Rapist sentenced to 35 years without parole in Mississippi courtroom

A convicted felon who raped a 21 year old coed at gunpoint with a stun gun was sentenced to 35 years without parole by Mississippi 15th District Circuit Court Judge R.I. Prichard III yesterday (June 25, 2010). James H. Crockett, 38, of Chalmette, LA, plead guilty to the attack, which took place in Hattiesburg, MS July 6, in the midst of a three state crime spree.

Crockett also is accused of sexually assaulting a 22-year-old woman July 5, 2009, in Baton Rouge, LA, where he was charged with aggravated rape, aggravated battery and false imprisonment. He also was sought in Hammond, LA., on attempted aggravated assault and kidnapping charges.

Crockett was detained in Florence, AL, on July 7 after he was caught at an apartment complex with handcuffs and a stun gun. However, since he had not yet been identified as a suspect in the earlier crimes, he was charged with misdemeanor possession of marijuana and released.

He returned to Louisiana and attacked a woman on July 10 in Hammond, though she was able to fend him off. By then, authorities had linked Crockett to the attacks in Mississippi and Louisiana, and began a manhunt. He was arrested July 12 after wrecking his car during a chase in Huntsville, AL.

Crockett "apologized" to the victim and her family, stating just before his sentence, "It was a chain of events, and unfortunately, if it hadn't have been (her), it probably would have been someone else. I was on a path of self-destruction, and she just happened to get in the way, or be the one who was in the way." He also hoped that they "can get over this and get on with their lives," something that doesn't happen with sexual assault, even after years of therapy.

Judge Pritchard said about the attack, "This happened early in the morning. She had left to get some milk, come back, and without ever knowing you or doing anything on her part, you assaulted her."

  Having looked at the facts of this case, this is one of those cases that is the most classical, horrible (crimes) that can happen to a female. In fact, the psychological and psychiatric communities agree, that probably, under the circumstances, by using a stun gun, by using handcuffs and the complete domination of the lady, this is probably a fate worse than possibly a murder. I don't know how you equate taking someone's life with what happened here, but as far as the psychological and psychiatric disciplines, there is no (crime), in their opinion, that has more devastating effects on a victim than this kind of complete domination."

Other aggravating factors included Crockett's use of marijuana and seven prior felony convictions. Judge Pritchett arrived at the 35 year term by using Crockett's further life expectancy of 40 years. Besides the no parole term, Crockett, if he's released, must register as a sex offender and have no contact with the victim or her family.

Judge Pritchett also sentenced two molesters to 15 years in prison, sex offender registration and treatment, and a $3000 fine Friday. The molesters were Michael Mullins, 25, convicted of fondling a 13 year old family friend, and George Fries, 30, a former high school substitute teacher who fondled a 17 year old student.

MS college student killed by boyfriend gets justice

(Original Post 12-4-07)

Latasha Norman, 20, was found murdered after her ex-boyfriend led police to her body in the woods, which lay among debris and trash. The ex-boyfriend, Stanley Dwayne Cole of Greenville, MS, was interviewed by detectives Thursday [November 29, 2007], said Jackson Police Sgt. Jeffery Scott. She was last seen leaving classes at Jackson State University on November 13th [2007].

Norman had been allegedly attacked by Cole before her disappearance. Cole was charged with simple assault for allegedly hitting his ex, and Norman’s tires had been slashed with her license plate stolen. The disappearnce of Norman sparked candlelight vigils from classmates and an outpouring of support in Jackson.

(Update 2-26-10) Tuesday, February 23 saw justice done for LaTasha. After 2 1/2 hours of deliberation, a Hinds County, MS jury convicted Cole of murder, meaning that he will get an automatic life sentence. Hinds County Circuit Judge Swan Yerger denied a defense request for the option to convict the now 26 year old Cole on manslaughter charges, an option which would have exposed him to a maximum of 2 decades in prison.

During the trial, the fact that Norman was killed by Cole was never in dispute - only whether the killing qualified as manslaughter or murder. Now with the jury rendering a guilty verdict, may LaTasha finally rest in piece.

