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Post by Charlene on Dec 3, 2003 19:04:19 GMT -6
Jury OKs Death for Killer of 5 at Bank December 2, 2003, 11:13 PM EST
AURORA, Neb. -- A jury decided Tuesday that a convicted killer deserves to be executed for the murders of five people in a small-town bank last year.
The same jury that found Jose Sandoval guilty last week of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of four bank employees and a customer said aggravating circumstances merited Sandoval's death by electrocution.
A jury also found the death penalty was warranted for one of the three other defendants in the case. Judicial panels still must sentence the men, and could choose life imprisonment instead.
Two other men await trial, also on five counts of first-degree murder.
Prosecutor Joe Smith argued that Sandoval enjoyed the killings at the U.S. Bank branch in Norfolk so much that he smiled as they were happening and again for a police photographer hours later.
His enjoyment contributed to the killings being especially cruel and heinous -- a requirement that makes Sandoval eligible for death, Smith said.
Sandoval's attorney, Madison County Public Defender Harry Moore, said all the photo showed was insensitivity. "It's just evidence of being a little bit uncaring," he said.
Moore said an appeal was possible.
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Post by Charlene on Dec 3, 2003 19:01:13 GMT -6
Fla. Court Hears Appeal in Death Row Case December 3, 2003, 2:38 AM EST
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The death row appeal of a Spanish citizen convicted in a 1994 triple murder has reached the state's Supreme Court, a case that is drawing attention from both sides of the Atlantic Ocean.
The fate of Pablo Ibar has become a focal point for Spanish citizens' passionate opposition to the death penalty. Spaniards have raised $150,000 in his case and a delegation of Spanish senators visited him in prison before watching his lawyer argue their case Tuesday.
"We are representing the country of Spain," Maria Rosa Vindel Lopez, one of six senators in a group of nine Spanish officials visiting Florida, told reporters through a translator on the steps of the court.
The European Union denies membership to countries that execute prisoners.
Ibar, 31, was born in South Florida to a Spanish national and only took Spanish citizenship after being convicted in 2000 of taking part in the fatal shootings of Casimir Sucharski, Sharon Anderson and Marie Rogers.
Ibar is the third Spanish citizen sent to Florida's death row -- and the only one who remains. Another, Joaquin Jose Martinez, condemned for the 1995 murder of a Tampa couple, won his appeal and was acquitted during his 2001 retrial.
Hundreds of people in Madrid protested when Florida's high court heard oral arguments in that case. The crowds at the U.S. Embassy in Madrid criticized the death penalty and called for Martinez's sentence to be overturned. Martinez received a hero's welcome when he returned to Spain.
The third Spaniard, Julio Mora, also won an appeal but he wasn't released. His sentence was reduced to life in prison for fatally shooting his former boss and a pregnant attorney during a 1998 lawsuit deposition in Fort Lauderdale.
Vindel Lopez and the other senators visited Ibar on death row Monday and met with lawyers for Gov. Jeb Bush later Tuesday. A member of Bush's staff also met with the victims' family members.
Ibar's appeal is based on whether he was properly identified -- and that was the focus of Tuesday's arguments before the high court. A surveillance camera in Sucharski's home captured the murders; the videotape shows attackers tying up the victims, beating Sucharski repeatedly, and then taking turns shooting all three.
Justice Peggy Quince asked Peter Raben, the Miami lawyer representing Ibar: "The tape itself is pretty clear, isn't it?"
"I'm not so sure about that," he answered, pointing out that the jury in Ibar's first trial could not agree on a verdict despite watching the tape.
But Leslie Campbell, an assistant attorney general representing the state, pointed out that the second jury, which also watched the videotape many times, observed Ibar in the courtroom and convicted him.
Vindel Lopez said she has seen the tape, like everyone else in Spain. But she wouldn't answer questions about whether she believed the tape showed Ibar was one of the gunmen.
"That is not my mission," she said. "My mission is to be completely opposed to the death penalty."
Relatives of the victims who attended Tuesday's oral arguments have also seen the videotape. Deborah Anderson, sister of murder victim Sharon Anderson, told reporters it was clear.
"I can pick my sister out, I can tell you that," she said. "I can look at that tape and tell you which one is Sharon Anderson before she is laid on that ground and shot twice in the back of the head."
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Post by Charlene on Nov 22, 2003 7:26:29 GMT -6
So does this mean he was resentenced to death? Am I reading that right? I am unfamiliar with the Quijano issue....Can you elaborate on that for those of us who don't know? I'm sure the families were so grateful to have you there to support them. This must be a very difficult thing to have to constantly face.... I wish the courts would stop revictimizing these families..... Yes, the jury gave Broxton another death sentence. The Quijano issue was that as a psychologist testifying for the state as an expert witness, Dr. Quijano testified in several cases that, statistically, race was a factor in determining future dangerousness, a necessary component of a death sentence. He testified that, according to statistics, blacks in the prison population had an increased susceptibility for future dangerousness. I heard the defense attorney tell a reporter that Quijano "didn't do anything wrong; he just told the facts" but that the federal appeals court ruled that the jury could not consider race-based testimony when determining future dangerousness. Our then-attorney general, John Cornyn, who already had his sights on his current senate seat, accepted this ruling without question and admitted error on the part of every prosecutor who had used similar testimony from Dr. Quijano at trial. He didn't talk to the prosecutors about his decision to admit error; didn't appeal the ruling; subsequently, six capital murderers were granted new sentencing hearings.
