A Port Richey, Florida man was sentenced to 7 years in prison followed by 3 years of probation last Friday, April 16, after attacking his wife with a hatchet, and trying to pretend to jurors at his trial that the attack was accidental, coming after he attempted to move furniture.
On June 8, 2008, investigators say, [now 43 year old Daniel]Stuckey attacked his wife at their home at 10018 Old Orchard Lane in Port Richey. The couple's two daughters - Dominique, 16, and Danielle, 9 - testified during the one-day trial that they were in bed with their mother at the time of the incident, . Dominique Stuckey awoke and saw their father carrying the hatchet toward their mother and, screaming, the girl tried to stop him.
Antoinette said she woke up because of the screaming and that her husband started swinging and cursing at her.
Stuckey said that while the argument heated up, he had the hatchet, used to move furniture, in his hand, and it dropped and hit her arm. Stuckey could not explain why there was a gash above her eye.
Prosecutors asked for the maximum sentence, 15 years for the 2nd degree Florida felony, while defense attorneys asked for a downward departure. It appeared that Stuckey got off, as he was convicted of the aggravated battery charge after acquittal of a more serious attempted murder charge, which carried a 30 year maximum.
Pasco County Circuit Judge Michael Andrews berated Stuckey for sticking to his story even after his conviction. "I simply cannot buy this argument that you continue to make that you didn't intend to use the hatchet," .It just doesn't make any sense whatsoever." He continued after sentencing. "I wish I could show you how I could move furniture with a hatchet," Stuckey said, before being led off into the Florida Department Of Corrections.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Salt Lake City mom sentenced to jail for bashing estranged husband with hammer
A Salt Lake City, UT mother who admitted "surprising" her husband with a hammer attack after leading him down to her parents' basement was sentenced to 30 days in jail, three years of probation, a $250 fine and 200 hours of community service Monday, April 19. Amy Teresa Ricks, 37, was given the light sentence mainly because her victim, her estranged husband Joel Ricks told the judge he still loved his wife and that prison would be hard on their daughters.
Ricks was initially charged with attempted murder, a first-degree felony, for the May 4, 2007, attack that took place in her parents' Holladay condominium. The couple had gone out for dinner and returned to the condo where they started kissing.
Joel Ricks told police his wife then told him, "I've got a surprise for you." Amy Ricks blindfolded her husband, led him downstairs, spun him around in circles and told him to count to 100. After Joel Ricks was hit with the hammer, prosecutors said, he pulled off the blindfold, spotted sleeping bags, a knife and plastic bags nearby, and ran off to get help.
The perpetrator's attorney Susanne Gustin said her client is "a kind person, a smart person, a wonderful mother," Gustin said. "She's working full time and is the sole support of this family. She's not a danger to the community or anybody else. This happened because of mental pressure. She was a battered spouse."
Amy Ricks herself said I don't want to be separated from my children for any time, I am with them all the time," she said. "The last two years have been a nightmare for everyone. I'm sorry for it and I just want it to be over."
Prosecutor Tupakk Renteria disputed Amy's claim of abuse and said that even if it was the case, that doesn't excusing luring a victim down to a basement under false pretenses.
3rd District Judge William Barrett said that while the punishment for the attack needed to be severe enough to act as a deterrent, "Sometimes I hate this job.This was a tragic case and is a tragic case." Amy must report to jail on April 27. Her husband still has a no-contact order issued against her.
Ricks was initially charged with attempted murder, a first-degree felony, for the May 4, 2007, attack that took place in her parents' Holladay condominium. The couple had gone out for dinner and returned to the condo where they started kissing.
Joel Ricks told police his wife then told him, "I've got a surprise for you." Amy Ricks blindfolded her husband, led him downstairs, spun him around in circles and told him to count to 100. After Joel Ricks was hit with the hammer, prosecutors said, he pulled off the blindfold, spotted sleeping bags, a knife and plastic bags nearby, and ran off to get help.
The perpetrator's attorney Susanne Gustin said her client is "a kind person, a smart person, a wonderful mother," Gustin said. "She's working full time and is the sole support of this family. She's not a danger to the community or anybody else. This happened because of mental pressure. She was a battered spouse."
Amy Ricks herself said I don't want to be separated from my children for any time, I am with them all the time," she said. "The last two years have been a nightmare for everyone. I'm sorry for it and I just want it to be over."
Prosecutor Tupakk Renteria disputed Amy's claim of abuse and said that even if it was the case, that doesn't excusing luring a victim down to a basement under false pretenses.
3rd District Judge William Barrett said that while the punishment for the attack needed to be severe enough to act as a deterrent, "Sometimes I hate this job.This was a tragic case and is a tragic case." Amy must report to jail on April 27. Her husband still has a no-contact order issued against her.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Husband who hired hitman to kill wife gets life without parole in Philly courtroom
A Jamaican national who had his nephew kill his estranged wife so he could have a better chance of escaping drug charges was sentenced to life without parole Friday for her murder. 46 year old Corbin Thomas was sentenced to mandatory life without parole after a Philadelphia jury convicted him of 1st degree murder of his wife, Hope Thomas. Common Pleas Court Judge Rose Marie DeFino-Nastasi presided over the trial and jury, which only took 40 minutes to deliver a guilty verdict.
Prosecutors said Thomas ordered hit hit on his wife to prevent her from testifying against him about his marijuana distribution operation, an operation which led to drug and money laundering convictions and a 35 year federal prison sentence.
On the night of Nov. 14, 1995, a gunman in a Wolfman mask accosted Hope Thomas and Danielle as the woman unlocked the door to their Cedarbrook rowhouse. The girl was tied up and left in a bedroom. Hope Thomas was led to a basement shower stall and shot in the head.
Corbin Thomas was initially suspected because the Thomases were separated, a divorce was all but final, and Hope Thomas had a protection-from-abuse order barring her husband from the house.
