A Greenville man is in jail in Georgia today after police say he strangled his girlfriend in her Nicholtown Green apartment last weekend.
Nathaniel Bernard Beeks, 47, of 15 Hamilton Ave., is charged with murder in the April 23 death of 51-year-old Marsha Anita Smith, an arrest warrant alleges.
Authorities arrested Beeks in DeKalb County, Ga., on Thursday, and he awaits extradition in the Doraville, Ga., “as soon as possible,” Greenville Police Sgt. Jason Rampey said.
Police had been looking for Beeks since Smith’s body was discovered in her apartment and an autopsy on Monday found she had been strangled, Rampey said.
Family members of Smith’s told police that Beeks had called Smith to her apartment at 10 McCullough Street, Apt. # 1102, so that he could “get his belongings,” the murder warrant alleges.
Shortly after Smith arrived at her apartment, her 23-year-old daughter arrived with another witness and saw Beeks leave the apartment, according to the warrant.
The daughter then saw Beeks drive away in Smith’s Honda Civic, according to the murder warrant and a grand larceny warrant that accuses Beeks of stealing the car.
Smith was found dead moments later with outward signs of trauma to her neck and internal signs of “manual strangulation,” the murder warrant alleges.
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Aiken, SC: Wilson Smith Jr. named a suspect in wife's murder
Probate documents obtained by the Aiken Standard show Aiken Public Safety has considered Wilson Smith Jr. a suspect in the murder of his wife, Kennedy Middle School teacher Ann Fox Smith, since 2008. In the years since the teacher was found stabbed to death police have refused to characterize anyone as a suspect in the case publicly.
Cleveland, OH: Cold Blood: Husband indicted, faces death penalty in cold-blooded murder for hire
CLEVELAND, OH (WOIO) -
The husband accused of hiring a man to murder his wife has been indicted and faces the death penalty if convicted.
Cops say 21-year-old Samuel Wilson hired 25-year-old Darin Brusiter II to shoot his wife.
Bruister also indicted, and faces the death penalty.
Asia Harris was shot in the head in her husband's car earlier this month near East 37th and Croton Avenue.
The gun had a make-shift silencer.
At first, Wilson told police his wife was fatally shot by a stranger when they stopped to ask for directions.
Cops say Wilson told Brusiter he would pay him from the proceeds of his wife's life insurance.
The husband accused of hiring a man to murder his wife has been indicted and faces the death penalty if convicted.
Cops say 21-year-old Samuel Wilson hired 25-year-old Darin Brusiter II to shoot his wife.
Bruister also indicted, and faces the death penalty.
Asia Harris was shot in the head in her husband's car earlier this month near East 37th and Croton Avenue.
The gun had a make-shift silencer.
At first, Wilson told police his wife was fatally shot by a stranger when they stopped to ask for directions.
Cops say Wilson told Brusiter he would pay him from the proceeds of his wife's life insurance.
Plymouth, MA: DA releases identity of female victim in alleged Plymouth murder-suicide
PLYMOUTH —
Investigators have released the identity of a woman found bludgeoned to death in her home after police witnessed her husband sever his femoral artery with a power saw in what officials are calling an apparent murder-suicide.
Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz’s office on Friday identified the woman as 55-year-old Jettie Lincoln. She was found in her bed covered with a blanket, along with the couple’s two dogs, which had also been killed. At the foot of the bed, police discovered a blood-stained mason’s hammer found to be consistent with her injuries.
Police discovered the grisly scene on Monday after responding to the house at 7 Farmhurst Road for a well-being check. They found Lincoln’s husband, 49-year-old Keith Lincoln, sitting on his living room couch. As they stood in the doorway, Lincoln picked up a circular saw and cut his leg.
As the officers tried to slow the bleeding, Lincoln told them he had killed his wife and their the dogs, according to a press release from Cruz’s office.
The husband was rushed to Jordan Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
In a press release sent out Friday afternoon, a spokesman for Cruz’s office said the woman was killed by blunt force trauma to the head and that she appeared to have been dead for “an extended period of time.”
Read more: http://www.patriotledger.com/news/cops_and_courts/x1336254372/DA-releases-identity-of-female-victim-in-alleged-Plymouth-murder-suicide#ixzz1KztSEjac
Investigators have released the identity of a woman found bludgeoned to death in her home after police witnessed her husband sever his femoral artery with a power saw in what officials are calling an apparent murder-suicide.
Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz’s office on Friday identified the woman as 55-year-old Jettie Lincoln. She was found in her bed covered with a blanket, along with the couple’s two dogs, which had also been killed. At the foot of the bed, police discovered a blood-stained mason’s hammer found to be consistent with her injuries.
Police discovered the grisly scene on Monday after responding to the house at 7 Farmhurst Road for a well-being check. They found Lincoln’s husband, 49-year-old Keith Lincoln, sitting on his living room couch. As they stood in the doorway, Lincoln picked up a circular saw and cut his leg.
As the officers tried to slow the bleeding, Lincoln told them he had killed his wife and their the dogs, according to a press release from Cruz’s office.
The husband was rushed to Jordan Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
In a press release sent out Friday afternoon, a spokesman for Cruz’s office said the woman was killed by blunt force trauma to the head and that she appeared to have been dead for “an extended period of time.”
Read more: http://www.patriotledger.com/news/cops_and_courts/x1336254372/DA-releases-identity-of-female-victim-in-alleged-Plymouth-murder-suicide#ixzz1KztSEjac
Red Bluff, CA: Red Bluff police: pair found dead inside residence may be murder-suicide
Red Bluff police said today a domestic violence murder-suicide may be the cause of two dead bodies officers found Wednesday morning.
At about 8:12 a.m. Wednesday officers responded to the 1,100 block of First Street in Red bluff to find the bodies of Doyal William Meeks, 52, and Migdalia Phillips, 42, said Sgt. Dan Flowerdew of the Red Bluff Police Department.
An autopsy at the Yolo County Coroner’s Office determined that Meeks and Phillips died from a single gunshot wound each.
Meeks and Phillips lived together at the First Street home and there were no witnesses to their deaths, Flowerdew said.
The California Department of Justice is investigating the case and more information may be released when that investigation is complete, Flowerdew said.
At about 8:12 a.m. Wednesday officers responded to the 1,100 block of First Street in Red bluff to find the bodies of Doyal William Meeks, 52, and Migdalia Phillips, 42, said Sgt. Dan Flowerdew of the Red Bluff Police Department.
An autopsy at the Yolo County Coroner’s Office determined that Meeks and Phillips died from a single gunshot wound each.
Meeks and Phillips lived together at the First Street home and there were no witnesses to their deaths, Flowerdew said.
The California Department of Justice is investigating the case and more information may be released when that investigation is complete, Flowerdew said.
Shiloh, OH: Elderly Couple Found Shot To Death
An elderly couple are dead in an apparent murder-suicide, although investigators have not confirmed that.
Harold and Virginia Smedley, both 79, were found shot to death on the second floor of their home at 1848 Shatzer Road, Shiloh.
Sheriff's Captain Eric Bosko says the deaths were reported shortly before 10:30 Friday morning.
Bosko and investigators with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation were on the scene for nearly six hours.
Richland County Coroner Stewart Ryckman came to the scene for a while then left without removing the bodies. He was later called back to take them to the morgue.
The names of the deceased couple have not been released. Captain Bosko would not say how many gunshot wounds each suffered. He says there were no signs of forced entry into the home.
Family members and friends waited in the yard, talking quietly and occasionally crying and hugging.
An autopsy is scheduled for Saturday at the Summit County Medical Examiner's Office.
Harold and Virginia Smedley, both 79, were found shot to death on the second floor of their home at 1848 Shatzer Road, Shiloh.
Sheriff's Captain Eric Bosko says the deaths were reported shortly before 10:30 Friday morning.
Bosko and investigators with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation were on the scene for nearly six hours.
Richland County Coroner Stewart Ryckman came to the scene for a while then left without removing the bodies. He was later called back to take them to the morgue.
The names of the deceased couple have not been released. Captain Bosko would not say how many gunshot wounds each suffered. He says there were no signs of forced entry into the home.
Family members and friends waited in the yard, talking quietly and occasionally crying and hugging.
An autopsy is scheduled for Saturday at the Summit County Medical Examiner's Office.
Douglas County, GA: Man shoots, kills self after alleged domestic dispute Read more: Times-Georgian - Man shoots kills self after alleged domestic dispute
A domestic violence suspect turned a gun on himself and took his own life Friday after being confronted by a Douglas County deputy.
Authorities identified the man as James Monroe Davis, 47, Lithia Springs. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 10:05 a.m. of a single gunshot wound to the head, said Coroner Randy Daniel.
According to Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. John Sweat, the department received several calls about 9 a.m. of a domestic situation between a man and woman at the Wesley Creekside Apartments on Skyview Drive in Lithia Springs.
“Callers said a man was dragging a woman across the parking lot and beating her,” Sweat said. “She broke away and ran to the leasing office, and the suspect rode his bike across the street to an abandoned shed.”
Sweat said the suspect was encountered by a deputy who tried to negotiate with him for about five minutes.
“The suspect pulled a handgun from his back, put it to his head and shot himself,” Sweat said.
Davis’ body was sent to the State Crime Lab in Atlanta for an autopsy, Daniel said.
Read more: Times-Georgian - Man shoots kills self after alleged domestic dispute
Authorities identified the man as James Monroe Davis, 47, Lithia Springs. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 10:05 a.m. of a single gunshot wound to the head, said Coroner Randy Daniel.
According to Douglas County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. John Sweat, the department received several calls about 9 a.m. of a domestic situation between a man and woman at the Wesley Creekside Apartments on Skyview Drive in Lithia Springs.
“Callers said a man was dragging a woman across the parking lot and beating her,” Sweat said. “She broke away and ran to the leasing office, and the suspect rode his bike across the street to an abandoned shed.”
Sweat said the suspect was encountered by a deputy who tried to negotiate with him for about five minutes.
“The suspect pulled a handgun from his back, put it to his head and shot himself,” Sweat said.
Davis’ body was sent to the State Crime Lab in Atlanta for an autopsy, Daniel said.
Read more: Times-Georgian - Man shoots kills self after alleged domestic dispute
Newark, CA: Newark Man Faces Arraignment Today in Stabbing Death
he Newark man arrested on suspicion of murder Wednesday morning is scheduled to be arraigned at 2 p.m. today at the Fremont Hall of Justice.
Jason Otis Monroe, 33, was arrested by Newark police after a woman was found dead, apparently of stab wounds, in what is said to be his home on the 36600 block of Cherry Street, police said.
The woman was identified Thursday as Evangeline Supeda Contillo. She was 25. Police have not disclosed whether she is a Newark resident.
Newark police found Monroe with his clothes and hands bloodied at 11:31 a.m. Wednesday in front of the residence, according to Commander Bob Douglas of the Newark Police Department.
Neither Contillo's cause of death nor a possible motive had been released by authorities as of 10 p.m. Thursday.
Efforts to reach the Monroe family at the residence were unsuccessful Thursday, but a simple memorial sat on the porch of the Cherry Street home.
Newark Patch has not been able to contact the Contillo family yet, but what appears to be a memorial page in Contillo's name has been created on Facebook.
No other information has been released police, and the investigation is ongoing. Police did confirm that they have been called to the residence before.
"Newark Police Department has responded to that address several times and has contacted Mr. Monroe," Douglas said at a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
Monroe is being held without bail at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin.
Jason Otis Monroe, 33, was arrested by Newark police after a woman was found dead, apparently of stab wounds, in what is said to be his home on the 36600 block of Cherry Street, police said.
The woman was identified Thursday as Evangeline Supeda Contillo. She was 25. Police have not disclosed whether she is a Newark resident.
Newark police found Monroe with his clothes and hands bloodied at 11:31 a.m. Wednesday in front of the residence, according to Commander Bob Douglas of the Newark Police Department.
Neither Contillo's cause of death nor a possible motive had been released by authorities as of 10 p.m. Thursday.
Efforts to reach the Monroe family at the residence were unsuccessful Thursday, but a simple memorial sat on the porch of the Cherry Street home.
Newark Patch has not been able to contact the Contillo family yet, but what appears to be a memorial page in Contillo's name has been created on Facebook.
No other information has been released police, and the investigation is ongoing. Police did confirm that they have been called to the residence before.
"Newark Police Department has responded to that address several times and has contacted Mr. Monroe," Douglas said at a press conference Wednesday afternoon.
Monroe is being held without bail at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Springfield, IL: Evidence points to murder-suicide in Watch Ave. killings
The shooting deaths of a woman and a man inside a Watch Avenue apartment appear to be a murder-suicide, Springfield police said Thursday, but they want to wait for autopsy results before saying for sure.
“Everything we’ve gathered so far points in that direction,” said Deputy Police Chief Cliff Buscher.
Autopsies will take place today on the bodies of Keon Rice, 28, and Jamie Weickart, 30, who reportedly had been dating.
Who shot whom will be verified then, Buscher said.
A family member who shared an apartment at 2124 Watch Ave. with Weickart returned home about 4 p.m. Wednesday to find the bodies inside. Both suffered gunshot wounds, authorities said.
Buscher said police were trying to confirm when the two last were heard from.
"We're still investigating it. We're not going to definitively say this is what it is until we have everything," he said.
Jayette Bolinski can be reached at 788-1530.
“Everything we’ve gathered so far points in that direction,” said Deputy Police Chief Cliff Buscher.
Autopsies will take place today on the bodies of Keon Rice, 28, and Jamie Weickart, 30, who reportedly had been dating.
Who shot whom will be verified then, Buscher said.
A family member who shared an apartment at 2124 Watch Ave. with Weickart returned home about 4 p.m. Wednesday to find the bodies inside. Both suffered gunshot wounds, authorities said.
Buscher said police were trying to confirm when the two last were heard from.
"We're still investigating it. We're not going to definitively say this is what it is until we have everything," he said.
Jayette Bolinski can be reached at 788-1530.
Jefferson City, MO:Wife accused in husband's murder to appear in court
The wife of a former Jefferson City police officer murdered on New Year's Day has a court appearance today. Her preliminary hearing is at 9:00 Friday morning.
37 year old Sandra Plunkett is currently in the Callaway County Jail. She's charged with first degree murder in the shooting death of her husband, 52 year old Paul Plunkett.
Holts Summit police said Plunkett confessed to shooting her husband in the back of the head with a rifle while he was lying in a hospital bed in the couple's bedroom.
37 year old Sandra Plunkett is currently in the Callaway County Jail. She's charged with first degree murder in the shooting death of her husband, 52 year old Paul Plunkett.
Holts Summit police said Plunkett confessed to shooting her husband in the back of the head with a rifle while he was lying in a hospital bed in the couple's bedroom.
Lowell, MA: Lowell man charged with beaing his wife, a mother of four, to death
A Lowell mother of four children was beaten to death with a mallet and her husband is now charged with murdering her, according to the office of Middlesex District Attorney Gerard T. Leone Jr.
The woman was identified as 60-year-old Son Tran. Prosecutors allege that she was killed by her husband, identified as 62-year-old The Tran. The husband is charged with murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, prosecutors said.
The Tran is scheduled to be arraigned later today in Lowell District Court.
“This is a tragic domestic violence homicide where we allege the defendant was abusive and controlling over his wife, ultimately bludgeoning her to death in their home,” Leone said in a statement today. “Our thoughts are with the victim’s family, including her four children.”
Prosecutors said Lowell police rushed to the couple's home at 34 Walnut Street around 9:30 p.m. Thursday where they found Son Tran's body. She was pronounced dead the scene.
The Tran was also in the same building and was charged with killing his wife. "It is alleged that the defendant repeatedly beat the victim with a mallet,'' prosecutors said in the statement.
The woman was identified as 60-year-old Son Tran. Prosecutors allege that she was killed by her husband, identified as 62-year-old The Tran. The husband is charged with murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, prosecutors said.
The Tran is scheduled to be arraigned later today in Lowell District Court.
“This is a tragic domestic violence homicide where we allege the defendant was abusive and controlling over his wife, ultimately bludgeoning her to death in their home,” Leone said in a statement today. “Our thoughts are with the victim’s family, including her four children.”
Prosecutors said Lowell police rushed to the couple's home at 34 Walnut Street around 9:30 p.m. Thursday where they found Son Tran's body. She was pronounced dead the scene.
The Tran was also in the same building and was charged with killing his wife. "It is alleged that the defendant repeatedly beat the victim with a mallet,'' prosecutors said in the statement.
Chicago, IL: Pair Charged in Murder of Pregnant Teen
The strangulation death of a pregnant Alsip teen, whose body was found in a Cook County forest preserve near Calumet City last weekend, had been planned out for weeks, Sheriff Tom Dart said Thursday.
Rosemary Newman, 18, was killed last Saturday by her unborn child's father and his current girlfriend, Dart alleged in a statement released Thursday.
Deandre Minkins, 20, and Shante Thomas, 19, have each been charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of intentional homicide of an unborn child.
