamed several obscenities at his former girlfriend.
Around 4:30 a.m. Thursday, a newspaper deliveryman discovered Vigil's body, covered in blood, lying on a sidewalk at the northwest corner of Chico and Chelwood Park NE, police said.
Authorities believe Vigil was likely killed at the site. She had been either beaten or stabbed to death, police say. The Office of the Medical Investigator will determine cause of death.
Smith was arrested around 10 p.m. Thursday and charged with murder, the complaint states. He told police that he had been at a friend's house at the time of the killing, but that contradicted statements made by the friend.
Smith also told detectives that he had seen Vigil on Central on Wednesday and that she had been "very friendly with him and wanted to get together," the complaint states.
That contradicted statements police obtained from the man Vigil had been with Wednesday, who said she was "shaking in fear" during the encounter, according to the complaint.
Finally, Smith explained to police that he had gotten the large cut on his hand from a patio door, the complaint reads. But near where Vigil's body was found, "a blood trail was located near the body and in the home, blood that appeared likely to have resulted from a combination of the victim and the offender."
Smith was booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center on an open count of murder. He remained at the West Side jail on a no bond hold late Friday.
When police arrived at Vigil's residence May 5, she told officers that Smith had just fled out the back door, according to a separate criminal complaint.
In that case, Smith was charged with misdemeanor domestic violence and battery against a household member.
APD spokesman Rob Gibbs said the decision to charge someone with felony or misdemeanor domestic violence depends on whether the victim was in fear for his or her life, whether a weapon was used, the extent of the victim's injuries and other factors.
And, in misdemeanor cases, APD policy says officers are to issue a criminal summons if a domestic violence suspect isn't taken into custody on the responding officer's shift.
That's what happened in the May incident involving Smith and Vigil: A summons was issued, and a judge issued a warrant for Smith's arrest after he failed to appear in court May 25.
It's unclear whether Smith was on a list of suspects ordered arrested during a warrant roundup this summer.
By Jeff Proctor
Journal Staff Writer
Homicide suspect Dorall Smith had a history of threats and violence against his ex-girlfriend, 19-year-old Dawn Monique Vigil, whose bloody body was discovered Thursday morning.
In May, Smith, 32, allegedly hit Vigil with a telephone, then punched her in the face, court records state. He fled the residence before police arrived, and a warrant was later issued for his arrest after he failed to appear in court.
In the days after that incident, Vigil told her mother that Smith had threatened her, saying "if she was ever with anyone else, he would kill her," court records state.
According to police, Smith followed through on his threat.
He saw Vigil driving down Central Avenue with another man Wednesday evening, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court. Smith screamed several obscenities at his former girlfriend.
Around 4:30 a.m. Thursday, a newspaper deliveryman discovered Vigil's body, covered in blood, lying on a sidewalk at the northwest corner of Chico and Chelwood Park NE, police said.
Authorities believe Vigil was likely killed at the site. She had been either beaten or stabbed to death, police say. The Office of the Medical Investigator will determine cause of death.
Smith was arrested around 10 p.m. Thursday and charged with murder, the complaint states. He told police that he had been at a friend's house at the time of the killing, but that contradicted statements made by the friend.
Smith also told detectives that he had seen Vigil on Central on Wednesday and that she had been "very friendly with him and wanted to get together," the complaint states.
That contradicted statements police obtained from the man Vigil had been with Wednesday, who said she was "shaking in fear" during the encounter, according to the complaint.
Finally, Smith explained to police that he had gotten the large cut on his hand from a patio door, the complaint reads. But near where Vigil's body was found, "a blood trail was located near the body and in the home, blood that appeared likely to have resulted from a combination of the victim and the offender."
Smith was booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center on an open count of murder. He remained at the West Side jail on a no bond hold late Friday.
When police arrived at Vigil's residence May 5, she told officers that Smith had just fled out the back door, according to a separate criminal complaint.
In that case, Smith was charged with misdemeanor domestic violence and battery against a household member.
APD spokesman Rob Gibbs said the decision to charge someone with felony or misdemeanor domestic violence depends on whether the victim was in fear for his or her life, whether a weapon was used, the extent of the victim's injuries and other factors.
And, in misdemeanor cases, APD policy says officers are to issue a criminal summons if a domestic violence suspect isn't taken into custody on the responding officer's shift.
That's what happened in the May incident involving Smith and Vigil: A summons was issued, and a judge issued a warrant for Smith's arrest after he failed to appear in court May 25.
It's unclear whether Smith was on a list of suspects ordered arrested during a warrant roundup this summer.
Wellington, FL: Wellington murder-suicide leaves children orphaned
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SHARETHIS
Posted: 09/04/2010
Last Updated: 3 hours and 42 minutes ago
By: Vince Norman
WELLINGTON, Fla. - Friday, shortly after 11:00 p.m., shots broke the silence of the evening air on the 1100 block of Summerwood Circle.
"I heard screaming," said James Duvall, a neighbor who lives just across the street from the tragic scene.
"I came to the front window and looked out and saw the house over there lit up with headlights," said Duvall.
According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's office, Jose Ferreira, shot his ex-wife Paula Beltre, before shooting himself, all while their two youngest children were inside their Wellington home. "I have an eleven year old son too, and those kids lost both their parents. It kind of hits home when you have kids that age," said Duvall.
Not knowing if a killer was still on the loose, Duvall went to check on Beltre's two young children, the 10-year-old boy was on the phone with a 9-1-1 operator. "He seemed pretty brave, you know he was direct and not hysterical when he was talking on the phone," said Duvall.
The eldest son arrived just a few hours after the incident. "The whole thing was a little bit surreal. I think he kind of went into a mode of okay, what do I have to do, calling family members and so forth. He was pretty brave, pretty stoic, not overemotional at all," said Duvall.
The cause of the apparent murder suicide is still under investigation. Beltre's two young children are no longer in DCF's custody, they are staying with an aunt.
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SHARETHIS
Posted: 09/04/2010
Last Updated: 3 hours and 42 minutes ago
By: Vince Norman
WELLINGTON, Fla. - Friday, shortly after 11:00 p.m., shots broke the silence of the evening air on the 1100 block of Summerwood Circle.
"I heard screaming," said James Duvall, a neighbor who lives just across the street from the tragic scene.
"I came to the front window and looked out and saw the house over there lit up with headlights," said Duvall.
According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's office, Jose Ferreira, shot his ex-wife Paula Beltre, before shooting himself, all while their two youngest children were inside their Wellington home. "I have an eleven year old son too, and those kids lost both their parents. It kind of hits home when you have kids that age," said Duvall.
Not knowing if a killer was still on the loose, Duvall went to check on Beltre's two young children, the 10-year-old boy was on the phone with a 9-1-1 operator. "He seemed pretty brave, you know he was direct and not hysterical when he was talking on the phone," said Duvall.
The eldest son arrived just a few hours after the incident. "The whole thing was a little bit surreal. I think he kind of went into a mode of okay, what do I have to do, calling family members and so forth. He was pretty brave, pretty stoic, not overemotional at all," said Duvall.
The cause of the apparent murder suicide is still under investigation. Beltre's two young children are no longer in DCF's custody, they are staying with an aunt.
Texas City, TX: Texas City native on trial in girlfriend’s death
By T.J. Aulds
The Daily News
Published September 5, 2010
TEXAS CITY — Christopher Allgood, accused of killing a Texas City woman and suspected in the deaths of her young daughter and a friend in a brutal 2009 triple shooting in San Antonio, is set to go to trial next week, Bexar County court officials said.
Allgood, also a Texas City native, is charged with killing his girlfriend, Courtney Gass, and with illegally discharging a firearm.
Bexar County prosecutors have not sought charges in the shooting deaths of Gass’ daughter, Anika, 2, or Kevin Bones, 35, who was visiting Gass and Allgood in San Antonio.
Allgood remained in the Bexar County Jail on $205,000 bond and is scheduled to be in court Sept. 13.
Bones’ mother said she was outraged that no additional charges had been filed in the 14 months since the shootings in an apartment Allgood and Gass shared.
“It tells me the San Antonio Police Department and the (Bexar County District Attorney’s Office) are incompetent,” Pat Bones said.
Gass’ father, Dale Gass, said he heard from investigators about two months ago.
“The last they told me was they would come down here and do some investigation here,” Gass said. “I’ve never heard if they came here or not. They did say they planned to send folks down. I’m still waiting to hear back.”
The Texas City Police Department never was informed of any visits from out-of-town investigators, which would have been routine, Chief Robert Burby said.
Allgood told a San Antonio TV station he shot Gass after she killed their child and Bones. At the time, police said they did not have evidence to support that claim and were waiting for forensic tests to help determine who was responsible for the other shootings.
“We have a situation where there isn’t basically physical evidence connecting him to the shooting of the other two individuals,” Christopher DiMartino, the lead prosecutor on the case, said.
“It’s not a question of believing Courtney Gass did the shooting. It’s just having sufficient evidence to prove the case against him.”
DiMartino did not indicate what forensic tests revealed but said the tests were done. Also missing from the evidence is eyewitness testimony or a confession.
“We anticipate that he’s not going to accept accountability or responsibility for shooting the other two,” DiMartino said. “It’s not to say that the police department has given up.”
San Antonio police did not return phone calls or e-mails last week. Calls to Allgood’s defense attorney also were not returned.
Bones said authorities had not provided her with updates about the investigation since the initial weeks after the July 5, 2009, shootings. She was unaware a trial date had been set until contact by The Daily News.
DiMartino said he anticipated the trial date would be reset because the court’s docket likely had older cases that would take priority. He hoped to get to the case as quickly as possible.
When there is a trial, Bones said she plans to be there, even if Allgood is not charged with her son’s slaying.
Gass said he hasn’t given up that Allgood eventually will stand trial for killing his grandchild.
“I haven’t given up on that yet,” he said. “I will wait and see and depend on justice to be done.”
The Daily News
Published September 5, 2010
TEXAS CITY — Christopher Allgood, accused of killing a Texas City woman and suspected in the deaths of her young daughter and a friend in a brutal 2009 triple shooting in San Antonio, is set to go to trial next week, Bexar County court officials said.
Allgood, also a Texas City native, is charged with killing his girlfriend, Courtney Gass, and with illegally discharging a firearm.
Bexar County prosecutors have not sought charges in the shooting deaths of Gass’ daughter, Anika, 2, or Kevin Bones, 35, who was visiting Gass and Allgood in San Antonio.
Allgood remained in the Bexar County Jail on $205,000 bond and is scheduled to be in court Sept. 13.
Bones’ mother said she was outraged that no additional charges had been filed in the 14 months since the shootings in an apartment Allgood and Gass shared.
“It tells me the San Antonio Police Department and the (Bexar County District Attorney’s Office) are incompetent,” Pat Bones said.
Gass’ father, Dale Gass, said he heard from investigators about two months ago.
“The last they told me was they would come down here and do some investigation here,” Gass said. “I’ve never heard if they came here or not. They did say they planned to send folks down. I’m still waiting to hear back.”
The Texas City Police Department never was informed of any visits from out-of-town investigators, which would have been routine, Chief Robert Burby said.
Allgood told a San Antonio TV station he shot Gass after she killed their child and Bones. At the time, police said they did not have evidence to support that claim and were waiting for forensic tests to help determine who was responsible for the other shootings.
“We have a situation where there isn’t basically physical evidence connecting him to the shooting of the other two individuals,” Christopher DiMartino, the lead prosecutor on the case, said.
“It’s not a question of believing Courtney Gass did the shooting. It’s just having sufficient evidence to prove the case against him.”
DiMartino did not indicate what forensic tests revealed but said the tests were done. Also missing from the evidence is eyewitness testimony or a confession.
“We anticipate that he’s not going to accept accountability or responsibility for shooting the other two,” DiMartino said. “It’s not to say that the police department has given up.”
San Antonio police did not return phone calls or e-mails last week. Calls to Allgood’s defense attorney also were not returned.
Bones said authorities had not provided her with updates about the investigation since the initial weeks after the July 5, 2009, shootings. She was unaware a trial date had been set until contact by The Daily News.
DiMartino said he anticipated the trial date would be reset because the court’s docket likely had older cases that would take priority. He hoped to get to the case as quickly as possible.
When there is a trial, Bones said she plans to be there, even if Allgood is not charged with her son’s slaying.
Gass said he hasn’t given up that Allgood eventually will stand trial for killing his grandchild.
“I haven’t given up on that yet,” he said. “I will wait and see and depend on justice to be done.”
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Cape Coral, FL: Boyfriend, 18, faces charge in shooting death of girl, 15
Tells Cape Coral police it was an accident
BY EVANGELIA GANOSELLIS, EGANOSELLIS@NEWS-PRESS.COM & MAE YOUSIF-BASHI, MBASHI@NEWS-PRESS.COM • SEPTEMBER 4, 2010
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8:44 A.M. UPDATE — The boyfriend of a 15-year-old girl shot to death inside his Cape Coral home Friday in what he said was an accident has been charged with manslaughter, police said.
Dylan Wisniewski, 18, is accused of manslaughter with a firearm, a second-degree felony, after firing a gun he said he didn’t realize was loaded, killing his girlfriend, 15-year-old Ashlee Swazey, also of Cape Coral, police said.
Wisniewski and Swazey, a student at Ida Baker High School, were in a bedroom at Wisniewski’s home, according to Cape police spokeswoman Capt. Lisa Barnes.
Wisniewski told police he took out the .22-caliber rifle and pulled the trigger, unaware the gun was loaded, Barnes said.
One shot struck Swazey in the head and killed her, according to Barnes. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Wisniewski was transported to Lee County Jail on Friday night. The second-degree manslaughter charge carries a maximum 15-year prison sentence.
Several other people were inside the home at Southeast Sixth Lane when the shooting occurred, Barnes said.
According to Lee property records, the house belongs to Janel and Stanley Wisniewski.
