Clients are cautioned not to write WRITE ANYTHING you wouldn't want anybody and everybody to read under all circumstances on mobile text communication devices or in electronic media such as e-mail or through social sites. Once something is written it takes on a life of its own.
Cell phone txt is particularly dangerous for both the sender and the receiver because these devices often fall into the wrong hands. Jealous spouses or boyfriends; nosy friends or parents; and more importantly, the police, prosecutors, and your legal opponent's attorneys can all get their hands on that data. At the scene of accidents or arrest the police are very quick to snoop through a telephone in your possession. While the legailty of such an invasion of privacy can usually be challenged, I've seen many instances where they left the subject alone initially, only to obtain a hard copy from the cell phone provider under subpoena later on. (YES! That data does reside in their servers and can be retrieved for varying periods.) Discussions of a significant social or legal consequence intended ONLY for the recipient should be made in person where no record is made and you KNOW the person you are speaking with. Often people make incriminating statements in these devices with dire consequences later on. The LAST thing the police need to find in your phone after you have been involved in a serious accident is txt messages to your friends sent moments before taking about how you are partying!
Another caution is that cellphones can be used to track your whereabouts whether you are using them or not. These tactics are OFTEN used by police, private investigators, repossession-agents and bounty-hunters. If you don't want your cell phone or PDA telling the world where you are you better pull the battery!
E-mail, Myspace, Facebook and a variety of other sites that have an e-mail or message features are also a hazard. These accounts are inavvertently left open all the time on shared computers or the computer you used may have keystroke-tracking which will provide the owner log-in information. These sites are also subject to subpoenas and/or search warrants where there are more serious inquiries afoot and indeed most have entire department devoted to this process. And don't think using some cutsie-tootsie code in your discussions will protect you eiter as these messages are ALWAYS construed in the worst possible way they can be by anyone who is interested.
In short, do not TYPE anything you would not want on a Mainstreet Billboard complete with your name and photograph.
Voice communications are somewhat safer. Civil wiretaps are virtually unheard of and while the Patriot Act has diluted the protections against eaves-dropping, actually spending hours listening and waiting for a call or setting up recording device on a particular line is so difficult and legally cumbersome the practice in everyday law enforcement is still somewhat extraordinary. However, it does happen! If law enforcement is listening in for one reason or another they consider you a BIG FISH! Eaves-dropping by anyone with access to your home is easily accomplished with basic and inexpensive equipment that can be purchased at your local Radio Shack and pinched into wiring or plugged into an unused phone jack. Currently, most private citizens lack the capability to effectively tap into a cellular call but law enforcement easily can through the service provider. But beware both cell phones and cordless phones can be monitored close by with commercially sold police scanners. In most states it is a felony to tap or listen into someone's telephone conversations absent a court order without at least one party to the conversation knowing the call is being monitored or recirded. (With all wireless signals it is a felony to eavesdrop under Federal Law but that doesn't seem to stop anyone.) Other states require both parties know the call is being recorded. (Which is why you will often get notice a call is being "monitored for quality assurance" from businesses conducting business in a variety of states.) But don't assume this is the law in your state just because you have heard these notices.
In short while these devices offer a great deal of convenience keep in mind they can also heap a great deal of misery if used inappropriately.
David Sloane
http://www.sloanelaw.com/
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Man in Criminal Corpse Abuse Case Ordered to Apologize Via Billboard
FORT WORTH — Almost four years after authorities found three decomposing bodies inside a repossessed van, the owner of a former cadaver transportation company is apologizing for his actions on a highway billboard.
Donald Richard Short, 44, was required to write the message and pay for the billboard at Texas 121 and Beach Street as part of his probation, prosecutor Hugo Martinez said.
Short was sentenced to two years’ probation in April 2006 after pleading no contest to three charges of corpse abuse for mishandling the bodies of Lonnie Leffall, Odis Hughes and Thomas Shadowens.