But the masked gunman escaped, and no physical evidence linked Corbin Thomas to scene. Police questioned and released Thomas. Four months later, he fled to Jamaica, and later to London.
He was arrested in London in 2002 and was also indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of operating a multimillion drug ring. But British authorities would not extradite him to the United States unless Philadelphia officials agreed not to seek the death penalty.
Hope's mother, Donell Morgan and daughter, now 21 year old Danielle, endured the five day trial and cross examination from Thomas, who had represented himself in the proceedings. Danielle said that "It was very hard. It was as if he disrespected me. Because I felt that he was guilty all along and he still questioned me."
Morgan said that "This has been like living a nightmare. To see it end the way it has is such a release...We always knew that he was the one who killed my daughter."
A key witness against him was Gary St. Louis Gordon, his right-hand man in the drug ring, who testified that Thomas offered him $10,000 to hire someone to kill his wife.
When a first hit man took the money and ran, Thomas turned to his nephew to do the job, Gordon testified. The nephew, Winston "Titos" Thomas, is missing and believed to have been killed in Jamaica for drug activities.
Thomas plans to appeal, and Judge DeFino-Nastasi appointed Barbara A. McDermott to handle it.
Prosecutors said Thomas ordered hit hit on his wife to prevent her from testifying against him about his marijuana distribution operation, an operation which led to drug and money laundering convictions and a 35 year federal prison sentence.
On the night of Nov. 14, 1995, a gunman in a Wolfman mask accosted Hope Thomas and Danielle as the woman unlocked the door to their Cedarbrook rowhouse. The girl was tied up and left in a bedroom. Hope Thomas was led to a basement shower stall and shot in the head.
Corbin Thomas was initially suspected because the Thomases were separated, a divorce was all but final, and Hope Thomas had a protection-from-abuse order barring her husband from the house.
But the masked gunman escaped, and no physical evidence linked Corbin Thomas to scene. Police questioned and released Thomas. Four months later, he fled to Jamaica, and later to London.
He was arrested in London in 2002 and was also indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of operating a multimillion drug ring. But British authorities would not extradite him to the United States unless Philadelphia officials agreed not to seek the death penalty.
Hope's mother, Donell Morgan and daughter, now 21 year old Danielle, endured the five day trial and cross examination from Thomas, who had represented himself in the proceedings. Danielle said that "It was very hard. It was as if he disrespected me. Because I felt that he was guilty all along and he still questioned me."
Morgan said that "This has been like living a nightmare. To see it end the way it has is such a release...We always knew that he was the one who killed my daughter."
A key witness against him was Gary St. Louis Gordon, his right-hand man in the drug ring, who testified that Thomas offered him $10,000 to hire someone to kill his wife.
When a first hit man took the money and ran, Thomas turned to his nephew to do the job, Gordon testified. The nephew, Winston "Titos" Thomas, is missing and believed to have been killed in Jamaica for drug activities.
Thomas plans to appeal, and Judge DeFino-Nastasi appointed Barbara A. McDermott to handle it.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
The blind raping the blind - rape between two residents of complex catering to visually impaired - attacker sentenced to 20 years
(Original Post 6-8-08)
Hawley Ridge Apartments, 920 N. Hawley Rd in Milwaukee, was the scene of a rape May 31 when Matthew Lilek, 41, allegedly impersonated himself as a 75 year old woman's son so he could rape her. The woman, who is visually impaired, and Lilek both live at that same apartment building.
According to a complaint:
The woman told police she was waiting for a visit from her son when someone rang her doorbell. She admitted a man, claiming to be her son, into her apartment. The man told her he sounded different because he had a cold. He then assaulted her.
At one point, the woman said, the man carried her into her bathroom and dumped her into her bathtub. He started to pour water on her, then continued to attack her until her doorbell rang.
The woman described the man as weighing more than 200 lbs., with moles on his back and dry elbows, wearing a wristwatch on one wrist and a name tag on the other.
According to police, a videotape shows a resident of the apartment building, Matthew Lilek, entering the woman's apartment and then leaving it a short time later carrying a bra. The bra, the complaint says, was recovered from Lilek's apartment, along with a pair of women's underpants. Lilek told police he took the underpants from the apartment building's laundry room and wore them while he attacked the victim.
Lilek is charged with second-degree sexual assault; aggravated battery and burglary. He faces 58 1/2 years in prison if convicted of all charges and if given the maximum sentence.
(Update 4-13-10) Lilek plead no contest in January to second-degree sexual assault, use of force, and aggravated battery in exchange for prosecutors dismissing a felony burglary count. Yesterday, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Rebecca Dallet sentenced Lilek to 20 years in prison and 15 years of extended supervision.
Judge Dallet said that despite developmental delays, Lilek chose a particulary vulnerable victim, posed as the victim's son, and inflicted serious injuries. Judge Dallet read previous uncharged incidents of inappropriate sexual contact into the record. "I'm not sure he can understand how wrong this is, so how will he not do it in the future?" she said.
The victim's son said she began suffering from Usher syndrome, a genetic disorder that leads to loss of hearing and sight. She had lived at Hawley Ridge a little more than five years at the time of the attack and enjoyed the independence it offered. Since the attack, she has moved to a group home, her son said, and does not like it. The woman attended the sentencing and was happy with the outcome, her son said.
He also said the family plans a civil suit against Hawley Ridge, noting that the management kept Lilek as a tenant despite earlier reports of inappropriate sexual contacts with residents. Lilek's mother was a major contributor to the Badger Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired. She declined to comment after the hearing.
As for Lilek, his attorney said that his client was focused of returning to jail to listen to yesterday's Brewers game (which Milwaukee lost, 10 to 5). Lilek told Judge Dallet, "I want to go to jail, and that's exactly what I want to do. And I'm disavowing my entire family as well."