Cullen Lowe, 74, a neighbor of the family who said he knows them fairly well, said Wisniewski had plans to go fishing with his friends Friday afternoon.
“I didn’t hear anything,” Lowe said of the shooting. “I just saw the police cars going by.”
He described the family as quiet, nice people.
“They always come by and say ‘Hi,’ check on me to see if I need anything,” Lowe said.
Police received a 911 call from the residence, and when officers and EMS arrived, Swazey was already dead.
The other people in the house were interviewed by detectives at the police station.
The Wisniewski family couldn’t be reached Friday for comment. No working phone number could be found for Swazey’s family.
Ida Baker Principal Melissa Robery said the school district has a crisis team to offer support to students who need it.
A reporter tried to interview students and faculty at Ida Baker’s home football game Friday night, but was asked to leave by Lee schools Superintendent James Browder.
BY EVANGELIA GANOSELLIS, EGANOSELLIS@NEWS-PRESS.COM & MAE YOUSIF-BASHI, MBASHI@NEWS-PRESS.COM • SEPTEMBER 4, 2010
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8:44 A.M. UPDATE — The boyfriend of a 15-year-old girl shot to death inside his Cape Coral home Friday in what he said was an accident has been charged with manslaughter, police said.
Dylan Wisniewski, 18, is accused of manslaughter with a firearm, a second-degree felony, after firing a gun he said he didn’t realize was loaded, killing his girlfriend, 15-year-old Ashlee Swazey, also of Cape Coral, police said.
Wisniewski and Swazey, a student at Ida Baker High School, were in a bedroom at Wisniewski’s home, according to Cape police spokeswoman Capt. Lisa Barnes.
Wisniewski told police he took out the .22-caliber rifle and pulled the trigger, unaware the gun was loaded, Barnes said.
One shot struck Swazey in the head and killed her, according to Barnes. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
Wisniewski was transported to Lee County Jail on Friday night. The second-degree manslaughter charge carries a maximum 15-year prison sentence.
Several other people were inside the home at Southeast Sixth Lane when the shooting occurred, Barnes said.
According to Lee property records, the house belongs to Janel and Stanley Wisniewski.
Cullen Lowe, 74, a neighbor of the family who said he knows them fairly well, said Wisniewski had plans to go fishing with his friends Friday afternoon.
“I didn’t hear anything,” Lowe said of the shooting. “I just saw the police cars going by.”
He described the family as quiet, nice people.
“They always come by and say ‘Hi,’ check on me to see if I need anything,” Lowe said.
Police received a 911 call from the residence, and when officers and EMS arrived, Swazey was already dead.
The other people in the house were interviewed by detectives at the police station.
The Wisniewski family couldn’t be reached Friday for comment. No working phone number could be found for Swazey’s family.
Ida Baker Principal Melissa Robery said the school district has a crisis team to offer support to students who need it.
A reporter tried to interview students and faculty at Ida Baker’s home football game Friday night, but was asked to leave by Lee schools Superintendent James Browder.
Anderson County, SC: Man Charged In Wife's Boyfriend's Death
Jeffrey Turner Accused In Danny Gambrell’s Death
POSTED: 3:20 pm EDT September 3, 2010
UPDATED: 12:40 am EDT September 4, 2010
ANDERSON COUNTY, S.C. -- An Anderson County man who is accused of hitting his wife’s new boyfriend with his truck and killing him nearly a week ago was charged Friday.
Jeffery Wade Turner, 47, is charged with hit-and-run in an accident causing death. Turner turned himself in to the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office Friday afternoon.
During a video bond hearing Friday, Turner told the judge, "I just want this thing to be worked out by the letter of the law."
WYFF News 4’s Mandy Gaither asked why it took so long to charge Turner.
Chad McBride, with the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office said, “There was several witnesses that were there at the scene Saturday night and we just wanted to make sure we have touched base with all witnesses and talked to those to just be extremely thorough in our investigation."
Coroner Greg Shore said 51-year-old Danny Rufus Gambrell died of traumatic injuries after he was run over in the parking lot of a Spinx Gas station on Highway 76 last Saturday night.
Gambrell was airlifted to Greenville Memorial Hospital where he died.
Shore said, "His injuries were very traumatic. Looks like the vehicle actually rolled over and injured his chest and abdomen. And he died from those injuries. He basically bled to death.”
Jeffrey Turner
Sources tell News 4 Turner left the Twisted Spoke and got into his truck and that Gambrell followed. The crash happened shortly after as Turner was leaving the parking lot of the Spinx.
Susan Turner is Gambrell's girlfriend and Turner's estranged wife. She said she saw the crash Saturday and she believes it was no accident.
"As I opened the door, that's what I saw was a Dodge plow [Gambrell] down," said Susan. "It was just a split second thing that happened and [Gambrell] was on the ground and I sat with him and put his head kind of between my legs and was loving him and wiping the blood."
Susan said she believes investigators should have charged Turner with murder.
"I'm very disappointed. I requested no bond be set because I'm afraid for my life. My son's life, [Turner] has threatened his life and you know the man just murdered somebody," said Susan. "I've never felt any hurt like this before. Sadness and disgust at the same time."
A judge granted Turner a $50,000 surety bond.
If convicted, a judge said Turner could face up to 25 years in prison.
POSTED: 3:20 pm EDT September 3, 2010
UPDATED: 12:40 am EDT September 4, 2010
ANDERSON COUNTY, S.C. -- An Anderson County man who is accused of hitting his wife’s new boyfriend with his truck and killing him nearly a week ago was charged Friday.
Jeffery Wade Turner, 47, is charged with hit-and-run in an accident causing death. Turner turned himself in to the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office Friday afternoon.
During a video bond hearing Friday, Turner told the judge, "I just want this thing to be worked out by the letter of the law."
WYFF News 4’s Mandy Gaither asked why it took so long to charge Turner.
Chad McBride, with the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office said, “There was several witnesses that were there at the scene Saturday night and we just wanted to make sure we have touched base with all witnesses and talked to those to just be extremely thorough in our investigation."
Coroner Greg Shore said 51-year-old Danny Rufus Gambrell died of traumatic injuries after he was run over in the parking lot of a Spinx Gas station on Highway 76 last Saturday night.
Gambrell was airlifted to Greenville Memorial Hospital where he died.
Shore said, "His injuries were very traumatic. Looks like the vehicle actually rolled over and injured his chest and abdomen. And he died from those injuries. He basically bled to death.”
Jeffrey Turner
Sources tell News 4 Turner left the Twisted Spoke and got into his truck and that Gambrell followed. The crash happened shortly after as Turner was leaving the parking lot of the Spinx.
Susan Turner is Gambrell's girlfriend and Turner's estranged wife. She said she saw the crash Saturday and she believes it was no accident.
"As I opened the door, that's what I saw was a Dodge plow [Gambrell] down," said Susan. "It was just a split second thing that happened and [Gambrell] was on the ground and I sat with him and put his head kind of between my legs and was loving him and wiping the blood."
Susan said she believes investigators should have charged Turner with murder.
"I'm very disappointed. I requested no bond be set because I'm afraid for my life. My son's life, [Turner] has threatened his life and you know the man just murdered somebody," said Susan. "I've never felt any hurt like this before. Sadness and disgust at the same time."
A judge granted Turner a $50,000 surety bond.
If convicted, a judge said Turner could face up to 25 years in prison.
Chicago, IL: Man blames dream on wife's murder
Man blames dream on wife's murder
Published: Sept. 4, 2010 at 12:49 PM
CHICAGO, Sept. 4 (UPI) -- A former Chicago high school basketball star convicted of murdering his wife says he killed her after dreaming she was having sex with four of his old friends.
Kareem Cobbins, 36, offered the theory at a sentencing hearing Friday, The Chicago Tribune said.
The Joliet man was convicted earlier this year of stabbing his wife, Tonya, to death in 2005 while she lay sleeping next to their 3-month-old son.
Prosecutors said Cobbins planned the murder.
"He felt he couldn't live up to the picture everyone had of them as a perfect couple," Assistant State's Attorney Christopher Regis said. He said Cobbins showed no remorse in the killing, and did so for a "selfish" reason.
Addressing the court, Cobbins apologized for the killing and blamed his actions on a mental illness.
"I'm not going to stop trying to prove that something was wrong with me," Cobbins said. He said he had a blackout the night before the killing and "woke up from a dream where Tanya was in a sexual act with four guys I grew up with."
Cobbins' 5-year-old son witnessed the murder and is in therapy, the newspaper said.
The victim's family said they would not comment until the sentence is given on Sept. 28.
Published: Sept. 4, 2010 at 12:49 PM
CHICAGO, Sept. 4 (UPI) -- A former Chicago high school basketball star convicted of murdering his wife says he killed her after dreaming she was having sex with four of his old friends.
Kareem Cobbins, 36, offered the theory at a sentencing hearing Friday, The Chicago Tribune said.
The Joliet man was convicted earlier this year of stabbing his wife, Tonya, to death in 2005 while she lay sleeping next to their 3-month-old son.
Prosecutors said Cobbins planned the murder.
"He felt he couldn't live up to the picture everyone had of them as a perfect couple," Assistant State's Attorney Christopher Regis said. He said Cobbins showed no remorse in the killing, and did so for a "selfish" reason.
Addressing the court, Cobbins apologized for the killing and blamed his actions on a mental illness.
"I'm not going to stop trying to prove that something was wrong with me," Cobbins said. He said he had a blackout the night before the killing and "woke up from a dream where Tanya was in a sexual act with four guys I grew up with."
Cobbins' 5-year-old son witnessed the murder and is in therapy, the newspaper said.
The victim's family said they would not comment until the sentence is given on Sept. 28.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Glendale, CA: Man was sane when he repeatedly stabbed girlfriend to death, jury rules
September 3, 2010 | 7:53 am
A jury on Thursday determined that a 48-year-old Glendale man was sane when he fatally stabbed his girlfriend multiple times on her kitchen floor more than two years ago.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Michael Carter requested that each juror be polled inside the Burbank courthouse on their decision, and all agreed that Soo Duk Kim was sane when he killed 52-year-old Susan Kim.
Soo Duk Kim, who wore a suit in court, remained motionless as the ruling was read. Susan Kim's daughter, Jane Moon, was emotional during the hearing and was not immediately available for comment outside the courtroom.
"I think it was a fair outcome," Los Angeles County Deputy Dist. Atty. Carolina Lugo said. "I am hoping Ms. [Jane] Moon gets some closure."
Family members of Soo Duk Kim declined to comment on the ruling. Calls made to his attorney, James Bisnow, were not returned.
But in court, Bisnow told Carter that he may be filing a motion for a new trial.
Susan Kim was found dead from multiple wounds to her upper torso in her Raymond Avenue home in 2007. Immediately after her death, Soo Duk Kim fled and hid in a Koreatown motel, where police arrested him.
During the trial, Soo Duk Kim's attorney, James Bisnow, told jurors that his client had a hallucination, which was the result of being a "schizoaffective disorder bipolar-type," before killing Susan Kim.
The same jury on Monday found him guilty of second-degree murder.
A jury on Thursday determined that a 48-year-old Glendale man was sane when he fatally stabbed his girlfriend multiple times on her kitchen floor more than two years ago.
Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Michael Carter requested that each juror be polled inside the Burbank courthouse on their decision, and all agreed that Soo Duk Kim was sane when he killed 52-year-old Susan Kim.
Soo Duk Kim, who wore a suit in court, remained motionless as the ruling was read. Susan Kim's daughter, Jane Moon, was emotional during the hearing and was not immediately available for comment outside the courtroom.
"I think it was a fair outcome," Los Angeles County Deputy Dist. Atty. Carolina Lugo said. "I am hoping Ms. [Jane] Moon gets some closure."
Family members of Soo Duk Kim declined to comment on the ruling. Calls made to his attorney, James Bisnow, were not returned.
But in court, Bisnow told Carter that he may be filing a motion for a new trial.
Susan Kim was found dead from multiple wounds to her upper torso in her Raymond Avenue home in 2007. Immediately after her death, Soo Duk Kim fled and hid in a Koreatown motel, where police arrested him.
During the trial, Soo Duk Kim's attorney, James Bisnow, told jurors that his client had a hallucination, which was the result of being a "schizoaffective disorder bipolar-type," before killing Susan Kim.
The same jury on Monday found him guilty of second-degree murder.
Levittown, PA: Levittown man set fire that killed him, girlfriend says
By Sam Wood
Inquirer Staff Writer
A Levittown man who apparently doused his house with gasoline and died in the fire was identified by authorities on Tuesday as Dominic Morabito.
Firefighters found Morabito's body Monday afternoon behind his charred two-story home on Red Maple Lane in Bristol Township.
Authorities said Morabito had argued with his girlfriend and ordered her to leave the house.
When she returned to retrieve her purse, she saw him "pouring some type of fluid on the floor," said Bucks County Deputy District Attorney Marc Furber.
An autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday morning, said Coroner Joseph Campbell.
Inquirer Staff Writer
A Levittown man who apparently doused his house with gasoline and died in the fire was identified by authorities on Tuesday as Dominic Morabito.
Firefighters found Morabito's body Monday afternoon behind his charred two-story home on Red Maple Lane in Bristol Township.
Authorities said Morabito had argued with his girlfriend and ordered her to leave the house.
When she returned to retrieve her purse, she saw him "pouring some type of fluid on the floor," said Bucks County Deputy District Attorney Marc Furber.
An autopsy was scheduled for Wednesday morning, said Coroner Joseph Campbell.
Martins Ferry, OH: Police: Man Who Killed Wife, Self Had Criminal Charges Pending
MARTINS FERRY, Ohio --
A Martins Ferry man who police said killed his wife and himself had two criminal cases pending against him, including weapons charges, officials said.
Police said Randy Shrodes shot and killed his wife, Amy, before shooting and killing himself Thursday morning.