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Post by Charlene on Nov 14, 2003 21:53:02 GMT -6
with the families whose loved ones were murdered by Eugene Broxton. The media never refers to him as such but he was a serial killer who murdered at least 6 people, probably several more. His case was overturned last year on the Quijano issue and he was granted a new sentencing phase. The jury deliberated for 5 hours this afternoon and returned with the answers to the special issues which mandated a death sentence for the murder of Sheila Dockens. You can find a memorial page for another of his victims at Victims' Voices - the name is Larry Smith.
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Post by Charlene on Nov 6, 2003 14:25:53 GMT -6
Scheduled for execution in Texas on February 12th.
On July 31, 1993, in the early evening, the bodies of 18-year old Sandi Marbut and her 19-year-old cousin Jennifer Weston were discovered by Marbut’s parents. According to Marbut’s father, the girls’ bodies were found in their apartment, which was across the street from Marbut’s parents’ house. On the evening of July 30, 1993, Marbut and Weston had some friends over at their apartment, and Marbut drove the last guest home about 4:00 a.m. the next morning. It was alleged that between 4:00 and 5:00 a.m., Bobby Ray Hopkins entered the apartment and attacked Marbut, who was in the downstairs living room sleeping on the couch, stabbing and cutting her approximately 40 times. Weston came downstairs while Hopkins was attacking Marbut. Hopkins saw Weston and proceeded to attack her at the foot of the stairway. Weston apparently tried to flee upstairs but was overpowered. She died at the landing at the top of the stairs after suffering 66 stab wounds. According to the police, Hopkins began to search the bedrooms for money. Hopkins entered the bathroom and tried to clean the blood off his body. He took some towels to try to stop the bleeding from his wounds. He then walked down the stairs and exited the apartment. Later that evening, Marbut’s father found her on the living room floor and discovered Weston at the top of the stairs. Texas Ranger George Turner testified that on the evening the bodies were found, July 31st, he questioned several bystanders at the scene outside the apartment and, as a result, went in search of Hopkins. Apparently, Hopkins had been in the girls’ apartment approximately two weeks before the murders. Hopkins was there with two other men and got in an argument with Marbut over money that was missing from her purse. Marbut thought Hopkins had taken the money and asked him to leave and not come back. Ranger Turner interviewed Hopkins on July 31st, and noticed that Hopkins had cuts on his hands and arms. Turner also noticed what appeared to be blood on Hopkins’ boots. Hopkins allowed Turner to take the boots. Subsequent tests showed the blood on the boots was consistent with the blood of Weston, Marbut and Hopkins. On August 5, 1993, the police searched the area around the apartment and found two blood stained towels in a culvert between the girls’ apartment and the house where Hopkins lived with his parents. The towels belonged to the girls and were given to them by Marbut’s parents. The blood on the towels was consistent with the blood of Hopkins. Blood on hairs found on the towels was consistent with the blood types of Marbut, Weston and Hopkins. On August 22, 1993, a knife was discovered in the weeds outside the apartment on a route between the girls’ apartment and Hopkins’ home. The blood on the knife was consistent with the blood of Hopkins, Marbut and Weston. Serology testing of the blood stains in the apartment indicated that the blood was consistent with Hopkins’ blood. His blood was located in numerous areas in the apartment, including on a light switch plate in the living room, the living room wall, a sock, a bathroom rug and faucet, a shoe and a magazine in Weston’s bedroom, a newspaper article in Weston’s purse, the top of the stairway landing, and one drawer of a chest in Marbut’s bedroom. DNA testing of Hopkins’ blood indicated that it was consistent with the blood found on various items throughout the apartment. Further, Hopkins’ boot matched the footprint of a boot left in the blood on the carpet in Weston’s bedroom. Hopkins stated that he went over to Marbut’s and Weston’s apartment around 4:00 or 5:00 a.m. He and Marbut began to argue, Marbut got a knife, a struggle ensued, and he ultimately stabbed her. Hopkins admitted that he was cut during the altercation and bled in the apartment.
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Post by Charlene on Jul 7, 2003 18:56:49 GMT -6
I read an article once in National Geographic (not 100% sure) it was about the move for independence in PR, most people there are not in favor for the reason that they depend heavily upon the federal government for most of their income on the island. Allot of it is based upon social assistance. I also read another piece about that weapons training ground that they were always protesting about. When the Navy shut it down, and moved to Florida for the tests, they where then complaining about the lose of income. The most recent poll information I could find says: In June 1998, a San Juan Star newspaper poll showed Puerto Ricans are deeply divided over the issue, with 40.9 percent favoring statehood, 40.2 percent commonwealth and 7.6 percent independence." --Miami Herald, July 15, 1998 The site that I found this on has some REALLY interesting statistics regarding what statehood would mean. www.nationalcenter.org/PuertoRicoFacts898.html
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Post by Charlene on Jul 7, 2003 18:23:06 GMT -6
There has been a movement is PR for years to ask for independence it never musters up very much support. There has also been a movement to ask for statehood but it never musters up enough support to pass although it has come close several times. It seems most people in PR are happy with the way things are. They have almost as many rights as a state does and as individuals they have all the same rights as any other US citizen. If RED were still around he could answer this better than I can, since he used to live in Puerto Rico. But I have visited PR twice in the past 6 months or so, and being curious about this issue, I talked to a few people about it. Actually, the opinion regarding statehood is split pretty much evenly. One of my drivers explained it very well when he told me that most people would like to be a state, on principal, but they are against it because they already have the benefits afforded to states by the federal government, yet they do not have to pay the taxes. PR is exempt from IRS code and its citizens cannot vote in US presidential elections. However, they do have federal funds for highways, national parks, postal service, Social Security, etc. Having said that, the highway system in and around San Juan was terrible - rather scary. They also have representation in Congress but it is non-voting (whatever that means). welcome.topuertorico.org/government.shtml
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Post by Charlene on Nov 18, 2005 19:33:19 GMT -6
He could ASK all he wants but that doesn't mean he would get it. The prosecution is under absolutely no obligation to offer or accept a plea bargain and had absolutely no reason to do so in this case. It was made for the death penalty. No, why would they? - The abduction was videotaped
- Friends and acquaintances recognized him and called the police after seeing the video
- The video shows the abductor was wearing a mechanic's uniform, just like he normally wore
- The video shows tattoos up and down the abductor's arms, just like his
- He borrowed his roommate's car that day, and the car was seen in the videotape
- He confessed to his mother and his brother, audiotaped
- He told his brother in code in a letter where he had left her body - her body was found exactly there
- His semen was found on her shirt
- What is believed to be Carlie's hair and fibers from her clothing were found in the car he had borrowed
- The victim was only 11 years old!