Hawley Ridge Apartments, 920 N. Hawley Rd in Milwaukee, was the scene of a rape May 31 when Matthew Lilek, 41, allegedly impersonated himself as a 75 year old woman's son so he could rape her. The woman, who is visually impaired, and Lilek both live at that same apartment building.
According to a complaint:
The woman told police she was waiting for a visit from her son when someone rang her doorbell. She admitted a man, claiming to be her son, into her apartment. The man told her he sounded different because he had a cold. He then assaulted her.
At one point, the woman said, the man carried her into her bathroom and dumped her into her bathtub. He started to pour water on her, then continued to attack her until her doorbell rang.
The woman described the man as weighing more than 200 lbs., with moles on his back and dry elbows, wearing a wristwatch on one wrist and a name tag on the other.
According to police, a videotape shows a resident of the apartment building, Matthew Lilek, entering the woman's apartment and then leaving it a short time later carrying a bra. The bra, the complaint says, was recovered from Lilek's apartment, along with a pair of women's underpants. Lilek told police he took the underpants from the apartment building's laundry room and wore them while he attacked the victim.
Lilek is charged with second-degree sexual assault; aggravated battery and burglary. He faces 58 1/2 years in prison if convicted of all charges and if given the maximum sentence.
(Update 4-13-10) Lilek plead no contest in January to second-degree sexual assault, use of force, and aggravated battery in exchange for prosecutors dismissing a felony burglary count. Yesterday, Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Rebecca Dallet sentenced Lilek to 20 years in prison and 15 years of extended supervision.
Judge Dallet said that despite developmental delays, Lilek chose a particulary vulnerable victim, posed as the victim's son, and inflicted serious injuries. Judge Dallet read previous uncharged incidents of inappropriate sexual contact into the record. "I'm not sure he can understand how wrong this is, so how will he not do it in the future?" she said.
The victim's son said she began suffering from Usher syndrome, a genetic disorder that leads to loss of hearing and sight. She had lived at Hawley Ridge a little more than five years at the time of the attack and enjoyed the independence it offered. Since the attack, she has moved to a group home, her son said, and does not like it. The woman attended the sentencing and was happy with the outcome, her son said.
He also said the family plans a civil suit against Hawley Ridge, noting that the management kept Lilek as a tenant despite earlier reports of inappropriate sexual contacts with residents. Lilek's mother was a major contributor to the Badger Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired. She declined to comment after the hearing.
As for Lilek, his attorney said that his client was focused of returning to jail to listen to yesterday's Brewers game (which Milwaukee lost, 10 to 5). Lilek told Judge Dallet, "I want to go to jail, and that's exactly what I want to do. And I'm disavowing my entire family as well."
Mother of 3 strangled in home, allegedly by "husband"
Ian A. Alamilla, 33, a Westmont resident who is a Belize native, was charged by DuPage County, IL prosecutors with 1st degree murder for strangling his "wife," 34 year old Tara, in the basement of her Westmont home. Ian drove to the Central District Police Station in Chicago's near south side around 5:30 AM and turned himself to police. According to DuPage County prosecutor Robert Berlin, Alamilla said that he had been in a fight with his wife and that police should check on her.
Chicago police contacted their Westmont counterparts, who found the mother of three dead in her basement. Her kids, 2, 5, and 11, were found by police asleep and physically unharmed.
The couple had been separated since March 5, 2010, after Tara filed for divorce. The divorce papers make no allegations of DV, and according to neighbors, the couple, who still lived within several blocks of each other,were trying to repair their marriage. Ian was at his wife's home for the youngest child's birthday party.
Christin O'Malley said, "They were very cordial with each other. Never once did she ever say he was violent She was a good person, but so was Ian. That's why this is so shocking."
At Brookfield Zoo, where Tara Alamilla had worked since 2006, she had established a reputation for making inroads with Chicago Public Schools teachers in the zoo's new education program. A teacher-development program that she coordinated, Levels of Engagement, won the Association of Zoos and Aquariums Education Award in 2009, officials said.
More recently, Alamilla was helping with the design of wildlife clubs in Guyana, said Stuart Strahl, president and chief executive officer of the zoological society. Earlier, Alamilla also had managed the zoo's accessibility program for children with disabilities, arranging internships and volunteer opportunities, Strahl added.
"She was a remarkable woman with a huge heart that would reach almost anybody at any level," Strahl said. "Her passing is a great loss."
Brookfield Zoo made grief counselors available to employees and set up a memorial fund in Tara Aramilla's name to enhance the institution's education efforts.
DuPage County, IL State's Attorney Joe Birkett said that "Tragically, Tara's life was taken on the birthday of her youngest child. The heartbreaking, senseless loss of life in this case is compounded because it involves three young children who have lost their mother and now see their father accused of taking her life."
DuPage County Judge Liam Brennan set Ian's bail at $2 million.
10 signs you're dating a socipath (by Lovefraud)
If your new romantic interest exhibits all or most of the following behaviors, be careful. He or she might be a sociopath.
1. Charisma and charm. They’re smooth talkers, always have an answer, never miss a beat. They seem to be very exciting.
2. Enormous ego. They act like the smartest, richest or most successful people around. They may actually come out and tell you that.
3. Overly attentive. They call, text and e-mail constantly. They want to be with you every moment. They resent time you spend with your family and friends.
4. Jekyll and Hyde personality. One minute they love you; the next minute they hate you. Their personality changes like flipping a switch.
5. Blame others. Nothing is ever their fault. They always have an excuse. Someone else causes their problems.
6. Lies and gaps in the story. You ask questions, and the answers are vague. They tell stupid lies. They tell outrageous lies. They lie when they’d make out better telling the truth.
7. Intense eye contact. Call it the predatory stare. If you get a chill down your spine when they look at you, pay attention.
8. Move fast. They quickly proclaim that you’re their true love and soul mate. They want to move in together or get married quickly.