According to court records, Shrodes had two pending criminal cases against him. In the first case, he pleaded not guilty to failure to control a vehicle and operating a vehicle under the influence. His original court date was set for Aug. 31, but was continued until Sept. 2, the day of the murder-suicide.
In the second case, Shrodes was charged with using a weapon while intoxicated and improperly handling a firearm in a motor vehicle. He entered not-guilty pleas to both charges and was facing an $85 fine.
According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Shrodes crashed his motorcycle into a median around 10:30 p.m. on Aug. 22 on state Route 7 near Shadyside. Investigators said Shrodes and another person on the bike were not seriously injured. Shrodes refused to take an alcohol test, so troopers cited him with OVI.
Troopers said Shrodes had a .38 caliber gun on him at the time, which led to the weapons violations charges. Though Shrodes had a carry permit, he was not permitted by law to carry the gun while drinking alcohol.
Shrodes had to surrender his gun to the OSHP the night of the crash, but investigators said he apparently had a shotgun at home, the one used in the murder-suicide. Police also said they found several other guns locked in a case inside the home after the murder-suicide.
The morning of the murder-suicide, Martins Ferry police said they did not know about the weapons charges Shrodes was facing.
The couple, who were both in their 50s, had two children and were grandparents. Randy Shrodes is the son of ex-police chief and former Mayor Lloyd "Bud" Shrodes, who passed away last month.
Randy Shrodes was a former city employee but was recently unemployed. His son, Jeremy, said his father had been going through a rough time but nobody saw this coming.
Neighbors called Martins Ferry police at 10:20 a.m. when they heard two gunshots. When police arrived at the home, the couple was dead, they said.
Police said they had never responded to a domestic incident at the couple's 1411 N. Ninth St. home.
Stay with NEWS9, WTOV9.com and WTOV9.com Mobile for continuing coverage.
A Martins Ferry man who police said killed his wife and himself had two criminal cases pending against him, including weapons charges, officials said.
Police said Randy Shrodes shot and killed his wife, Amy, before shooting and killing himself Thursday morning.
According to court records, Shrodes had two pending criminal cases against him. In the first case, he pleaded not guilty to failure to control a vehicle and operating a vehicle under the influence. His original court date was set for Aug. 31, but was continued until Sept. 2, the day of the murder-suicide.
In the second case, Shrodes was charged with using a weapon while intoxicated and improperly handling a firearm in a motor vehicle. He entered not-guilty pleas to both charges and was facing an $85 fine.
According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, Shrodes crashed his motorcycle into a median around 10:30 p.m. on Aug. 22 on state Route 7 near Shadyside. Investigators said Shrodes and another person on the bike were not seriously injured. Shrodes refused to take an alcohol test, so troopers cited him with OVI.
Troopers said Shrodes had a .38 caliber gun on him at the time, which led to the weapons violations charges. Though Shrodes had a carry permit, he was not permitted by law to carry the gun while drinking alcohol.
Shrodes had to surrender his gun to the OSHP the night of the crash, but investigators said he apparently had a shotgun at home, the one used in the murder-suicide. Police also said they found several other guns locked in a case inside the home after the murder-suicide.
The morning of the murder-suicide, Martins Ferry police said they did not know about the weapons charges Shrodes was facing.
The couple, who were both in their 50s, had two children and were grandparents. Randy Shrodes is the son of ex-police chief and former Mayor Lloyd "Bud" Shrodes, who passed away last month.
Randy Shrodes was a former city employee but was recently unemployed. His son, Jeremy, said his father had been going through a rough time but nobody saw this coming.
Neighbors called Martins Ferry police at 10:20 a.m. when they heard two gunshots. When police arrived at the home, the couple was dead, they said.
Police said they had never responded to a domestic incident at the couple's 1411 N. Ninth St. home.
Stay with NEWS9, WTOV9.com and WTOV9.com Mobile for continuing coverage.
Caldwell, ID: American kills Filipino wife, claims self-defense
By Ted Regencia, ABS-CBN North America News Bureau
Posted at 09/01/2010 12:46 PM | Updated as of 09/02/2010 2:38 PM
CADWELL, Idaho - A Filipino woman with family ties in Chicago was shot and killed Sunday evening in Caldwell, following a reported dispute with her estranged husband.
Caldwell is approximately 45 minutes west of Idaho’s state capitol of Boise.
Chris Allen Stone has been charged with second degree murder after allegedly shooting Florence Madriñan-Stone twice in the head, according to a statement by Canyon County Prosecuting Attorney John T. Bujak.
On Sunday evening, Sheriff deputies reportedly responded to a call about a shooting incident.
When police arrived, they saw Madriñan-Stone “slumped in the back of a mini-van in the driveway” of the residence.
Sheriff’s Captain Dana Maxfield described the death to Idaho news outlets as “a domestic situation that’s gone horribly wrong.”
Following his arrest, Stone reportedly gave conflicting information as to the circumstances leading to the shooting.
While being treated at a local hospital, investigators said Stone claimed “self defense”.
He said the victim stabbed him first in the stomach. That’s when he pulled out his pistol and allegedly fired 2 shots into the back of her neck.
Later, when police pointed out discrepancies in his story, police said Stone changed his statement. Stone then told police that his wife told him that she only married him for a green card. He said the statement “set him off” and he pulled out his gun.
The prosecutor told reporters: “Self defense is something that a judge or a jury is going have to take a look at. Because we’re talking about bullets shot to the back of the head; it’s difficult for me to claim self defense on those facts.”
Stone has been charged with second degree murder. If convicted, he could face a mandatory minimum 25 years, up to life in the Idaho State Penitentiary, the Idaho Press Tribune said.
Stone is in police custody. His bond is set at $1 million.
According to a cousin and friend from Chicago, Madriñan-Stone had been living separately with her husband. They said the couple was in the middle of a divorce. They had been married for more than 10 years and have 2 children.
A native of Zamboanga del Norte, Madriñan-Stone finished her secondary education at the Saint Vincent’s High School in Dipolog City in 1994. Balitang America
Posted at 09/01/2010 12:46 PM | Updated as of 09/02/2010 2:38 PM
CADWELL, Idaho - A Filipino woman with family ties in Chicago was shot and killed Sunday evening in Caldwell, following a reported dispute with her estranged husband.
Caldwell is approximately 45 minutes west of Idaho’s state capitol of Boise.
Chris Allen Stone has been charged with second degree murder after allegedly shooting Florence Madriñan-Stone twice in the head, according to a statement by Canyon County Prosecuting Attorney John T. Bujak.
On Sunday evening, Sheriff deputies reportedly responded to a call about a shooting incident.
When police arrived, they saw Madriñan-Stone “slumped in the back of a mini-van in the driveway” of the residence.
Sheriff’s Captain Dana Maxfield described the death to Idaho news outlets as “a domestic situation that’s gone horribly wrong.”
Following his arrest, Stone reportedly gave conflicting information as to the circumstances leading to the shooting.
While being treated at a local hospital, investigators said Stone claimed “self defense”.
He said the victim stabbed him first in the stomach. That’s when he pulled out his pistol and allegedly fired 2 shots into the back of her neck.
Later, when police pointed out discrepancies in his story, police said Stone changed his statement. Stone then told police that his wife told him that she only married him for a green card. He said the statement “set him off” and he pulled out his gun.
The prosecutor told reporters: “Self defense is something that a judge or a jury is going have to take a look at. Because we’re talking about bullets shot to the back of the head; it’s difficult for me to claim self defense on those facts.”
Stone has been charged with second degree murder. If convicted, he could face a mandatory minimum 25 years, up to life in the Idaho State Penitentiary, the Idaho Press Tribune said.
Stone is in police custody. His bond is set at $1 million.
According to a cousin and friend from Chicago, Madriñan-Stone had been living separately with her husband. They said the couple was in the middle of a divorce. They had been married for more than 10 years and have 2 children.
A native of Zamboanga del Norte, Madriñan-Stone finished her secondary education at the Saint Vincent’s High School in Dipolog City in 1994. Balitang America
Miami, FL: No body found, but a guilty verdict in Homestead woman's death
Despite the lack of the victim's body, jurors convicted a North Carolina man of killing his girlfriend in Homestead in 1993.
MARICE COHN BAND / MIAMI HERALD STAFF
BY DAVID OVALLE
DOVALLE@MIAMIHERALD.COM
A sassy bartender with a no-nonsense country drawl. A tattooed ex-con with disdain for authority. A scared ex-wife.
One by one, residents of the small town of Burlington, N.C., took the stand in Miami-Dade Circuit Court this week with similar stories: Defendant Christopher Phillips had admitted to killing his girlfriend Trinity Robinson, 18, who vanished in Homestead in May 1993.
And so Thursday, after little more than an hour of deliberation, jurors found Phillips guilty of second-degree murder -- even though Robinson's body has never been found. Prosecutors said it was only the second ``no body'' conviction in Miami-Dade in recent history.
``The witnesses were so credible. They were all so real,'' juror Kelley Rickard said afterward.
The conviction was a relief for Robinson's mother, Kathy Thompson, who long believed Phillips was a murderer. As the verdict was read, she squeezed the hand of Miami-Dade police Detective Ray Hoadley, who criss-crossed the country to unravel the crime.
``[Trinity] got her day in court,'' Thompson cried after tearfully embracing prosecutors Abbe Rifkin and Suzanne Von Paulus. ``And justice was served.''
Circuit Judge Bertila Soto will sentence Phillips on Oct. 13.
The trial rehashed a little-known missing person's case that went unsolved for 13 years.
CAME AFTER ANDREW
After Hurricane Andrew, Phillips -- a drug-dealing roofer -- and a band of youths traveled to South Miami-Dade from North Carolina, looking for work and living in a storm-gutted house.
With him was Robinson, a naive, diminutive teen who fell under Phillips' spell.
In May 1993, he reported to police that Robinson had gone missing just before her afternoon shift at Todd's Family Restaurant in Homestead.
Prosecutors painted Phillips, 37, as a jealous, manipulative boyfriend who consistently beat Robinson, leading to her decision to leave him. Rifkin, in closing arguments Thursday, placed a black-and-white photo of the young woman on the witness seat.
``Today, she would have been 35 years old, but because of the defendant and his greed and control, he took her away from us,'' she said. ``We tried to bring her alive to you and not have her be just a picture on a chair.''
Defense attorney Eric Matheny conceded that his client was no angel. But Matheny pointed to the case's glaring weaknesses: no body and no direct eyewitnesses.
``Maybe he is trailer trash. Maybe he is controlling and manipulative and mean,'' Matheny told jurors. ``That alone is not sufficient to convict him of murder.''
DENIALS
He cast blame on Phillips' then-roommates, Lon Martin and Keith Iaea, who were convicted of an unrelated 1997 murder in Washington state. They denied involvement in the Robinson case, though authorities suspect they helped dump her body.
Still, prosecutors had an overwhelming circumstantial case against Phillips, who told 13 conflicting versions of Robinson's disappearance and tried to claim her last paycheck.
Todd's Family Restaurant co-workers testified that Phillips jealously guarded Robinson, demanding her tips and hanging around the eatery. She grew thin and withdrawn, showing up to work with bruises and black eyes. Just before she vanished, they collected $284 so she could flee back to North Carolina by bus.
Most crucial: a circle of North Carolina relatives and associates to whom Phillips made damning admissions. Among them:
• Phillips' uncle, George Michael Smith, a tattooed felon with a professed disdain for the law, who told jurors he refused to lie for his nephew. His story: Phillips confessed several times to killing Robinson, even describing how he choked her.
• Tara Beane, a headstrong employee of a biker bar named ``He's Not Here.'' In court, she stared down Phillips, her arms crossed. She, too, overheard Phillips admit several times that he had caused his ex-girlfriend's disappearance.
Beane recalled asking Phillips, in the bar, whether he killed Robinson. ``He hung his head, his eyes welled up and he walked out the back door,'' Beane said.
• A former lover who testified that Phillips, while threatening her, admitted he was behind Robinson's disappearance. His ex-wife Peggy Wilson told jurors about similar episodes.
In a telling moment, defense lawyer Matheny pressed Wilson on whether she actually believed one of Phillips' threats. Wilson let spill a nugget that had been ruled off limits for jurors to hear. ``Yes,'' she said. ``He had a gun to my head.''
MARICE COHN BAND / MIAMI HERALD STAFF
BY DAVID OVALLE
DOVALLE@MIAMIHERALD.COM
A sassy bartender with a no-nonsense country drawl. A tattooed ex-con with disdain for authority. A scared ex-wife.
One by one, residents of the small town of Burlington, N.C., took the stand in Miami-Dade Circuit Court this week with similar stories: Defendant Christopher Phillips had admitted to killing his girlfriend Trinity Robinson, 18, who vanished in Homestead in May 1993.
And so Thursday, after little more than an hour of deliberation, jurors found Phillips guilty of second-degree murder -- even though Robinson's body has never been found. Prosecutors said it was only the second ``no body'' conviction in Miami-Dade in recent history.
``The witnesses were so credible. They were all so real,'' juror Kelley Rickard said afterward.
The conviction was a relief for Robinson's mother, Kathy Thompson, who long believed Phillips was a murderer. As the verdict was read, she squeezed the hand of Miami-Dade police Detective Ray Hoadley, who criss-crossed the country to unravel the crime.
``[Trinity] got her day in court,'' Thompson cried after tearfully embracing prosecutors Abbe Rifkin and Suzanne Von Paulus. ``And justice was served.''
Circuit Judge Bertila Soto will sentence Phillips on Oct. 13.
The trial rehashed a little-known missing person's case that went unsolved for 13 years.
CAME AFTER ANDREW
After Hurricane Andrew, Phillips -- a drug-dealing roofer -- and a band of youths traveled to South Miami-Dade from North Carolina, looking for work and living in a storm-gutted house.
With him was Robinson, a naive, diminutive teen who fell under Phillips' spell.
In May 1993, he reported to police that Robinson had gone missing just before her afternoon shift at Todd's Family Restaurant in Homestead.