They're both expected to appear in bond court Friday morning.
According to the sheriff's department:
The investigation revealed that Minkens and Thomas spent several weeks developing a plan to murder the victim, who was nine months pregnant with Minkens’ child. Last Saturday night, Minkens invited Newman to dinner at a Crestwood restaurant while Thomas hid in the vehicle, waiting for them to come back. The couple returned to the car and as Minkens drove east, Thomas emerged and began strangling Newman. Both Minkens and Thomas then proceeded to beat the victim until she was unconscious. Minkens then drove to a Cook County Forest Preserve near Calumet City, where he strangled Newman to death and dumped her body in the woods.
Newman's body was found by a man walking his dog near Freeland Avenue and Warren Street, in Calumet City.
Her family told the Chicago Tribune that she was excited to become a mother.
Rosemary Newman, 18, was killed last Saturday by her unborn child's father and his current girlfriend, Dart alleged in a statement released Thursday.
Deandre Minkins, 20, and Shante Thomas, 19, have each been charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of intentional homicide of an unborn child.
They're both expected to appear in bond court Friday morning.
According to the sheriff's department:
The investigation revealed that Minkens and Thomas spent several weeks developing a plan to murder the victim, who was nine months pregnant with Minkens’ child. Last Saturday night, Minkens invited Newman to dinner at a Crestwood restaurant while Thomas hid in the vehicle, waiting for them to come back. The couple returned to the car and as Minkens drove east, Thomas emerged and began strangling Newman. Both Minkens and Thomas then proceeded to beat the victim until she was unconscious. Minkens then drove to a Cook County Forest Preserve near Calumet City, where he strangled Newman to death and dumped her body in the woods.
Newman's body was found by a man walking his dog near Freeland Avenue and Warren Street, in Calumet City.
Her family told the Chicago Tribune that she was excited to become a mother.
Beaumont, TX: Man indicted for murder; confessed to KFDM News
BEAUMONT - The Jefferson County grand jury has returned a murder indictment against a man who admitted to KFDM News he stabbed and killed his girlfriend because of jealousy.
The grand jury indicted Roy James Samuel, 55, on a charge of murder.
Loretta Lynn Harris, 43, was stabbed in the chest in her home at 4135 Jeanette in northeast Beaumont shortly before 4 a.m. Saturday, April 2.
Beaumont Police Ofc. Carol Riley told KFDM News on April 2 that Samuel arranged to surrender at the Jefferson County Jail. He was transported to the Beaumont Police station for questioning before officers returned him to jail.
His bond was set at $100,000.
KFDM reporter Ron Reynolds interviewed Samuel while officers were escorting him into the police station for questioning April 2.
Ron Reynolds: "Did you kill your ex-girlfriend?"
Samuel: "Yes."
Ron Reynolds: "Why did you do it?"
Samuel: "Jealous."
Ron Reynolds: "Why were you jealous?"
Samuel: "Because she left with another man last night after I asked her not to."
Ron Reynolds: "Are your remorseful?"
Samuel: "Yes, sir."
Samuel was Harris' ex-boyfriend.
Harris' male roommate told KFDM News he and another woman in the home woke up and heard Harris screaming and saw that she had been stabbed. The man said Harris told them to call 911 before she passed out.
Police and paramedics responded. Harris died at Christus Hospital St. Elizabeth.
Ofc. Riley said before Harris lost consciousness, she told her roommates who stabbed her, uttering the initials 'R.J.'
Riley said the roommates knew the man and gave police enough information to identify him.
The grand jury indicted Roy James Samuel, 55, on a charge of murder.
Loretta Lynn Harris, 43, was stabbed in the chest in her home at 4135 Jeanette in northeast Beaumont shortly before 4 a.m. Saturday, April 2.
Beaumont Police Ofc. Carol Riley told KFDM News on April 2 that Samuel arranged to surrender at the Jefferson County Jail. He was transported to the Beaumont Police station for questioning before officers returned him to jail.
His bond was set at $100,000.
KFDM reporter Ron Reynolds interviewed Samuel while officers were escorting him into the police station for questioning April 2.
Ron Reynolds: "Did you kill your ex-girlfriend?"
Samuel: "Yes."
Ron Reynolds: "Why did you do it?"
Samuel: "Jealous."
Ron Reynolds: "Why were you jealous?"
Samuel: "Because she left with another man last night after I asked her not to."
Ron Reynolds: "Are your remorseful?"
Samuel: "Yes, sir."
Samuel was Harris' ex-boyfriend.
Harris' male roommate told KFDM News he and another woman in the home woke up and heard Harris screaming and saw that she had been stabbed. The man said Harris told them to call 911 before she passed out.
Police and paramedics responded. Harris died at Christus Hospital St. Elizabeth.
Ofc. Riley said before Harris lost consciousness, she told her roommates who stabbed her, uttering the initials 'R.J.'
Riley said the roommates knew the man and gave police enough information to identify him.
Article: Student-athletes learn about domestic violence
A year after college lacrosse player Yeardley Love was killed and her ex-boyfriend was arrested in her death, Baltimore-area high school athletes from private and public schools were told they should intervene if they suspect a friend may be in trouble.
Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger told a group of students and coaches at a conference Thursday that it appears that friends had known about fights between Love and her former boyfriend, George Huguely V, but that they didn't go to parents, coaches or police to report the problems.
Excessive texting, explosive anger, jealousy and mood swings are all warnings signs of domestic violence, he said. "You need to look for these signs in your good friends. You need to intercede and step in and help her," he said.
The death of Love, a Cockeysville resident, shook the lacrosse community in Baltimore, where she had played before moving on to play at the University of Virginia. Huguely, also a Virginia lacrosse player, was recently indicted by a grand jury on first-degree murder charges.
AdvertisementA number of students at the conference, called "Playing Safe, Fair and Sober" and sponsored by St. Joseph Medical Center, said they have gotten little information from coaches or parents about domestic violence and how to prevent it. Most of what was discussed at the conference was the first time the issue had been addressed in an educational setting, they said.
Dominick Brooks, a junior and football player at Calvert Hall College High School, said he knew someone who confided in him that she was the victim of domestic violence and that she had begun cutting herself because of it. He said he agreed not to tell anyone.
After listening to a presentation by Lisa Nitsch from the House of Ruth, a center for abused women, he said, "It really told the truth" about the problem of domestic violence. The details, he said, were all similar to what his friend experienced. "If I had known this I would have done a better job" of supporting her and getting help, he said, adding that his friend is now out of danger.
Dozens of students raised their hands when Nitsch asked how many people have personally known a victim of domestic violence, and a half-dozen students and coaches knew someone who had died as a result.
Coaches are the third most likely person a teenager will tell if they are the victim of abuse or are being threatened by a boyfriend or girlfriend, according to Nitsch, so it is important that coaches be aware of the signs and can react.
Shellenberger said that if a college student wants to break up with a boyfriend, the best protection is to do so on a Friday night in public with lots of people around or over the phone. The student should then go home to their parents for the weekend. He said victims can also change their phone numbers and should tell a law enforcement officer, their parents or an older adult who can help.
Half of all the homiides in Baltimore County are a result of domestic violence.
The conference, attended by about 600 high school athletes, also provided information on drinking and concussions. The main speaker, Dr. Gerard A. Gioia, chief of the division of pediatric neuropsychology at the Children's National Medical Center in Washington, warned students of the dangers of ignoring a concussion, saying that high-schoolers are more likely to die of a head injury than college or professional athletes.
AdvertisementA teenager's brain, he said, also is more susceptible to being harmed by a second or third concussion, and athletes should immediately get off the field if they believe they have experienced signs of a concussion.
"You are incredibly energetic. You are not invincible. …You should be responsible not only for your own safety and health, but your friends' safety and health," he said.
Baltimore County State's Attorney Scott Shellenberger told a group of students and coaches at a conference Thursday that it appears that friends had known about fights between Love and her former boyfriend, George Huguely V, but that they didn't go to parents, coaches or police to report the problems.
Excessive texting, explosive anger, jealousy and mood swings are all warnings signs of domestic violence, he said. "You need to look for these signs in your good friends. You need to intercede and step in and help her," he said.
The death of Love, a Cockeysville resident, shook the lacrosse community in Baltimore, where she had played before moving on to play at the University of Virginia. Huguely, also a Virginia lacrosse player, was recently indicted by a grand jury on first-degree murder charges.
AdvertisementA number of students at the conference, called "Playing Safe, Fair and Sober" and sponsored by St. Joseph Medical Center, said they have gotten little information from coaches or parents about domestic violence and how to prevent it. Most of what was discussed at the conference was the first time the issue had been addressed in an educational setting, they said.
Dominick Brooks, a junior and football player at Calvert Hall College High School, said he knew someone who confided in him that she was the victim of domestic violence and that she had begun cutting herself because of it. He said he agreed not to tell anyone.
After listening to a presentation by Lisa Nitsch from the House of Ruth, a center for abused women, he said, "It really told the truth" about the problem of domestic violence. The details, he said, were all similar to what his friend experienced. "If I had known this I would have done a better job" of supporting her and getting help, he said, adding that his friend is now out of danger.
Dozens of students raised their hands when Nitsch asked how many people have personally known a victim of domestic violence, and a half-dozen students and coaches knew someone who had died as a result.
Coaches are the third most likely person a teenager will tell if they are the victim of abuse or are being threatened by a boyfriend or girlfriend, according to Nitsch, so it is important that coaches be aware of the signs and can react.
Shellenberger said that if a college student wants to break up with a boyfriend, the best protection is to do so on a Friday night in public with lots of people around or over the phone. The student should then go home to their parents for the weekend. He said victims can also change their phone numbers and should tell a law enforcement officer, their parents or an older adult who can help.
Half of all the homiides in Baltimore County are a result of domestic violence.
The conference, attended by about 600 high school athletes, also provided information on drinking and concussions. The main speaker, Dr. Gerard A. Gioia, chief of the division of pediatric neuropsychology at the Children's National Medical Center in Washington, warned students of the dangers of ignoring a concussion, saying that high-schoolers are more likely to die of a head injury than college or professional athletes.
AdvertisementA teenager's brain, he said, also is more susceptible to being harmed by a second or third concussion, and athletes should immediately get off the field if they believe they have experienced signs of a concussion.
"You are incredibly energetic. You are not invincible. …You should be responsible not only for your own safety and health, but your friends' safety and health," he said.
Okeechobee, FL: Okeechobee man kills himself after barricading himself in his home
OKEECHOBEE — Deputies found the 51-year-old man dead in the garage of his barricaded home in the 3700 block of Northwest 16th Avenue.
About 5:50 p.m. deputies responded to the home after receiving a call about a domestic dispute involving multiple victims who left the house and asked neighbors to call for help.
Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers doesn't customarily report on suicides and name people involved.
The Sheriff's Office Special Response Team and Crisis Negotiation Team arrived to the home, where them an had threatened suicide, the release states. After calling the man and receiving no answer, the teams entered the home and found the man dead in the garage.
Sheriff's office has not released how many people were inside the home. The man's cause of death has not been determined, the release states.
About 5:50 p.m. deputies responded to the home after receiving a call about a domestic dispute involving multiple victims who left the house and asked neighbors to call for help.
Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers doesn't customarily report on suicides and name people involved.
The Sheriff's Office Special Response Team and Crisis Negotiation Team arrived to the home, where them an had threatened suicide, the release states. After calling the man and receiving no answer, the teams entered the home and found the man dead in the garage.
Sheriff's office has not released how many people were inside the home. The man's cause of death has not been determined, the release states.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Williamson, WV: Woman wanted for husband's murder, child's disappearance
VARNEY — Local authorities are still investigating the shooting death of a former Williamson businessman who was slain at his home in a small community between Matewan and Delbarton. Police have also issued an Amber Alert for the victim's missing daughter.
David Matthew Clark was found shot to death in his home when police arrived on Tuesday. Deputies were alerted after a neighbor found David Clark’s body. David Clark was shot twice, Chief Deputy James Smith of the Mingo County Sheriff’s Department, said. He was still unable to reveal in what parts of Clark's body he was shot.
Police are on the lookout for his wife, Crystal Seigler Clark, 32, in connection with Clark's death the subsequent abduction of their 13-month-old daughter, Chloe Clark
“We now have felony warrants on Siegler,” Smith said.
David Clark owned the A-1 Computer store in downtown Williamson that recently closed.
Smith also confirmed an Amber Alert has been issued for Chloe Clark, saying that authorities don’t know if the child is considered to be safe.
“That’s why we are so concerned,” Smith said. “That’s why we have the Amber Alert out.
According to Smith, Chloe Clark is believed to have been abducted by her mother. Chloe is 28 inches tall, has brown eyes and brown hair.
Electronic signs on West Virginia highways and ads on websites have the Amber Alert posted as well.
Smith also said that Siegler and her daughter might be headed to the Dandridge area in Eastern Tennessee or North Carolina. She has family in Tennessee and her father-in-law lives in North Carolina, though Smith said he did not know where at.
Siegler is 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighs 127 pounds, and has green eyes and brown hair. She was last seen driving a silver 2000 Plymouth Voyager minivan with North Carolina tags, which is registered in David Clark’s name. The plate number is ABM2212.
Siegler was born and raised in West Virginia and hasn’t lived anywhere else, said her grandfather, the Rev. Gary Starr.
Relatives have no idea of Siegler’s whereabouts, Starr said. He also said that they were unaware of any family problems.
Starr said the family hasn’t talked to Siegler since Sunday.
There’s only a simple message from Starr to his granddaughter.
“Just to come on home.”
Police are still looking for Siegler and Chloe Clark. If you have any information, contact the Mingo County Sheriff’s Department at (304) 235-0300.
David Matthew Clark was found shot to death in his home when police arrived on Tuesday. Deputies were alerted after a neighbor found David Clark’s body. David Clark was shot twice, Chief Deputy James Smith of the Mingo County Sheriff’s Department, said. He was still unable to reveal in what parts of Clark's body he was shot.
Police are on the lookout for his wife, Crystal Seigler Clark, 32, in connection with Clark's death the subsequent abduction of their 13-month-old daughter, Chloe Clark
“We now have felony warrants on Siegler,” Smith said.
David Clark owned the A-1 Computer store in downtown Williamson that recently closed.
Smith also confirmed an Amber Alert has been issued for Chloe Clark, saying that authorities don’t know if the child is considered to be safe.
“That’s why we are so concerned,” Smith said. “That’s why we have the Amber Alert out.
According to Smith, Chloe Clark is believed to have been abducted by her mother. Chloe is 28 inches tall, has brown eyes and brown hair.
Electronic signs on West Virginia highways and ads on websites have the Amber Alert posted as well.
Smith also said that Siegler and her daughter might be headed to the Dandridge area in Eastern Tennessee or North Carolina. She has family in Tennessee and her father-in-law lives in North Carolina, though Smith said he did not know where at.
Siegler is 5 feet 7 inches tall, weighs 127 pounds, and has green eyes and brown hair. She was last seen driving a silver 2000 Plymouth Voyager minivan with North Carolina tags, which is registered in David Clark’s name. The plate number is ABM2212.
Siegler was born and raised in West Virginia and hasn’t lived anywhere else, said her grandfather, the Rev. Gary Starr.
Relatives have no idea of Siegler’s whereabouts, Starr said. He also said that they were unaware of any family problems.
Starr said the family hasn’t talked to Siegler since Sunday.
There’s only a simple message from Starr to his granddaughter.
“Just to come on home.”
Police are still looking for Siegler and Chloe Clark. If you have any information, contact the Mingo County Sheriff’s Department at (304) 235-0300.
Sacramento, CA: Man who killed girlfriend in Sacramento due parole hearing
A Sacramento man who killed his girlfriend in 1995 after charges were dropped over him attempting to stab her previously is due a parole hearing.
Ajani Abdel Wahid Imarogbe, now 61, is serving 15 years to life for the murder of Leslie Watson, 33, inside her I Street apartment, The Bee reported.
Imarogbe walked into the Sacramento County Jail on Nov. 30, 1995, and told deputies he had killed his girlfriend three days ago and stabbed himself.
Watson's body bearing multiple stab wounds was found in the apartment. Imarogbe recovered from the self-inflicted wounds to stand trial.
Imarogbe had a history of violence toward Watson and recently had been released from jail after charges that he tried to stab Watson were dropped.
Imarogbe' hearing will be May 3 at the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison, Corcoran, where he is incarcerated.
If you want to give your opinion of an inmate's suitability for parole, you may mail a letter to:
Martin Hoshino, Executive Officer
Board of Parole Hearings
Post Office Box 4036
Sacramento, CA 95812-4036
For more information on the Board of Parole Hearings, go to:
http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/BOPH/index.html
Ajani Abdel Wahid Imarogbe, now 61, is serving 15 years to life for the murder of Leslie Watson, 33, inside her I Street apartment, The Bee reported.