9. Pity play. They appeal to your sympathy. They want you to feel sorry for their abusive childhood, psychotic ex, incurable disease or financial setbacks.
10. Sexual magnetism. If you feel intense attraction, if your physical relationship is unbelievable, it may be their excess testosterone.
1. Charisma and charm. They’re smooth talkers, always have an answer, never miss a beat. They seem to be very exciting.
2. Enormous ego. They act like the smartest, richest or most successful people around. They may actually come out and tell you that.
3. Overly attentive. They call, text and e-mail constantly. They want to be with you every moment. They resent time you spend with your family and friends.
4. Jekyll and Hyde personality. One minute they love you; the next minute they hate you. Their personality changes like flipping a switch.
5. Blame others. Nothing is ever their fault. They always have an excuse. Someone else causes their problems.
6. Lies and gaps in the story. You ask questions, and the answers are vague. They tell stupid lies. They tell outrageous lies. They lie when they’d make out better telling the truth.
7. Intense eye contact. Call it the predatory stare. If you get a chill down your spine when they look at you, pay attention.
8. Move fast. They quickly proclaim that you’re their true love and soul mate. They want to move in together or get married quickly.
9. Pity play. They appeal to your sympathy. They want you to feel sorry for their abusive childhood, psychotic ex, incurable disease or financial setbacks.
10. Sexual magnetism. If you feel intense attraction, if your physical relationship is unbelievable, it may be their excess testosterone.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Molest victim shoots attacker, pleads guilty to voluntary manslaughter
He told [his family] McNeill began molesting him while they were on a fishing trip when Vargas was 11 years old. McNeill continued to psychologically harass Vargas into adulthood, the Vargas family said.
McNeill would drop by the house Vargas shared with his fiancee at all hours, call frequently and ask to baby-sit Vargas’ newborn daughter, his sister [Mindy Galliani] said. Galliani believes her brother snapped on the night he drove to NcNeill’s home outside of Fort Bragg carrying a .44 caliber cap and ball pistol.
The men argued and Vargas shot McNeill once in the chest, then stayed at the home for 20 minutes to make sure he was dead, preventing Liz McNeill from phoning for help, law enforcement officers said. After the shooting, Vargas disassembled the gun and divulged his accusations for the first time.
Liz McNeill and her sons have written letters urging Humboldt County, CA prosecutors to charge Vargas with lesser charges that murder, and according to Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Norman and Vargas’ attorney, Tom Hudson. Three men and a woman contacted the DA's office alleging molestation by McNeill, and Norman said the plea agreement was “a fair resolution in light of all the facts.”
Vargas has became a celebrity of sorts since his arrest immediately after the killing. His sister’s unflagging outreach efforts garnered nationwide media attention and support from the Fort Bragg community and beyond for Vargas, who many consider to be the victim in this case.
More than 2,000 people signed an online petition seeking a reduction in the charges or dismissal of the case. A dozen people claim McNeill also molested them, said Vargas’ sister, Mindy Galliani.
Mendocino County Superior Court Judge Ron Brown took into account the plea of the victim's family in accepting the plea agreement, but not the public support for Vargas, shown by a petition urging charges be dropped. “That is the reason we’re not guided by public opinion,” Judge Brown said.
Brown will sentence Vargas after an April 20 stipulated facts hearing. There is a chance that Vargas can be sentenced to more than 10 years by Judge Brown. Voluntary manslaughter carries a 21 year maximum sentence, and Vargas can retract his plea if Brown sentences him to 10-21 years.
Yale bans professor/undergraduate sex on campus
Yale professors won't be able to have sex with any undergraduate students on campus anymore. The policy, floated since 1983 by Yale Deputy Provost Charles Long, prohibits professors from any romantic relationship with any undergraduate student, not just those with students under their “direct pedagogical or supervisory responsibilities.”
The previous policy is still in place regarding professional/ graduate student and graduate/undergraduate relationships. Yale professionals, who thought such a policy was already in place, were consulted and gave positive feedback.
Such a policy was floated in the past, but nixed due to women students feeling that it would be paternalistic. Yale wanted one policy to cover all relationships. The policy now says undergraduates “are particularly vulnerable to the unequal institutional power inherent in the teacher-student relationship and the potential for coercion, because of their age and relative lack of maturity.”
The previous policy is still in place regarding professional/ graduate student and graduate/undergraduate relationships. Yale professionals, who thought such a policy was already in place, were consulted and gave positive feedback.
Such a policy was floated in the past, but nixed due to women students feeling that it would be paternalistic. Yale wanted one policy to cover all relationships. The policy now says undergraduates “are particularly vulnerable to the unequal institutional power inherent in the teacher-student relationship and the potential for coercion, because of their age and relative lack of maturity.”
British man gets 25 to life sentence for running over wife for insurance policy
A cheating husband killed his wife 'in cold blood' after secretly taking out a £250,000 insurance policy on her life. Christopher Daffin, 43, ran down his wife Colette as she walked to work in the early morning.
He claimed he killed her in the heat of the moment, but Daffin is beginning a 25-year jail sentence for her murder. The electrician, who had been spotted 'lurking' in bushes nearby wearing dark clothing and sunglasses, had tried to make the tragedy look like a hit and run accident.
Minutes after the killing on July 8, he feigned surprise when one of his wife's colleagues rang to say she had not arrived at work at 6am. But detectives began to suspect him when he showed a lack of concern on learning his wife of 15 years had been killed in a road accident.
Police later discovered Daffin had allegedly been involved in an 'on-off' affair for at least two years, with a woman he met while working at her home. It also emerged he had forged his 43-year-old wife's signature on a £250,000 life insurance policy a year before her death. He then bought the 4x4 car used in the killing under a false name, never registering, taxing or insuring it.