There has rarely been a case where such a huge mountain of evidence exists, yet this guy still says it wasn't him... Actually, it is a mountain RANGE, not just a mountain. It doesn't add up. If he was guilty and didn't want the DP I would assume he would either ask for a LWOP plea-bargain (which, I assume Florida would take to save money) OR plead guilty anyway and show remorse (genuine or otherwise) in a hope to get LWOP. If he was guilty and wanted the DP all he would of had to of done is pleaded guilty and ask the sentecning jury for the DP. If he was guilty and wished to get off his attorneys should of done a better job: you can always present SOMETHING in the way of evidence to try and get your client off. These attorneys presented less defense evidence then was presented at the Nicole Diar trial and I thought that was a joke. If he was not guilty then his attorneys need to be disbarred. I am pretty sure if offered to him he would of taken LWOP. It seems weird why his attorney even declined to make even a closing rgument. I wonder why he wasn't advised to plead guilty if the evidence against him was so strong. He seems clever enough to realise that when the evidence is so strong its best to admit your sins and hope for a more lenient sentence. Chazz
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Post by Charlene on Nov 18, 2005 11:47:19 GMT -6
No, why would they? - The abduction was videotaped
- Friends and acquaintances recognized him and called the police after seeing the video
- The video shows the abductor was wearing a mechanic's uniform, just like he normally wore
- The video shows tattoos up and down the abductor's arms, just like his
- He borrowed his roommate's car that day, and the car was seen in the videotape
- He confessed to his mother and his brother, audiotaped
- He told his brother in code in a letter where he had left her body - her body was found exactly there
- His semen was found on her shirt
- What is believed to be Carlie's hair and fibers from her clothing were found in the car he had borrowed
- The victim was only 11 years old!
There has rarely been a case where such a huge mountain of evidence exists, yet this guy still says it wasn't him... Actually, it is a mountain RANGE, not just a mountain. Was a LWOP plea-bargain offered? Chazz
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Post by Charlene on Nov 10, 2005 7:32:51 GMT -6
Brother tearfully recounts confession Abduction of Florida girl was caught by surveillance camera www.cnn.com/2005/LAW/11/10/video.abduction.ap/index.htmlThursday, November 10, 2005; Posted: 9:11 a.m. EST (14:11 GMT) John Smith testifies at trial of his brother, Joseph Smith, accused of killing Carlie Brucia, 11. Image: SARASOTA, Florida (AP) -- The brother of a man accused of abducting and killing Carlie Brucia wiped his eyes Wednesday as he recounted his sibling's account of sexually assaulting and killing the 11-year-old the girl. John Smith testified that his brother, Joseph Smith, told him that he had "rough sex" with Carlie and then strangled her. The abduction was captured by a security camera at a car wash and broadcast worldwide on television. Details of her slaying came four nights after Carlie was abducted, the witness said. His brother was in jail and John Smith was leading detectives to the location where his brother told him the girl's body might be found. Joseph Smith, a 39-year-old former auto mechanic and father of three daughters, is charged with first-degree murder, kidnapping and capital sexual battery in Carlie's death. He has pleaded not guilty; if convicted, he may face the death penalty. Joseph Smith met with his brother and their mother, Patricia Davis, in jail shortly after his arrest. He confessed to his role in Carlie's disappearance under their questioning, his brother testified. Mumbling and occasionally closing his eyes on the witness stand, John Smith recounted the jailhouse conversation. His brother told him he had intercourse with the girl and made her perform oral sex. Davis left the room crying, and the brothers cried and "were hugging each other close," John Smith said. After leaving the jail, John Smith and Davis drove to a nearby church where Joseph told him they might find Carlie. They didn't find the body that day. They didn't immediately tell authorities about their conversation with Joseph because, John Smith said, "I was thinking, maybe, the child was still alive." The defendant's mother and brother went to authorities later that night, and John Smith led investigators to the scene. Carlie's body was found the next morning. Deputy Michael Davino, a Sarasota County corrections officer, told jurors he overheard phone conversations Joseph Smith made from jail to his brother and mother that night. During one call, Davino testified, Joseph Smith told his brother, "She's between two trees, not too far back, maybe around the tree line." Joseph Smith also asked his brother to apologize to their mother for what he had done and for "what he was putting his mother through," Davino said. John Smith testified that he had recognized his brother in the videotape shown to jurors Tuesday as the tattooed man in a uniform grabbing Carlie's arm and leading her away. Several others, including Joseph Smith's business partner, testified Tuesday they also recognized him on the tape. Under questioning by a defense attorney, John Smith acknowledged he hadn't talked to his brother in a couple of months at the time of Carlie's disappearance because of a feud. He also conceded he asked investigators about a reward, but said he was interested in it because his brother wanted to use the money to set up a trust fund for his children.