Prosecutors painted Phillips, 37, as a jealous, manipulative boyfriend who consistently beat Robinson, leading to her decision to leave him. Rifkin, in closing arguments Thursday, placed a black-and-white photo of the young woman on the witness seat.
``Today, she would have been 35 years old, but because of the defendant and his greed and control, he took her away from us,'' she said. ``We tried to bring her alive to you and not have her be just a picture on a chair.''
Defense attorney Eric Matheny conceded that his client was no angel. But Matheny pointed to the case's glaring weaknesses: no body and no direct eyewitnesses.
``Maybe he is trailer trash. Maybe he is controlling and manipulative and mean,'' Matheny told jurors. ``That alone is not sufficient to convict him of murder.''
DENIALS
He cast blame on Phillips' then-roommates, Lon Martin and Keith Iaea, who were convicted of an unrelated 1997 murder in Washington state. They denied involvement in the Robinson case, though authorities suspect they helped dump her body.
Still, prosecutors had an overwhelming circumstantial case against Phillips, who told 13 conflicting versions of Robinson's disappearance and tried to claim her last paycheck.
Todd's Family Restaurant co-workers testified that Phillips jealously guarded Robinson, demanding her tips and hanging around the eatery. She grew thin and withdrawn, showing up to work with bruises and black eyes. Just before she vanished, they collected $284 so she could flee back to North Carolina by bus.
Most crucial: a circle of North Carolina relatives and associates to whom Phillips made damning admissions. Among them:
• Phillips' uncle, George Michael Smith, a tattooed felon with a professed disdain for the law, who told jurors he refused to lie for his nephew. His story: Phillips confessed several times to killing Robinson, even describing how he choked her.
• Tara Beane, a headstrong employee of a biker bar named ``He's Not Here.'' In court, she stared down Phillips, her arms crossed. She, too, overheard Phillips admit several times that he had caused his ex-girlfriend's disappearance.
Beane recalled asking Phillips, in the bar, whether he killed Robinson. ``He hung his head, his eyes welled up and he walked out the back door,'' Beane said.
• A former lover who testified that Phillips, while threatening her, admitted he was behind Robinson's disappearance. His ex-wife Peggy Wilson told jurors about similar episodes.
In a telling moment, defense lawyer Matheny pressed Wilson on whether she actually believed one of Phillips' threats. Wilson let spill a nugget that had been ruled off limits for jurors to hear. ``Yes,'' she said. ``He had a gun to my head.''
Lehigh Acres: FL: Victims in apparent double murder-suicide identified
LEHIGH ACRES: A husband, wife and their 13-month-old child have been identified as those found dead in a Lehigh Acres home Thursday.
Deputies say someone called them around 4 p.m. after the person went into the home on East Lake Drive and saw the bodies.
The sheriff's office said victims are Winselsio Forde, 39, Lisa Forde, 33, and Caleb Forde.
The sheriff's office says their preliminary investigation reveals it is a double-murder suicide.
Neighbor Mike Hill says the tragic news is still hard to handle. But he said he knew something was wrong Thursday morning.
"And I heard 'boom!' The wind was blowing out of the Northeast because I was going to go hunting this morning and I knew it came from that direction. I wasn't sure which house, or if it was even inside a house," he said.
Winselsio Forde was charged with domestic battery in 2009.
The report from that incident stated that he threw Lisa to the floor during an argument when she was 12 weeks pregnant.
In 2007, Winselsio was charged with cocaine possession after a traffic stop. He allegedly told deputies he had 'a crack cocaine habit.'
Lisa Forde was a paramedic with Lee County EMS. Her co-workers are wearing black stripes across their badges in memory of her and her son.
Deputies say someone called them around 4 p.m. after the person went into the home on East Lake Drive and saw the bodies.
The sheriff's office said victims are Winselsio Forde, 39, Lisa Forde, 33, and Caleb Forde.
The sheriff's office says their preliminary investigation reveals it is a double-murder suicide.
Neighbor Mike Hill says the tragic news is still hard to handle. But he said he knew something was wrong Thursday morning.
"And I heard 'boom!' The wind was blowing out of the Northeast because I was going to go hunting this morning and I knew it came from that direction. I wasn't sure which house, or if it was even inside a house," he said.
Winselsio Forde was charged with domestic battery in 2009.
The report from that incident stated that he threw Lisa to the floor during an argument when she was 12 weeks pregnant.
In 2007, Winselsio was charged with cocaine possession after a traffic stop. He allegedly told deputies he had 'a crack cocaine habit.'
Lisa Forde was a paramedic with Lee County EMS. Her co-workers are wearing black stripes across their badges in memory of her and her son.
Portland, OR: Couple dies in apparent murder-suicide
In the ninth apparent murder-suicide in the Portland area in the past year, two bodies were found dead outside an apartment in Tigard, near King City.
Police said Jeffrey M. Njus, 35, fatally shot his wife, 32-year-old Ilona Njus, outside their home at the Arbor Heights apartments, 15199 S.W. Royalty Parkway, Tuesday night.
After that, police believe, he turned the gun on himself.
Neighbors called police at about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday night after hearing four to five gunshots and screaming.
Police arrived a few minutes later and discovered the Njus’ dead in a third-floor breezeway just outside their apartment.
Ilona Njus’ mother witnessed the shooting, police said, and the couple’s 2-year-old daughter was asleep in the apartment at the time.
Neither the grandmother nor the child was injured. The child was placed in the care of relatives, police said.
Investigators have yet to release a possible motive for the shooting, there was a chance that Jeffrey Njus was suffering from a mental illness, police said.
The couple had recently moved to the apartment from Aloha, police said. The investigation is ongoing.
Police said Jeffrey M. Njus, 35, fatally shot his wife, 32-year-old Ilona Njus, outside their home at the Arbor Heights apartments, 15199 S.W. Royalty Parkway, Tuesday night.
After that, police believe, he turned the gun on himself.
Neighbors called police at about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday night after hearing four to five gunshots and screaming.
Police arrived a few minutes later and discovered the Njus’ dead in a third-floor breezeway just outside their apartment.
Ilona Njus’ mother witnessed the shooting, police said, and the couple’s 2-year-old daughter was asleep in the apartment at the time.
Neither the grandmother nor the child was injured. The child was placed in the care of relatives, police said.
Investigators have yet to release a possible motive for the shooting, there was a chance that Jeffrey Njus was suffering from a mental illness, police said.
The couple had recently moved to the apartment from Aloha, police said. The investigation is ongoing.
Great Falls, MT: 'It was horrifying' neighbor says of murder-suicide
BY KIMBALL BENNION • TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER • SEPTEMBER 2, 2010
The man who lives at the house on 12th Avenue South where John Lesh fired gunshots and then killed himself Saturday said two bullets came through his house, grazing him and barely missing his wife.
Chris Weiland, 38, said he and his wife, Rachelle, were both in the house when Lesh knocked on the door Saturday night.
When he answered the door, Lesh apologized for a confrontation they had more than a year before, Weiland said. He added that he then shook Lesh's hand, at which time he noticed Lesh had a gun in the other hand.
Lesh, 45, then began to cock the gun and raise it toward him, Weiland said. Weiland closed the door and shifted his body away from it.
Weiland said a bullet then came through the door, grazed him on the left side, went through the couch and hit his coffee table.
Weiland's wife, who was standing near a window, then saw Lesh point the gun at her through the window, Weiland said. She threw herself on the ground shortly before he fired.
"I thought she was dead," Weiland said.
Rachelle Weiland apparently barely missed being shot and suffered no injuries. Chris Weiland said that after Lesh shot at Weiland's wife, he went into another room in his house to get a gun in case Lesh tried to come in. Weiland said that after he came back into the front room, he looked out the window and saw Lesh lying dead on his front porch.
Police believe Lesh stabbed Connie Popham, 59, in their residence down the street from Weiland's home shortly before knocking on Weiland's door.
Weiland's wife called the police after the shots were fired, and he said their response time was "excellent." Medical responders examined Weiland's wound and determined it wasn't life-threatening but recommended he go to the hospital. Weiland said he declined to do so.
Sgt. Bryan Slavik from the Great Falls Police Department, confirmed on Wednesday that it was a minor gunshot wound and that the Weiland declined further medical attention.
Reports on the number of victims injured in this stabbing-shooting have varied this week. Police first indicated there were three victims, including the two deceased. The next day officers said they could only confirm two victims, but that two other people had been shot at. They didn't know whether those two had been injured.
Detectives from the Great Falls Police Department said Wednesday that they still are investigating the apparent murder-suicide and were not prepared to make a statement. The GFPD is expected to release more details of the investigation later this week.
Weiland said he knew Popham and Lesh for about 3 1/2 years.
"It was horrifying," Weiland said. "We're extremely lucky."
Weiland said he and Lesh had a few confrontations in the past, some of which got physical, but the last one was more than a year ago. Weiland said he thought they had patched things up since then.
He said he did not know Popham very well, but said she was a friendly neighbor who was quick to give away vegetables from her garden and waved at them every time their paths crossed.
"She was a wonderful neighbor," Weiland said.
The man who lives at the house on 12th Avenue South where John Lesh fired gunshots and then killed himself Saturday said two bullets came through his house, grazing him and barely missing his wife.
Chris Weiland, 38, said he and his wife, Rachelle, were both in the house when Lesh knocked on the door Saturday night.
When he answered the door, Lesh apologized for a confrontation they had more than a year before, Weiland said. He added that he then shook Lesh's hand, at which time he noticed Lesh had a gun in the other hand.
Lesh, 45, then began to cock the gun and raise it toward him, Weiland said. Weiland closed the door and shifted his body away from it.
Weiland said a bullet then came through the door, grazed him on the left side, went through the couch and hit his coffee table.
Weiland's wife, who was standing near a window, then saw Lesh point the gun at her through the window, Weiland said. She threw herself on the ground shortly before he fired.
"I thought she was dead," Weiland said.
Rachelle Weiland apparently barely missed being shot and suffered no injuries. Chris Weiland said that after Lesh shot at Weiland's wife, he went into another room in his house to get a gun in case Lesh tried to come in. Weiland said that after he came back into the front room, he looked out the window and saw Lesh lying dead on his front porch.
Police believe Lesh stabbed Connie Popham, 59, in their residence down the street from Weiland's home shortly before knocking on Weiland's door.
Weiland's wife called the police after the shots were fired, and he said their response time was "excellent." Medical responders examined Weiland's wound and determined it wasn't life-threatening but recommended he go to the hospital. Weiland said he declined to do so.
Sgt. Bryan Slavik from the Great Falls Police Department, confirmed on Wednesday that it was a minor gunshot wound and that the Weiland declined further medical attention.
Reports on the number of victims injured in this stabbing-shooting have varied this week. Police first indicated there were three victims, including the two deceased. The next day officers said they could only confirm two victims, but that two other people had been shot at. They didn't know whether those two had been injured.
Detectives from the Great Falls Police Department said Wednesday that they still are investigating the apparent murder-suicide and were not prepared to make a statement. The GFPD is expected to release more details of the investigation later this week.
Weiland said he knew Popham and Lesh for about 3 1/2 years.
"It was horrifying," Weiland said. "We're extremely lucky."
Weiland said he and Lesh had a few confrontations in the past, some of which got physical, but the last one was more than a year ago. Weiland said he thought they had patched things up since then.
He said he did not know Popham very well, but said she was a friendly neighbor who was quick to give away vegetables from her garden and waved at them every time their paths crossed.
"She was a wonderful neighbor," Weiland said.
Rio Grande City, TX: RGC investigators continue sorting out events leading up to murder-suicide
September 02, 2010 1:25 PM
By LINDSAY MACHAK/The Monitor
RIO GRANDE CITY — Investigators continue to piece together what unfolded Tuesday on the 1700 block of Main Street, where three women were fatally shot.
Francisco Pinal, 51, went on a shooting spree late that afternoon, killing his estranged wife, her mother and another woman, before turning the gun on himself and committing suicide, police stated.
Pinal’s wife, Lydia Pinal, filed for a divorce from him in June, according to court documents. That divorce petition was still pending at that time of her death. Court records indicate her husband had filed a counter-petition.
According to her family, Francisco Pinal was obsessed with his estranged wife and stalked her.
Her mother, Rosa Alaniz, 77, had come to town to be with her daughter out of fear of leaving her alone.
Lydia Pinal worked as a home caregiver in Rio Grande City at the residence where she was gunned down, and Rosa Alaniz had accompanied her to the client’s home.
The client, who police have not publicly named, was physically unharmed.
However, her sister, Mary Lou Sanders, was fatally shot during the rampage, said Assistant Police Chief Noe Castillo.
“He was determined to do what he was going to do,” Castillo said. “And he did it.”
Investigators continue to look into the case, even though they don’t plan to pursue charges against anyone. Castillo said a full-blown probe is under way, just in case there are any related incidents.
“We don’t have anybody to charge,” he said. “But we still have to do a full investigation just in case something else comes up or we missed something.”
By LINDSAY MACHAK/The Monitor
RIO GRANDE CITY — Investigators continue to piece together what unfolded Tuesday on the 1700 block of Main Street, where three women were fatally shot.
Francisco Pinal, 51, went on a shooting spree late that afternoon, killing his estranged wife, her mother and another woman, before turning the gun on himself and committing suicide, police stated.
Pinal’s wife, Lydia Pinal, filed for a divorce from him in June, according to court documents. That divorce petition was still pending at that time of her death. Court records indicate her husband had filed a counter-petition.
According to her family, Francisco Pinal was obsessed with his estranged wife and stalked her.
Her mother, Rosa Alaniz, 77, had come to town to be with her daughter out of fear of leaving her alone.
Lydia Pinal worked as a home caregiver in Rio Grande City at the residence where she was gunned down, and Rosa Alaniz had accompanied her to the client’s home.
The client, who police have not publicly named, was physically unharmed.