Nottingham Crown Court was told Daffin claimed he had killed his wife in the heat of the moment after a blazing row. But prosecutors said it was a premeditated killing. Judge Jonathan Teare agreed, telling Daffin the murder was planned and carried out in 'cold, and not hot blood'. The judge was told how the electrician had 'lain in wait' for Mrs Daffin as she walked to work as a breakfast waitress at the Ringwood Hall Hotel near Chesterfield.
Nirmal Shant QC, prosecuting, told the court he used a Vauxhall Frontera bought in secret using a false name nine months earlier. Mrs Shant said a motorist travelling 80 yards behind Daffin watched as he swerved on to the pavement and hit Mrs Daffin before driving back on to the road without braking. Mrs Daffin was struck at about 30mph and dragged a short distance before being thrown clear of the car. She died of head injuries.
Her husband then drove to a derelict pub and abandoned the 4x4 vehicle before walking to the van he used for work and driving home. Before police arrived at the family home in Chesterfield, Daffin changed out of the clothes he had been spotted in earlier. But they were later found in a bag in his van, along with the registration document for the Frontera.
Mrs Shant said a year before murdering his wife, Daffin had taken out a life insurance policy in her name, forging her signature on the application form.
Judge Teare told him that although killing her may not have been his motive for taking out the policy, it was 'certainly in his mind'. He added: 'It was taken out at a time when you were having an active affair with another woman. 'I am satisfied it was in your mind that £250,000 would be coming your way if your wife died and no blame was attached to you.'
The court heard that Mrs Daffin confided in a friend two months before she died that she suspected her husband of having an affair. He had also threatened to kill her by running her over 'when there was no one there', the friend, Marie Shepherd, told the court.
Miss Shepherd said she tried to reassure Mrs Daffin that her husband must have been 'messing about' and asked her how he would get away with it 'with all the forensics'. But Mrs Daffin replied: 'Apparently he's got another car.'
Daffin was jailed for life and told he must serve at least 25 years before being eligible for release. Mrs Daffin's father, John Oliver, said: 'I'm satisfied with the sentence, but there are no winners in this case. I'd have been in favour of capital punishment - I don't see why the taxpayer should keep him for 25 years.' Daffin was sentenced April 8.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Female coach charged with sexual relationship with female student - pleads guilty, sentenced to 6 months in jail
A 17 year veteran of Xenia [OH] High School has been charged with 3 counts of sexual battery for a two month "relationship" she had with a player on a team she coached. Xenia police Capt. Scott Anger, the 42 year old Osbourne was charged with three counts of sexual battery, a 3rd degree offense, for off campus incidents with a 17 year old volleyball player on July 1 and September 2. According to the probable cause warrant, Osbourne “admitted to having engaged in sexual conduct with the minor child.”
The long time counselor and girls' vollyeball coach has been put on paid leave pending the outcome of the case.
Osborne, a 17-year veteran, has a personnel file full of positive performance reviews and glowing letters of recommendation from past students, fellow teachers and administrators.
“When a longtime counselor retired (in 2007), the hiring for that spot was very competitive,” [Xenia Schools Superintendent Jeff] Lewis said. “We had three female counselors, and I really hoped to hire a man. But (Osborne) just outshone everyone, and her hiring was unanimous.”
First-year Xenia High School Principal Ted Holop addressed students Friday and sent a message to parents.
Lewis said that there have been no complaints against Osbourne, but that “It was just shocking — we’re very saddened and embarrassed by this. I feel empathy for her, but I’m also angry because this is a breach of our trust.”
Osbourne, arrested Thursday, September 3, posted a $7500 bond Friday. A grand jury case hearing is scheduled for tomorrow. Sexual battery is a 3rd degree felony in Ohio with a 1 to 5 years prison sentence. Teachers convicted of such crimes must register as a Tier 3 sex offender for life.
(Update 4-10-10) Osborne changed her plea in a Greene County, OH courtroom to guilty on March 30, 2010. In exchange, prosecutors dropped two out of three charges of sexual battery and recommend that her teaching certificate be revoked.
Prosecutor Nicole Burke's comments are below:
"The victim is under the age of 18 and she's had a pretty rough time while the case was going on. She's finally got some closure, some vindication that this did happen and Brenda took responsibility for that. She was in a position of trust, dealing with children under the age of 18. She took advantage of that position and we feel she shouldn't be in that position ever again."
Osborne will be sentenced June 30.
(Update 6-30-10) Osborne was sentenced earlier today to 6 months in jail, years of probation and sexual predator registration for the rest of her life every 90 days. Greene County Judge Stephen A. Wolaver presided over her trial.
Prosecutor Nicole Burke said, "[The victim's] entire senior year was pretty much destroyed. She had to literally hide in a place where she should have felt safe. Yes, Brenda Osborne was punished, but she deserved to be punished." Defense attorney Richard Skelton said, "If you're a teacher, don't have an inappropriate relationship with a student. It's that simple. You'll pay the price if you do." Apparently, support from the community expressed through letters received to Judge Wolaver affected her sentence, as he said, "Your council [sic] provided me with dozens of letters on your behalf. This tells me a lot about who you are."
Jurors recommend death for California serial killer, judge grants request
(Original Post 3-10-10)
By LARRY WELBORN, RACHANEE SRISAVASDI and ERIC CARPENTER
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
SANTA ANA – Courtroom spectators applauded Tuesday when an Orange County jury recommended that serial killer Rodney James Alcala be put to death for five sexual assault and torture murders committed in the 1970s.
Alcala, who represented himself during the eight-week trial, did not look at the jury as the verdict was announced after just an hour of deliberations. He stared down at the counsel table with no outward sign of emotion.
But family members of murder victims pumped their fists and cheered.
Robert Samsoe, the older bother of victim Robin Samsoe – a junior high school student who was kidnapped while on the way to ballet lessons on June 20, 1979 – raised his fist and shouted "Yes! Yes!" Robin was Alcala's last victim.
"It's a great feeling that Robin did not die in vain," Robert Samsoe told reporters later. "We got a monster off the streets for good today."