Imarogbe walked into the Sacramento County Jail on Nov. 30, 1995, and told deputies he had killed his girlfriend three days ago and stabbed himself.
Watson's body bearing multiple stab wounds was found in the apartment. Imarogbe recovered from the self-inflicted wounds to stand trial.
Imarogbe had a history of violence toward Watson and recently had been released from jail after charges that he tried to stab Watson were dropped.
Imarogbe' hearing will be May 3 at the California Substance Abuse Treatment Facility and State Prison, Corcoran, where he is incarcerated.
If you want to give your opinion of an inmate's suitability for parole, you may mail a letter to:
Martin Hoshino, Executive Officer
Board of Parole Hearings
Post Office Box 4036
Sacramento, CA 95812-4036
For more information on the Board of Parole Hearings, go to:
http://www.cdcr.ca.gov/BOPH/index.html
Columbia Heights, MN: Felon charged in 2007 death of Columbia Heights woman
Since Judy Rush disappeared from her Columbia Heights apartment in August 2007, police had a suspect in mind. It was boyfriend Mo Hicks, a felon who had been convicted of bank robbery in the mid 1990s.
Now, three and a half years later, Hicks is in jail, charged Wednesday with second-degree murder.
Police had interviewed him twice early in the investigation, and his story changed, they said. Although a judge ruled Rush was deceased a year after she was reported missing, her body couldn't be found. Then, this month, a group of high school students hiking for an outdoor study class came across skeletal remains that DNA testing determined were those of the 56-year-old Rush.
Police, who had already built a case against Hicks, picked him up this week.
Hicks, 35, of St. Paul, made his first court appearance Wednesday in Anoka County. In bail discussions, prosecutor Wade Kish brought up Hicks' criminal history, including convictions for assault, attempted burglary and bank robbery. He also has had 13 warrants issued for his arrest.
Hicks' attorney argued that his client had been "off the criminal radar" since 2005 and has a good job. In the end, Judge Alan Pendleton set bail at $1 million.
The medical examiner's office said Wednesday that the cause of Rush's death was blunt-force cranial injuries.
Relatives of Hicks and Rush couldn't be reached for comment.
According to criminal charges filed against Hicks:
The saga of Rush's death started the evening of Aug. 22, 2007, when police were called to check on her welfare. She hadn't been seen for days. When police entered her apartment, they found her purse upside down on a table, opened drawers and blood stains on the floor and in her bedroom. Police also discovered bloody footprints, the criminal complaint said.
Neighbors said Hicks and Rush had worked together. Rush's daughter told police during that investigation that Rush and Hicks were friends and that she had last seen her mother Aug. 2.
Hicks agreed to talk to police, discussing his relationship with Rush. According to the charges, police noticed that his footwear was consistent with the bloody prints found at the crime scene.
He said he last saw Rush on Aug. 2, 2007. They drank and spent the night together and then he went to his mother's house, he told police, according to the criminal complaint. He told her he would come back later, but said that nobody was in the apartment when he returned. He told police he didn't notice blood in the bedroom.
During a second interview with police, Hicks said he had not harmed Rush. He acknowledged that he lied to police in his initial interview and had not spent the night with Rush, the charges said. He said he had driven to Minneapolis to buy drugs in the evening and didn't return to Rush's apartment until the next day, according to the complaint.
When he returned to her apartment later that same day to give her a ride, Hicks said he saw blood in the bedroom, according to the charges. He panicked because he feared "others would think he was involved in something." He told police he took items from the apartment that he believed had his fingerprints on them and threw them in a Dumpster behind the apartment building, the charges said.
A few days later, police discovered a blood-stained sheet at his mother's apartment, where he lived. The medical examiner had determined that a large amount of blood belonging to Rush and found in her bedroom proved she had been killed.
In July 2008, a judge ruled Rush was dead, although her body hadn't been found. The judge noted there was no evidence she was alive, such as financial transactions or family contact.
Earlier this month, high school students hiking in Brookdale Park in Brooklyn Park for an outdoor study class found remains in a flat area typically covered by tall grass near a drainage ditch. Heavy snow had flattened the grass, which is in a remote area of the park.
Police arrived to find skeletal remains in a shallow grave, the skull face down. Subsequent DNA testing determined the remains were Rush's.
David Chanen • 612-673-4465
Now, three and a half years later, Hicks is in jail, charged Wednesday with second-degree murder.
Police had interviewed him twice early in the investigation, and his story changed, they said. Although a judge ruled Rush was deceased a year after she was reported missing, her body couldn't be found. Then, this month, a group of high school students hiking for an outdoor study class came across skeletal remains that DNA testing determined were those of the 56-year-old Rush.
Police, who had already built a case against Hicks, picked him up this week.
Hicks, 35, of St. Paul, made his first court appearance Wednesday in Anoka County. In bail discussions, prosecutor Wade Kish brought up Hicks' criminal history, including convictions for assault, attempted burglary and bank robbery. He also has had 13 warrants issued for his arrest.
Hicks' attorney argued that his client had been "off the criminal radar" since 2005 and has a good job. In the end, Judge Alan Pendleton set bail at $1 million.
The medical examiner's office said Wednesday that the cause of Rush's death was blunt-force cranial injuries.
Relatives of Hicks and Rush couldn't be reached for comment.
According to criminal charges filed against Hicks:
The saga of Rush's death started the evening of Aug. 22, 2007, when police were called to check on her welfare. She hadn't been seen for days. When police entered her apartment, they found her purse upside down on a table, opened drawers and blood stains on the floor and in her bedroom. Police also discovered bloody footprints, the criminal complaint said.
Neighbors said Hicks and Rush had worked together. Rush's daughter told police during that investigation that Rush and Hicks were friends and that she had last seen her mother Aug. 2.
Hicks agreed to talk to police, discussing his relationship with Rush. According to the charges, police noticed that his footwear was consistent with the bloody prints found at the crime scene.
He said he last saw Rush on Aug. 2, 2007. They drank and spent the night together and then he went to his mother's house, he told police, according to the criminal complaint. He told her he would come back later, but said that nobody was in the apartment when he returned. He told police he didn't notice blood in the bedroom.
During a second interview with police, Hicks said he had not harmed Rush. He acknowledged that he lied to police in his initial interview and had not spent the night with Rush, the charges said. He said he had driven to Minneapolis to buy drugs in the evening and didn't return to Rush's apartment until the next day, according to the complaint.
When he returned to her apartment later that same day to give her a ride, Hicks said he saw blood in the bedroom, according to the charges. He panicked because he feared "others would think he was involved in something." He told police he took items from the apartment that he believed had his fingerprints on them and threw them in a Dumpster behind the apartment building, the charges said.
A few days later, police discovered a blood-stained sheet at his mother's apartment, where he lived. The medical examiner had determined that a large amount of blood belonging to Rush and found in her bedroom proved she had been killed.
In July 2008, a judge ruled Rush was dead, although her body hadn't been found. The judge noted there was no evidence she was alive, such as financial transactions or family contact.
Earlier this month, high school students hiking in Brookdale Park in Brooklyn Park for an outdoor study class found remains in a flat area typically covered by tall grass near a drainage ditch. Heavy snow had flattened the grass, which is in a remote area of the park.
Police arrived to find skeletal remains in a shallow grave, the skull face down. Subsequent DNA testing determined the remains were Rush's.
David Chanen • 612-673-4465
Delaware, OH: Boy, 12, in Delaware, allegedly killed mom's boyfriend
DELAWARE (AP) -- A 12-year-old central Ohio boy has been charged with murder in juvenile court in the death of his mother's boyfriend, days after telling a 9-1-1 dispatcher he shot the man after being threatened.
A complaint filed Tuesday alleges the boy used a .22-caliber revolver to shoot the man Saturday.
The boy called 9-1-1 and calmly told a dispatcher about the shooting. His mother then took the phone and said between screams and sobs that she and her son had been threatened with a gun.
A judge has ruled to keep the boy in detention.
A complaint filed Tuesday alleges the boy used a .22-caliber revolver to shoot the man Saturday.
The boy called 9-1-1 and calmly told a dispatcher about the shooting. His mother then took the phone and said between screams and sobs that she and her son had been threatened with a gun.
A judge has ruled to keep the boy in detention.
San Antonio, TX: DNA evidence leads to an arrest in slaying
DNA evidence left on a beer can helped San Antonio police charge a man Wednesday in the slaying of Esmeralda Herrera, 30, who had been found dead inside her burning apartment in March.
Jose Baldomero Flores III, 30, was to be booked in Bexar County Jail on one count of murder.
DNA left on a Budweiser beer can in Herrera's kitchen, along with hairs and fibers, cell phone records and a bloody shoeprint linked Flores to Herrera's death, an arrest warrant affidavit states.
Police found indications that Herrera may have been killed in the kitchen of her second-story home at the Mitchell Village Apartments, but her nude body was found in the bedroom, the affidavit states.
The Bexar County medical examiner's office ruled her death was caused by asphyxiation by strangulation with blunt force injuries to the head, according to the document.
Hours after the fire was extinguished, family members said they were told by a San Antonio Fire Department investigator that Herrera was found tied to her bed, but authorities would not confirm that. The affidavit does not say that but notes that Herrera was dead before the fire started, and that ligatures were found on her wrists and neck.
According to the affidavit, Herrera's friends told police the pair had known each other for about a year and were involved in a relationship. On March 1, she reportedly left her best friend's house around 8:45 p.m., saying she was going to clean her apartment before a man named Jose came over. Records show the couple communicated via cell phone more than 30 times that night, the affidavit states.
Neighbors noticed an unusual red Chevrolet pickup parked on the street, and a man who lived next door told police that around 12:30 a.m. on March 2, “he was startled by a woman's loud scream,” the affidavit states. He smelled smoke shortly before San Antonio Fire Department crews arrived at about 5 a.m..
Herrera had lived in the apartment for about 14 months with her cat, Cowboy, who died in the fire, relatives said. A graduate of Kennedy High School and the San Antonio campus of Texas A&M-Kingsville, she worked at a nearby dialysis clinic.
SAPD spokesman Sgt. Chris Benavides said Flores set the apartment ablaze “in an (unsuccessful) effort to destroy evidence.” Fire officials determined the fire was lit in more than one place.
The affidavit states that detectives interviewed Flores twice in April, and both times, he denied being near her apartment March 1 or 2. At the end of the second interview, police told Flores they had evidence that he was with her and at her apartment the night she was murdered, and Flores “immediately discontinued the interview and walked out of the room,” the affidavit states.
He worked for Toyota in 2010 and then worked a construction job in Mission before returning to San Antonio in January. Records show Flores was convicted of an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon that occurred in 2003, for which he was given deferred adjudication.
A warrant for Flores' arrest was issued around 11 a.m. Wednesday, and he was arrested without incident shortly after noon.
Jose Baldomero Flores III, 30, was to be booked in Bexar County Jail on one count of murder.
DNA left on a Budweiser beer can in Herrera's kitchen, along with hairs and fibers, cell phone records and a bloody shoeprint linked Flores to Herrera's death, an arrest warrant affidavit states.
Police found indications that Herrera may have been killed in the kitchen of her second-story home at the Mitchell Village Apartments, but her nude body was found in the bedroom, the affidavit states.
The Bexar County medical examiner's office ruled her death was caused by asphyxiation by strangulation with blunt force injuries to the head, according to the document.
Hours after the fire was extinguished, family members said they were told by a San Antonio Fire Department investigator that Herrera was found tied to her bed, but authorities would not confirm that. The affidavit does not say that but notes that Herrera was dead before the fire started, and that ligatures were found on her wrists and neck.
According to the affidavit, Herrera's friends told police the pair had known each other for about a year and were involved in a relationship. On March 1, she reportedly left her best friend's house around 8:45 p.m., saying she was going to clean her apartment before a man named Jose came over. Records show the couple communicated via cell phone more than 30 times that night, the affidavit states.
Neighbors noticed an unusual red Chevrolet pickup parked on the street, and a man who lived next door told police that around 12:30 a.m. on March 2, “he was startled by a woman's loud scream,” the affidavit states. He smelled smoke shortly before San Antonio Fire Department crews arrived at about 5 a.m..
Herrera had lived in the apartment for about 14 months with her cat, Cowboy, who died in the fire, relatives said. A graduate of Kennedy High School and the San Antonio campus of Texas A&M-Kingsville, she worked at a nearby dialysis clinic.
SAPD spokesman Sgt. Chris Benavides said Flores set the apartment ablaze “in an (unsuccessful) effort to destroy evidence.” Fire officials determined the fire was lit in more than one place.
The affidavit states that detectives interviewed Flores twice in April, and both times, he denied being near her apartment March 1 or 2. At the end of the second interview, police told Flores they had evidence that he was with her and at her apartment the night she was murdered, and Flores “immediately discontinued the interview and walked out of the room,” the affidavit states.
He worked for Toyota in 2010 and then worked a construction job in Mission before returning to San Antonio in January. Records show Flores was convicted of an aggravated assault with a deadly weapon that occurred in 2003, for which he was given deferred adjudication.
A warrant for Flores' arrest was issued around 11 a.m. Wednesday, and he was arrested without incident shortly after noon.
Watts, CA: Neighborhood dispute led to police shooting
WATTS, Calif. (KABC) -- Police say an LAPD officer was forced to shoot and killed an armed suspect in Watts on Wednesday morning after responding to what may have been a domestic dispute.
Authorities said they are trying to determine what riled a man up so much that he fired at his neighbor's house with a shotgun. Police believe the suspect had some sort of mental illness.
When officers arrived to the home on the 1700 block of East 115th Street at about 8 a.m., police say the man was still combative. There was a hand-to-hand struggle that involved four officers and the suspect, and then an officer-involved shooting occurred.
"When they were let into the house, the suspect confronted them. He was armed, and that's when the officer-involved shooting occurred," said LAPD Sgt. Mitzi Grasso.
The suspect was declared dead at the scene. His name has not yet been released. Police retrieved a knife and a gun from the scene.
Neighbors said they heard the first shots fired, and one man said it sounded like a truck backfiring.
A woman who called 911 said the suspect shot an exterior light on her house, frightening everyone, including her young children. Police later spoke to the woman's husband, who told police he had heard arguing inside the home and additional shots fired.
Police suspect there was some kind of ongoing dispute between the neighbors, but authorities are unsure what the dispute may be.
No one else was injured in the incident. The investigation of the shooting is ongoing.
Authorities said they are trying to determine what riled a man up so much that he fired at his neighbor's house with a shotgun. Police believe the suspect had some sort of mental illness.
When officers arrived to the home on the 1700 block of East 115th Street at about 8 a.m., police say the man was still combative. There was a hand-to-hand struggle that involved four officers and the suspect, and then an officer-involved shooting occurred.
"When they were let into the house, the suspect confronted them. He was armed, and that's when the officer-involved shooting occurred," said LAPD Sgt. Mitzi Grasso.
The suspect was declared dead at the scene. His name has not yet been released. Police retrieved a knife and a gun from the scene.
Neighbors said they heard the first shots fired, and one man said it sounded like a truck backfiring.
A woman who called 911 said the suspect shot an exterior light on her house, frightening everyone, including her young children. Police later spoke to the woman's husband, who told police he had heard arguing inside the home and additional shots fired.
Police suspect there was some kind of ongoing dispute between the neighbors, but authorities are unsure what the dispute may be.
No one else was injured in the incident. The investigation of the shooting is ongoing.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Valparaiso, IN: Husband charged in Portage slaying
VALPARAISO | Fredrick Cashner Jr., the husband of a Portage herbal store owner, was charged with her murder Tuesday afternoon.
In documents filed in Porter Superior Court detailing the grisly scene, police allege Cashner, 54, of 371 E. Tratebas Road in Jackson Township, shot his wife at least eight times with a high-powered semiautomatic rifle Sunday night.
Police said that about 10:25 p.m. Sunday, Porter County dispatchers received a 911 call from the Mystic Moon Herbal Shoppe, 5830 U.S. 6. Dispatchers reportedly heard faint breathing on the line and nothing else, though on a second review, detectives later heard a male voice in the background say, "It's too late," followed by three or four gunshots.
Two Portage officers arrived at the scene and found Cynthia Cashner, 50, the store's owner and Fredrick Cashner's estranged wife, lying dead on an air mattress with multiple gunshot wounds to her legs, left hip, abdomen, both shoulders and neck. Detectives described the bloody scene in court documents.
"The condition of Cynthia's body and the shape of the wounds indicated to (the detective) that a large-caliber bullet had been used in the shooting," court documents state.
Eight casings consistent with an AK-47 assault rifle were found in the apartment, and several appeared to have ricocheted off of the second story's cement floor.
Detectives said it appeared as though Cashner had been sitting cross-legged on the air mattress looking at her laptop at the time she was shot.
Police said that outside the building, a blue steel door leading to Cashner's suite was damaged and its wire-meshed window was hit several times with a blunt object.