However, her sister, Mary Lou Sanders, was fatally shot during the rampage, said Assistant Police Chief Noe Castillo.
“He was determined to do what he was going to do,” Castillo said. “And he did it.”
Investigators continue to look into the case, even though they don’t plan to pursue charges against anyone. Castillo said a full-blown probe is under way, just in case there are any related incidents.
“We don’t have anybody to charge,” he said. “But we still have to do a full investigation just in case something else comes up or we missed something.”
Bay Village, OH: Children with relatives after Bay Village murder-suicide
Published: Thursday, September 02, 2010, 2:51 PM
Alison Meaney, Sun News
BAY VILLAGE The city continues to reel with empathy for two children of Mary “Molly” Rorthgery and her soon-to-be ex-husband Michael, who shot himself after smothering her in their Russell Drive home on Saturday afternoon.
Bay Village Detective Lieutenant Mark Spaetzel said the children are staying with their uncle — Michael’s brother — in Elyria. Spaetzel said they’re safe and sound, but that he has no idea what will happen to them.
“Next to the wife they’re the biggest victims,” Spaetzel commented.
According to Spaetzel, it’s hard to say whether their grief could have been avoided.
“Given the incident of divorce, about 50 percent . . . homicides don’t occur that often,” Spaetzel explained. “That potential is always there in volatile personal relationships, but its difficult to see which ones may go that way.”
Molly filed for divorce on July 23, but due to finances the couple continued living together despite a restraining order issued against Michael the day Molly filed papers.
“When divorces are filed that restraining order is issued as a matter of course,” Spaetzel said. “She did not have a protection order that keeps them apart.”
Spaetzel continued that the only calls to police from the Rothgery residence were from Michael calling to speak with an officer about his pending divorce and to report in police logs that Molly was threatening to have his teaching license revoked.
“There were no allegations of physical abuse,” Spaetzel noted. “I don’t think that anyone thought that this would end up in a murder-suicide.”
Alison Meaney, Sun News
BAY VILLAGE The city continues to reel with empathy for two children of Mary “Molly” Rorthgery and her soon-to-be ex-husband Michael, who shot himself after smothering her in their Russell Drive home on Saturday afternoon.
Bay Village Detective Lieutenant Mark Spaetzel said the children are staying with their uncle — Michael’s brother — in Elyria. Spaetzel said they’re safe and sound, but that he has no idea what will happen to them.
“Next to the wife they’re the biggest victims,” Spaetzel commented.
According to Spaetzel, it’s hard to say whether their grief could have been avoided.
“Given the incident of divorce, about 50 percent . . . homicides don’t occur that often,” Spaetzel explained. “That potential is always there in volatile personal relationships, but its difficult to see which ones may go that way.”
Molly filed for divorce on July 23, but due to finances the couple continued living together despite a restraining order issued against Michael the day Molly filed papers.
“When divorces are filed that restraining order is issued as a matter of course,” Spaetzel said. “She did not have a protection order that keeps them apart.”
Spaetzel continued that the only calls to police from the Rothgery residence were from Michael calling to speak with an officer about his pending divorce and to report in police logs that Molly was threatening to have his teaching license revoked.
“There were no allegations of physical abuse,” Spaetzel noted. “I don’t think that anyone thought that this would end up in a murder-suicide.”
Stokes County, NC: Stokes County Authorities Probe Murder/Suicide
Victims Died From Gunshot Wounds, Deputies Say
BY LESLIE BRAY EVANS, THE STOKES NEWS
POSTED: 9:22 am EDT September 1, 2010
UPDATED: 3:10 pm EDT September 1, 2010
STOKES COUNTY, N.C. -- A man and woman are dead in northern Stokes County, the result of an apparent murder/suicide. On Tuesday, August 31, Ray Allan Collingwood, 53, and Loretta Ann Campbell, 53, were found with apparent gunshot injuries at their home at 1110 Chestnut Ridge Lane, Danbury.
The tragic saga came to light early Tuesday morning when Campbell’s co-workers at Volvo Trucks North America in Greensboro called the Stokes County Sheriff’s Department. According to Major Durward Bennett at the sheriff’s department, they were concerned that Campbell, an employee who rarely missed a day of work, did not report to Volvo on Monday, August 30, and now was missing again with no word.
Officers responded to the request for a welfare check and drove out to the residence which is on a private road that branches off Peter Mabe Road, just off Highway 8 near Lawsonville. “The officers could hear dogs barking inside, but they couldn’t get anyone to the door,” Bennett said.
The door, however, was unlocked. So at approximately 9:30 a.m., the responding officers entered the residence. Upon opening the door, seven dogs ran out. Law officers proceeded inside where they discovered the bodies of the deceased couple.
Captain Craig Carico of the Stokes County Sheriff’s Department stated that preliminary findings show what appears to be a murder/suicide case.
Bennett said that it would appear that Collingwood shot Campbell and then turned the gun on himself. As to the time of the shooting, Bennett commented, “Our best guess is Saturday night or early Sunday.”
Law enforcement officials believe that both Collingwood and Campbell are from the northeastern part of the United States. One report was that Collingwood had retired from the steel mills farther north.
An autopsy was being performed on Wednesday, Sept. 1 at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center to determine the exact cause of death. The investigation is pending at this time.
This article appeared in Wednesday's edition of the Stokes News.
BY LESLIE BRAY EVANS, THE STOKES NEWS
POSTED: 9:22 am EDT September 1, 2010
UPDATED: 3:10 pm EDT September 1, 2010
STOKES COUNTY, N.C. -- A man and woman are dead in northern Stokes County, the result of an apparent murder/suicide. On Tuesday, August 31, Ray Allan Collingwood, 53, and Loretta Ann Campbell, 53, were found with apparent gunshot injuries at their home at 1110 Chestnut Ridge Lane, Danbury.
The tragic saga came to light early Tuesday morning when Campbell’s co-workers at Volvo Trucks North America in Greensboro called the Stokes County Sheriff’s Department. According to Major Durward Bennett at the sheriff’s department, they were concerned that Campbell, an employee who rarely missed a day of work, did not report to Volvo on Monday, August 30, and now was missing again with no word.
Officers responded to the request for a welfare check and drove out to the residence which is on a private road that branches off Peter Mabe Road, just off Highway 8 near Lawsonville. “The officers could hear dogs barking inside, but they couldn’t get anyone to the door,” Bennett said.
The door, however, was unlocked. So at approximately 9:30 a.m., the responding officers entered the residence. Upon opening the door, seven dogs ran out. Law officers proceeded inside where they discovered the bodies of the deceased couple.
Captain Craig Carico of the Stokes County Sheriff’s Department stated that preliminary findings show what appears to be a murder/suicide case.
Bennett said that it would appear that Collingwood shot Campbell and then turned the gun on himself. As to the time of the shooting, Bennett commented, “Our best guess is Saturday night or early Sunday.”
Law enforcement officials believe that both Collingwood and Campbell are from the northeastern part of the United States. One report was that Collingwood had retired from the steel mills farther north.
An autopsy was being performed on Wednesday, Sept. 1 at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center to determine the exact cause of death. The investigation is pending at this time.
This article appeared in Wednesday's edition of the Stokes News.
Westland, MI: Family dispute reportedly ends in murder, suicide
By LeAnne Rogers
OBSERVER STAFF WRITER
An ongoing problem within the family apparently was the cause of the shooting that left a Westland couple dead early Monday morning.
“It's a wider family dispute that caused the rift in this particular case. What the dispute was and why it led to this, I can't say,” said Westland police Sgt. Kevin Wojcik.
Ermira Dashi, 50, died at the hospital several hours after being shot by her husband, Lutfi Dashi, 59, who was found dead at the scene, suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said.
Police were called to the residence in the 29000 block of Manchester Street, north of Ann Arbor Trail and east of Middlebelt, about 1:30 a.m.
“There had been an argument earlier in the day and it appeared to have ended when they went to bed,” said Wojcik. “Then their sons heard gunshots.”
The couple had a bedroom in the basement of their residence at the London Townhouses while their sons, 25 and 20, had bedrooms upstairs. Shot four times, Ermira Dashi was breathing but not responsive when officers arrived.
“We have had no contacts with the family whatsoever. You can certainly have a domestic dispute without calling the police,” said Wojcik. “No one in the family saw this coming. From the looks of it, it was something that festered and went to the extreme. The sons are being tight-lipped about it and want to keep it in the family. It's pretty traumatic to lose both your parents at one time.”
A handgun used in the shooting was unregistered, Wojcik said.
OBSERVER STAFF WRITER
An ongoing problem within the family apparently was the cause of the shooting that left a Westland couple dead early Monday morning.
“It's a wider family dispute that caused the rift in this particular case. What the dispute was and why it led to this, I can't say,” said Westland police Sgt. Kevin Wojcik.
Ermira Dashi, 50, died at the hospital several hours after being shot by her husband, Lutfi Dashi, 59, who was found dead at the scene, suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, police said.
Police were called to the residence in the 29000 block of Manchester Street, north of Ann Arbor Trail and east of Middlebelt, about 1:30 a.m.
“There had been an argument earlier in the day and it appeared to have ended when they went to bed,” said Wojcik. “Then their sons heard gunshots.”
The couple had a bedroom in the basement of their residence at the London Townhouses while their sons, 25 and 20, had bedrooms upstairs. Shot four times, Ermira Dashi was breathing but not responsive when officers arrived.
“We have had no contacts with the family whatsoever. You can certainly have a domestic dispute without calling the police,” said Wojcik. “No one in the family saw this coming. From the looks of it, it was something that festered and went to the extreme. The sons are being tight-lipped about it and want to keep it in the family. It's pretty traumatic to lose both your parents at one time.”
A handgun used in the shooting was unregistered, Wojcik said.
Los Angeles, CA: Jacquelyn Kotarac Found Dead in Chimney
Share: by Jordan Yerman | September 1, 2010 at 04:28 pm
Dr. Jacquelyn Kotarac Found Dead After Trying to Break into William Moodie's House
Dr Jacquelyn Kotarac was found dead in the chimney of a house occupied by her sometime-boyfriend William Moodie. Kotarac had tried to break into the house while she and Moodie were fighting. Unbeknownst to her, Moodie had slipped out of the house and spent the night with a friend.
Jacquelyn Kotarac broke the protective cap off of the chimney and slid down feet-first, not realizing that the chimney shaft tapered to a width of just four inches. An autopsy concluded that Kotarac died of mechanical asphyxiation, as her lungs were unable to expand in order to properly breathe.
A friend of Moodie's stopped by the house to feed Moodie's fish and noticed a strange smell, which is how Kotarac's body was found.
Jacquelyn Kotarac was reported missing on August 26 when she did not show up at her Bakersfield, California practice. William Moodie said, "She made an unbelievable error in judgment and nobody understands why, and unfortunately she's passed away."
Dr. Jacquelyn Kotarac Found Dead After Trying to Break into William Moodie's House
Dr Jacquelyn Kotarac was found dead in the chimney of a house occupied by her sometime-boyfriend William Moodie. Kotarac had tried to break into the house while she and Moodie were fighting. Unbeknownst to her, Moodie had slipped out of the house and spent the night with a friend.
Jacquelyn Kotarac broke the protective cap off of the chimney and slid down feet-first, not realizing that the chimney shaft tapered to a width of just four inches. An autopsy concluded that Kotarac died of mechanical asphyxiation, as her lungs were unable to expand in order to properly breathe.
A friend of Moodie's stopped by the house to feed Moodie's fish and noticed a strange smell, which is how Kotarac's body was found.
Jacquelyn Kotarac was reported missing on August 26 when she did not show up at her Bakersfield, California practice. William Moodie said, "She made an unbelievable error in judgment and nobody understands why, and unfortunately she's passed away."
Port Orange, FL: Woman had feared man, and now both are dead
August 31, 2010|By Rene Stutzman and Gary Taylor, Orlando Sentinel
Loni Amber Turner was afraid. An ex-boyfriend she'd met online wouldn't leave her alone. He sent her text messages. He watched her apartment. He showed up at the trade school where she was a student.
"I am really afraid to come out of the apartment …" she wrote in a petition for a domestic-violence injunction last week.
On Monday, Turner's body and that of her ex-boyfriend Erin Ross, 27, were found in Room 7 of the Town & Country Motel in Port Orange. They had been shot to death, police said.
When 22-year-old Turner disappeared Sunday, police knew immediately for whom to look: Eight days earlier, Turner went to the South Daytona Beach Police Department, saying that Ross was stalking her. Two days later, she went to the Volusia County Courthouse in Daytona Beach and asked a judge for an injunction, an order for Ross to leave her alone.
Circuit Judge William A. Parsons said no. Turner had failed to prove she was in imminent danger, he wrote. He ordered Turner and Ross to come to court in two weeks and lay out their evidence.
Loni Amber Turner was afraid. An ex-boyfriend she'd met online wouldn't leave her alone. He sent her text messages. He watched her apartment. He showed up at the trade school where she was a student.
"I am really afraid to come out of the apartment …" she wrote in a petition for a domestic-violence injunction last week.
On Monday, Turner's body and that of her ex-boyfriend Erin Ross, 27, were found in Room 7 of the Town & Country Motel in Port Orange. They had been shot to death, police said.
When 22-year-old Turner disappeared Sunday, police knew immediately for whom to look: Eight days earlier, Turner went to the South Daytona Beach Police Department, saying that Ross was stalking her. Two days later, she went to the Volusia County Courthouse in Daytona Beach and asked a judge for an injunction, an order for Ross to leave her alone.
Circuit Judge William A. Parsons said no. Turner had failed to prove she was in imminent danger, he wrote. He ordered Turner and Ross to come to court in two weeks and lay out their evidence.
Birdsboro, PA: Woman, 52, charged in 2003 Birdsboro slaying
Prosecutors say she paid man to hire someone to kill abusive boyfriend, but shot him herself
By Mary E. Young
Reading Eagle
A 52-year-old Birdsboro woman was charged Tuesday with criminal homicide and criminal solicitation in the Oct. 17, 2003, shooting death of her boyfriend.