Dedee Parenteau, the sister of murder victim Jill Parenteau, who was raped, tortured and strangled in her Burbank apartment a week before Samsoe was murdered, smiled and raised her fist when the verdict was announced.
"I'll never have Jill back, but I do feel a sense of relief," she said. "I'm happy for Jill and the other girls that they got justice today."
And Anne Michelena, the sister of murder victim Georgia Wixted, smiled and accepted congratulations from friends in the courtroom. "I've waited 33 years for this," she said. "It was really hard to hear what happened to my sister, but this feels like a sense of relief."
Judge Francisco P. Briseno politely reprimanded the spectators – mostly family members of victims – after the spontaneous applause when the verdict was announced. "Remember you are in Superior Court," he said. "Please keep your composure."
Briseno said he will schedule Alcala's sentencing date on Wednesday.
The same jury convicted Alcala last week of five counts of first-degree murder, plus the special circumstances of committing multiple murders, murders during the course of sexual assault and torture, and murder during a kidnapping.
Those special circumstances findings triggered the penalty phase, where the jury's only choice was the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Jurors said later they had little difficulty making that decision.
The jury foreman, who gave his name as Jeff, said, "These were horrendous crimes. ... There was an overwhelming feeling to render a verdict of justice to show our sympathies to the families."
Juror Greg Lacey, 63, spoke to some family members of the victims. "I'm a father and a husband," he told them. "Seeing you gave us the strength to do our duty."
It was the third time that Alcala has heard a jury condemn him to death.
He was tried twice, convicted twice and sentenced to death twice before in the Samsoe case, but both of those convictions were reversed on appeal.
Before he could be tried a third time for Samsoe's death, he was linked by DNA and other forensic evidence to the sexual assaults and torture murders of the four women in Los Angeles. Those cases were merged into one trial in Orange County.
Earlier Tuesday, Alcala played lyrics from the 1960s song "Alice's Restaurant" during his 13 minutes summation and told his jurors that they would become "de facto killers" if he is executed.
Alcala told jurors that a verdict of life in prison without the possibility of parole "would end this matter now" and would provide closure to the family members of his five victims. But if jurors decided that death was the appropriate penalty, they would "instantly become wannabe killers in waiting," he said.
One juror, who gave his name as Vic, told reporters that Alcala's argument was "very insulting. He basically called us killers."
Alcala took the rare step of representing himself during the eight-week trial. He presented no evidence in the brutal Los Angeles County murders of Jill Barcomb, 18, in November, 1977; George Wixted, 27, in December 1977; Charlotte Lamb, 32, in June 1978, and Jill Parenteau, 21, on June 14, 1979.
But he continued to insist that he did not kidnap or murder Robin Samsoe, an always-smiling junior high schooler who was kidnapped as she pedaled a friend's bicycle to ballet practice on June 20, 1979. Her decomposing remains were found 12 days later in the foothills of Los Angeles County not far from Alcala's home in Monterey Park.
Alcala quickly became a suspect in the Samsoe case in 1979 when his parole officer reported to Huntington Beach Police detectives that he bore an uncanny resemblance to a police artist's composite sketch of a man in his mid-30s who talked the 12-year-old girl into posing for photos a few minutes before she went missing.
Detectives learned that Alcala held himself out as a freelance photographer and that he was in the vicinity of the beach at 14th Street where the photo incident took place. Several other young girls then came forward and identified Alcala as the photographer.
He was arrested on July 24, 1979, and has been in custody ever since, either awaiting trial or on Death Row at San Quentin Prison before his convictions were reversed.
During the investigation, detectives found dozens of photographs of young women at Alcala's home in Monterey Park and in a storage locker in Seattle. They also discovered a pouch of jewelry in that storage locker that contained gold ball earrings that Robin Samsoe's mother identified as hers.
Deputy District Attorney Matt Murphy argued that Alcala was a predatory monster who sought out young women to kill because he enjoyed it, and that he sometimes kept the earrings of his victims as trophies.
Nearly a quarter of a century later, forensic examiners determined that the DNA from Charlotte Lamb – one of his Los Angeles victims – was on rose-shaped earring that were found in the same pouch as the earring belonging to Robin Samsoe.
Marianne Connelly, Robin Samsoe's mother, arrived at the courthouse about an hour after the verdict was announced. She hugged her two sons, who have attended almost every minute of the third trial, and Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas, and trial prosecutors Murphy and Gina Satriano. "I am just delighted with the verdict," she said, near tears. "Three times going through this is enough. Hopefully, we'll never have to do this again."
(Update 4-10-10) On Tuesday, March 30, Alcala was sentenced to death in an Orange County, CA courtroom. Judge Francisco Briseno for the deaths of 4 victims and a teenage girl. Briseno said that Alcala's posing of bodies after death indicated that "sadistic sexual motives" were the root cause of the rape-slayings, and that he had an "abnormal interest in young girls."
By LARRY WELBORN, RACHANEE SRISAVASDI and ERIC CARPENTER
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
SANTA ANA – Courtroom spectators applauded Tuesday when an Orange County jury recommended that serial killer Rodney James Alcala be put to death for five sexual assault and torture murders committed in the 1970s.
Alcala, who represented himself during the eight-week trial, did not look at the jury as the verdict was announced after just an hour of deliberations. He stared down at the counsel table with no outward sign of emotion.
But family members of murder victims pumped their fists and cheered.
Robert Samsoe, the older bother of victim Robin Samsoe – a junior high school student who was kidnapped while on the way to ballet lessons on June 20, 1979 – raised his fist and shouted "Yes! Yes!" Robin was Alcala's last victim.
"It's a great feeling that Robin did not die in vain," Robert Samsoe told reporters later. "We got a monster off the streets for good today."