Mother of two's killer - her husband - sentenced to life in shooting

A Moss Point, MS man who killed his wife because he thought she would leave him was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole when he turns 65. Circuit Court Judge Robert Krebs sentenced 31 year old Frank Patton to life for the murder by deliberate design of his 30 year old wife Remika February 23, 2008.

Patton at first told police an intruder came in the house and shot both him and his wife. A Moss Point police detective testified that there were no signs of forced entry into the home and the security alarm was set but didn’t go off until after Frank Patton opened the door for police.

When asked if he shot his wife, Frank Patton said: “No. Why would I shoot my wife? I love my wife. I want this to work. I never had anything (in) my life. She gave me a child. She gave me a house, and my credit was messed up. She went and put her name on (a)...truck,” before later adding, “I think she shot herself.”

A forensic pathologist testified that the wife’s gunshot wound to the head was not self-inflicted. Patton's wound to his chest, however, was.

Remika's mother Tammy Tate, said that her son-in-law and daughter no longer slept in the same bedroom or drove to work together, even though they worked in the same shipyard. While they married in April 2004, the man would simply disappear for several days at a time. Tate's last conversation with her daughter ended with his message. “If she ever needed me, to call me anytime. I told her that I love her, and she told me she loved me too.”

Sabrina Austin described her former friend's husband as anti social and said that she wanted a divorce because “She told me she felt like a roommate. She told me she never felt like a wife.”

Remika leavs behind two children, an 8 year old and a 3 year old.

Ex teacher sentenced to life without parole for murder of love rival

A former teacher was sentenced to life without parole yesterday in a capital murder case stemming from a love triangle between two former teachers. Carla Hughes, a 28 year old mother of a 5 year old son, was sentenced to life without parole for the capital murder of her "love" rival, Avis Banks and her unborn child. The 27 year old Banks was murdered by the then 25 year old Hughes. Banks, who was five months pregnant, was shot four times, stabbed trhree times, and slashed in front of her driveway on November 29, 2006.

The reason for Banks' murder was jealously and a wish for Hughes, a language arts teacher and cheerleading coach at Chastain Middle School in Jackson, MS to steal Banks' man Keyon Pittman, a fellow teacher at the same school. Now 34, married, and living in Detroit, Pittman testified during the trial that though he had a sexual relationship with Hughes, he was still planning to marry Banks - and their wedding day was supposed to be in January 2007.

According to Madison County District Attorney Michael Guest, Hughes "wanted the life Avis Banks had and she believed the only way to get it was to kill Avis and her unborn child."

Banks, 27, was looking forward to having her first child and getting married. The college graduate was working toward her dream of opening her own day-care center.



Meanwhile, Hughes was already a mother and working in the family business - education. She had a master's degree from Belhaven College and completed the coursework for an education speciality degree from Delta State University.

After eight hours of deliberations over two days, thr jury of 9 women and 3 men convicted Hughes of capital murder Tuesday, October 13.
 
On the other side of the nearly full courtroom, Banks' parents, Frederick and Debra Banks, and about a dozen other family members reacted with quiet sobs and embraces.



"Avis can finally rest in peace," Frederick Banks said after the verdict.


The family has waited for almost three years to see justice, Frederick Banks said. He said pent-up emotions made him feel like someone who has been in jail for three years. He said the guilty verdict allows him to let it out.

Hughes' parents, Carl and Linda Hughes of Noxapater, wouldn't comment after the verdict, but Carla Hughes' aunt, Ruthie Morris, said her niece is innocent.

Her defense attorney, Johnnie Walls, stated that Pittman killed his fiance because he didn't want to be a father, but wanted to stay a womanizer. While Guest did not like Pittman's lifestyle, "he came in here and told the truth. He is no killer."
 
After the guilty verdict, testimony gravitated to the penalty phase of the trial. Guest said as he tried to persuade the jury to sentence Hughes to death, "This crime was premeditated murder. This was not an accidental death or a heat of passion death. It was premeditated. She hid and waited to shoot Avis Banks when she arrived home."
During the penalty phase of the trial, the prosecution [also] recalled forensic pathologist Steven Hayne to the witness stand to testify about Banks being shot four times, stabbed three times and slashed.