About 30 minutes after the initial call, police said dispatchers received a call from Cynthia Cashner's adult son, saying his stepfather called him and said he just killed her. After several attempts to reach his stepfather and his mother, the man called police.
The Porter County SWAT was called to Fredrick Cashner's home and set up a perimeter, according to court documents. Officers said after multiple attempts to coax him out of the house, Cashner exited and reportedly said he'd been waiting for officers and asked, "What took you so long?"
In a search of Cashner's pickup truck parked in the home's driveway, police said they found a loaded AK-47 assault rifle on the back seat, along with an extra magazine of ammunition. Police said they also found a hammer with blue paint transfer and shards of glass on the driver's side floor mat.
Porter County Prosecutor Brian Gensel said Fredrick Cashner is charged with one count of murder and is being held in Porter County Jail without bond. An initial hearing before Porter Superior Judge Roger Bradford has not been scheduled.
In documents filed in Porter Superior Court detailing the grisly scene, police allege Cashner, 54, of 371 E. Tratebas Road in Jackson Township, shot his wife at least eight times with a high-powered semiautomatic rifle Sunday night.
Police said that about 10:25 p.m. Sunday, Porter County dispatchers received a 911 call from the Mystic Moon Herbal Shoppe, 5830 U.S. 6. Dispatchers reportedly heard faint breathing on the line and nothing else, though on a second review, detectives later heard a male voice in the background say, "It's too late," followed by three or four gunshots.
Two Portage officers arrived at the scene and found Cynthia Cashner, 50, the store's owner and Fredrick Cashner's estranged wife, lying dead on an air mattress with multiple gunshot wounds to her legs, left hip, abdomen, both shoulders and neck. Detectives described the bloody scene in court documents.
"The condition of Cynthia's body and the shape of the wounds indicated to (the detective) that a large-caliber bullet had been used in the shooting," court documents state.
Eight casings consistent with an AK-47 assault rifle were found in the apartment, and several appeared to have ricocheted off of the second story's cement floor.
Detectives said it appeared as though Cashner had been sitting cross-legged on the air mattress looking at her laptop at the time she was shot.
Police said that outside the building, a blue steel door leading to Cashner's suite was damaged and its wire-meshed window was hit several times with a blunt object.
About 30 minutes after the initial call, police said dispatchers received a call from Cynthia Cashner's adult son, saying his stepfather called him and said he just killed her. After several attempts to reach his stepfather and his mother, the man called police.
The Porter County SWAT was called to Fredrick Cashner's home and set up a perimeter, according to court documents. Officers said after multiple attempts to coax him out of the house, Cashner exited and reportedly said he'd been waiting for officers and asked, "What took you so long?"
In a search of Cashner's pickup truck parked in the home's driveway, police said they found a loaded AK-47 assault rifle on the back seat, along with an extra magazine of ammunition. Police said they also found a hammer with blue paint transfer and shards of glass on the driver's side floor mat.
Porter County Prosecutor Brian Gensel said Fredrick Cashner is charged with one count of murder and is being held in Porter County Jail without bond. An initial hearing before Porter Superior Judge Roger Bradford has not been scheduled.
Article: String of domestic killings across Mountain Empire leaves questions
HONAKER, Va. --
Abuse Alternatives in Bristol operates a 24-hour hotline for victims of domestic violence. The number is (423) 764-ABUSE.
Sunday’s shootings – which left a woman, her teenage daughter and the gunman dead in this small Russell County town – are the latest in a six-month string of domestic killings across the region. Since November, nearly a dozen people have died in explosive, household squabbles – leaving authorities to wonder if there’s any way to stop it.
In some cases, there’s been some warning: exchanged emergency protective orders or prior visits from police.
William Anthony Blackburn walked out onto his front porch on Easter Sunday afternoon, shot his stepdaughter, who was sitting on the porch swing, then went inside, shot his wife and turned the gun to his own head, authorities said.
Five years earlier, the Blackburns’ file began in Russell County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. In July 2006, Tina Denise Blackburn was charged with assaulting her husband. According to court records, “it was found that [Tina Blackburn] did strike him in the mouth, leaving a small cut on his upper lip.” The next day, William Anthony Blackburn took out an emergency protective order against his wife, though the charges were dismissed a few days later.
That November, Tina Blackburn took out an emergency protective order against her husband. No charges were filed and the order expired after 72 hours. She never petitioned the court for a permanent protective order. Two years later, she again got an emergency protective order against her husband and, again, no charges were filed and the order expired after three days.
According to the Virginia Department of Health, “family and intimate partner violence” accounts for a third of all homicides in the state.
In November 2010, a Buchanan County, Va., man named Alvin Sheppard shot and killed his grandchild’s father, 29-year-old John Mays, and Mays’ mother, Sandra Keene. He was not drunk or on drugs; he had no criminal record or history of mental illness. They’d been in and out of court over custody of the child. Just after the shooting, Sheppard called the Sheriff’s Office, told them what he’d done, then shot himself in the head.
Just days later, 61-year-old Jane “Dixie” Waters Boyles was kidnapped, then killed by her ex-boyfriend, Johnny Anthony Catanzaro. Boyles had a series of protective orders against Catanzaro and the Abingdon Police Department had been working with her for years, trying to coax her out of the violent relationship.
One week after the final protective order against him, Catanzaro showed up at her elderly parents’ home in Chilhowie, Va., tied them up and held them captive for more than seven hours. He forced them to call Boyles and lure her to their house, where he ambushed her, tied her up and packed her into his SUV. As police tailed them through Washington County, Catanzaro shot Boyles then himself.
The next month, in December, a 29-year-old woman was stabbed with a 6-inch boning knife in her Glade Spring, Va., home. She narrowly survived. Her estranged husband, Johnny Counts, is awaiting trial on charges of aggravated malicious wounding and breaking and entering. Police said they’d been to the couple’s house for several domestic fights in the past.
Then the day after Christmas, 26-year-old Chassen R. Boies found out that his 22-year-old wife was having an affair and shot her in the face. He drove to the Police Department, his hands still covered in blood, and confessed to the killing. The family was new in town and police had never even heard of them. He’d lost his job in Florida, then they lost their house and moved to Abingdon, Va., to be near her family. Boies hanged himself in his jail cell two weeks ago, leaving behind a 1-year-old daughter.
In January, Eric D. Dean was stabbed to death in his Sullivan County, Tenn., home. Authorities say that he and his wife, Mary Jo Dean, were fighting and she stabbed him once in the chest with a kitchen knife. She has not been charged.
Kathy Johnson, executive director of Abuse Alternatives, said the recent climb in deadly domestic incidents is alarming.
Johnson blames, in part, the spiraling economy and high rates of unemployment. Stress drives volatile, controlling people closer to the brink, she said.
“People feel desperate and they don’t know what to do,” she said. “They’re losing control of everything.”
For someone already prone to violence, she said, powerlessness can be a lethal emotion.
Bristol and Washington County, Va., authorities recently began a Domestic Violence Fatality Review team, one of 15 panels across the state charged with analyzing a case that ended with someone’s death, to determine if anything could have been done to prevent it.
The meetings between police, prosecutors and non-profit directors are confidential, authorities won’t say what case they’ve chosen to review, but the intention is to critique the agencies involved to identify gaps in services and improve the community’s response to domestic violence.
Johnson suggested that people just walk away when things start getting heated – go to a friend or relative’s house until the situation cools down.
Abuse Alternative operates emergency shelters and a 24-hour hotline at (423) 764-ABUSE.
“You can just get some rest, help exploring options,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be a forever thing.”
Abuse Alternatives in Bristol operates a 24-hour hotline for victims of domestic violence. The number is (423) 764-ABUSE.
Sunday’s shootings – which left a woman, her teenage daughter and the gunman dead in this small Russell County town – are the latest in a six-month string of domestic killings across the region. Since November, nearly a dozen people have died in explosive, household squabbles – leaving authorities to wonder if there’s any way to stop it.
In some cases, there’s been some warning: exchanged emergency protective orders or prior visits from police.
William Anthony Blackburn walked out onto his front porch on Easter Sunday afternoon, shot his stepdaughter, who was sitting on the porch swing, then went inside, shot his wife and turned the gun to his own head, authorities said.
Five years earlier, the Blackburns’ file began in Russell County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. In July 2006, Tina Denise Blackburn was charged with assaulting her husband. According to court records, “it was found that [Tina Blackburn] did strike him in the mouth, leaving a small cut on his upper lip.” The next day, William Anthony Blackburn took out an emergency protective order against his wife, though the charges were dismissed a few days later.
That November, Tina Blackburn took out an emergency protective order against her husband. No charges were filed and the order expired after 72 hours. She never petitioned the court for a permanent protective order. Two years later, she again got an emergency protective order against her husband and, again, no charges were filed and the order expired after three days.
According to the Virginia Department of Health, “family and intimate partner violence” accounts for a third of all homicides in the state.
In November 2010, a Buchanan County, Va., man named Alvin Sheppard shot and killed his grandchild’s father, 29-year-old John Mays, and Mays’ mother, Sandra Keene. He was not drunk or on drugs; he had no criminal record or history of mental illness. They’d been in and out of court over custody of the child. Just after the shooting, Sheppard called the Sheriff’s Office, told them what he’d done, then shot himself in the head.
Just days later, 61-year-old Jane “Dixie” Waters Boyles was kidnapped, then killed by her ex-boyfriend, Johnny Anthony Catanzaro. Boyles had a series of protective orders against Catanzaro and the Abingdon Police Department had been working with her for years, trying to coax her out of the violent relationship.
One week after the final protective order against him, Catanzaro showed up at her elderly parents’ home in Chilhowie, Va., tied them up and held them captive for more than seven hours. He forced them to call Boyles and lure her to their house, where he ambushed her, tied her up and packed her into his SUV. As police tailed them through Washington County, Catanzaro shot Boyles then himself.
The next month, in December, a 29-year-old woman was stabbed with a 6-inch boning knife in her Glade Spring, Va., home. She narrowly survived. Her estranged husband, Johnny Counts, is awaiting trial on charges of aggravated malicious wounding and breaking and entering. Police said they’d been to the couple’s house for several domestic fights in the past.
Then the day after Christmas, 26-year-old Chassen R. Boies found out that his 22-year-old wife was having an affair and shot her in the face. He drove to the Police Department, his hands still covered in blood, and confessed to the killing. The family was new in town and police had never even heard of them. He’d lost his job in Florida, then they lost their house and moved to Abingdon, Va., to be near her family. Boies hanged himself in his jail cell two weeks ago, leaving behind a 1-year-old daughter.
In January, Eric D. Dean was stabbed to death in his Sullivan County, Tenn., home. Authorities say that he and his wife, Mary Jo Dean, were fighting and she stabbed him once in the chest with a kitchen knife. She has not been charged.
Kathy Johnson, executive director of Abuse Alternatives, said the recent climb in deadly domestic incidents is alarming.
Johnson blames, in part, the spiraling economy and high rates of unemployment. Stress drives volatile, controlling people closer to the brink, she said.
“People feel desperate and they don’t know what to do,” she said. “They’re losing control of everything.”
For someone already prone to violence, she said, powerlessness can be a lethal emotion.
Bristol and Washington County, Va., authorities recently began a Domestic Violence Fatality Review team, one of 15 panels across the state charged with analyzing a case that ended with someone’s death, to determine if anything could have been done to prevent it.
The meetings between police, prosecutors and non-profit directors are confidential, authorities won’t say what case they’ve chosen to review, but the intention is to critique the agencies involved to identify gaps in services and improve the community’s response to domestic violence.
Johnson suggested that people just walk away when things start getting heated – go to a friend or relative’s house until the situation cools down.
Abuse Alternative operates emergency shelters and a 24-hour hotline at (423) 764-ABUSE.
“You can just get some rest, help exploring options,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be a forever thing.”
Section, AL: Two Dead After Apparent Murder Suicide In Jackson County
SECTION, Ala.—
Two people are dead after an apparent murder suicide in Jackson County.
Investigators found Rhonda and Eugene Palmer shot to death in their home.
Jackson County Sheriff Chuck Phillips said his office received a call Tuesday morning to a house on Highway 35 just outside Section, near County Road 623.
Sheriff Phillips said Eugene Palmer shot his wife multiple times before he shot himself.
Eugene Palmer's boss called law enforcement authorities when he was not at work Tuesday morning.
"We received a call from [his] employer, that he didn't show up to work, and they contacted Section Police, as it was very unusual that he didn't show up," Phillips said.
An officer went to the house to do a welfare check and talk to the couple, and found them dead.
Investigators believe the shooting happened between Saturday night and Sunday night.
"We're still in the preliminary stages of the investigation, and the bodies will be taken to Huntsville for an autopsy," Phillips said.
The sheriff did not say if the Palmers had any health issues.
"We have found some other evidence that leads us in another direction that I'd rather not say."
Sheriff Phillips said they do not think anyone else was at the home at the time of the shooting.
Two people are dead after an apparent murder suicide in Jackson County.
Investigators found Rhonda and Eugene Palmer shot to death in their home.
Jackson County Sheriff Chuck Phillips said his office received a call Tuesday morning to a house on Highway 35 just outside Section, near County Road 623.
Sheriff Phillips said Eugene Palmer shot his wife multiple times before he shot himself.
Eugene Palmer's boss called law enforcement authorities when he was not at work Tuesday morning.
"We received a call from [his] employer, that he didn't show up to work, and they contacted Section Police, as it was very unusual that he didn't show up," Phillips said.
An officer went to the house to do a welfare check and talk to the couple, and found them dead.
Investigators believe the shooting happened between Saturday night and Sunday night.
"We're still in the preliminary stages of the investigation, and the bodies will be taken to Huntsville for an autopsy," Phillips said.
The sheriff did not say if the Palmers had any health issues.
"We have found some other evidence that leads us in another direction that I'd rather not say."
Sheriff Phillips said they do not think anyone else was at the home at the time of the shooting.
Thrasher, MI: Authorities say Prentiss County man may have shot wife, then killed himself
THRASHER, Miss. — Prentiss County authorities are investigating a shooting in the Thrasher community in northeast Mississippi.
Sheriff Randy Tolar says it appears former Prentiss County School Superintendent Edward McCoy shot his wife before fatally shooting himself early Tuesday.
Tolar says deputies responding to a 911 call at 1:18 a.m. found 65-year-old Barbara McCoy suffering from a gunshot wound to the shoulder. Tolar says the body of 72-year-old Edward McCoy was found in the bedroom on the floor with what appeared to be a fatal self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Barbara McCoy was in stable but critical condition Wednesday in Magnolia Hospital in Corinth.
Edward McCoy, brother of Mississippi House Speaker Billy McCoy of Rienzi, served two terms as superintendent in the 1990s.
Sheriff Randy Tolar says it appears former Prentiss County School Superintendent Edward McCoy shot his wife before fatally shooting himself early Tuesday.
Tolar says deputies responding to a 911 call at 1:18 a.m. found 65-year-old Barbara McCoy suffering from a gunshot wound to the shoulder. Tolar says the body of 72-year-old Edward McCoy was found in the bedroom on the floor with what appeared to be a fatal self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Barbara McCoy was in stable but critical condition Wednesday in Magnolia Hospital in Corinth.
Edward McCoy, brother of Mississippi House Speaker Billy McCoy of Rienzi, served two terms as superintendent in the 1990s.
Pasco, WA: SWAT SITUATION: Man Kills Self in Ex-Wife's Home
PASCO-- A SWAT situation in Pasco ended after four hours.
It took a robot to find out a man killed himself inside his ex-wife's home on Henry where it crosses Road 54, near Sylvester.
This is not the first time police have been called to the home about the ex-husband.
Franklin County Sheriff Richard Lathim says the ex-wife ran out of the house around lunchtime when her ex-husband burst inside and scared her.
She told law enforcement her ex-husband said "this is it" and grabbed a gun from her bedroom and loaded it. She managed to get away and called 9-1-1, which ordered the SWAT team.
The sheriff tells KEPR hours later, the robot went in to determine the coast was clear and the man was found dead.
"There was a similar situation last year...over the summer...mental health issues...they've been divorced for some time. He doesn't live here,” said Sheriff Lathim.
KEPR asked if the man's mental health issues were for lack of services since that has been an ongoing issue in our region. But the sheriff said no. He says the man had services and medication.
It took a robot to find out a man killed himself inside his ex-wife's home on Henry where it crosses Road 54, near Sylvester.
This is not the first time police have been called to the home about the ex-husband.
Franklin County Sheriff Richard Lathim says the ex-wife ran out of the house around lunchtime when her ex-husband burst inside and scared her.
She told law enforcement her ex-husband said "this is it" and grabbed a gun from her bedroom and loaded it. She managed to get away and called 9-1-1, which ordered the SWAT team.
The sheriff tells KEPR hours later, the robot went in to determine the coast was clear and the man was found dead.
"There was a similar situation last year...over the summer...mental health issues...they've been divorced for some time. He doesn't live here,” said Sheriff Lathim.