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Post by Charlene on Jul 1, 2003 9:46:41 GMT -6
After deliberating five hours until nearly midnight, a Callaway County jury decided that Lewis Gilbert should get the death penalty for murdering Bill and Flossie Brewer. For Gilbert, they are the second and third death verdicts linked to a cross-country crime spree with Eric Elliott that began in Newcomerstown, Ohio, and ended outside Santa Fe, N.M. Gilbert and Elliott were arrested a week later in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The crime spree by Lewis Gilbert and Eric Elliott began in August 1994 in Ohio, where they are suspected of killing Ruth Loader, 79, in Port Washington. Ruth disappeared without a trace, and her car was found bogged down in a muddy field near the Brewers’ house. The men had stolen her car and drove southwest across the country to Missouri. They became stuck in the mud in a Callaway County, Missouri, field. They walked to the nearby home of William and Flossie Mae Brewer, intending to steal money and another car. Confessing after his arrest, Gilbert said that he and Elliott were invited inside the house by Mrs. Brewer after they said they needed to use the phone to call a wrecker. Once inside, they realized there was no phone book. After talking with the elderly couple for about 30 minutes, Gilbert confessed, they decided they were going to kill the Brewers. Gilbert used a telephone cord to bind Flossie Brewer's hands, then he and Elliott led the elderly couple down to the basement. According to Gilbert's confession, Elliott shot both of them three times in the head. Bill Brewer was 86; Flossie Brewer was 76. Asked if he was "solely responsible for the murders in Missouri," Gilbert answered that "it was a 50/50 deal." After shooting the couple to death they stole their car, cash and rifles. Gilbert was also sentenced to die in Oklahoma for killing Roxie Ruddell, a security guard in Lake Stanley Draper, Oklahoma. Gilbert and Elliott approached Roxy Lynn Ruddell to steal her truck. Ruddell, 37, was fishing at Lake Stanley Draper. She told the men that they could take the truck if they didn’t hurt her, appeals court documents stated. Despite the offer, prosecutors said the victim was forced to sit under a nearby tree and then shot three times in the head by Gilbert. Gilbert received a death sentence and Elliott life in prison. The Brewers’ car was found near Ruddell’s body in Oklahoma, and Ruddell’s pickup was with Gilbert and Elliott when New Mexico police surrounded them while they slept in a ditch, forcing them to surrender. Public Defenders Bob Wolfrum and Jeff Estes tried to portray Gilbert as the victim of a troubled childhood, including abuse and abandonment by a series of father figures. They also noted Gilbert’s failed marriage. Gilbert went to prison in Ohio for child endangerment after biting and bruising his 3-month-old son in 1992. When he was released from prison, his estranged wife closed the door in his face. Eighteen days later, Gilbert and Elliott set out with a few dollars in their pockets and a .22-caliber revolver that Elliott took from his father’s home. The gun became a murder weapon in Callaway County. Two psychologists and an expert in human development testified for the defense about Gilbert’s psychological makeup, but Assistant Attorney General Bob Ahsens argued it was "psychobabble." Gilbert is simply a serial killer, Ahsens said. A jury convicted Gilbert of first-degree burglary, first-degree tampering, stealing, armed criminal action and two counts of first-degree murder. Gilbert was sentenced to two death sentences, life imprisonment and 29 years in prison. The Brewer family wasn’t impressed by the defense. "He was old enough to have a brain and old enough to know right from wrong," said Gene Brewer of Fulton, one of the victims’ four children. "We’ve run it through our minds - brothers and sisters - and there just wasn’t no reason for it. They could’ve took the car, tied them up in the basement or something." Many members of the Brewer family traveled to Oklahoma for Gilbert’s trial in 1995. They returned to Oklahoma for court proceedings involving Elliott. As the hours passed waiting for the verdicts in Fulton, Gene Brewer said, "it worried me for a while, when they slowed down and wasn’t coming back with nothing." The tragedy fragmented the extended family, but they spent a lot of time together during the trial. They looked over old family photos at Gene Brewer’s house. "I had ’em in my basement, going on seven years now," he said. "Thursday night, everybody went through them and got what they wanted out of them." It was "a good time," he said. The verdicts "kind of lifted a burden," he said. "At least you get a satisfaction. You’re not going to forget, but this here gives us the feeling that he got something out of it. He didn’t walk off scot-free." Under an agreement between Missouri and Oklahoma, Gilbert was sent back to Oklahoma’s death row. Elliott, a juvenile at the time of the murders, pleaded guilty in 1996 to first-degree murder in Ruddell’s death and is serving a life sentence without parole.