Hayne said Banks probably would have been conscious for 15 or 20 minutes after three of the shots before going into shock and dying. His testimony was to show the manner of Banks' death was heinous and atrocious, an element for sentencing a person to death.

The defense called seven witnesses, including her former pastor and others from her hometown of Greenfield, MS.

Carl Hughes was the final defense witness called in the penalty phase of the trial that has gained national attention through live coverage on national television.



Carl Hughes, a ninth-grade football coach in Greenville, began to cry when he described his daughter and how hard it has been to see her charged and convicted of capital murder.


"That's not Carla the way I perceive her," Carl Hughes said. "I beg you to please spare my daughter."


Carla Hughes' mother also asked the jury to have mercy on her daughter. "She has so much to give," Lynda Hughes said of Carla. She and her husband adopted Carla when she was 6 weeks old.


Armed with an array of awards Carla Hughes had won, Lynda Hughes noted that her daughter has been helping inmates at the Madison County Detention Center to read while she has been incarcerated there and started a Bible-reading session. All the defense witnesses said they have never known Hughes to be violent and she was always a peacemaker.


Hughes' parents and her attorney, Johnnie Walls Jr. of Greenville, made emotional pleas Wednesday to let Hughes live. Walls said Hughes wasn't just a client but a friend he has known all of her life.


At one point, Walls choked with emotion as he spoke to the jury. "I can't believe a woman like that should be put to death," Walls said, fighting back tears. "I ask you to spare her life."

After 52 minutes of deliberation, the jury did just that yesterday. Now Hughes can spend all the time in the world teaching fellow inmates how to read - while Fredreick banks is left to ponder what could have been with his daughter and grandchild.

Mississippi man charged with raping pregnant wife, beating child

An Ocean Springs, MS man accused of raping his 35 week pregnant wife and beating his 9 month old daughter was being held on $850,000 bond by Pascagoula County Judge Larry Wilson with strict orders not to contact the victims, either directly or indirectly.

27 year old Jason Dennis Vaughn was formally charged with felony capital offense rape and domestic violence assault on his wife and felony child abuse of his 9 month old daughter by punching her. The rape bond was set at half a million dollars, the aggravated assault bond was set at $250,000 and the child abuse bond was set at $100,000.

The woman said she wasn’t able to call for help right away because her husband wouldn’t allow it. She told investigators she would’ve gone to her neighbors for help but couldn’t because they were her husband’s relatives.

Sheriff Byrd said Vaughn was charged with felony rape for allegedly sexually assaulting his wife. In addition, he’s accused of punching the couple’s 9-month-old daughter.

Also investigating the child abuse allegations are officials with the state Department of Human Services. The couple’s child was turned over the care of her great-grandmother pending the mother’s recovery.

"If you're able to make bond, you have to stay out of trouble, and you have to stay away from (the victim and the child.) You're to have no contact. Let your lawyer handle all of that. You should not e-mail them, text them, call them on the phone or have a family member contact them. Let your lawyer handle it. You're to have no contact with them as a part of your bond."

Ocean Springs Hospital reported the victim's split lip, black eye, and stomach bruises when Vaughn brought the victims there early Sunday, August 23. The rape charges carry a maximum life sentence.

Jackson, MS man sentenced to 20 years for stabbing, attempted burning of wife

Henry Watson, 43, was charged with aggravated assault last year for stabbing his wife 32 times, then trying to set her on fire in the parking lot of a Jackson, MS store. He was finally sentenced to 20 years in prison for the attack yesterday by Judge Winston Kidd. Before sentencing, relatives expressed sorrow, but also told the court he did not remember the incident.

During testimony it was revealed that Henry Watson saw a psychologist who determined that he was not suffering from illness at the time of the attack.

The victim, Gracie Watson, was in the courtroom. She took the stand and shared her story of pain after being stabbed 32 times, then doused with gasoline. She suffered a punctured lung during the assault.

"He had a choice not to do me like this, but he chose to do me like this. Today is not a good day for me because so many people are hurt on today -- I'm hurt because of my son, but I truly believe that justice was served."