KEPR asked if the man's mental health issues were for lack of services since that has been an ongoing issue in our region. But the sheriff said no. He says the man had services and medication.
Anderson, SC: Lambert gets 36 years in strangulation of ex-wife
ANDERSON — John Hunter Lambert IV sat quietly as a jury returned a verdict of guilty in the Dec. 21, 2008, strangulation death of his ex-wife, Amerise “B.J.” Barbre.
It took the jury 20 minutes to arrive at the verdict, which the foreman handed over to the judge Wednesday morning.
The trial hinged on whether Lambert intended to kill Barbre or did so with malice, not about whether he was the one who strangled her to death. Lambert's defense attorney, Robert Gamble, said that Lambert would have pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter if he had been allowed.
“I’m sorry for what I did,” Lambert said before he was sentenced. “I think about it every night when the lights go out. It’s not like I don’t have remorse, I’ve got lots of remorse … I think it will be like that for the rest of my life.”
Judge Alex Macaulay asked Lambert how old he was before delivering a sentence of 36 years, with credit for time served.
Lambert is 36. Barbre was 31 when she died.
When the verdict was read, a small sigh came from the section of the court where family members sat.
Barbre and Lambert had a volatile relationship that lasted, on and off, for about 14 years. There was plenty of drinking and drug use, Gamble said.
A statement to investigators from Lambert was read Wednesday in court that described the events leading up to the strangling death of Barbre.
After an evening of drinking, dancing to Christmas music and taking drugs, Barbre and Lambert got into an argument on the night of Dec. 21, 2008.
“The next thing I remember I was on top of her on the bed. I looked down and her mouth was moving,” Lambert said in the statement. “My hands were still around her neck and I started squeezing again.”
Assistant Solicitor Rame Campbell said the word “and” in Lambert’s statement was critical because it showed that he knew what he was doing and was not in a blacked-out state for the entire strangulation, as Gamble argued.
Campbell and Gamble agreed that if the strangulation had been an act of passion, it would be manslaughter.
Gamble said that Barbre told Lambert that she would be sleeping around with other men and those words drove Lambert into a state where he did not know what he was doing. Campbell said that the acts of Lambert, including keeping her body in a shallow grave until showing the site to police 47 days later and attempting to hide evidence, showed that Lambert knew what he was doing was wrong.
It took the jury 20 minutes to arrive at the verdict, which the foreman handed over to the judge Wednesday morning.
The trial hinged on whether Lambert intended to kill Barbre or did so with malice, not about whether he was the one who strangled her to death. Lambert's defense attorney, Robert Gamble, said that Lambert would have pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter if he had been allowed.
“I’m sorry for what I did,” Lambert said before he was sentenced. “I think about it every night when the lights go out. It’s not like I don’t have remorse, I’ve got lots of remorse … I think it will be like that for the rest of my life.”
Judge Alex Macaulay asked Lambert how old he was before delivering a sentence of 36 years, with credit for time served.
Lambert is 36. Barbre was 31 when she died.
When the verdict was read, a small sigh came from the section of the court where family members sat.
Barbre and Lambert had a volatile relationship that lasted, on and off, for about 14 years. There was plenty of drinking and drug use, Gamble said.
A statement to investigators from Lambert was read Wednesday in court that described the events leading up to the strangling death of Barbre.
After an evening of drinking, dancing to Christmas music and taking drugs, Barbre and Lambert got into an argument on the night of Dec. 21, 2008.
“The next thing I remember I was on top of her on the bed. I looked down and her mouth was moving,” Lambert said in the statement. “My hands were still around her neck and I started squeezing again.”
Assistant Solicitor Rame Campbell said the word “and” in Lambert’s statement was critical because it showed that he knew what he was doing and was not in a blacked-out state for the entire strangulation, as Gamble argued.
Campbell and Gamble agreed that if the strangulation had been an act of passion, it would be manslaughter.
Gamble said that Barbre told Lambert that she would be sleeping around with other men and those words drove Lambert into a state where he did not know what he was doing. Campbell said that the acts of Lambert, including keeping her body in a shallow grave until showing the site to police 47 days later and attempting to hide evidence, showed that Lambert knew what he was doing was wrong.
Kansas City, KS: Boyfriend Charged In Death Of Northland Woman
The boyfriend of a Northland woman has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with her death.
Court records said that William Shivers asphyxiated Julie A. Johnson, 40, at her home on Tuesday on North Tracy Avenue near Northeast 103rd Street.
Police said the suspect called a relative and told her that he had just killed his girlfriend. Kansas City police took Shivers into custody shortly after the death and a short chase.
Police reported to the home shortly before 12:30 a.m. Tuesday. Police said when they arrived, they found Johnson's body with a pillow covering her face. The victim was declared dead at the scene.
Neighbors said Johnson lived there with her three children. Witnesses said the children were not there at the time.
Court records said that William Shivers asphyxiated Julie A. Johnson, 40, at her home on Tuesday on North Tracy Avenue near Northeast 103rd Street.
Police said the suspect called a relative and told her that he had just killed his girlfriend. Kansas City police took Shivers into custody shortly after the death and a short chase.
Police reported to the home shortly before 12:30 a.m. Tuesday. Police said when they arrived, they found Johnson's body with a pillow covering her face. The victim was declared dead at the scene.
Neighbors said Johnson lived there with her three children. Witnesses said the children were not there at the time.
Antioch, CA: P.M. Bay Area Buzz: Man shot and killed in East Bay, suspect arrested
Man shot and killed in Antioch, suspect arrested
A 26-year-old man was shot and killed Monday night in an apparent retaliatory attack for defending his female roommate from an abusive ex-boyfriend, police said.
The suspect, 30-year-old Antioch resident Kevin Gunning, was arrested a few hours later. The death marks the city's second homicide of the year.
Police say Gunning went to a home in the 2200 block of Pinenut Way about 9:35 p.m. to confront David Johnson, who lived at the house with his stepfather, a female roommate and her sister.
Acting Lt. Diane Aguinaga said Gunning was angry at Johnson for intervening in an argument with Gunning's ex-girlfriend, the female roommate, about a month ago. During that argument, she said, the suspect physically assaulted the woman and Johnson defended her by punching him.
A 26-year-old man was shot and killed Monday night in an apparent retaliatory attack for defending his female roommate from an abusive ex-boyfriend, police said.
The suspect, 30-year-old Antioch resident Kevin Gunning, was arrested a few hours later. The death marks the city's second homicide of the year.
Police say Gunning went to a home in the 2200 block of Pinenut Way about 9:35 p.m. to confront David Johnson, who lived at the house with his stepfather, a female roommate and her sister.
Acting Lt. Diane Aguinaga said Gunning was angry at Johnson for intervening in an argument with Gunning's ex-girlfriend, the female roommate, about a month ago. During that argument, she said, the suspect physically assaulted the woman and Johnson defended her by punching him.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Honaker, VA: Neighbor decribes scene of apparent double-murder suicide in Honaker, Va.
HONAKER, Va. --
At 8 p.m. Easter Sunday, Donald Baldwin was sitting on his porch petting his bobtail cat when he saw the man across his narrow, gravel street storm out his front door. William Anthony Blackburn, Baldwin’s longtime friend and neighbor for five years, turned toward the swing in the corner of the porch. He raised his right hand and Baldwin saw a gun. Bushes blocked his view; he couldn’t see if anyone was on the swing.
For a second, no one made a sound, Baldwin said. If anyone shouted, he didn’t hear them.
Then, “bang, bang, bang,” Baldwin said. “He flew back into the house. It wasn’t maybe a minute -- then bang, three more times, and that was it.”
Shirley Blankenship, who lives in the house with her daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter, ran out the back door, Baldwin said. She took cover behind a Jeep in the driveway and called 911. She saw Baldwin and gestured for him to come over. He didn’t, he said, he was scared he’d be shot on the way.
Captain Bryant Skeen with the Russell County Sheriff’s Office said that at 8 p.m., Blankenship called and said she thought her son-in-law shot her daughter and her granddaughter. When the first round of deputies arrived 10 minutes later, they found Blankenship’s granddaughter, 18-year-old Jodi Sisk, dead on the front porch. She’d been shot multiple times in the chest, Skeen said.
Unsure if there was an active shooter in the house, police backed away and tried to coax him out. In time, 18 Sheriff’s Office tactical units, the Virginia State Police, medics from two jurisdictions and a fire squad packed onto Tennessee Street, a one-lane, quiet drive in the New Garden community just outside of Honaker.
They set up a perimeter around the small, tidy A-Frame house adorned with wind chimes, angel statues and a handwritten plaque hanging on the door: “Welcome to the nut house,” it says as a joke.
A sharpshooter crouched and aimed from Baldwin’s front porch, he said, as he and his wife peeked out from the kitchen window. For more than a half hour, police tried to lure Blackburn out, then hearing and seeing nothing inside, sent in a SWAT team.
Deputies found 45-year-old Tina Blackburn, dead from multiple gunshot wounds, on the living room floor next to her husband, 45-year-old William Anthony Blackburn, who’d shot himself once.
The gun – a Smith & Wesson 9mm semiautomatic pistol – was lying nearby.
Skeen said William Anthony Blackburn shot at Shirley Blankenship as she fled the house, though she was not injured. The Blackburns had apparently been arguing for the better part of the day, Skeen said. It wasn’t their first fight, Skeen said. Deputies have been to the house several times for domestic disputes, he said, but he declined to elaborate on the circumstances.
In 2006, Tina Blackburn was charged with assault and battery against her husband, William Anthony Blackburn, when “it was found that [she] did strike him in the mouth, leaving a small cut on his upper lip,” according to court records. The charge was later dismissed.
The Russell County District Court clerk’s office confirmed that there had been protective orders filed by or against family members at some point, though refused to provide a copy Monday afternoon.
If there was trouble across the way, Baldwin said he never suspected it. William Blackburn worked in the mines, he said. He and Tina got married about five years ago and they’d lived across the street with Tina’s mother and daughter ever since.
“These are the finest people you’d ever want to meet,” Baldwin said. “They’re good friends; they’d do anything for you. If you got sick, they’d just wear you to death calling to check on you. They’d go to town and get your groceries if you weren’t well enough to go. They’re just good-hearted people.”
A half hour before the first shot, he said, Shirley Blankenship called and said she was “checking in,” as she does nearly every night. She didn’t let on that anything was wrong. She asked Baldwin if he’d help her plow her garden the next day and bemoaned having to take her Jeep to the shop.
He said Blankenship’s daughter and granddaughter were “her whole world.”
“They’re just the sweetest people you’ll ever meet in your life,” he said.
Baldwin and his wife didn’t sleep all night, he said. He rode his lawnmower around all day Monday, planted some potatoes and fiddled around in his garden. He was just trying to get his mind off the killings, he said.
“I lost three good friends there,” he said. “I guess you never know what runs through people’s minds.”
At 8 p.m. Easter Sunday, Donald Baldwin was sitting on his porch petting his bobtail cat when he saw the man across his narrow, gravel street storm out his front door. William Anthony Blackburn, Baldwin’s longtime friend and neighbor for five years, turned toward the swing in the corner of the porch. He raised his right hand and Baldwin saw a gun. Bushes blocked his view; he couldn’t see if anyone was on the swing.
For a second, no one made a sound, Baldwin said. If anyone shouted, he didn’t hear them.
Then, “bang, bang, bang,” Baldwin said. “He flew back into the house. It wasn’t maybe a minute -- then bang, three more times, and that was it.”
Shirley Blankenship, who lives in the house with her daughter, son-in-law and granddaughter, ran out the back door, Baldwin said. She took cover behind a Jeep in the driveway and called 911. She saw Baldwin and gestured for him to come over. He didn’t, he said, he was scared he’d be shot on the way.
Captain Bryant Skeen with the Russell County Sheriff’s Office said that at 8 p.m., Blankenship called and said she thought her son-in-law shot her daughter and her granddaughter. When the first round of deputies arrived 10 minutes later, they found Blankenship’s granddaughter, 18-year-old Jodi Sisk, dead on the front porch. She’d been shot multiple times in the chest, Skeen said.
Unsure if there was an active shooter in the house, police backed away and tried to coax him out. In time, 18 Sheriff’s Office tactical units, the Virginia State Police, medics from two jurisdictions and a fire squad packed onto Tennessee Street, a one-lane, quiet drive in the New Garden community just outside of Honaker.
They set up a perimeter around the small, tidy A-Frame house adorned with wind chimes, angel statues and a handwritten plaque hanging on the door: “Welcome to the nut house,” it says as a joke.
A sharpshooter crouched and aimed from Baldwin’s front porch, he said, as he and his wife peeked out from the kitchen window. For more than a half hour, police tried to lure Blackburn out, then hearing and seeing nothing inside, sent in a SWAT team.
Deputies found 45-year-old Tina Blackburn, dead from multiple gunshot wounds, on the living room floor next to her husband, 45-year-old William Anthony Blackburn, who’d shot himself once.
The gun – a Smith & Wesson 9mm semiautomatic pistol – was lying nearby.
Skeen said William Anthony Blackburn shot at Shirley Blankenship as she fled the house, though she was not injured. The Blackburns had apparently been arguing for the better part of the day, Skeen said. It wasn’t their first fight, Skeen said. Deputies have been to the house several times for domestic disputes, he said, but he declined to elaborate on the circumstances.
In 2006, Tina Blackburn was charged with assault and battery against her husband, William Anthony Blackburn, when “it was found that [she] did strike him in the mouth, leaving a small cut on his upper lip,” according to court records. The charge was later dismissed.
The Russell County District Court clerk’s office confirmed that there had been protective orders filed by or against family members at some point, though refused to provide a copy Monday afternoon.
If there was trouble across the way, Baldwin said he never suspected it. William Blackburn worked in the mines, he said. He and Tina got married about five years ago and they’d lived across the street with Tina’s mother and daughter ever since.
“These are the finest people you’d ever want to meet,” Baldwin said. “They’re good friends; they’d do anything for you. If you got sick, they’d just wear you to death calling to check on you. They’d go to town and get your groceries if you weren’t well enough to go. They’re just good-hearted people.”
A half hour before the first shot, he said, Shirley Blankenship called and said she was “checking in,” as she does nearly every night. She didn’t let on that anything was wrong. She asked Baldwin if he’d help her plow her garden the next day and bemoaned having to take her Jeep to the shop.
He said Blankenship’s daughter and granddaughter were “her whole world.”
“They’re just the sweetest people you’ll ever meet in your life,” he said.
Baldwin and his wife didn’t sleep all night, he said. He rode his lawnmower around all day Monday, planted some potatoes and fiddled around in his garden. He was just trying to get his mind off the killings, he said.
“I lost three good friends there,” he said. “I guess you never know what runs through people’s minds.”
Steubenville, OH: Man Charged In Wife's Death; Records Show Couple's Troubled Past
STEUBENVILLE, Ohio -- A man accused of shooting and killing his wife during a domestic dispute was arraigned on a murder charge Monday morning.
Marlon Alphonso Lawrence, 40, had tears running down his face as a judge read the accusation against him.
"He did personally cause the death of another, the person being Angela Lawrence," said Judge David Scarpone.
The victim, Marlon Lawrence's 32-year-old wife, was found inside their home at 1441 Maryland Ave. around 1:30 a.m. Friday.
Police Chief Bill McCafferty said an officer received a call from a person who believed a woman had been shot inside her home. A police officer entered the home through an open side window and found Angela Lawrence unresponsive, lying in a pool of blood.
Marlon Lawrence turned himself in to police later on Friday.
Angela Lawrence's MySpace page shows a happy couple, but police records show another side. As recently as this month, a report shows Angela called police claiming the two had been fighting for days and asked about a protection order.
"(Their relationship) was decent at first. Every relationship has its problems," said Amanda Vankirk, Angela Lawrence's sister.
Arrest records show Marlon and Angela Lawrence had a history of domestic violence. Angela Lawrence was arrested nine times started in 2000, including one arrest for domestic violence in 2008. Other charges included assault, menacing and criminal mischief.
Marlon Lawrence was arrested 13 times during that same period, including three domestic violence charges.
Emotions ran high during the arraignment, and family members recounted the night Angela Lawrence was killed.
"She called me the night it happened -- 10:30 that night she called me and said they were fighting," said Sue Vankirk, the victim's aunt.
Another one of Angela Lawrence's aunts, Karen Fullerton, said, "I never thought I would have to come up here for her funeral at 32 years old."
After the arraignment, Marlon Lawrence's family offered an apology.
"I'm very sorry about the situation that happened. It's hard for both of our families and we're here if they need us. We're here," said his sister, Mary Brown.
Lawrence did not enter a plea Monday because it is a felony case. He is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing on April 29. In the meantime, he is being held at the Jefferson County Justice Center on $750,000 bond.
Stay with NEWS9, WTOV9.com and WTOV9 Mobile for continuing coverage.
Marlon Alphonso Lawrence, 40, had tears running down his face as a judge read the accusation against him.