Barbara J. Houghtby of the 500 block of East Sixth Street initially claimed she had been beaten and that Rodney L. Martz Jr., 37, had been killed by two unidentified men during a home-invasion robbery.
Houghtby shot Martz in the head five times at close range, investigators said.
District Attorney John T. Adams refused to speculate on a motive.
Court records show Houghtby obtained a protection-from-abuse order against Martz in March 2001 after he beat her twice, threatened to run her off the road and threatened to kill her, her two sons and her parents.
Birdsboro police found Martz in the driveway of the house May 25, 2001, and arrested him for violating the order.
Houghtby withdrew the protection order the following week.
She is charged with criminal solicitation for paying a 50-year-old man from Williamstown, Dauphin County, $2,500 to hire someone to kill Martz. The Reading Eagle is withholding the man's name.
Adams refused to say if the Dauphin man will be charged.
According to authorities:
During the initial investigation, Houghtby told state police, who investigated at the request of Birdsboro police, that she was letting her dogs out when a man grabbed her from behind, pulled her hair and put a gun to her head.
She told police a second man went inside and shot Martz during a robbery. When the gunman returned, Houghtby said, she stomped on the first man's foot. He punched her in the face and stomach before both ran away.
Trooper Thomas Weaver questioned Houghtby's version of the events because her injuries were on the left side of her face but should have been on the right side under the scenario she described.
He took the evidence to a county investigative grand jury, which recommended charges be filed against Houghtby.
In her April grand jury testimony, Houghtby admitted she knew the Williamstown man and said she gave him $2,000 to protect her from Martz.
The Williamstown man testified that Houghtby knew he had been affiliated with a motorcycle gang. He said she told him she wanted something more permanent than his offer to break Martz's legs.
He said she gave him $2,500 as a down payment toward the $5,000 needed to hire someone to kill Martz. He said the person he had in mind was dead, so he kept the money.
Other witnesses testified that Houghtby told them she didn't want to be hurt anymore and that she wanted out of the relationship.
Adams said the investigation is continuing and asked anyone who has information about the case to contact state police.
He said the charges are another example of the grand jury's value in investigating violent crime.
"We won't rest until we can bring justice to the victims of violent crime," he said.
Houghtby was committed to the county prison without bail following arraignment before District Judge David E. Glass.
Contact Mary Young: 610-478-6292 or myoung@readingeagle.com.
By Mary E. Young
Reading Eagle
A 52-year-old Birdsboro woman was charged Tuesday with criminal homicide and criminal solicitation in the Oct. 17, 2003, shooting death of her boyfriend.
Barbara J. Houghtby of the 500 block of East Sixth Street initially claimed she had been beaten and that Rodney L. Martz Jr., 37, had been killed by two unidentified men during a home-invasion robbery.
Houghtby shot Martz in the head five times at close range, investigators said.
District Attorney John T. Adams refused to speculate on a motive.
Court records show Houghtby obtained a protection-from-abuse order against Martz in March 2001 after he beat her twice, threatened to run her off the road and threatened to kill her, her two sons and her parents.
Birdsboro police found Martz in the driveway of the house May 25, 2001, and arrested him for violating the order.
Houghtby withdrew the protection order the following week.
She is charged with criminal solicitation for paying a 50-year-old man from Williamstown, Dauphin County, $2,500 to hire someone to kill Martz. The Reading Eagle is withholding the man's name.
Adams refused to say if the Dauphin man will be charged.
According to authorities:
During the initial investigation, Houghtby told state police, who investigated at the request of Birdsboro police, that she was letting her dogs out when a man grabbed her from behind, pulled her hair and put a gun to her head.
She told police a second man went inside and shot Martz during a robbery. When the gunman returned, Houghtby said, she stomped on the first man's foot. He punched her in the face and stomach before both ran away.
Trooper Thomas Weaver questioned Houghtby's version of the events because her injuries were on the left side of her face but should have been on the right side under the scenario she described.
He took the evidence to a county investigative grand jury, which recommended charges be filed against Houghtby.
In her April grand jury testimony, Houghtby admitted she knew the Williamstown man and said she gave him $2,000 to protect her from Martz.
The Williamstown man testified that Houghtby knew he had been affiliated with a motorcycle gang. He said she told him she wanted something more permanent than his offer to break Martz's legs.
He said she gave him $2,500 as a down payment toward the $5,000 needed to hire someone to kill Martz. He said the person he had in mind was dead, so he kept the money.
Other witnesses testified that Houghtby told them she didn't want to be hurt anymore and that she wanted out of the relationship.
Adams said the investigation is continuing and asked anyone who has information about the case to contact state police.
He said the charges are another example of the grand jury's value in investigating violent crime.
"We won't rest until we can bring justice to the victims of violent crime," he said.
Houghtby was committed to the county prison without bail following arraignment before District Judge David E. Glass.
Contact Mary Young: 610-478-6292 or myoung@readingeagle.com.
Greenville, SC: Investigators Say Natasha Kerns' Children Were Home When It Happened
Myra Ruiz, WYFF News 4 Reporter
POSTED: 5:37 pm EDT September 1, 2010
UPDATED: 1:18 am EDT September 2, 2010
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- More details emerged in court Wednesday morning in a case against a Greenville County man charged in the death of his ex-wife and the shooting of her male friend.
Willie Marvin Williams, 44, is charged with murder, attempted murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime.
At a preliminary hearing, a homicide investigator testified that Williams' estranged wife, Natasha Kerns, 28, was in the process of divorcing Williams and seeking a protection order against him.
Investigator Eric Whaley, with the Greenville County Sheriff's Office, said Kerns called 911 early in the morning and asked for a deputy to patrol around her home on Idlewild Avenue.
Whaley testified that Kerns told the dispatcher she saw Williams outside.
"That's when she told the dispatcher to 'Hold on, he's looking in.' At that time you hear a noise, which appears to be a gunshot," Whaley said. "It appears that a bullet had traveled through the window and struck her in the head."
Kerns' body was found in the living room by the phone and window, Whaley said.
Kerns' two young children -- a 9-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter -- were in the home when it happened but did not see their mother getting shot, said Whaley.
A deputy at the scene took the children into a patrol car, Whaley testified, and turned on the in-car camera while questioning the child.
"The 9-year-old stated to law enforcement that Will Marvin -- as he calls Willie Williams -- broke into his home and killed his mom," said Whaley.
Williams is also charged in the shooting Kerns' friend, Anthony Wilson, who was staying at the home. Deputies found him lying in a child's bedroom.
"He had a gunshot wound to the head," Whaley testified. "At first he was nonresponsive, but he did come to a little and was transported to Greenville Memorial."
Whaley said that Wilson later said he scuffled with a man in the hallway and wound up in the bedroom but could not identify the man who shot him.
Kerns' son, however, told deputies he saw what happened.
"Did the 9-year-old offer information about who shot Mr. Wilson?" Townes Jones, Williams' defense attorney, asked Whaley.
"Yes, it was 'Will Marvin,' as the 9-year-old calls him," replied Whaley.
Prosecutor Judy Munson asked Whaley about the ballistics evidence.
Whaley said projectiles recovered from Wilson's shooting are still being tested, but it appears they match the same caliber weapon that was used to kill Kerns.
Whaley said no weapon was found, but ammunition was removed from Williams' home for testing. Forensic testing continues, Whaley said, on other evidence removed from the crime scene.
Williams was arrested the same day of the shootings in the city of Laurens, following a chase involving both Laurens County deputies and police officers.
"After he was involved in that traffic incident, it was determined that he had stabbed himself in the chest and that's the reason he was taken to the hospital with a self-inflicted stab wound to the chest," said Whaley.
Whaley said Williams told family members and a friend that he killed Kerns.
POSTED: 5:37 pm EDT September 1, 2010
UPDATED: 1:18 am EDT September 2, 2010
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- More details emerged in court Wednesday morning in a case against a Greenville County man charged in the death of his ex-wife and the shooting of her male friend.
Willie Marvin Williams, 44, is charged with murder, attempted murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime.
At a preliminary hearing, a homicide investigator testified that Williams' estranged wife, Natasha Kerns, 28, was in the process of divorcing Williams and seeking a protection order against him.
Investigator Eric Whaley, with the Greenville County Sheriff's Office, said Kerns called 911 early in the morning and asked for a deputy to patrol around her home on Idlewild Avenue.
Whaley testified that Kerns told the dispatcher she saw Williams outside.
"That's when she told the dispatcher to 'Hold on, he's looking in.' At that time you hear a noise, which appears to be a gunshot," Whaley said. "It appears that a bullet had traveled through the window and struck her in the head."
Kerns' body was found in the living room by the phone and window, Whaley said.
Kerns' two young children -- a 9-year-old son and 2-year-old daughter -- were in the home when it happened but did not see their mother getting shot, said Whaley.
A deputy at the scene took the children into a patrol car, Whaley testified, and turned on the in-car camera while questioning the child.
"The 9-year-old stated to law enforcement that Will Marvin -- as he calls Willie Williams -- broke into his home and killed his mom," said Whaley.
Williams is also charged in the shooting Kerns' friend, Anthony Wilson, who was staying at the home. Deputies found him lying in a child's bedroom.
"He had a gunshot wound to the head," Whaley testified. "At first he was nonresponsive, but he did come to a little and was transported to Greenville Memorial."
Whaley said that Wilson later said he scuffled with a man in the hallway and wound up in the bedroom but could not identify the man who shot him.
Kerns' son, however, told deputies he saw what happened.
"Did the 9-year-old offer information about who shot Mr. Wilson?" Townes Jones, Williams' defense attorney, asked Whaley.
"Yes, it was 'Will Marvin,' as the 9-year-old calls him," replied Whaley.
Prosecutor Judy Munson asked Whaley about the ballistics evidence.
Whaley said projectiles recovered from Wilson's shooting are still being tested, but it appears they match the same caliber weapon that was used to kill Kerns.
Whaley said no weapon was found, but ammunition was removed from Williams' home for testing. Forensic testing continues, Whaley said, on other evidence removed from the crime scene.
Williams was arrested the same day of the shootings in the city of Laurens, following a chase involving both Laurens County deputies and police officers.
"After he was involved in that traffic incident, it was determined that he had stabbed himself in the chest and that's the reason he was taken to the hospital with a self-inflicted stab wound to the chest," said Whaley.
Whaley said Williams told family members and a friend that he killed Kerns.
Houston, TX: HPD officer kills man involved in domestic dispute
By DALE LEZON
HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Sept. 3, 2010, 2:34PM
An off-duty Houston police officer shot and killed a man at an apartment complex in west Houston just before noon today.
The shooting happened about 11:40 a.m. after the officer witnessed a confrontation between the man and his girlfriend at The Crossing at Old Farm apartment complex in the 2500 block of Old Farm Road, police said.
The girlfriend, who lives at the complex, was at the wheel of her car in the complex’s parking lot when her boyfriend pulled up and apparently used his RAV-4 SUV to block her car so that she couldn’t leave, said HPD spokeswoman Jodi Silva.
HPD Officer J. Falcon, who works security at the complex as an extra job, heard the couple arguing and saw the man trying to pull his girlfriend out of the car, Silva said. The man screaming at the woman and broke her driver’s side window, Silva said. A bystander also saw what was happening and tried to intervene, she said.
Meanwhile, the officer drove up in his private vehicle and identified himself as an HPD officer, Silva said. The man turned toward the officer, pulled out a gun and threatened the officer with the weapon, she said.
The officer opened fire and struck the man at least once.
The man’s name has not been released. He died at the scene. His girlfriend was not injured in the shooting, but suffered bruises from struggling with her boyfriend.
A few neighbors gathered outside the police tape at the sprawling apartment complex.
Natalie Martinez, a mother of four small children, said the shooting unnerved her. “It’s scary,” she said.
HOUSTON CHRONICLE
Sept. 3, 2010, 2:34PM
An off-duty Houston police officer shot and killed a man at an apartment complex in west Houston just before noon today.
The shooting happened about 11:40 a.m. after the officer witnessed a confrontation between the man and his girlfriend at The Crossing at Old Farm apartment complex in the 2500 block of Old Farm Road, police said.
The girlfriend, who lives at the complex, was at the wheel of her car in the complex’s parking lot when her boyfriend pulled up and apparently used his RAV-4 SUV to block her car so that she couldn’t leave, said HPD spokeswoman Jodi Silva.
HPD Officer J. Falcon, who works security at the complex as an extra job, heard the couple arguing and saw the man trying to pull his girlfriend out of the car, Silva said. The man screaming at the woman and broke her driver’s side window, Silva said. A bystander also saw what was happening and tried to intervene, she said.
Meanwhile, the officer drove up in his private vehicle and identified himself as an HPD officer, Silva said. The man turned toward the officer, pulled out a gun and threatened the officer with the weapon, she said.
The officer opened fire and struck the man at least once.
The man’s name has not been released. He died at the scene. His girlfriend was not injured in the shooting, but suffered bruises from struggling with her boyfriend.
A few neighbors gathered outside the police tape at the sprawling apartment complex.
Natalie Martinez, a mother of four small children, said the shooting unnerved her. “It’s scary,” she said.
Salt Lake City, UT: Man charged with murder in ex-girlfriend’s shooting death
By Jason Bergreen
The Salt Lake Tribune
September 2, 2010 03:39PM
Salvador Landin-Castanon
A 29-year-old man was charged Wednesday with murder for allegedly shooting his ex-girlfriend three times at a South Salt Lake apartment complex last week.
Salvador Alejandro Landin-Castanon faces the first-degree felony charge for allegedly gunning down 36-year-old Maria Monserrat Nevarez Tolentino. She was found unconscious Aug. 28 in the parking lot of the Sun River Apartments, 1080 W. 3300 South.
Nevarez Tolentino was shot twice in the upper torso and once in the head, charging documents indicate. She died in surgery at a local hospital.