Brandon, MS man sentenced to 82 years for rape of 73 year old woman

Kirby Shavers was sentenced to 82 years in prison for the rape and assault on a 73 year old Brandon, MS woman while tying her son up. He admitted that he robbed her of her car, later found in Jackson, MS, and church money. The attack took place in August 2007, and Shavers was arrested in an abandoned Jackson house.

Rankin County Circuit Court Judge William Chapman sentenced the 49 year old Brandon man to 82 years total, 65 of which are to be served consecutively. His earliest release date will be in 2073, a fact the judge alluded to when he said, "You almost positively will never leave the penitentiary… You did not have to conduct the aggravated assault to conduct the rape," Chapman said. "But you did it anyway.”

Rankin-Madison District Attorney Michael Guest said, "This is one of the most heinous crimes I have ever prosecuted. If anyone deserves to spend the rest of his life in jail, it is Kirby Shavers."
Though the victim and her son weren’t in court, the sister in law read the woman’s victim impact statement.

But a sister-in-law of the elderly woman read a prepared statement. In the note, the rape victim said she is afraid to go anywhere alone and has gone into debt because she had to find a new home. It is too traumatic for her to be in her home of 38 years.

She is unable to work, sleep soundly or live a normal life with friends and family, she said. And she still has to see a doctor regularly.

"You instilled a sense of fear in me that will never go away," the sister-in-law read from the statement. "I'm an old woman who won't be able to enjoy the rest of my life. You took that from me. ... You will fear the big men in prison, as you will be small in their eyes."
Chapman asked Shavers if he would like to respond, and he said no.

As part of the evidence, Guest showed Chapman a photo of the victim taken shortly after the assault. Chapman mentioned it during the sentencing.

Aafram Sellers, Shaver’s public defender, said that “the weight of the evidence against [Sellers] was overwhelming.” He did not discuss a possible motive or Shavers’ drug use at the time of the rape, but said that the guilty plea and sentencing was “[Shaver’s] way of showing remorse.”

The rape victim’s granddaughter called Shavers a killer after the sentencing in a media interview because “ when you rape somebody that's what happens. You kill them. It's a shame that the Supreme Court of this country doesn't allow the death penalty for rape.”

The granddaughter called Shavers an evil animal because the grandmother said "Jesus is going to get you for this" during the rape, causing Shaver to attack harder.

Former Jackson, MS officer sentenced to life for sexual assault

A former Jackson, MS, police officer was sentenced to life in federal prison, an upward departure from the 20 year sentence in a Jackson, MS federal court in 2005 he got for sexually assaulting a 19 year old woman while on duty, but 7 years lower than the lower end of sentencing guidelines. The same judge,U.S. District Judge William Barbour Jr., sentenced Maceo Williams, 53, him to life, citing the betrayal of trust by a police officer and sentencing guidelines.

U.S. Department of Justice attorney Paige Fitzgerald had argued at Simmons’ original sentence that he should face life in prison for violating the woman’s civil rights. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans ordered him resentenced based upon a motion by the U.S. attorney general's office.The Appeals Court noted the sentence was seven years less than the low end of federal sentencing guidelines.

Simmons was convicted March 1, 2005, in federal court in Jackson of committing sexual assault while acting under the color of law.

The victim, who was 19 at the time of the assault, said that after a traffic stop Sept. 19, 1999, Simmons took her in his patrol car to a remote spot and sexually assaulted her while a second officer acted as a lookout, according to the court record.The Clarion-Ledger does not identify those alleging sexual assault. The woman said she waited a year before filing a report because she was afraid.

“Police officers are held to a higher trust and you violated that trust....,” Judge Barbour said. He still felt that 20 years was an appropriate sentence, but that departing due to age alone from guidelines calling for life would risk appeal again.

Mississippi girlfriend murderer loses appeal to state Court of Appeals

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) - The state Court of Appeals has upheld the murder conviction and life sentenced handed a Plantersville man in 2007 for the murder of his estranged girlfriend.Bernard Young, who did not testify at his Lee County trial, has maintained that he didn't kill Tamara Neil.