"He did personally cause the death of another, the person being Angela Lawrence," said Judge David Scarpone.
The victim, Marlon Lawrence's 32-year-old wife, was found inside their home at 1441 Maryland Ave. around 1:30 a.m. Friday.
Police Chief Bill McCafferty said an officer received a call from a person who believed a woman had been shot inside her home. A police officer entered the home through an open side window and found Angela Lawrence unresponsive, lying in a pool of blood.
Marlon Lawrence turned himself in to police later on Friday.
Angela Lawrence's MySpace page shows a happy couple, but police records show another side. As recently as this month, a report shows Angela called police claiming the two had been fighting for days and asked about a protection order.
"(Their relationship) was decent at first. Every relationship has its problems," said Amanda Vankirk, Angela Lawrence's sister.
Arrest records show Marlon and Angela Lawrence had a history of domestic violence. Angela Lawrence was arrested nine times started in 2000, including one arrest for domestic violence in 2008. Other charges included assault, menacing and criminal mischief.
Marlon Lawrence was arrested 13 times during that same period, including three domestic violence charges.
Emotions ran high during the arraignment, and family members recounted the night Angela Lawrence was killed.
"She called me the night it happened -- 10:30 that night she called me and said they were fighting," said Sue Vankirk, the victim's aunt.
Another one of Angela Lawrence's aunts, Karen Fullerton, said, "I never thought I would have to come up here for her funeral at 32 years old."
After the arraignment, Marlon Lawrence's family offered an apology.
"I'm very sorry about the situation that happened. It's hard for both of our families and we're here if they need us. We're here," said his sister, Mary Brown.
Lawrence did not enter a plea Monday because it is a felony case. He is scheduled to appear for a preliminary hearing on April 29. In the meantime, he is being held at the Jefferson County Justice Center on $750,000 bond.
Stay with NEWS9, WTOV9.com and WTOV9 Mobile for continuing coverage.
Foley, AL: Authorities Release Name Of Suspect Shot And Killed By Foley Police
FOLEY, Alabama -
The Baldwin County Sheriff's Office released the name of a man shot and killed by a Foley police officer Easter Sunday. Mark Everson was shot by an officer during a traffic stop when investigators say Everson pulled a rifle from his car and pointed the weapon at the officer.
News 5 talked to Everson's girlfriend and a good friend Monday about the deadly shooting. Some believe Everson, who had been acting unstable and aggressive lately, was trying to kill himself using "suicide by cop."
Foley Police Sgt. Dempsey Hunt, a 17 year police veteran, was placed on administrative leave. Investigators say the deadly shooting was justified...and say the officer had no choice but to use deadly force when Everson pointed the rifle at him.
The Baldwin County Sheriff's Office released the name of a man shot and killed by a Foley police officer Easter Sunday. Mark Everson was shot by an officer during a traffic stop when investigators say Everson pulled a rifle from his car and pointed the weapon at the officer.
News 5 talked to Everson's girlfriend and a good friend Monday about the deadly shooting. Some believe Everson, who had been acting unstable and aggressive lately, was trying to kill himself using "suicide by cop."
Foley Police Sgt. Dempsey Hunt, a 17 year police veteran, was placed on administrative leave. Investigators say the deadly shooting was justified...and say the officer had no choice but to use deadly force when Everson pointed the rifle at him.
Saluda, SC: Sheriff: SC man killed by ex-girlfriend's dad in shoot out after putting gun to woman's head
SALUDA, S.C. — Authorities say a man who kidnapped his former girlfriend has been shot to death in a shootout that also involved her father and her roommate.
Saluda County Sheriff Jason Booth told WIS-TV that John Clark went to his ex-girlfriend's house Saturday night even though she had a restraining order against him and put a gun to her head.
Investigators say the woman's roommate began firing a gun, but it appears Clark shot her in the leg. The gunfire attracted the ex-girlfriend's father, who lives nearby. Booth says the man shot Clark several times after Clark couldn't get his gun to fire.
The State Law Enforcement Division is helping Booth's deputies sort out the shooting. The sheriff says the roommate is expected to recover.
No charges have been filed.
Saluda County Sheriff Jason Booth told WIS-TV that John Clark went to his ex-girlfriend's house Saturday night even though she had a restraining order against him and put a gun to her head.
Investigators say the woman's roommate began firing a gun, but it appears Clark shot her in the leg. The gunfire attracted the ex-girlfriend's father, who lives nearby. Booth says the man shot Clark several times after Clark couldn't get his gun to fire.
The State Law Enforcement Division is helping Booth's deputies sort out the shooting. The sheriff says the roommate is expected to recover.
No charges have been filed.
Article: VINE offers victims a lifeline
MANITOWOC —When a young Kentucky woman was killed by her former boyfriend in 1993 — after he had been released from jail without her knowledge — the woman's family decided to do something about it.
That something was the beginning of VINE, Victim Information and Notification Everyday, a nationwide computerized service expected to be available today in Manitowoc County.
WI-VINE, as Wisconsin's system is called, monitors the custody status of offenders in the state's county jails and notifies victims by phone or online when an arrested person no longer is in custody, said Jason Jost, Manitowoc County Jail administrator.
"We have domestics on a daily or weekly basis," he said. "If that victim feared for their safety, they would register online or on the phone. All they need is the offender's name or offender number."
The victim would be contacted if the offender is released, transferred or escapes, Jost said.
VINE is "designed to empower and protect crime victims, improve public safety and assist corrections, law enforcement and victim service providers," according to its website.
Joining the system
Manitowoc is one of 63 of Wisconsin's 72 counties to be part of the system, Jost said.
"It's been able to expand and is continuing to expand so that victims or potential victims … can be forewarned before anything else can happen," he said.
In the past, domestic violence victims could request notification of an offender's release, but it wasn't an everyday practice, Jost said.
The system isn't just for domestic violence cases, but any crime victim who fears for his or her safety, said Sheriff Rob Hermann.
Judges, jail workers and law officers who have been threatened by an inmate can take advantage of the service, Jost said.
VINE also can help law enforcement agencies investigate crimes, Hermann said.
The system is available across state lines to assist agencies outside the area as well, Jost said.
One of the biggest advantages is that it takes out the human error in notifying victims, Hermann said.
Users can register as many phone numbers as they like, or an email address. The system will keep making contact at regular intervals during a 48-hour period until it reaches the registered person, Jost said.
The computerized system works off of the Manitowoc County Jail's inmate management system and data is updated every 15 minutes around the clock, he said.
Offered in 3 languages
VINE is offered in English, Spanish and Hmong. The service, which is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, is anonymous and confidential. VINE also is supported by 24-hour trained operator assistance.
WI-VINE is a joint effort of the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department and the Wisconsin Department of Corrections. They introduced the system to law enforcement, the media and victim service providers in late March.
The system was funded by a Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance.
For more information, call the toll-free number (888) 944-8463 or visit www.vinelink.com.
That something was the beginning of VINE, Victim Information and Notification Everyday, a nationwide computerized service expected to be available today in Manitowoc County.
WI-VINE, as Wisconsin's system is called, monitors the custody status of offenders in the state's county jails and notifies victims by phone or online when an arrested person no longer is in custody, said Jason Jost, Manitowoc County Jail administrator.
"We have domestics on a daily or weekly basis," he said. "If that victim feared for their safety, they would register online or on the phone. All they need is the offender's name or offender number."
The victim would be contacted if the offender is released, transferred or escapes, Jost said.
VINE is "designed to empower and protect crime victims, improve public safety and assist corrections, law enforcement and victim service providers," according to its website.
Joining the system
Manitowoc is one of 63 of Wisconsin's 72 counties to be part of the system, Jost said.
"It's been able to expand and is continuing to expand so that victims or potential victims … can be forewarned before anything else can happen," he said.
In the past, domestic violence victims could request notification of an offender's release, but it wasn't an everyday practice, Jost said.
The system isn't just for domestic violence cases, but any crime victim who fears for his or her safety, said Sheriff Rob Hermann.
Judges, jail workers and law officers who have been threatened by an inmate can take advantage of the service, Jost said.
VINE also can help law enforcement agencies investigate crimes, Hermann said.
The system is available across state lines to assist agencies outside the area as well, Jost said.
One of the biggest advantages is that it takes out the human error in notifying victims, Hermann said.
Users can register as many phone numbers as they like, or an email address. The system will keep making contact at regular intervals during a 48-hour period until it reaches the registered person, Jost said.
The computerized system works off of the Manitowoc County Jail's inmate management system and data is updated every 15 minutes around the clock, he said.
Offered in 3 languages
VINE is offered in English, Spanish and Hmong. The service, which is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, is anonymous and confidential. VINE also is supported by 24-hour trained operator assistance.
WI-VINE is a joint effort of the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department and the Wisconsin Department of Corrections. They introduced the system to law enforcement, the media and victim service providers in late March.
The system was funded by a Statewide Automated Victim Information and Notification grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance.
For more information, call the toll-free number (888) 944-8463 or visit www.vinelink.com.
Dallas, TX: Dallas police issue murder warrant for ex-husband of woman found in Trinity River
Dallas police are looking for the former common-law husband of a woman whose body was found in the Trinity River.
A murder warrant has been issued for Roger Santos Reyes, 39.
He’s suspected of killing Maritza Panameno, 34, a mother of three who was found dead late Sunday in the river near Interstate 20 and Dowdy Ferry Road.
She was last seen alive by friends and relatives at church on the night of Good Friday.
According to investigators, Reyes was upset that Panameno had ended their often-violent relationship.
He called a brother and a sister on Friday night to say he’d had a flat tire in southeastern Dallas and needed help, police said. In those calls, he mentioned that he’d done something very bad. He did not elaborate.
Relatives of Panameno who were looking for her Sunday went to the location from which Reyes had called about the flat tire. They spotted something wrapped in a tarp in a ravine along the Trinity channel. They called 911, and Dallas Fire-Rescue personnel recovered her body.
“She had been killed by homicidal violence,” said a Dallas police news release.
Neither Reyes nor his car has been located. Dallas police are working with the U.S. marshal’s office to find him.
Panameno was last seen alive late Friday leaving church service at Palmas De Jerico on Nursery Road in Irving.
Panameno, who worked on a custodial crew at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, was described by friends and family as a kind-hearted person.
“It’s sad. She was a good sister,” said Adrina Andrade, the victim’s 31-year-old sister.
They said she had been with Reyes for nine years. And they confirmed police assertions that there had been recent discord between the two of them.
Panameno’s youngest daughter said the couple was living in North Dallas and argued frequently. She said her mother had moved in with a friend three weeks ago, after a particularly intense argument with Reyes.
Friends said Panameno left church Friday night when she got a phone call from a friend.
Around 11 p.m., her sister received a text: “I’m OK. I’m with my friend. I’ll be there later.”
A murder warrant has been issued for Roger Santos Reyes, 39.
He’s suspected of killing Maritza Panameno, 34, a mother of three who was found dead late Sunday in the river near Interstate 20 and Dowdy Ferry Road.
She was last seen alive by friends and relatives at church on the night of Good Friday.
According to investigators, Reyes was upset that Panameno had ended their often-violent relationship.
He called a brother and a sister on Friday night to say he’d had a flat tire in southeastern Dallas and needed help, police said. In those calls, he mentioned that he’d done something very bad. He did not elaborate.
Relatives of Panameno who were looking for her Sunday went to the location from which Reyes had called about the flat tire. They spotted something wrapped in a tarp in a ravine along the Trinity channel. They called 911, and Dallas Fire-Rescue personnel recovered her body.
“She had been killed by homicidal violence,” said a Dallas police news release.
Neither Reyes nor his car has been located. Dallas police are working with the U.S. marshal’s office to find him.
Panameno was last seen alive late Friday leaving church service at Palmas De Jerico on Nursery Road in Irving.
Panameno, who worked on a custodial crew at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas, was described by friends and family as a kind-hearted person.
“It’s sad. She was a good sister,” said Adrina Andrade, the victim’s 31-year-old sister.
They said she had been with Reyes for nine years. And they confirmed police assertions that there had been recent discord between the two of them.
Panameno’s youngest daughter said the couple was living in North Dallas and argued frequently. She said her mother had moved in with a friend three weeks ago, after a particularly intense argument with Reyes.
Friends said Panameno left church Friday night when she got a phone call from a friend.
Around 11 p.m., her sister received a text: “I’m OK. I’m with my friend. I’ll be there later.”
Brownsville, NY: Daughter of Suspect: Stabbing Could Have Been Avoided
The stabbing death of a Brooklyn man on Easter Sunday, reportedly because of a love triangle, could have been avoided, the suspect's daughter told NBC New York on Monday.
"It's so sad that somebody has to lose a life over a woman," said Shanell Holding, whose father, Alrick “Devon” Holding, is charged in the stabbing death of Cleon Leslie, a man he believed was in a relationship with his wife.
Holding, 45, allegedly confronted Leslie, 42, outside his home in Brownsville , where the dispute turned violent, police said. Leslie died from stab wounds in his groin, which he sustained at around 10 a.m, police said.
"He snapped. He just lost it," Holding's daughter said.
Holding then turned the knife on his friend Ansel Leslie, who is the victim's 54-year-old uncle. Leslie survived a slash to his face, which required 29 stitches, according to the Daily News.
"I feel bad -- my friend is in prison and he killed my nephew," Ansel Leslie told the News.
Leslie and Holding's wife had been romantically involved for several months, according to reports, which Shanell Holding, a daughter from a different marriage, confirmed.
"Everyone knew what was going on, but nobody was putting an effort to put a stop to it," she said. "All this could have been avoided."
Posted on Monday, Apr 25, 2011 at 5:11 PM EDT
"It's so sad that somebody has to lose a life over a woman," said Shanell Holding, whose father, Alrick “Devon” Holding, is charged in the stabbing death of Cleon Leslie, a man he believed was in a relationship with his wife.
Holding, 45, allegedly confronted Leslie, 42, outside his home in Brownsville , where the dispute turned violent, police said. Leslie died from stab wounds in his groin, which he sustained at around 10 a.m, police said.
"He snapped. He just lost it," Holding's daughter said.
Holding then turned the knife on his friend Ansel Leslie, who is the victim's 54-year-old uncle. Leslie survived a slash to his face, which required 29 stitches, according to the Daily News.
"I feel bad -- my friend is in prison and he killed my nephew," Ansel Leslie told the News.
Leslie and Holding's wife had been romantically involved for several months, according to reports, which Shanell Holding, a daughter from a different marriage, confirmed.
"Everyone knew what was going on, but nobody was putting an effort to put a stop to it," she said. "All this could have been avoided."
Posted on Monday, Apr 25, 2011 at 5:11 PM EDT
Timmonsville, SC: Woman charged in death of Darlington County man
TIMMONSVILLE --
A 22-year-old local woman has been charged with voluntary manslaughter in connection with the stabbing death of a Darlington County man last July, according to a press release issued Monday by the Darlington County Sheriff’s Office.
Ashley Wheeler, 22, is accused of fatally stabbing 20-year-old Gary Durant during an argument at her home at 1911 Amere Drive in Darlington County’s Oats Community, near Timmonsville. In a previous Darlington County Sheriff’s office press release, Locklair said DuRant forced his way into Wheeler’s home.
“The two had an estranged relationship,” Darlington County Sheriff’s Capt. Andy Locklair said in the release. “After an argument between the two, Wheeler is reported to have stabbed Durant once in the body.”
Durant was taken to an area hospital by private vehicle. He later died at the hospital as a result of his injuries.
Warrants were issued last week for Wheeler. She turned herself in to law enforcement officers and was booked at the Darlington County Detention Center. Wheeler later was released on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond.
“This is a very complicated case. We will let the justice system decide the guilt or innocence of this defendant” Darlington County Sheriff J. Wayne Byrd said.
For someone to be found guilty of voluntary manslaughter the government must prove that the person killed another person; the person acted in the heat of passion; and heat of passion was caused by adequate provocation. Voluntary manslaughter in South Carolina carries a minimum penalty of two years and a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison.
Involuntary manslaughter is defined as either the unintentional killing of another without malice, but while engaged in an unlawful activity not naturally tending to cause death or great bodily harm; or the unintentional killing of another without malice, while engaged in lawful activity with reckless disregard for the safety of others. The maximum penalty for involuntary manslaughter is five years.
A 22-year-old local woman has been charged with voluntary manslaughter in connection with the stabbing death of a Darlington County man last July, according to a press release issued Monday by the Darlington County Sheriff’s Office.
Ashley Wheeler, 22, is accused of fatally stabbing 20-year-old Gary Durant during an argument at her home at 1911 Amere Drive in Darlington County’s Oats Community, near Timmonsville. In a previous Darlington County Sheriff’s office press release, Locklair said DuRant forced his way into Wheeler’s home.
“The two had an estranged relationship,” Darlington County Sheriff’s Capt. Andy Locklair said in the release. “After an argument between the two, Wheeler is reported to have stabbed Durant once in the body.”