Landin-Castanon allegedly shot Nevarez Tolentino about 10 p.m. as she left a family party to meet someone or go to another party, South Salt Lake police spokesman Gary Keller said.
Landin-Castanon then went to a friend’s home and told the friend he had shot his “girlfriend” three times and he hoped she was dead, charging documents indicate.
Officers later found Landin-Castanon at the friend’s house in Salt Lake City, Keller said. He was arrested without incident. Police also recovered a handgun believed to be the murder weapon.
Landin-Castanon was booked into the Salt Lake County jail. A search of Utah court records didn’t show he has a criminal history, and Keller didn’t know if there had been domestic violence in the relationship.
The Salt Lake Tribune
September 2, 2010 03:39PM
Salvador Landin-Castanon
A 29-year-old man was charged Wednesday with murder for allegedly shooting his ex-girlfriend three times at a South Salt Lake apartment complex last week.
Salvador Alejandro Landin-Castanon faces the first-degree felony charge for allegedly gunning down 36-year-old Maria Monserrat Nevarez Tolentino. She was found unconscious Aug. 28 in the parking lot of the Sun River Apartments, 1080 W. 3300 South.
Nevarez Tolentino was shot twice in the upper torso and once in the head, charging documents indicate. She died in surgery at a local hospital.
Landin-Castanon allegedly shot Nevarez Tolentino about 10 p.m. as she left a family party to meet someone or go to another party, South Salt Lake police spokesman Gary Keller said.
Landin-Castanon then went to a friend’s home and told the friend he had shot his “girlfriend” three times and he hoped she was dead, charging documents indicate.
Officers later found Landin-Castanon at the friend’s house in Salt Lake City, Keller said. He was arrested without incident. Police also recovered a handgun believed to be the murder weapon.
Landin-Castanon was booked into the Salt Lake County jail. A search of Utah court records didn’t show he has a criminal history, and Keller didn’t know if there had been domestic violence in the relationship.
Charlotte, NC: Man kills self after shooting girlfriend
By Joe Marusak
jmarusak@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Friday, Sep. 03, 2010
A man fatally shot himself early today after shooting his girlfriend in the leg during a domestic dispute at the Pines at Wendover apartments on North Wendover Road.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said they called in a SWAT team after the man barricaded himself inside the apartment shortly after midnight. The man refused to leave the apartment and at some point shot and killed himself, police said.
The woman suffered a non-lifethreatening bullet wound in one of her legs, police said.
Police haven’t yet released the identities of the man and woman this morning.
Observer news partner WCNC-TV reported that the woman is pregnant and that a child was also inside the apartment during the dispute but wasn't injured.
Anyone with information about the dispute is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600.
jmarusak@charlotteobserver.com
Posted: Friday, Sep. 03, 2010
A man fatally shot himself early today after shooting his girlfriend in the leg during a domestic dispute at the Pines at Wendover apartments on North Wendover Road.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said they called in a SWAT team after the man barricaded himself inside the apartment shortly after midnight. The man refused to leave the apartment and at some point shot and killed himself, police said.
The woman suffered a non-lifethreatening bullet wound in one of her legs, police said.
Police haven’t yet released the identities of the man and woman this morning.
Observer news partner WCNC-TV reported that the woman is pregnant and that a child was also inside the apartment during the dispute but wasn't injured.
Anyone with information about the dispute is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 704-334-1600.
Newark, NJ: Man accused of strangling ex-girlfriend had escaped from hospital
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 1, 2010, 6:58 PM
BY SHAWN BOBURG, WILLIAM LAMB, JENNIFER CUNNINGHAM AND JOHN PETRICK
THE RECORD
STAFF WRITERS
A Clifton man fled from a Newark hospital while under the supervision of parole officials — just hours before he allegedly strangled his 21-year-old ex-girlfriend on Monday and led police on a chase that ended in Ridgefield, authorities said Tuesday.
Parole officials issued a warrant for David Goodell’s arrest after he left The University Hospital, Bergen County Prosecutor John Molinelli said in a statement. Goodell had been taken to the hospital from a Newark halfway house at 11:50 p.m. Sunday night to be treated for a “purported seizure,” Molinelli said.
But by early Monday morning, Goodell had arranged a meeting with his ex-girlfriend, Viviana Tulli of Garfield, whom he allegedly strangled because she had told him she longer wanted a relationship, Molinelli said.
“I know that he was trying to reach out to her and there would be times when I don’t think she wanted to see him,” Molinelli said. “We’re pretty confident that he did this act based on the fact that she did not want to be with him.”
Goodell, 30, was charged with murder, eluding, assault by auto and two counts of aggravated assault on a police officer. He remained under guard and in stable condition at Hackensack University Medical Center on Tuesday, recovering from self-inflicted cuts to his wrists. His bail was set at $2 million.
Neal Buccino, a spokesman for the State Parole Board, confirmed Goodell was under the agency’s supervision Sunday night but said he could not provide details on how Goodell fled or how he was being supervised.
“We’re working with the prosecutor’s office on how he absconded,” Buccino said.
Molinelli said he did not yet know the details of Goodell’s supervision at University Hospital, part of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.
“I don’t think it’s a uniformed guard,” he said. “It might have been like a parole officer. I know they have guns.”
Goodell was staying at Logan Hall, a Newark residential center that works to help parolees reenter society and prevent future criminal activity, according to its website. Buccino said Tuesday night that he could not immediately provide details on Goodell’s parole conditions.
After fleeing the hospital, Goodell contacted Tulli and the two met at the Elmwood Park home of a mutual friend, Molinelli said.
Molinelli said Tulli and Goodell had dated for about a year leading up to his September imprisonment. He served five months for assaulting and threatening a previous girlfriend, court records show. But Tulli told Goodell at some point after his release from prison in February that she did not want to resume their relationship.
The exact timing of Tulli’s death was still unclear Tuesday, but Molinelli said autopsy results were expected Wednesday.
Witnesses called police Monday at 1:11 p.m. and reported seeing Goodell, bleeding and standing next to Tulli’s 2007 Nissan Versa in the parking lot of Ridgefield Park High School on Ozzie Nelson Drive. Witnesses said he had been standing in the lot for about an hour, Molinelli said.
Goodell fled in the Versa when police arrived, striking a cruiser and prompting a pursuit that ended when he rammed a second police car on a dead-end street in Ridgefield. Police found Tulli’s body in the passenger seat of the car. She had been strangled with a ligature, and Goodell had tried to kill himself by cutting his wrists with a box cutter, Molinelli said.
Ridgefield Park police spoke with high school administrators in the school’s parking lot Tuesday afternoon. School administrators declined to comment.
Family and friends gathered to grieve at Tullis’ Midland Avenue home in Garfield on Tuesday. Family members were too distraught to comment.
A man who identified himself as Viviana Tulli’s father was sitting outside with a family friend who said Tulli had a brother and sister.
She was “so young,” the friend said. “Be careful who your friends are.”
Goodell was released on parole in February from Northern State Prison in Newark after serving about five months for assaulting a police officer and making terroristic threats, according to the state Department of Corrections. Those charges came after a violent dispute with another girlfriend in 2008, according to court and police records.
Goodell was charged in October 2008 with burglary, robbery, aggravated assault and resisting arrest, according to court records. The charges stemmed from an attack and robbery of a Clifton woman, identified as Goodell’s girlfriend.
According to a police report filed in Clifton on Oct. 6, 2008, by victim Elizabeth Azzolina of 20 Kulik St., Goodell had been living at that address with her and her parents until a few days prior, when they threw him out.
He returned, according to Azzolina, demanding money from her. When she refused and asked him to leave, “he threw her to the ground and covered her mouth with his hands when she started to scream,” according to the report.
“Mr. Goodell then held her down by kneeling on her shoulders” and “threatened to choke and kill her,” the report says.
Azzolina said Goodell then took $120 cash from her room and left the scene, according to police reports.
Goodell was picked up by Clifton Police the next day as he was attempting to break into the Kulik Street home. Police charged him with resisting arrest and aggravated assault after he allegedly got into a scuffle with one of the arresting officers and later banged his head violently against the partition in the police car.
E-mail: boburg@northjersey.com, lamb@northjersey.com, petrick@northjersey.com and cunningham@northjersey.com
LAST UPDATED: WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 1, 2010, 6:58 PM
BY SHAWN BOBURG, WILLIAM LAMB, JENNIFER CUNNINGHAM AND JOHN PETRICK
THE RECORD
STAFF WRITERS
A Clifton man fled from a Newark hospital while under the supervision of parole officials — just hours before he allegedly strangled his 21-year-old ex-girlfriend on Monday and led police on a chase that ended in Ridgefield, authorities said Tuesday.
Parole officials issued a warrant for David Goodell’s arrest after he left The University Hospital, Bergen County Prosecutor John Molinelli said in a statement. Goodell had been taken to the hospital from a Newark halfway house at 11:50 p.m. Sunday night to be treated for a “purported seizure,” Molinelli said.
But by early Monday morning, Goodell had arranged a meeting with his ex-girlfriend, Viviana Tulli of Garfield, whom he allegedly strangled because she had told him she longer wanted a relationship, Molinelli said.
“I know that he was trying to reach out to her and there would be times when I don’t think she wanted to see him,” Molinelli said. “We’re pretty confident that he did this act based on the fact that she did not want to be with him.”
Goodell, 30, was charged with murder, eluding, assault by auto and two counts of aggravated assault on a police officer. He remained under guard and in stable condition at Hackensack University Medical Center on Tuesday, recovering from self-inflicted cuts to his wrists. His bail was set at $2 million.
Neal Buccino, a spokesman for the State Parole Board, confirmed Goodell was under the agency’s supervision Sunday night but said he could not provide details on how Goodell fled or how he was being supervised.
“We’re working with the prosecutor’s office on how he absconded,” Buccino said.
Molinelli said he did not yet know the details of Goodell’s supervision at University Hospital, part of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.
“I don’t think it’s a uniformed guard,” he said. “It might have been like a parole officer. I know they have guns.”
Goodell was staying at Logan Hall, a Newark residential center that works to help parolees reenter society and prevent future criminal activity, according to its website. Buccino said Tuesday night that he could not immediately provide details on Goodell’s parole conditions.
After fleeing the hospital, Goodell contacted Tulli and the two met at the Elmwood Park home of a mutual friend, Molinelli said.
Molinelli said Tulli and Goodell had dated for about a year leading up to his September imprisonment. He served five months for assaulting and threatening a previous girlfriend, court records show. But Tulli told Goodell at some point after his release from prison in February that she did not want to resume their relationship.
The exact timing of Tulli’s death was still unclear Tuesday, but Molinelli said autopsy results were expected Wednesday.
Witnesses called police Monday at 1:11 p.m. and reported seeing Goodell, bleeding and standing next to Tulli’s 2007 Nissan Versa in the parking lot of Ridgefield Park High School on Ozzie Nelson Drive. Witnesses said he had been standing in the lot for about an hour, Molinelli said.
Goodell fled in the Versa when police arrived, striking a cruiser and prompting a pursuit that ended when he rammed a second police car on a dead-end street in Ridgefield. Police found Tulli’s body in the passenger seat of the car. She had been strangled with a ligature, and Goodell had tried to kill himself by cutting his wrists with a box cutter, Molinelli said.
Ridgefield Park police spoke with high school administrators in the school’s parking lot Tuesday afternoon. School administrators declined to comment.
Family and friends gathered to grieve at Tullis’ Midland Avenue home in Garfield on Tuesday. Family members were too distraught to comment.
A man who identified himself as Viviana Tulli’s father was sitting outside with a family friend who said Tulli had a brother and sister.
She was “so young,” the friend said. “Be careful who your friends are.”
Goodell was released on parole in February from Northern State Prison in Newark after serving about five months for assaulting a police officer and making terroristic threats, according to the state Department of Corrections. Those charges came after a violent dispute with another girlfriend in 2008, according to court and police records.
Goodell was charged in October 2008 with burglary, robbery, aggravated assault and resisting arrest, according to court records. The charges stemmed from an attack and robbery of a Clifton woman, identified as Goodell’s girlfriend.
According to a police report filed in Clifton on Oct. 6, 2008, by victim Elizabeth Azzolina of 20 Kulik St., Goodell had been living at that address with her and her parents until a few days prior, when they threw him out.
He returned, according to Azzolina, demanding money from her. When she refused and asked him to leave, “he threw her to the ground and covered her mouth with his hands when she started to scream,” according to the report.
“Mr. Goodell then held her down by kneeling on her shoulders” and “threatened to choke and kill her,” the report says.
Azzolina said Goodell then took $120 cash from her room and left the scene, according to police reports.
Goodell was picked up by Clifton Police the next day as he was attempting to break into the Kulik Street home. Police charged him with resisting arrest and aggravated assault after he allegedly got into a scuffle with one of the arresting officers and later banged his head violently against the partition in the police car.
E-mail: boburg@northjersey.com, lamb@northjersey.com, petrick@northjersey.com and cunningham@northjersey.com
Los Angeles, CA: O.C. man charged with wife's murder
By My-Thuan Tran, Los Angeles Times
Story posted 2010.08.31 at 07:54 PM PDT
Marcia and Richard Forsberg had the appearance of the perfect couple — holding hands, stealing kisses and still joking around after 39 years of marriage.
The Rancho Santa Margarita couple met in a journalism class at Ventura College. She became a newspaper features writer and editor, while he went to work for a community college. They were active in their homeowners association and always seemed to be in a good mood. They were the kind of people who stayed in touch with old friends.
So their neighbors in south Orange County noticed when they did not see Marcia, 61, waving to her husband as he drove off to work in February. Friends wondered why they weren't receiving birthday cards. Phone calls weren't returned.
On Tuesday, some grisly answers began to emerge. Richard Forsberg, 61, was arrested Monday night at a Palm Springs hospital after an apparent suicide attempt and was charged with his wife's murder. Detectives, meanwhile, searched around campsites at Lake Piru in Ventura County for her body and sifted through the fire rings.