Neil was shot three times and her body was found in her car on June 26, 2006, on Mississippi Highway 6 between Tupelo and Plantersville.She was the mother of Young's two children.

Prosecutors say Young followed Neil around Tupelo on the morning of her death. They say Young blocked the victim's car at the Plantersville city limits sign and fired five shots at her.The Appeals Court on Tuesday rejected Young's claims.

Accused rapist sentenced to 30 years for campus rape - faced life

(Original Post 10-20-07)

A Chicasaw County (MS) man charged with stalking a Mississippi State University student has been arrested for the alleged rape of a second MSU student on August 12. Johnny "Radar" Griffihs Jr, 30, a parolee, is being held on $100,000 bond for the two incidents.

The rape occurred near the University Drive bridge that connects the MSU campus to the city of Starkville. An 18-year-old student was jogging at approximately 8:30 p.m. that Sunday when she was ordered by a man who had been hiding in a wooded area to follow him under the bridge. He then raped her.

The assailant was described as a black male in his mid-20s who was reportedly wearing a gray tank top, black shorts and a pair of tan gardening gloves during the time of the incident.

Griffihs is expected to go to trial in January. If convicted of rape, he faces life in prison, and if convicted of sexual assault, he faces 30 years. The case is expected to be heard by a Oktibbeha County grand jury in January.

Reference:

Police arrest campus rape suspect

(Update 7-19-08) Griffiths was sentenced to 30 years without parole after pleading guilty to forcible rape in the attack. He would have faced 3 life sentences if he had gone to trial and been convicted of the original charges of rape, sexual battery, and kidnapping. Circuit Court Judge Jim Kitchens dropped the sexual battery and kidnapping charges.

Oktibbeha County Assistant District Attorney Frank Clark said Wednesday afternoon that he was seeking a life term for Griffis if he had went to trial.

“That’s what we were hoping he would get if we went to trial,” Clark said. “But that would have required the victim to relive the whole thing again during the trial process.”

Griffis was in the process of stalking another victim when he was captured, and has previous criminal convictions.

When he was taken into custody, Griffis was in the process of stalking another potential victim.This time, a student noticed Griffis following her in his vehicle as she jogged each morning. The student contacted police, so the Starkville and MSU police departments set up a joint sting operation — which included an undercover female SPD officer jogging in the area — to catch Griffis in the act.

On Oct. 3, the student once again noticed Griffis following her, so she called the undercover officer who was jogging nearby and the officer contacted police units in the area. When police confronted Griffis, he was wearing nothing but a T-shirt, boxer shorts and running shoes, Clark said.“At the time, they didn’t know they captured the campus rapist,” Clark said. “They thought they had just captured a stalker.”

His criminal history dates back to 1995 when he was convicted in Chickasaw County court for the sale of cocaine.Griffis found himself on the wrong side of the law again in 2002 when he was convicted in Chickasaw County court on two counts of voyeurism.

Each count brought with it a two-year prison sentence, though it is unclear when he was released.“Basically he was a peeping Tom, which doesn’t sound all that bad in itself, but when you go from voyeurism to stalking to forcible rape, you have to wonder where it was going to stop,” Clark said. “That’s what is so scary about this.”

Mississippi Gulf Coast men charged with rape of a woman at a party April 16

Two 22 year old men have been charged with rape after meeting a 21 year old woman at a party early Wednesday morning and forcing her to have sex with them.

Hancock County Sheriff's Investigator Ricky Fayard said the woman told deputies she had attended a party at a private home in Kiln, but was not drinking. As she waited for a friend to return to the home, she said she was forced to have sex with the men, who live in Kiln and Bay St. Louis.

Following the incident, the victim escaped. "She made the excuse that she had to go to the bathroom, and then walked out the front door and called her parents," Fayard said.
The young woman was taken to Hancock Medical Center, where she was examined and treated. Investigators took a statement at the hospital.

On Friday, Justice Court Judge Ricky Adam issued arrest warrants for both men. They were booked on one rape charge each at the Hancock County Sheriff's Booking Facility in Bay St. Louis.

Both men are being held on $75,000 bail, but have not been formally indicted yet.