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Post by Charlene on Jun 28, 2003 20:55:16 GMT -6
Maybe someone can correct me, but as I understand it, parole is a possibility after a little over half the sentence. That is why Texas Dentist Clara Harris will be eligible for parole after ten years of her 20 year sentence for running over her philandering husband. If Mallard had been sentenced to "life" in prison, she would have had to spend a minimum of 40 years before parole (as will child killer Andrea Yates). As it is, Mallard (27 yrs old I believe) will be on the street in her early 50's. Hi TRex. In the Yates case, it is 40 years before parole eligibility because it was capital murder. In the Mallard case, I believe that if she had received a life sentence, she would have been parole eligible after about 30 years, since 60 years is considered to be a "life" sentence in Texas. With a fifty year sentence, she will be parole eligible in 25 years.
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Post by Charlene on Jun 28, 2003 6:04:23 GMT -6
What made this case a murder case instead of a manslaughter case is what she did from the moment after impact on. Continuing to drive to her home, with someone stuck halfway through her windshield, driving into the garage so it would not be seen, purposefully leaving him to die, talking to him as he begs her to get help - all of these things are about as cold as you can get this side of setting out with murder on your mind. I simply don't understand how someone, particularly someone who, as a profession, cares for others, could behave in such a selfish, cold-blooded manner. I believe her tears are for herself, rather than poor Mr. Biggs.
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Post by Charlene on Jun 26, 2003 6:45:13 GMT -6
Excellent post René - couldn't agree more. I'm going to state something in the words of Chris Rock. I'm sure that all of the pros and most of the antis will agree with me on this one. With regards to the Columbine murders: "Everybody wants to know what the kids was listening to. What kinda music was they listening to? What kinda movies was they watching? Who gives a *f---* what they was watching?! What ever happened to CRAZY?" Why do people feel the need to blame murders and crime on movies, music, art, Democratic politics, Republican politics, etc.? There were plenty of murders before any one of these things existed. People just do it to further their own cause. They use the death of another person as a stepping stone to get what they want. It's disgusting, really. First of all, by blaming anything or anyone other than the murderer, you remove blame from him/her.
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Post by Charlene on Jun 27, 2005 11:39:37 GMT -6
Let's take a look back, shall we? You are the one whose second post on this board was to call some members "idiots" - not exactly a stellar start. You also said that you did not wish for these guys to suffer, and that other people here should not wish them harm. You exclaimed, "There is a lot more behind-the-scene things going on that you think you know," as though no one on this board could possibly know anything about life in prison, but of course you do. You then presumed to speak for people you do not know. If people here assume that you are an anti or a penpal, that should not be a big surprise to you. No, you didn't SAY you were a penpal, but you do spout prison words like "cellie" when referring to their new cellmates. That's a clear indication of a scumpal if I ever saw one, and I have seen plenty. And even hardcore antis don't like or defend these guys, so yeah, I think you probably write to one of these jerks. Call me rude, but you can also call me right. I notice you did not say that you didn't write to them, so how about a direct question? Do you write to any of the five murderers of Jenny Ertman and Elizabeth Pena, or to Jenny's rapist Vinnie? How you interpret "life does go on" to mean anything except what it says is beyond me, but someone who defends murderers is well-versed in twisting around the truth anyway. And the families did not "remove themselves from JFA" - they moved out of Houston. First off, NO I DO NOT WRITE TO ANY OF THE MEN INVOLVED!!!!! Secondly, I know the words "cellie" because I know people who have come out of prison. I didn't realize I would be villified for knowing these words. And I have not once defended the men involved in this case. All I wanted to make clear was they (juveniles) WILL suffer in prison. I understand that this case hits close to home because it happened to people you know but that does not give you any right to judge me because I have not said once that I am defending these men involved or that I have no sympathy for the Ertman and Pena familes. And yes the families moved from Houston but the articles did say one family stayed away because they felt efforts were fruitless and the other stayed away because they were tired of talking about death and crime. All I did was state what was read. Nothing else.
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Post by Charlene on Jun 27, 2005 11:03:09 GMT -6
No, you didn't SAY you were a penpal, but you do spout prison words like "cellie" when referring to their new cellmates. That's a clear indication of a scumpal if I ever saw one, and I have seen plenty. And even hardcore antis don't like or defend these guys, so yeah, I think you probably write to one of these jerks. Call me rude, but you can also call me right. I notice you did not say that you didn't write to them, so how about a direct question? Do you write to any of the five murderers of Jenny Ertman and Elizabeth Pena, or to Jenny's rapist Vinnie? How you interpret "life does go on" to mean anything except what it says is beyond me, but someone who defends murderers is well-versed in twisting around the truth anyway. And the families did not "remove themselves from JFA" - they moved out of Houston. PLEASE do not presume to speak for the parents of these girls. If you want to be a penpal to these jerks, go ahead, you probably deserve it. But you have absolutely no business coming here and injecting your own utopian viewpoint as though it has some similarity to what the Ertmans and Penas are thinking. You don't have a clue what they are thinking. Charlene, I read the newspaper articles in the Houston Chronicle which stated this comment. As it also stated that they removed themselves from JFA because the efforts seemed fruitless. So unless this newspaper article was a complete fabrication, then I was stating what I read. Also, I never once mentioned I was a penpal of anyone so it's a little rude to assume otherwise. I know that this case is the whole reason you have this website and I have said nothing insensitive about the girls or your cause. And you are correct, I do not have a clue what the Ertmans and Penas are thinking.