Deputies said they suspect that the couple, who had no children, got into a fight in their home in February and that Richard Forsberg struck his wife repeatedly in the head with a small statue, according to the Orange County district attorney's office.
Authorities believe Forsberg kept his wife's body in their home for several days before renting an RV and driving the body to the Lake Piru area.
For the next six months, Forsberg covered up his wife's death, telling friends and neighbors a variety of stories, authorities said.
Careen Aburto, who lives next to the couple's tan two-story condominium, noticed in March that it had been several weeks since she had seen Marcia Forsberg, who used to light fireworks with her on the Fourth of July and walk down the street banging pots on New Year's Eve.
Aburto said Richard Forsberg was acting differently too: He started planting strawberries and tomatoes in the backyard, strung up a hammock, parked his car in front of the house instead of in the garage.
"These things struck me as odd," she said. "It was out of character for him."
Forsberg told her that the couple were having marital problems and that his wife was staying in Arizona but would return for their 40th anniversary in September, Aburto said.
Several weeks later, Forsberg told her that the couple were separated and that Marcia was not returning, Aburto said. She found it strange that he did not appear upset at this news. "He acted almost jovial," she said. "It was ridiculous."
Then, Aburto said, she received a letter from an old friend of Marcia's that worried her.
Cathleen DeRemer had not heard from her best friend for months. The two met in seventh grade in Ojai and had kept in touch over the decades, exchanging e-mails and letters between visits. At first, DeRemer thought the Forsbergs were on vacation.
She said she knew something was very wrong when she did not receive a birthday card from her old friend in May. DeRemer said other close friends were worried as well.
DeRemer said she contacted Richard Forsberg, who wrote in an e-mail that he and his wife were having marital problems and that she was staying with a friend.
"That made me feel better," said DeRemer, 61. "I never had a reason to disbelieve him."
When August came without any word, she said, she wrote letters to Marcia Forsberg's brother and Aburto. DeRemer said both shared her concerns.
On Aug. 23 — roughly six months after the alleged beating death — DeRemer filed a missing person's report with the Orange County Sheriff's Department. The next day, deputies interviewed Richard Forsberg, said Jim Amormino, spokesman for the department. Deputies returned several days later with a search warrant and found that Forsberg had disappeared.
On Monday, Forsberg was admitted to a Palm Springs hospital, where a worker recognized him from a newscast and contacted authorities, Amormino said. Forsberg, who authorities said took an overdose of sleeping pills after a night of gambling, was arrested and held without bail.
The next day, sheriff's investigators recovered several items in the fire pits at Lake Piru's recreational area, Amormino said. The items will be tested, said Amormino, who declined to elaborate on the nature of the items.
As the story unfolded, friends reacted with surprise. They remember Marcia as a bubbly woman who had a master's degree in art, worked as a features writer at the Daily Pilot and later at Modern Maturity magazine, and seemed happily married. Richard worked in applications development at the Coast Community College District.
"They were a real golden couple," said Rick Manly, a longtime friend of the couple and senior writer of university publications at Cal State Long Beach. "This is the last couple I ever would have expected this to happen to."
my-thuan.tran@latimes.com
Times staff photographer Mark Boster contributed to this report.
Story posted 2010.08.31 at 07:54 PM PDT
Marcia and Richard Forsberg had the appearance of the perfect couple — holding hands, stealing kisses and still joking around after 39 years of marriage.
The Rancho Santa Margarita couple met in a journalism class at Ventura College. She became a newspaper features writer and editor, while he went to work for a community college. They were active in their homeowners association and always seemed to be in a good mood. They were the kind of people who stayed in touch with old friends.
So their neighbors in south Orange County noticed when they did not see Marcia, 61, waving to her husband as he drove off to work in February. Friends wondered why they weren't receiving birthday cards. Phone calls weren't returned.
On Tuesday, some grisly answers began to emerge. Richard Forsberg, 61, was arrested Monday night at a Palm Springs hospital after an apparent suicide attempt and was charged with his wife's murder. Detectives, meanwhile, searched around campsites at Lake Piru in Ventura County for her body and sifted through the fire rings.
Deputies said they suspect that the couple, who had no children, got into a fight in their home in February and that Richard Forsberg struck his wife repeatedly in the head with a small statue, according to the Orange County district attorney's office.
Authorities believe Forsberg kept his wife's body in their home for several days before renting an RV and driving the body to the Lake Piru area.
For the next six months, Forsberg covered up his wife's death, telling friends and neighbors a variety of stories, authorities said.
Careen Aburto, who lives next to the couple's tan two-story condominium, noticed in March that it had been several weeks since she had seen Marcia Forsberg, who used to light fireworks with her on the Fourth of July and walk down the street banging pots on New Year's Eve.
Aburto said Richard Forsberg was acting differently too: He started planting strawberries and tomatoes in the backyard, strung up a hammock, parked his car in front of the house instead of in the garage.
"These things struck me as odd," she said. "It was out of character for him."
Forsberg told her that the couple were having marital problems and that his wife was staying in Arizona but would return for their 40th anniversary in September, Aburto said.
Several weeks later, Forsberg told her that the couple were separated and that Marcia was not returning, Aburto said. She found it strange that he did not appear upset at this news. "He acted almost jovial," she said. "It was ridiculous."
Then, Aburto said, she received a letter from an old friend of Marcia's that worried her.
Cathleen DeRemer had not heard from her best friend for months. The two met in seventh grade in Ojai and had kept in touch over the decades, exchanging e-mails and letters between visits. At first, DeRemer thought the Forsbergs were on vacation.
She said she knew something was very wrong when she did not receive a birthday card from her old friend in May. DeRemer said other close friends were worried as well.
DeRemer said she contacted Richard Forsberg, who wrote in an e-mail that he and his wife were having marital problems and that she was staying with a friend.
"That made me feel better," said DeRemer, 61. "I never had a reason to disbelieve him."
When August came without any word, she said, she wrote letters to Marcia Forsberg's brother and Aburto. DeRemer said both shared her concerns.
On Aug. 23 — roughly six months after the alleged beating death — DeRemer filed a missing person's report with the Orange County Sheriff's Department. The next day, deputies interviewed Richard Forsberg, said Jim Amormino, spokesman for the department. Deputies returned several days later with a search warrant and found that Forsberg had disappeared.
On Monday, Forsberg was admitted to a Palm Springs hospital, where a worker recognized him from a newscast and contacted authorities, Amormino said. Forsberg, who authorities said took an overdose of sleeping pills after a night of gambling, was arrested and held without bail.
The next day, sheriff's investigators recovered several items in the fire pits at Lake Piru's recreational area, Amormino said. The items will be tested, said Amormino, who declined to elaborate on the nature of the items.
As the story unfolded, friends reacted with surprise. They remember Marcia as a bubbly woman who had a master's degree in art, worked as a features writer at the Daily Pilot and later at Modern Maturity magazine, and seemed happily married. Richard worked in applications development at the Coast Community College District.
"They were a real golden couple," said Rick Manly, a longtime friend of the couple and senior writer of university publications at Cal State Long Beach. "This is the last couple I ever would have expected this to happen to."
my-thuan.tran@latimes.com
Times staff photographer Mark Boster contributed to this report.
Atascadero, CA: Atascadero Man To Face Trial For Wife's Death
Atascadero, CA -- An Atascadero man who allegedly admitted to bludgeoning his wife to death with a hammer will stand trial. Judge Barry LaBarbera ruled Tuesday in a preliminary hearing that 67-year-old Kenneth Cockrell would face charges for the death of his 69-year-old wife Margaret. He has pleaded not guilty.
Cockrell was arrested on Easter Sunday 2008 after he calmly entered the Atascadero Police Department and said he killed his wife. Cockrell was initially found incompetent to stand trial and was treated in a state institution. In the spring, he was determined capable of understanding the charges against him, and criminal proceedings have resumed. Cockrell is scheduled for further arraignment on September 14.
Cockrell was arrested on Easter Sunday 2008 after he calmly entered the Atascadero Police Department and said he killed his wife. Cockrell was initially found incompetent to stand trial and was treated in a state institution. In the spring, he was determined capable of understanding the charges against him, and criminal proceedings have resumed. Cockrell is scheduled for further arraignment on September 14.
Upper Marlboro, MD: Upper Marlboro man sentenced to life term in wife's death
By Ruben Castaneda
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, August 27, 2010; B01
For more than an hour, Spencer Ellsworth Chase listened as relatives and friends of the wife he'd murdered told a Prince George's County judge that he deserved no leniency, countering his defense attorney and supporters, who argued for mercy.
When it was his turn to speak, Chase, clad in an orange jail jumpsuit, stood and told Circuit Court Judge Beverly J. Woodard, "I did not kill my wife, your honor."
Chase, 50, then asked for mercy.
"I heard all the evidence in this case," Woodard said. "You killed your wife. There's no doubt in my mind you killed Antoinette Chase."
Woodard sentenced Chase to life in prison.
Relatives and friends of Antoinette Chase hugged Assistant State's Attorneys Ann Wagner-Stewart and Saman Danai as well as Benjamin Brown, the Prince George's homicide detective who tracked down key evidence.
Shortly after noon on May 20, 2008, Spencer Chase called 911 to report that he had found Antoinette Renee Chase, 46, facedown on the floor with an extension cord around her neck when he returned to their Upper Marlboro home after running errands, according to trial testimony. She was taken to Prince George's Hospital Center and pronounced dead.
Eight months earlier, in October 2007, county police had charged Spencer Chase with assaulting her. Those charges were dropped when she declined to proceed with the case.
In June, a Circuit Court jury convicted Chase of first-degree murder. An earlier trial ended in a mistrial when the jury failed to reach a verdict.
Antoinette's daughter, Monique Davis, 27, said she was pleased with her stepfather's sentence. "I'm very glad that it's come to an end," she said.
After her mother's slaying, Davis said, Chase called and asked her whether she had received any life insurance money but exhibited no grief.
Antoinette Chase worked as an analyst for the Department of Homeland Security and was the couple's primary wage earner, Davis said. Spencer Chase worked in a nursing home, she said.
Antoinette was in the process of splitting from her husband when she was killed, prosecutors said.
On the day his wife was killed, Chase told police that he had left the house about an hour earlier to run errands and left his wife's car running in the driveway with the garage door open.
Some of Antoinette's personal items -- her wedding ring, her cellphone and her BlackBerry -- were missing. Police obtained a warrant to have the victim's service provider "ping," or send signals to, her BlackBerry, according to trial testimony.
An initial search by police in the Glenn Dale area, about six miles away, was fruitless. However, Brown, the homicide detective, used his own hand-held GPS device to narrow the location of the signal and began opening storm drain covers, according to trial testimony and court records.
When Brown flipped open the third storm drain cover, he found the victim's cellphone, her BlackBerry, her wedding ring and her purse, containing her credit cards. Brown also found a plastic bag containing work gloves and rubber-soled water shoes.
The shoes were size 11 -- the same size Spencer Chase wears, according to trial testimony. Tests determined that the gloves contained DNA from both Antoinette and Spencer Chase.
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, August 27, 2010; B01
For more than an hour, Spencer Ellsworth Chase listened as relatives and friends of the wife he'd murdered told a Prince George's County judge that he deserved no leniency, countering his defense attorney and supporters, who argued for mercy.
When it was his turn to speak, Chase, clad in an orange jail jumpsuit, stood and told Circuit Court Judge Beverly J. Woodard, "I did not kill my wife, your honor."
Chase, 50, then asked for mercy.
"I heard all the evidence in this case," Woodard said. "You killed your wife. There's no doubt in my mind you killed Antoinette Chase."
Woodard sentenced Chase to life in prison.
Relatives and friends of Antoinette Chase hugged Assistant State's Attorneys Ann Wagner-Stewart and Saman Danai as well as Benjamin Brown, the Prince George's homicide detective who tracked down key evidence.
Shortly after noon on May 20, 2008, Spencer Chase called 911 to report that he had found Antoinette Renee Chase, 46, facedown on the floor with an extension cord around her neck when he returned to their Upper Marlboro home after running errands, according to trial testimony. She was taken to Prince George's Hospital Center and pronounced dead.
Eight months earlier, in October 2007, county police had charged Spencer Chase with assaulting her. Those charges were dropped when she declined to proceed with the case.
In June, a Circuit Court jury convicted Chase of first-degree murder. An earlier trial ended in a mistrial when the jury failed to reach a verdict.
Antoinette's daughter, Monique Davis, 27, said she was pleased with her stepfather's sentence. "I'm very glad that it's come to an end," she said.
After her mother's slaying, Davis said, Chase called and asked her whether she had received any life insurance money but exhibited no grief.
Antoinette Chase worked as an analyst for the Department of Homeland Security and was the couple's primary wage earner, Davis said. Spencer Chase worked in a nursing home, she said.
Antoinette was in the process of splitting from her husband when she was killed, prosecutors said.
On the day his wife was killed, Chase told police that he had left the house about an hour earlier to run errands and left his wife's car running in the driveway with the garage door open.
Some of Antoinette's personal items -- her wedding ring, her cellphone and her BlackBerry -- were missing. Police obtained a warrant to have the victim's service provider "ping," or send signals to, her BlackBerry, according to trial testimony.
An initial search by police in the Glenn Dale area, about six miles away, was fruitless. However, Brown, the homicide detective, used his own hand-held GPS device to narrow the location of the signal and began opening storm drain covers, according to trial testimony and court records.
When Brown flipped open the third storm drain cover, he found the victim's cellphone, her BlackBerry, her wedding ring and her purse, containing her credit cards. Brown also found a plastic bag containing work gloves and rubber-soled water shoes.
The shoes were size 11 -- the same size Spencer Chase wears, according to trial testimony. Tests determined that the gloves contained DNA from both Antoinette and Spencer Chase.
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