Durant was taken to an area hospital by private vehicle. He later died at the hospital as a result of his injuries.
Warrants were issued last week for Wheeler. She turned herself in to law enforcement officers and was booked at the Darlington County Detention Center. Wheeler later was released on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond.
“This is a very complicated case. We will let the justice system decide the guilt or innocence of this defendant” Darlington County Sheriff J. Wayne Byrd said.
For someone to be found guilty of voluntary manslaughter the government must prove that the person killed another person; the person acted in the heat of passion; and heat of passion was caused by adequate provocation. Voluntary manslaughter in South Carolina carries a minimum penalty of two years and a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison.
Involuntary manslaughter is defined as either the unintentional killing of another without malice, but while engaged in an unlawful activity not naturally tending to cause death or great bodily harm; or the unintentional killing of another without malice, while engaged in lawful activity with reckless disregard for the safety of others. The maximum penalty for involuntary manslaughter is five years.
Cherry Hill, MD: Md. man charged with fatally stabbing wife in their apartmen
CHERRY HILL, Md. — The Cecil County Sheriff's Office has charged a man in the fatal stabbing of his wife in their Cherry Hill apartment.
Forty-year-old James Claude Winters is charged with first- and second-degree murder in the stabbing death of his wife, 39-year-old Marchal Elizabeth Adams Sunday night. Winters is being held without bond.
Deputies say a downstairs neighbor called police after hearing a violent argument in the apartment. Adams was found dead on the floor of the couple's bedroom. Police say Winters was standing in the hallway, covered in blood.
Deputies say Winters and Adams married about six months ago.
Forty-year-old James Claude Winters is charged with first- and second-degree murder in the stabbing death of his wife, 39-year-old Marchal Elizabeth Adams Sunday night. Winters is being held without bond.
Deputies say a downstairs neighbor called police after hearing a violent argument in the apartment. Adams was found dead on the floor of the couple's bedroom. Police say Winters was standing in the hallway, covered in blood.
Deputies say Winters and Adams married about six months ago.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Woodbury, NY: Apparent murder-suicide in Town of Woodbury probed
CENTRAL VALLEY — Town of Woodbury police believe a man shot his girlfriend multiple times before taking his own life in an apparent murder-suicide early Saturday morning.
Officers responded to a 1 a.m. Saturday call for shots fired on Woodward Terrace.
Police believe Vincent Russo, 26, of Virginia, used a .40 caliber handgun to shoot his girlfriend, Ramy Jacildo, 22, of the Philippines, multiple times before taking his own life.
Officers found Russo lying in the home's driveway with a gunshot wound to the head, officials said. He was transported by Woodbury Ambulance and Mobile Life to Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern, where he was pronounced dead.
Jacildo was found slumped against the side of the home. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Autopsies were scheduled Sunday afternoon at the Orange County Medical Examiner's Office.
Russo and Jacildo apparently met about a year ago while she was on vacation in Washington, D.C., police officials said. They had been in a long-distance relationship ever since.
Jacildo was in Central Valley visiting family who live at the Woodward Terrace home.
Russo came up from Virginia to meet her and her family, police said. Police are trying to piece together what happened next.
The investigation is ongoing. Town of Woodbury police were assisted at the scene by state police and Village of Harriman police.
This is the first murder in the Town of Woodbury in more than 40 years, officials said.
Officers responded to a 1 a.m. Saturday call for shots fired on Woodward Terrace.
Police believe Vincent Russo, 26, of Virginia, used a .40 caliber handgun to shoot his girlfriend, Ramy Jacildo, 22, of the Philippines, multiple times before taking his own life.
Officers found Russo lying in the home's driveway with a gunshot wound to the head, officials said. He was transported by Woodbury Ambulance and Mobile Life to Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern, where he was pronounced dead.
Jacildo was found slumped against the side of the home. She was pronounced dead at the scene. Autopsies were scheduled Sunday afternoon at the Orange County Medical Examiner's Office.
Russo and Jacildo apparently met about a year ago while she was on vacation in Washington, D.C., police officials said. They had been in a long-distance relationship ever since.
Jacildo was in Central Valley visiting family who live at the Woodward Terrace home.
Russo came up from Virginia to meet her and her family, police said. Police are trying to piece together what happened next.
The investigation is ongoing. Town of Woodbury police were assisted at the scene by state police and Village of Harriman police.
This is the first murder in the Town of Woodbury in more than 40 years, officials said.
Orlando, FL: Former teacher Delores Laster heads to trial for husband's 1988 murder
ORLANDO --
The trial for a former elementary school teacher accused of killing her husband more than 20 years ago starts Monday.
Delores Laster was not arrested until two decades after her husband, Clarence, was found shot in the head.
After Clarence's death, Delores went on to live her life as a teacher in Winter Garden. She was arrested in 2009 on her way to work.
Orange County deputies said they determined Delores Laster was the one who shot her husband, and even had her children help her move his body to the garage, where investigators eventually found him.
But detectives said Clarence Laster's blood was splattered around the couple's master bedroom, not in the garage.
Three children were home at the time: A 12-year-old, a 10-year-old and an infant. Now adults, the two older children are expected to testify with their accounts on what happened on that day, over 20 years ago.
The trial for a former elementary school teacher accused of killing her husband more than 20 years ago starts Monday.
Delores Laster was not arrested until two decades after her husband, Clarence, was found shot in the head.
After Clarence's death, Delores went on to live her life as a teacher in Winter Garden. She was arrested in 2009 on her way to work.
Orange County deputies said they determined Delores Laster was the one who shot her husband, and even had her children help her move his body to the garage, where investigators eventually found him.
But detectives said Clarence Laster's blood was splattered around the couple's master bedroom, not in the garage.
Three children were home at the time: A 12-year-old, a 10-year-old and an infant. Now adults, the two older children are expected to testify with their accounts on what happened on that day, over 20 years ago.
Seymour, IN: Police: Seymour, Ind. man killed his wife then tried to kill himself
Seymour, Ind. (WHAS11) - A man from Seymour, Indiana is now behind bars after police say he killed his wife and then tried to kill himself.
Police arrested 56-year-old Terry Wade Sunday after he was released from the hospital.
Police say they found the body of 54-year-old Vicky Wade at the couple's home after getting a call from family members to check on their welfare.
Terry wade is charged with murder for beating his wife to death.
Police arrested 56-year-old Terry Wade Sunday after he was released from the hospital.
Police say they found the body of 54-year-old Vicky Wade at the couple's home after getting a call from family members to check on their welfare.
Terry wade is charged with murder for beating his wife to death.
Bronx, NY: NY couple face murder charges after 'stomping elderly man to death'
A couple have been arrested and charged after they allegedly stomped an elderly would-be Samaritan to death.
Tosheba Alford and Kendall Major are accused of killing Quintin Guerrero, 61, after he rushed to the aid of one of his attackers.
The pair appeared at Bronx Supreme Court on second-degree murder charges.
Alford, 20, is believed to have got into an argument with her boyfriend, Major, after a heavy night of drinking.
The pair were travelling as passengers in a taxi when Alford jumped out the moving car in bid to escape 35-year-old Major after he allegedly started to beat her.
It is thought Alford then hobbled over to Guerrero's house in the Bronx, New York, where she sat on some steps. Concerned about her, Guerrero came out of his house to see if she was alright.
Witnesses, including taxi driver Angel Ruiz, apparently claimed to police that Major then got out of the car and together the pair turned on the elderly man and killed him during the attack in Mott Haven at 1.30am on Saturday.
A prosecutor said that Alford told police she was trying to help the man by pulling Major off after he allegedly started kicking and punching him.
Mr Ruiz has now been praised as a hero by his colleagues at the New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers.
He was awarded a $500 (£300) and a bullet proof vest after helped police track down the pair.
'A lot of drivers don't like to get involved, but I don't mind being involved,' he told the New York Daily News.
'If more drivers would get involved the streets might be a little safer.'
Tosheba Alford and Kendall Major are accused of killing Quintin Guerrero, 61, after he rushed to the aid of one of his attackers.
The pair appeared at Bronx Supreme Court on second-degree murder charges.
Alford, 20, is believed to have got into an argument with her boyfriend, Major, after a heavy night of drinking.
The pair were travelling as passengers in a taxi when Alford jumped out the moving car in bid to escape 35-year-old Major after he allegedly started to beat her.
It is thought Alford then hobbled over to Guerrero's house in the Bronx, New York, where she sat on some steps. Concerned about her, Guerrero came out of his house to see if she was alright.
Witnesses, including taxi driver Angel Ruiz, apparently claimed to police that Major then got out of the car and together the pair turned on the elderly man and killed him during the attack in Mott Haven at 1.30am on Saturday.
A prosecutor said that Alford told police she was trying to help the man by pulling Major off after he allegedly started kicking and punching him.
Mr Ruiz has now been praised as a hero by his colleagues at the New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers.
He was awarded a $500 (£300) and a bullet proof vest after helped police track down the pair.
'A lot of drivers don't like to get involved, but I don't mind being involved,' he told the New York Daily News.
'If more drivers would get involved the streets might be a little safer.'
Tampa, FL: Police investigating murder-suicide of Tampa couple
Tampa police are investigating the murder-suicide of a man and woman over the weekend.
Shortly after 6 p.m. Sunday, police received a 911 call from neighbors who heard a gunshot and screams at 1409 S. Moody Ave.
Officers arrived and found Melissa Morrison, 33, of 4114 Neptune St., Tampa, and Mark McVicker, who lived at the crime scene, dead in the front bedroom.
Both had been shot, police say, and a gun was found in the bedroom. Police say it appears to be a murder-suicide.
McVicker and Morrison shared a residence at 345 Bayshore Blvd, Apt. 1703, between January and March of 2011, according to records. Morrison began living there the previous November, records show.
On her Facebook page, Morrison lists her relationship status going from "Being in a relationship" to "single" on March 6. On April 20, she posted "Rules For Being Human – Your Guidelines For Personal Growth And Development"
Morrison writes that she graduated from Fort Myers High School, class of 1995 and lists "Official XFC, Healthy Weight Solutions, Schwartz Research Services, Inc., FinerMinds" as her interests.
Morrison was state licensed as a massage therapist until 2007, according to records.
Stay with TBO.com for updates.
Shortly after 6 p.m. Sunday, police received a 911 call from neighbors who heard a gunshot and screams at 1409 S. Moody Ave.
Officers arrived and found Melissa Morrison, 33, of 4114 Neptune St., Tampa, and Mark McVicker, who lived at the crime scene, dead in the front bedroom.
Both had been shot, police say, and a gun was found in the bedroom. Police say it appears to be a murder-suicide.
McVicker and Morrison shared a residence at 345 Bayshore Blvd, Apt. 1703, between January and March of 2011, according to records. Morrison began living there the previous November, records show.
On her Facebook page, Morrison lists her relationship status going from "Being in a relationship" to "single" on March 6. On April 20, she posted "Rules For Being Human – Your Guidelines For Personal Growth And Development"
Morrison writes that she graduated from Fort Myers High School, class of 1995 and lists "Official XFC, Healthy Weight Solutions, Schwartz Research Services, Inc., FinerMinds" as her interests.
Morrison was state licensed as a massage therapist until 2007, according to records.
Stay with TBO.com for updates.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
St. Stephen, SC: Deputy shoots suspect during attempted arrest
An officer-involved shooting occurred shortly before 10 p.m. Saturday night near St. Stephen, resulting in the death of a 23-year-old St. Stephen man.
According to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office, one subject is dead after a deputy was attempting to arrest the subject on a Criminal Domestic Violence warrant. While attempting the arrest, the subject grabbed the deputy's gun. The deputy fired the weapon; the shot resulted in the death of the subject, the BCSO reported.
The incident occurred on Old Mill Road in St. Stephen.
The dead man has been identified as 23-year-old Jerome Darby of St. Stephen, according to Berkeley County Coroner Bill Salisbury.
The BCSO has called in the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) to investigate.
According to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office, one subject is dead after a deputy was attempting to arrest the subject on a Criminal Domestic Violence warrant. While attempting the arrest, the subject grabbed the deputy's gun. The deputy fired the weapon; the shot resulted in the death of the subject, the BCSO reported.
The incident occurred on Old Mill Road in St. Stephen.
The dead man has been identified as 23-year-old Jerome Darby of St. Stephen, according to Berkeley County Coroner Bill Salisbury.
The BCSO has called in the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) to investigate.
Venus, TX: Johnson County Deputy Killed, Gunman Dead
One Johnson County Sheriff's deputy was killed and one deputy was injured in a shooting outside of Venus, and the gunman was killed according to the sheriff's department
Three Johnson County deputies and a Venus Police officer were responding to a domestic violence call in the 2200 block of Eagle Circle just after 4 p.m. when the shooting happened, according to Johnson County Sheriff Bob Alford.
When the three deputies and police officer arrived at the home, a family member told them Wesley Davis, 47, had fled to a shed on the property. When the officers approached the shed, Davis opened fire according to the sheriff's department.
Deputy Clifton Taylor, 31, was shot three times in the neck and back according to the sheriff's department, he was pronounced dead at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth. He had been a deputy with the Johnson County Sheriff's Department for three years and three months.
Deputy Patrick Geyer, 39, was hit where his handheld radio was, but the bullet did not penetrate his skin, according to the sheriff's department. Geyer suffered bruising and was released from the hospital in Cleburne.
Sheriff Alford said Deputy Geyer, Deputy Eric McClelland, 25, and Venus Police Officer Jepson returned fire and killed Davis. Careflite pronounced Davis dead at the scene.
The sheriff's department said Davis was from Oklahoma and had been at the residence near Venus for a few days. No other details about Davis were available Saturday night.
The Texas Rangers are investigating the shooting along with other law enforcement agencies.
Three Johnson County deputies and a Venus Police officer were responding to a domestic violence call in the 2200 block of Eagle Circle just after 4 p.m. when the shooting happened, according to Johnson County Sheriff Bob Alford.
When the three deputies and police officer arrived at the home, a family member told them Wesley Davis, 47, had fled to a shed on the property. When the officers approached the shed, Davis opened fire according to the sheriff's department.
Deputy Clifton Taylor, 31, was shot three times in the neck and back according to the sheriff's department, he was pronounced dead at John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth. He had been a deputy with the Johnson County Sheriff's Department for three years and three months.
Deputy Patrick Geyer, 39, was hit where his handheld radio was, but the bullet did not penetrate his skin, according to the sheriff's department. Geyer suffered bruising and was released from the hospital in Cleburne.
Sheriff Alford said Deputy Geyer, Deputy Eric McClelland, 25, and Venus Police Officer Jepson returned fire and killed Davis. Careflite pronounced Davis dead at the scene.
The sheriff's department said Davis was from Oklahoma and had been at the residence near Venus for a few days. No other details about Davis were available Saturday night.
The Texas Rangers are investigating the shooting along with other law enforcement agencies.
Article: Should Man Who Killed Wife and Two Children Be Allowed to Donate His Organs?
Would you want the liver of a convicted murderer? The heart of a man who killed his own family?
That's the question corrections officials in Oregon are facing in the case of 37-year-old Christian Longo, who killed his wife and children in 2001 and then fled to Mexico before investigators found him and brought him back to the U.S. for trial.
KPTV in Oregon reported that Longo has promised to stop appealing his death sentence if the Oregon Department of Corrections will let him donate his organs to those in need. Though he denied the killings during the trial – during which he claimed his wife killed their two children and he killed her in retaliation along with their third child -- last month he admitted his guilt in an editorial to The New York Times.
"There is no way to atone for my crimes, but I believe that a profound benefit to society can come from my circumstances," he wrote. "I have asked to end my remaining appeals, and then donate my organs after my execution to those who need them. But my request has been rejected by the prison authorities."
He also told KPTV that he's determined to do some good.
“The option of giving a life -- if that's the best that I can do, that's what I'll try to do," he said. "I'm not trying to make up for anything or redeem anything. It just makes sense."
One of the complications is that Oregon's executions are done via a three-drug lethal injection that destroys organs, so Longo wants officials to use a one-drug solution that will better preserve his organs.
The Department of Corrections said they would not negotiate with a death row inmate about the appeals process and said there are some ethical questions about death row prisoners and organ donation. Longo said he's recognized the error of his ways and apologized to his family and that he doesn't think people would hesitate to take a murderer's organs.
"There may be something in the minds of some people who think there's the whole Hollywood aspect of your soul living on in your organs," he said. "I don't believe that most people truly believe that the crimes live on with your organs."
Should this murderer be allowed to donate his organs?
That's the question corrections officials in Oregon are facing in the case of 37-year-old Christian Longo, who killed his wife and children in 2001 and then fled to Mexico before investigators found him and brought him back to the U.S. for trial.
KPTV in Oregon reported that Longo has promised to stop appealing his death sentence if the Oregon Department of Corrections will let him donate his organs to those in need. Though he denied the killings during the trial – during which he claimed his wife killed their two children and he killed her in retaliation along with their third child -- last month he admitted his guilt in an editorial to The New York Times.