Dedee Parenteau, the sister of murder victim Jill Parenteau, who was raped, tortured and strangled in her Burbank apartment a week before Samsoe was murdered, smiled and raised her fist when the verdict was announced.
"I'll never have Jill back, but I do feel a sense of relief," she said. "I'm happy for Jill and the other girls that they got justice today."
And Anne Michelena, the sister of murder victim Georgia Wixted, smiled and accepted congratulations from friends in the courtroom. "I've waited 33 years for this," she said. "It was really hard to hear what happened to my sister, but this feels like a sense of relief."
Judge Francisco P. Briseno politely reprimanded the spectators – mostly family members of victims – after the spontaneous applause when the verdict was announced. "Remember you are in Superior Court," he said. "Please keep your composure."
Briseno said he will schedule Alcala's sentencing date on Wednesday.
The same jury convicted Alcala last week of five counts of first-degree murder, plus the special circumstances of committing multiple murders, murders during the course of sexual assault and torture, and murder during a kidnapping.
Those special circumstances findings triggered the penalty phase, where the jury's only choice was the death penalty or life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Jurors said later they had little difficulty making that decision.
The jury foreman, who gave his name as Jeff, said, "These were horrendous crimes. ... There was an overwhelming feeling to render a verdict of justice to show our sympathies to the families."
Juror Greg Lacey, 63, spoke to some family members of the victims. "I'm a father and a husband," he told them. "Seeing you gave us the strength to do our duty."
It was the third time that Alcala has heard a jury condemn him to death.
He was tried twice, convicted twice and sentenced to death twice before in the Samsoe case, but both of those convictions were reversed on appeal.
Before he could be tried a third time for Samsoe's death, he was linked by DNA and other forensic evidence to the sexual assaults and torture murders of the four women in Los Angeles. Those cases were merged into one trial in Orange County.
Earlier Tuesday, Alcala played lyrics from the 1960s song "Alice's Restaurant" during his 13 minutes summation and told his jurors that they would become "de facto killers" if he is executed.
Alcala told jurors that a verdict of life in prison without the possibility of parole "would end this matter now" and would provide closure to the family members of his five victims. But if jurors decided that death was the appropriate penalty, they would "instantly become wannabe killers in waiting," he said.
One juror, who gave his name as Vic, told reporters that Alcala's argument was "very insulting. He basically called us killers."
Alcala took the rare step of representing himself during the eight-week trial. He presented no evidence in the brutal Los Angeles County murders of Jill Barcomb, 18, in November, 1977; George Wixted, 27, in December 1977; Charlotte Lamb, 32, in June 1978, and Jill Parenteau, 21, on June 14, 1979.
But he continued to insist that he did not kidnap or murder Robin Samsoe, an always-smiling junior high schooler who was kidnapped as she pedaled a friend's bicycle to ballet practice on June 20, 1979. Her decomposing remains were found 12 days later in the foothills of Los Angeles County not far from Alcala's home in Monterey Park.
Alcala quickly became a suspect in the Samsoe case in 1979 when his parole officer reported to Huntington Beach Police detectives that he bore an uncanny resemblance to a police artist's composite sketch of a man in his mid-30s who talked the 12-year-old girl into posing for photos a few minutes before she went missing.
Detectives learned that Alcala held himself out as a freelance photographer and that he was in the vicinity of the beach at 14th Street where the photo incident took place. Several other young girls then came forward and identified Alcala as the photographer.
He was arrested on July 24, 1979, and has been in custody ever since, either awaiting trial or on Death Row at San Quentin Prison before his convictions were reversed.
During the investigation, detectives found dozens of photographs of young women at Alcala's home in Monterey Park and in a storage locker in Seattle. They also discovered a pouch of jewelry in that storage locker that contained gold ball earrings that Robin Samsoe's mother identified as hers.
Deputy District Attorney Matt Murphy argued that Alcala was a predatory monster who sought out young women to kill because he enjoyed it, and that he sometimes kept the earrings of his victims as trophies.
Nearly a quarter of a century later, forensic examiners determined that the DNA from Charlotte Lamb – one of his Los Angeles victims – was on rose-shaped earring that were found in the same pouch as the earring belonging to Robin Samsoe.
Marianne Connelly, Robin Samsoe's mother, arrived at the courthouse about an hour after the verdict was announced. She hugged her two sons, who have attended almost every minute of the third trial, and Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas, and trial prosecutors Murphy and Gina Satriano. "I am just delighted with the verdict," she said, near tears. "Three times going through this is enough. Hopefully, we'll never have to do this again."
(Update 4-10-10) On Tuesday, March 30, Alcala was sentenced to death in an Orange County, CA courtroom. Judge Francisco Briseno for the deaths of 4 victims and a teenage girl. Briseno said that Alcala's posing of bodies after death indicated that "sadistic sexual motives" were the root cause of the rape-slayings, and that he had an "abnormal interest in young girls."
Student, secret porn star, murdered, body found, killer convicted, sentenced to life without parole
This story, originally written on December 1st,2007, is about the murder and discovery of the body of Emily Sander, better known as Zoey Zane. It has been taken from the MSNBC website.
The identification of the body of Emily Sander, 18, was confirmed by a forensic orthodontist, El Dorado Police Chief Tom Boren said. The body was released to Sander's family after forensic examinations and an autopsy. The results of that examination and the cause of death were sealed by the county attorney's office, and police would not release details about the cause of death.
Police also said Saturday they were re-interviewing witnesses, family and associates of suspect Israel Mireles, 24 and his pregnant 16-year-old girlfriend. They said his whereabouts were still unknown, but they believed she was still with him. Sander, 18, disappeared late Nov. 23 after leaving a bar with Mireles outside El Dorado, and police labeled Mireles a suspect in her disappearance.
The body was found Thursday about 50 miles east of El Dorado, along U.S. 54 near the Woodson County town of Toronto. Close to the body, investigators found a bedspread that had been missing from Mireles' El Dorado motel room, Boren said. Investigators found a large amount of blood in the room.