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Post by Charlene on Jun 27, 2005 10:13:39 GMT -6
PLEASE do not presume to speak for the parents of these girls. If you want to be a penpal to these jerks, go ahead, you probably deserve it. But you have absolutely no business coming here and injecting your own utopian viewpoint as though it has some similarity to what the Ertmans and Penas are thinking. You don't have a clue what they are thinking. No, they're not. They're dead. God, I get so tired of these insensitive, pinhead comments about the slain. I only hope the parents of these two girls don't have to endure these thoughtless "better place" remarks. Yes, they are dead and I realize that but they are in a better place with no more suffering and pain whether you would like to believe that or not. And if you read their guestbook, there are people all over the world who agree with me. Their parents know this and although they have not forgotten, they have moved on because as one of the parents put it in a newspaper article "life does go on". They would like to remember them as they lived not as they died. So you are the insensitive pinhead!!!!
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Post by Charlene on Jun 27, 2005 10:10:19 GMT -6
What's wrong with speculating about how rough their lives might be when they are in general population? When they were in jail awaiting trial, they weren't treated too well by their fellow inmates. They came to court with bruises and bandages and expletives written on their jail clothing. I wasn't feeling too sorry for them. The people they will be in general population with are going to be the same types of people they were in the Harris County Jail with. Again, I am not feeling too sorry for them. Could be going from the frying pan into the fire.... Whilst they will not be executed they will however be rightly punished Glenn so I fail to see how it is a kick in the teeth for these two victims? I agree with Felix. Although they will not be executed, they indeed will suffer for a very long time in prison. I do not wish this upon them or anyone for that matter, but they may feel the pain of their victims first hand. God has a plan for all of us and I believe their lives were spared for a reason. Who knows what that reason is but it has happened and there is nothing anyone can do about it. Instead of wishing them harm where ever they may end up, let's remember that Jennifer Ertman and Elizabeth Pena are in a better place now.
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Post by Charlene on Jun 27, 2005 8:30:48 GMT -6
The irony of your comment struck me since one of the things that the medical examiner testified to was that Elizabeth was kicked in the teeth with enough force to knock out her two front teeth before she was killed. Heartbreaking for such a terrible thing to happen! It is also sickening that their murderers will escape the punishment they so richly deserve - A symbolic kick in the teeth for the victims!
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Post by Charlene on Jun 24, 2005 15:09:32 GMT -6
If you would like, you can visit the guestbook for their memorial page and leave a message. I know the parents do read the messages. www.murdervictims.com/Voices/jeneliz.htmlThanks for remembering everyone. Anybody and everybody (pro or anti) who has read the details of this case should take the time on the 25th to spend just a few minutes of their day thinking of Jenifer and Elizabeth and their families.
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Post by Charlene on Jun 25, 2003 4:58:45 GMT -6
Please spend a moment today thinking about the families of Jennifer Ertman and Elizabeth Pena. They were murdered in a gang-rape situation 10 years ago, June 25, 2003. They are the two teenage girls pictured at the top of the page here. www.murdervictims.com/voices/jeneliz.html
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Post by Charlene on Jun 13, 2003 9:28:59 GMT -6
Great news; I had not heard that he was missing! Interesting that he is being tried on murder after being acquited. Bet we will hear lots of whining about that! I feel so bad for his twin daughters who have lost their mother and probably their father. It's good that they caught up with this Angleton sleaze. I've always found it interesting that so many believe that Texas has a criminal justice system that fails to give due process to the criminal. The opposite is what we actually have here. Murderers slip through the holes in our justice system all the time. Angleton is a prime example of a rich murderer who hired some flim-flam lawyers and beat the rap. Fortunately the feds weren't buying. das ______ Accused Houston Killer Arrested In Amsterdam - Thu Jun 12, 2003 Robert Angleton was arrested in Amsterdam and was being held for extradition back to the United States, News2Houston reported Thursday. Angleton's federal murder-for-hire trial is scheduled to begin in Houston on Monday. FBI (news - web sites) agents told News2Houston that they were worried that the millionaire former bookie would not show up for his trial. He is facing federal charges of murder-for-hire after being acquitted in state court for the April 1997 shooting death of his wife, Doris Angleton, at her home in the wealthy Houston neighborhood of River Oaks. Angleton was arrested at his River Oaks home after a three-count federal indictment accused him of conspiracy to commit murder for hire, murder for hire and a firearms charge. He was acquitted of his wife's murder, but the FBI contends that it has new evidence. Angleton has pleaded not guilty. In 1998, his brother, Roger Angleton, committed suicide in jail and left a note saying that he killed Doris Angleton and that Robert was not involved. U.S. Marshals will bring Angleton back to the United States.
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Post by Charlene on Jun 13, 2003 7:00:15 GMT -6
I didn't find much but I at least found the name of the victim. Hard to do sometimes. I am usually able to find quite a bit more info than this, and I am surprised that such a heinous case would not be more in the news, however it was quite a long time ago, before news articles were archived for web sites. Cary Williams - Reno Williams was sentenced to death by a 3-judge panel in 1983 after pleading guilty to the 1982 torture and murder of a pregnant Reno nurse, Katherine Carlson. I also found a letter to the editor regarding the case: To the editor: The Aug. 8 edition of the Review-Journal contained an interesting article concerning four convicts on death row, all of whom were convicted prior to reaching their 20th birthday. Among those listed was one Cary Williams, who was sentenced in 1983 for the torture and murder of a pregnant Reno nurse. That Reno nurse and her unborn child have been dead for 14 years, yet Cary Williams is still being given three meals a day, free medical treatment and shelter far superior to what thousands of our homeless citizens experience. Based on an estimated $25,000 per year cost for housing, feeding and caring for convicts, Cary Williams has thus far cost the taxpayers some $350,000. Intelligent citizens will always agree that every convicted person deserves several attempts at appealing a sentence. However, can't our judicial system place a reasonable limit on such matters? Surely, giving a convicted murderer a full five years in which to appeal would be more than fair. Keeping a convicted murderer on death row for 14 years or longer borders on the ridiculous. Our system must change so that relatives of the victims of horrendous crimes can experience at least a measure of satisfaction in the knowledge that the murderer who brought ruin into their lives was made to pay with his life. ROBERT E. HAYNES Las Vegas Thank you for the great information. I guess I forgot the most important info on the case. I know it involved the inamte by the name of cary williams in Reno Nevada, but that is all I know. Thanks again everyone!