"There is no way to atone for my crimes, but I believe that a profound benefit to society can come from my circumstances," he wrote. "I have asked to end my remaining appeals, and then donate my organs after my execution to those who need them. But my request has been rejected by the prison authorities."
He also told KPTV that he's determined to do some good.
“The option of giving a life -- if that's the best that I can do, that's what I'll try to do," he said. "I'm not trying to make up for anything or redeem anything. It just makes sense."
One of the complications is that Oregon's executions are done via a three-drug lethal injection that destroys organs, so Longo wants officials to use a one-drug solution that will better preserve his organs.
The Department of Corrections said they would not negotiate with a death row inmate about the appeals process and said there are some ethical questions about death row prisoners and organ donation. Longo said he's recognized the error of his ways and apologized to his family and that he doesn't think people would hesitate to take a murderer's organs.
"There may be something in the minds of some people who think there's the whole Hollywood aspect of your soul living on in your organs," he said. "I don't believe that most people truly believe that the crimes live on with your organs."
Should this murderer be allowed to donate his organs?
Butts County, GA: Police: Man Kills Wife And 10-Year-Old Relative
BUTTS COUNTY, Ga. -- Police in Butts County are looking for a man who they said killed his wife and her 10-year-old relative.
The Butts County Sheriff’s Office said it is looking for Herman Lamar Jackson III, 43.
Deputies said he is suspected of killing his 41-year-old wife and her 10-year-old niece, who is not related to Jackson.
The incident happened late Friday night or early Saturday morning at the couple’s home, according to deputies.
Jackson is described as black, 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighing at about 200 pounds and is said to be clean shaven.
Detectives said Jackson has religious tattoos on both arms and a small tattoo on side of his head. They believe he may also be wearing glasses.
Investigators said they found Jackson's Ford F-150 pickup truck late Saturday afternoon.
Police believe Jackson may be armed.
The Butts County Sheriff’s Office said it is looking for Herman Lamar Jackson III, 43.
Deputies said he is suspected of killing his 41-year-old wife and her 10-year-old niece, who is not related to Jackson.
The incident happened late Friday night or early Saturday morning at the couple’s home, according to deputies.
Jackson is described as black, 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighing at about 200 pounds and is said to be clean shaven.
Detectives said Jackson has religious tattoos on both arms and a small tattoo on side of his head. They believe he may also be wearing glasses.
Investigators said they found Jackson's Ford F-150 pickup truck late Saturday afternoon.
Police believe Jackson may be armed.
Chicago, IL: Husband kills wife in murder-suicide: cops
A man shot and killed his ex-wife numerous times before fatally shooting himself Saturday evening in the River North neighborhood, police said.
Police responded to a call of shots fired inside a building in the 500 block of West Superior Street, according to police News Affairs Officer Laura Kubiak.
When officers arrived at the scene, they found a woman who had been shot multiple times in her body, Kubiak said. Police also found a man with a single gunshot wound to his head.
A gun was recovered at the scene, Kubiak said.
Josephine Martinez, in her 60s, of the 500 block of West Superior Street, was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 7:20 p.m., according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office.
Frank Davila, 64, of the same address, was dead on the scene, according to the medical examiner’s office.
Police learned the two were divorced, but still had been living together, Kubiak said. An apparent motive was not available Sunday morning.
Belmont Area detectives are investigating.
Police responded to a call of shots fired inside a building in the 500 block of West Superior Street, according to police News Affairs Officer Laura Kubiak.
When officers arrived at the scene, they found a woman who had been shot multiple times in her body, Kubiak said. Police also found a man with a single gunshot wound to his head.
A gun was recovered at the scene, Kubiak said.
Josephine Martinez, in her 60s, of the 500 block of West Superior Street, was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 7:20 p.m., according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office.
Frank Davila, 64, of the same address, was dead on the scene, according to the medical examiner’s office.
Police learned the two were divorced, but still had been living together, Kubiak said. An apparent motive was not available Sunday morning.
Belmont Area detectives are investigating.
Detroit, MI: Detroit police seek man who allegedly killed ex-girlfriend
Detroit —Police are searching for a 37-year-old man suspected of killing a 29-year-old ex-girlfriend.
Investigators believe Roosevelt Prescott fled in a vehicle after firing several gunshots and striking the woman, whose body was found at about 10:20 p.m. April 1 in a vacant lot on the 7400 block of Puritan on the city's west side.
An arrest warrant has been issued for Prescott, who faces a first-degree murder charge.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Detroit Police Department Homicide Unit at (313) 596-2260 or send a text message starting with "DPD" to police at 847411. Citizens with anonymous tips can call Crime Stoppers at (800) SPEAK UP.
Investigators believe Roosevelt Prescott fled in a vehicle after firing several gunshots and striking the woman, whose body was found at about 10:20 p.m. April 1 in a vacant lot on the 7400 block of Puritan on the city's west side.
An arrest warrant has been issued for Prescott, who faces a first-degree murder charge.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Detroit Police Department Homicide Unit at (313) 596-2260 or send a text message starting with "DPD" to police at 847411. Citizens with anonymous tips can call Crime Stoppers at (800) SPEAK UP.
Weatherford, TX: Man dies in high-speed chase
WEATHERFORD — A high-speed chase that started in Cedar Hill Friday night ended in Weatherford shortly after midnight, leaving the driver dead.
Martin Rochel, 21, of Grand Prairie led police across the Metroplex and into Parker County before crashing into the back of a semi-truck just east of the Interstate 20 406 exit westbound, Weatherford Police Department Cpl. Wendy Field said.
“It was very high speed pursuit,” Field emphasized.
She said the chase was connected with a domestic dispute but didn’t have any more details.
“We worked the accident,” Field said, “but as far as getting involved, it was so fast we never had a chance to catch up before he wrecked out.”
The semi dragged the vehicle several hundred feet before stopping, Field said.
There were no other injuries reported.
Martin Rochel, 21, of Grand Prairie led police across the Metroplex and into Parker County before crashing into the back of a semi-truck just east of the Interstate 20 406 exit westbound, Weatherford Police Department Cpl. Wendy Field said.
“It was very high speed pursuit,” Field emphasized.
She said the chase was connected with a domestic dispute but didn’t have any more details.
“We worked the accident,” Field said, “but as far as getting involved, it was so fast we never had a chance to catch up before he wrecked out.”
The semi dragged the vehicle several hundred feet before stopping, Field said.
There were no other injuries reported.
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Bullitt, KY: Family of man shot and killed by a Bullitt Co deputy speaks out
HILLVIEW, KY (WAVE) – Kentucky State Police are investigating an officer-involved shooting in northern Bullitt County that has left an elderly man dead. It happened around 1:30 on Dublin Circle in Hillview.
The family says 78-year-old Arlie Roten had cancer and ever since a surgery three years ago, he seemed to be angry at the world.
On Friday afternoon, it was not the first time Bullitt County deputies stopped by the Roten home.
Nannie Roten had been married to Arlie Roten for nearly 50 years. She says the relationship was rocky.
"It's been bad, I took a lot of it because of the kids," said Nannie.
On April 22, Nannie and her two daughters were just hanging out at home.
"My dad come in there and he started hollering at my mother, and my mother told him to go in the living room and leave us alone, we wasn't bothering him," said Linda Roten, Arlie's daughter.
They say that's when he got angry. "Well he was trying to fight me with a cane," said Nannie. "Cheryl my daughter, she jumped in on it whenever he was trying to hit me and he fell on the floor and boy he got up hoppin' mad, he said I'm getting my gun, and he went and got the shot gun."
Kentucky State Police say when deputies arrived, they were confronted by the armed 78-year-old man. When he was told to drop the weapon and didn't, that's when officers fired.
"They have to do what they have to do," said Linda.
Domestic violence is no stranger to this family. Linda Roten lost her daughter, April O'Donnel back in August.
"She was only 21 and she's got a little boy, he's three," said Linda.
Police say she was killed by her husband at the In-town Suites on Hurtsbourne Parkway.
Now another family member is gone, and it's an ending to a long marriage that seemed to run its course. "I really have mixed feelings right now," said Nannie. "It will probably hit me later on I guess. He has aggravated me from the time he's had surgery. He has just aggravated me to death."
Kentucky State Police are investigating this case. The deputy involved was not hurt, and will likely be put on paid administrative leave.
The family says 78-year-old Arlie Roten had cancer and ever since a surgery three years ago, he seemed to be angry at the world.
On Friday afternoon, it was not the first time Bullitt County deputies stopped by the Roten home.
Nannie Roten had been married to Arlie Roten for nearly 50 years. She says the relationship was rocky.
"It's been bad, I took a lot of it because of the kids," said Nannie.
On April 22, Nannie and her two daughters were just hanging out at home.
"My dad come in there and he started hollering at my mother, and my mother told him to go in the living room and leave us alone, we wasn't bothering him," said Linda Roten, Arlie's daughter.
They say that's when he got angry. "Well he was trying to fight me with a cane," said Nannie. "Cheryl my daughter, she jumped in on it whenever he was trying to hit me and he fell on the floor and boy he got up hoppin' mad, he said I'm getting my gun, and he went and got the shot gun."
Kentucky State Police say when deputies arrived, they were confronted by the armed 78-year-old man. When he was told to drop the weapon and didn't, that's when officers fired.
"They have to do what they have to do," said Linda.
Domestic violence is no stranger to this family. Linda Roten lost her daughter, April O'Donnel back in August.
"She was only 21 and she's got a little boy, he's three," said Linda.
Police say she was killed by her husband at the In-town Suites on Hurtsbourne Parkway.
Now another family member is gone, and it's an ending to a long marriage that seemed to run its course. "I really have mixed feelings right now," said Nannie. "It will probably hit me later on I guess. He has aggravated me from the time he's had surgery. He has just aggravated me to death."
Kentucky State Police are investigating this case. The deputy involved was not hurt, and will likely be put on paid administrative leave.
South Salt Lake, UT: UPDATE: South Salt Lake deaths result of murder-suicide
SOUTH SALT LAKE, Utah (ABC 4 News) - Police investigated the discovery of two bodies inside a South Salt Lake apartment early Friday morning.
Police say a roommate found two people, a man and a woman, dead inside an apartment at 200 East 3372 South.
Family members confirmed to ABC 4 that the couple was engaged to be married in June.
The female victim is 23-year-old Bernice Torres, who has a 7-year-old son. The male victim is 23-year-old Cesar Vestida.
Investigators and medical examiner personnel later determined that the deaths were the result of a murder-suicide, and that Torres died first from blunt-force trauma to her head. Police did not indicate how Vestida died.
Stay tuned to ABC 4 News and ABC4.com for more on this story.
Police say a roommate found two people, a man and a woman, dead inside an apartment at 200 East 3372 South.
Family members confirmed to ABC 4 that the couple was engaged to be married in June.
The female victim is 23-year-old Bernice Torres, who has a 7-year-old son. The male victim is 23-year-old Cesar Vestida.
Investigators and medical examiner personnel later determined that the deaths were the result of a murder-suicide, and that Torres died first from blunt-force trauma to her head. Police did not indicate how Vestida died.
Stay tuned to ABC 4 News and ABC4.com for more on this story.
Oxford, MS: Lafayette Co. woman pleads guilty in husband's death
OXFORD, Miss. — A Lafayette County woman has pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the 2010 beating death of her husband.
The Oxford Eagle reports 55-year-old Lou Ann White entered the plea this week. Circuit Judge Andrew Howorth delayed sentencing until after he receives a pre-sentence report.
White was arrested April 6, 2010, after the body of 60-year-old husband Henry White was found in their Lafayette County home by sheriff's deputies.
Prosecutors say Henry White died from multiple and extensive wounds all over his body.
The Oxford Eagle reports 55-year-old Lou Ann White entered the plea this week. Circuit Judge Andrew Howorth delayed sentencing until after he receives a pre-sentence report.
White was arrested April 6, 2010, after the body of 60-year-old husband Henry White was found in their Lafayette County home by sheriff's deputies.
Prosecutors say Henry White died from multiple and extensive wounds all over his body.
Have de Grace, MD: Husband shot wife, killed himself in Have de Grace home
A man shot and killed his wife, and then took his own life, inside their Havre de Grace home on Friday, according to the Harford County Sheriff's Office.
John Roger Keith Preston, 53, and Frances Blake Preston, 50, were found dead by a family members in their Webster Village area home, according to a police statement.
Police were called about 4:15 p.m. to the home in the 100 block of Northway Drive. Sheriff's deputies determined that Preston shot and killed himself after shooting and killing his wife in the living room.
Police said the couple did not have children.
John Roger Keith Preston, 53, and Frances Blake Preston, 50, were found dead by a family members in their Webster Village area home, according to a police statement.
Police were called about 4:15 p.m. to the home in the 100 block of Northway Drive. Sheriff's deputies determined that Preston shot and killed himself after shooting and killing his wife in the living room.
Police said the couple did not have children.
Fairbanks, AK: Troopers suspect murder, suicide in deaths of Fairbanks couple
FAIRBANKS, Alaska — Alaska State Troopers suspect murder, suicide in the deaths of a Fairbanks couple.
The bodies of Kenneth Evans and his wife, Lora, were found Friday in a vehicle near the Tanana River.
Troopers say their preliminary investigation indicates Kenneth Evans killed his wife, and then committed suicide.
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports a woman called troopers Friday morning after she talked to Kenneth Evans on the phone. The caller indicated Kenneth Evans planned to commit suicide and said his wife already was dead. He also gave her the location of where the car could be found.
The bodies of Kenneth Evans and his wife, Lora, were found Friday in a vehicle near the Tanana River.
Troopers say their preliminary investigation indicates Kenneth Evans killed his wife, and then committed suicide.
The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports a woman called troopers Friday morning after she talked to Kenneth Evans on the phone. The caller indicated Kenneth Evans planned to commit suicide and said his wife already was dead. He also gave her the location of where the car could be found.
Corpus Christi, TX: Corpus Christi man gets 55 years in stabbing of woman
CORPUS CHRISTI — A Corpus Christi man was sentenced to 55 years in prison Friday for killing a neighbor who spurned his romantic advances.
Pedro Bustinza, 47, was found guilty of murder in the May 11, 2010, stabbing death of Elisa Garcia Rodriguez. His fate was decided by 347th District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos because he opted for a bench trial.
Bustinza faced a minimum of 25 years behind bars and as long as life in prison because of his status as a habitual felony offender.
Before he was led away, Rodriguez’s mother stood before Bustinza and promised to fight any chance he has of an early release.
“I’m going to be there. My family is going to be there,” she said. “We’re going to make sure you stay there the whole 55 years.”
Rodriguez’s ex-husband and son found the 46-year old dead in her apartment in the 1900 block of Jasmine Court.
Police have said forensic evidence along with a police interview with Bustinza, a suspected gang member, led to his arrest.
Rodriguez’s father, Robert Garcia, called Bustinza an animal for killing his daughter, who he said suffered from cerebral palsy, a condition that forced her to walk with a limp.
Rodriguez’s son, also named Robert, said he and his father went to his mother’s apartment that day after his calls went unanswered. He said once he saw his mother’s body he had to leave to shield his then 4-year-old son from the scene.
He still struggles with how to explain her death to the boy, who often asks for her.
“I can’t really even explain it to him. He’s so small,” he said.
Bustinza denied killing Rodriguez and laughed when the prosecution brought up that Rodriguez told people before her death that he often made sexual advances toward her.
He also testified about his childhood, saying he was molested by two relatives and spent time in foster homes. He said he is an alcoholic and once tried to jump from a bridge in a suicide attempt.
At one point, he launched into a mostly unintelligible rant that included his account that voices in his head led by what he called a dispatcher had ordered him to do bad things.
He couldn’t remember his attorney’s full name and also claimed that people who testified only were pretending to be Rodriguez’s parents.
A psychiatrist who found Bustinza competent to stand trial noted that Bustinza suffers from chemical dependence and a schizophrenia disorder that requires medication.
Bustinza’s attorney, Robert Berg, argued Bustinza wasn’t entirely to blame because of his mental issues.
Prosecutors Mike Gordon and Andrea Koch both pointed out Bustinza had chances to get help and that a tough childhood and mental issues didn’t excuse the killing.
"Where is the shame? Where is the remorse?” Gordon asked. “He knows what he did was wrong. His mental illness did not cause him to do this.”
Atlantic City, NJ: N.J. Man Charged in Girlfriend's Death
Police have arrested a man in connection with the stabbing death of an Atlantic City woman.
Twenty-seven-year-old Deziree Vivian was stabbed to death just before 10 p.m. on Thursday night outside of BaBa John’s Deli on Pacific Avenue in Atlantic City, according to authorities.
Hours after the crime, the Atlantic City Police arrested the victim’s live-in boyfriend, 50-year-old Freddy Solorzano, for the crime.
Solorzano’s bail is set at $750,000.
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