Sander's case drew wide attention after it was revealed that she appeared on a popular adult Web site under the name Zoey Zane. In some photographs, she appears merely scantily clad in lingerie or cowgirl outfits. Other pictures, some of which require viewers to pay for, are more explicit, showing her nude, fondling herself and posing with other women.
Mireles' girlfriend is seven months pregnant. Investigators think she remains with Mireles "on her own volition, but investigators fear for her continued welfare, as well as that of her unborn child," Boren said in a statement Friday.
The rental car the pair were driving was found abandoned Tuesday in Vernon, Texas, where Mireles has relatives. Sander's grandfather, Clem Sander of El Dorado, said Friday afternoon that relatives had begun preparing funeral arrangements.
Update: (12-22-07)
Mireles has been found, and charged with the rape and murder of college student (and secret porn star) Emily Sanders. Formal charges include capital murder, rape, and aggravated criminal sodomy. Mireles had been traveling with his 16 year old girlfriend Victoria Martens, who was found unharmed. The couple was found in Melchior Muzquiz, Mexico. Under an extradition agreement, Mireles will not face the death penalty for crimes against Sanders. Mireles will also face aggravated indecent liberties with a child for thew sexual relationship with Martens.
Reference:
Cops: Found Body Is Missing Student
Update (8-20-09)
After Mireles' preliminary hearing on Tuesday, August 18, Kansas Attorney General Steve Six laid out the reasons why Mireles should get a November 2 trial date. These reasons include the brutality of the attack when Sanders was raped and killed.
On Nov. 30, 2007, coroner Jaime Oeberst conducted the Sander autopsy. She found that the two entrance stab wounds had actually caused four perforations in the chest, meaning the weapon had been plunged in more than once in each spot.
Sander had been strangled; she had two phone cords around her neck.
Blunt-force injuries had caused her brain to swell. She had circular-pattern injuries that could be consistent with being struck with one of the beer bottles found in the motel room and an abrasion on one of her breasts that was consistent with a bite mark.
Oeberst also found that Sander had extensive sexual assault injuries. Diane Schunn, an expert on sexual assaults, also examined Sander and would later testify that she had never seen such extensive injuries.
Also, the background of Sanders' last night was explained by prosecutors.
(Update 2-14-10) After a 4 day trial with graphic testimony and 75 minutes of deliberation, Mireles was convicted Friday, February 12 afternoon of capital murder. Mireles made a flimsy defense about how a "mystery guy" robbed him, stayed in the motel room with Sanders, stabbed and raped her while Mireles was driving on the streets. The Kansas Attorney General personally prosecuted this case and cross-examined Mireles after he took the stand in his defense.
"So the guy came and attacked you, tried to get your money, and you just leave him there with Emily and all your stuff?" Kansas Attorney General Steve Six asked on cross-examination. "I just left," Mireles said.
"Did you tell anyone when you were coming back... or if you were coming back?" Six pressed. "No," Mireles said.
"This mystery guy didn't know if you were going to get the police... or go to the Retreat (bar) and get some friends" and return? "No," Mireles said.
Six also went over other details of Mireles' story. Mireles said he was so panicked he grabbed a knife that had Sander's blood on it —"the murder weapon," Six called it — and Sander's body, put them in the trunk of his car and later disposed of the body.
Mireles said that was correct. "Does this make any sense to you?" Six asked. "None of it makes any sense to me," Mireles said.
The savage abuse Sander suffered in her death didn't make sense to Six.
This abuse included two stab wounds which went in so deep into Sander's body that they left both entry and exit wounds, a brutal rape at knifepoint, and sodomy with a toilet plunger handle. A crime scene technician described the murder scene Tuesday, February 9.
Crime-scene investigator David Klamm said he spent two days working with a team to collect evidence from an El Dorado motel room where Israel Mireles had been staying. "Ms. Sander had been reported missing, and we had a bloody room," he said. "But we had to see if there was some connection."
Emily Sander, 18, had been missing for two days, when Klamm arrived at the El Dorado motel. Inside were blood-soaked bed sheets, carpet, splatters on chairs and articles of clothing, including a woman's bra.
Klamm found blood stains on the floor and on the handle of a toilet plunger nearby, lying underneath the front window and by the door to the room. There also was blood splattered across the arms of chairs underneath the window. From his training, Klamm recognized the spots on the chair as a "flow pattern," which means it fell from the source.
The phone jack lay nearby, ripped from the wall, Klamm testified today in Mireles' murder trial. Klamm also found a 9-inch piece of phone cord on the floor. It had blood on it, too. Blood seemed to cover the room, when the owner of the motel first looked inside the room.The broken window first drew the attention of I.C. Patel.
The victim's mother, Clara Biedinger, made this statement moments after the guilty verdict was announced.
"When I kissed her good-bye, I promised her we'd get him. And we did. We got him today...He won't ever hurt anyone else," she said. The mother's final kiss of her daughter took place at the morgue. Mireles will be sentenced March 31 by Butler County District Judge David Ricke.
(Update 4-10-10) Ten days ago, Judge Ricke sentenced Mireles to life without parole plus 203 months for his crimes. “The disrespect in which you treated Emily Sander in your short dealings with her was and is appalling,” he said as he passed sentence.
Sander's mother and father were in attendance, but her grandfather, Clem Sander and uncle Brent Blaine gave victim impact statements before the criminal judgement.
"What you did was more like a savage animal, rather than a human being," Clem Sander said. Brent Blaine contrasted his niece's strong will with the cowardly acts of Mireles. "Her will was not broken that night, but you are still a pathetic little man." Mireles said nothing in mitigation.
Kansas DA Steve Six, who personally prosecuted the case, said “This is one of the most cruel and heinous cases my office has seen in some time. Our prayers are with Emily Sander’s family as they continue to grieve.”
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