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Post by Charlene on Jun 11, 2003 4:55:23 GMT -6
This guy innocent? Unbiased information seems to be hard to come by in this case. Anyone know of a good source for FACTS about this rather than the offender's claims? Interesting letter to the editor of the Austin Chronicle: Death Penalty: Up Close & Personal Louis: Thank you for taking the time to read my letter. I am writing to express my feelings about a portion of your "Top 10s of 2000" article. I would like to preface this letter by saying thank you for bringing us articles that need to be heard. It is comforting to know that you will continue reporting on the subjects that the mainstream media has deemed too controversial to mention. That being said, I am pro-death penalty. I never really surface the reasons why until I think back to my seventh-grade year when my stepfather let me go to a triple murder case trial. My stepfather was the elected sheriff of Trinity County at the time and you can bet that in a small town that was all that was going on. My sister and I even broke into his briefcase and saw pictures of the murder scene. Your article subsectioned "Top 10 Executions" ["The Year That Wasn't," Jan. 5] made the general statement that James Beathard "probably was not guilty" and received questionable representation. I can say that some small-town indigent defense attorneys lack experience and have to work with the prosecutors to actually help them on certain cases. I will concede that point and admit that is not a great situation for the defendant. I want everyone who is reading this to know that I not only went to Alabama to pick up a key witness who told us endless stories of how evil Mr. Beathard and his accomplice were, but that I also met the defendants on multiple occasions. I will save you details of the trial that was written up by several national magazine publications. Basically for a $3 million insurance policy, Mr. Beathard and Gene Hathorn murdered Mr. Hathorn's parents at point-blank range. If I would not have seen those pictures I would still not be in favor of the death penalty. The first picture I saw was of Gene Hathorn's five-year-old brother curled up in his closet, shot point-blank with a shotgun right between his eyes. I'm sorry about this long rant but I just want people to know that James Beathard and Gene Hathorn are guilty. No question about it. Mr. Beathard had a smile all the way through his trial to make all of the sympathizers feel sorry for him. Congratulations to your staff for making people feel sympathy for him again. I am glad James Beathard died for his actions. Thank you for your time, Charles Stover
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Post by Charlene on Jun 8, 2003 0:00:25 GMT -6
I read speculation in a Texas news account that an appeal in the Routier case might be based on similar mental disability rather than complete innocence. The idea would be to spare her life by getting her into the mental health system. Sounds like a plan. That would be a complete about-face, now wouldn't it? Since it has been a loud cry of innocence so far...
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Post by Charlene on Jan 2, 2004 11:19:17 GMT -6
My "peace" is not affected in either direction by executions, although it is disturbed by murders. The appropriate punishment for two of the five people who savagely gang-raped and sodomized and beat and kicked and brutalized and stomped my friends' daughters is nothing close to murder. I somehow doubt that you are at all concerned with my "peace", whatever you think that is. Must be nice to know so much about other people. Save your prayers for someone who wants them. Charlene, I hope you'll find a part of your peace back in June 2004...when Efrain and Raul will be murdered. I am sure you won't. But I am praying to God that you will.
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Post by Charlene on May 16, 2003 5:16:33 GMT -6
www.murdervictims.com/voices/jeneliz.htmlwell lets see, has he been rehabilitated? What are his attitudes now? Is he still dangerous? Depending on all of the above, and if he was ok in each category, I guess the only other reason to hold him further would be for punishment. What exactly was his role in the crime?
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Post by Charlene on May 12, 2003 18:44:27 GMT -6
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS For the Fifth Circuit
No. 00-10784
THOMAS JOE MILLER-EL,
Petitioner-Appellant,
VERSUS
GARY L. JOHNSON, DIRECTOR, TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE, INSTITUTIONAL DIVISION,
Respondent-Appellee.
The Supreme Court has reversed the decision of this Court entered on August 7, 2001, and published at 261 F.3d 445, and has remanded this case to our Court for further proceedings consistent with the Supreme Court's opinion, decided February 25, 2003 in No. 01-7662. For the reasons stated by the Supreme Court in its opinion, we now issue a Certificate of Appealability on Petitioner's jury selection claim premised on Batson. Accordingly, as suggested by the Supreme Court, the issue now before our Court is whether Petitioner has demonstrated that the state trial court's findings of the absence of purposeful discrimination was incorrect by clear and convincing evidence, and that the corresponding factual determination was A>objectively unreasonable in light of the record before the court, when viewed in the light of (1) Petitioner's historical evidence of racial discrimination by the district attorney's office, (2) the substantial evidence Petitioner put forth in support of his prima facia case, (3) the decisions of both the prosecution and the defense to call for a jury shuffle and (4) the evidence proffered by the defense as to disparate questioning of prospective jurors by the prosecution. We direct the parties to submit supplemental briefs focusing specifically on these issues with full and complete record citations as to relevant evidence and testimony. We instruct the clerk of this court to set a briefing schedule so that briefing will be complete within 45 days.
Case History: In 1985, Thomas Miller-El's wife, Dorothy Miller-El, was employed as a night maid for the lobby area of the Holiday Inn South. She arranged for a religious convention for the Moorish Science Temple's Feast on November 8- 10, 1985. Her husband was among the attendees. After the convention, Dorothy did not return to work. Shortly before midnight on November 15, 1985, Dorothy returned to the Holiday Inn claiming that she was there to pick up her paycheck. She was given access to the office area near the vault. During this time period, four hotel employees were working, Doug Walker, Donald Hall, Anthony Motari, and Mohamed Ali Karimijoji. Hall, the chief auditor, was training Mohamed regarding the hotel's daily closing procedures. Hall instructed Mohamed to close out the cash registers, a process which would take one-half hour. Mohamed encountered a woman who claimed that she needed accompanying while she waited for her ride. Mohamed sent her to the front desk area without leaving the locked area he was in. At the front desk, a man later identified as Miller-El appeared and requested a room from Hall. Witnesses identified Miller-El from having seen him at the Moorish Feast convention the previous week. A younger man, later identified as Kenneth Flowers and dressed in army fatigues and a headset, peered around the corner as Hall was giving Miller-El his room key, and once spotted by Hall, he also approached the counter. Miller-El told Hall that he would be needing two beds. Seconds later, Miller-El and Flowers pulled out weapons. Miller-El brandished a semi-automatic "tech" nine millimeter machine gun, with a flash suppressor for night use. Flowers had a .45 caliber hand gun. Hall complied with Miller-El's instructions to empty the cash drawer and place the money on the counter. Miller-El then ordered Hall to bring any other people in the back out front. Hall instructed Walker to come out. Flowers jumped over the counter and the two men instructed Hall and Walker to lay on the floor. The two men led Hall and Walker to the bellman's closet which they ordered opened. Once the two men removed all of the valuables from the closet and took Walker's and Hall's wallets, Miller-El tied Walker's hands behind his back, tied his legs together, and gagged him with strips of fabric. Flowers did the same to Hall. Walker was laid on his face and Hall was laid on his side. Miler-El asked Flowers if he was going to "do it" and Flowers responded that he couldn't. Flowers then left. Miller-El stood at Walker's feet, removed his glasses and then shot Walker in the back two times. Hall closed his eyes after the first shot. He heard two more shots and realized that he had also been wounded. Hall tried to talk to Walker but only heard him choking. When he heard familiar voices outside, Hall screamed for help. Several days after the robbery-murder, Officer Cagle was on surveillance of an apartment complex believed to be Dorothy Miller-El's. He spotted Dorothy and Flowers. With the assistance of back-up units, he stopped their vehicle and arrested them both. Search warrants were executed for the residence, and "walkie-talkie" headsets were found. When Miller-El was later arrested, found in his possession was an arsenal of weapons including the "tech" nine millimeter murder weapon. Miller-El pleaded not guilty to and in March 1986 was tried before a jury on the charge of capital murder during the course of committing a robbery. On March 24, 1986, the jury returned with a guilty verdict and at the conclusion of the sentencing phase, the same jury sentenced Miller to death. UPDATE: The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the execution of Texas death row inmate Thomas Miller-El, who was scheduled to die Thursday. Miller-El, 50, who is black, was condemned for the 1985 robbery-slaying of Douglas Walker, a desk clerk at the Holiday Inn-South in Irving. Miller-El contends that prosecutors kept blacks off his jury. Justice Antonin Scalia granted the stay for Miller-El, whose case could be used by the Supreme Court to clarify rules for claiming racial discrimination in the selection of a jury. The high court said Friday it would hear Miller-El's appeal but did not stay the execution. It was up to the state to stay the execution on its own, or for Miller-El's lawyers to ask the Supreme Court to do so separately. His lawyers filed such a request Tuesday. "It always bothers me when someone . . . at the 11th hour just before the execution raises something that in our opinion has nothing to do with the facts or the law in this case," said Lori Ordaway, chief of the Dallas County District Attorney's office appellate division. As for the jurors who were struck, Ordaway said prosecutors had good reasons that had nothing to do with race. She said those reasons were explained to the trial judge, who rejected Miller-El 's first appeal, and upheld by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, a federal district court and the U.S. District Court of Appeals. "This has been reviewed and reviewed again by four separate courts," she said. In an earlier appeal, Miller-El conceded prosecutors properly challenged four of the 10 black jurors they struck from the pool, Ordaway said. The jury that sent Miller-El to death row was not all white; it included a black, an Asian and a Hispanic, she said.
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Post by Charlene on Jul 11, 2003 7:11:29 GMT -6
Please, if you don't have anything intelligent to respond spare me the copied reports. I own all of those. It's just sad that there's not even one single intelligent response to all the facts summarized above. The jury heard none of these coherences. That's why - in my humble opinion - this case remains a miscarriage of justice. That's real nice that you "own" all of the copied reports. However, if someone wants to post them in order to allow others who might be following this thread to read them for themselves, I think that's a good thing. You seem to think that Glenn F posted them for you alone. I doubt that was his intent and in "sparing" you, others would not have the opportunity to read them. If you already have read them, it is a simple matter for you to ignore them now; no need to comment to Glenn that he should spare you their contents.
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Post by Charlene on Nov 11, 2007 21:57:59 GMT -6
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