Williams Funeral Chapel had hired Short’s company, North Star Transportation, to take the bodies of the three men, who had died in 2000 of natural causes, to a crematorium and deliver their ashes to the appropriate locations. But after Short’s van was towed from his Hurst home, the remains were found March 2, 2005, zipped in dirty body bags, stacked atop each other and hidden under cardboard boxes.
"I should treat the deceased in my care with dignity and respect. I utterly failed them, their families and the community. I am remorseful and I apologize. — Donald Short," reads the billboard message.
Judge Deborah Nekhom Harris ordered Short to make the unusual public apology. She could not be reached for comment Tuesday. "She told him, 'You’re going to have to do this, so you might want to start saving money for it,’ " Martinez said.
Short was also ordered to write letters of apologies to the families, pay a $4,000 fine and restitution, perform community service and never work in the funeral industry again. Case records show Short’s probation was extended a year this past March, evidently to give Short more time to pay the restitution.
Todd Dalton, sales manager for Lamar Advertising, said the billboard’s message was posted on Thursday and will remain up for a month. He said the cost of renting a billboard at that location is $2,500 to $3,000.
Martinez said the judge had recently issued a 30-day deadline.
"The judge gave him a specific timeline of when she wanted the billboard paid for and up and running," Martinez said. "He kind of dragged his feet on that."
On Dec. 8, prosecutors filed a motion to revoke Short’s probation after he missed the judge’s deadline.
"His probation was in the process of being revoked, but he complied with the conditions," he said.
Though Short’s probation was not revoked, the judge did order him to spend an additional 10 days in jail as an added requirement of his probation. He is serving out that time on weekends at the Tarrant County Jail under the work-release program, Tarrant County records show.
Martinez said Short had submitted a few drafts of his apology for approval by the judge and Martinez.
"I got the feeling that he really was remorseful, especially in light of what he wrote," Martinez said. "I think it was a good idea on the part of the judge making this part of his probation."
Bobbie Tarpley, Leffall’s cousin, had not heard about the billboard Tuesday when reached by a reporter but planned to drive by and see it. Tarpley said she is still troubled that the "remains of a person would just be cast aside so casually."
But Tarpley said she believes that Short does feel bad about his actions and that his intentions were not malicious. She said she hopes the billboard will prevent others from making a similar poor choice.
"Maybe this won’t happen again by the judge making that," Tarpley said. "We’ll be a little more careful about the actions we do or don’t take."
Donald Richard Short, 44, was required to write the message and pay for the billboard at Texas 121 and Beach Street as part of his probation, prosecutor Hugo Martinez said.
Short was sentenced to two years’ probation in April 2006 after pleading no contest to three charges of corpse abuse for mishandling the bodies of Lonnie Leffall, Odis Hughes and Thomas Shadowens.
Williams Funeral Chapel had hired Short’s company, North Star Transportation, to take the bodies of the three men, who had died in 2000 of natural causes, to a crematorium and deliver their ashes to the appropriate locations. But after Short’s van was towed from his Hurst home, the remains were found March 2, 2005, zipped in dirty body bags, stacked atop each other and hidden under cardboard boxes.
"I should treat the deceased in my care with dignity and respect. I utterly failed them, their families and the community. I am remorseful and I apologize. — Donald Short," reads the billboard message.
Judge Deborah Nekhom Harris ordered Short to make the unusual public apology. She could not be reached for comment Tuesday. "She told him, 'You’re going to have to do this, so you might want to start saving money for it,’ " Martinez said.
Short was also ordered to write letters of apologies to the families, pay a $4,000 fine and restitution, perform community service and never work in the funeral industry again. Case records show Short’s probation was extended a year this past March, evidently to give Short more time to pay the restitution.
Todd Dalton, sales manager for Lamar Advertising, said the billboard’s message was posted on Thursday and will remain up for a month. He said the cost of renting a billboard at that location is $2,500 to $3,000.
Martinez said the judge had recently issued a 30-day deadline.
"The judge gave him a specific timeline of when she wanted the billboard paid for and up and running," Martinez said. "He kind of dragged his feet on that."
On Dec. 8, prosecutors filed a motion to revoke Short’s probation after he missed the judge’s deadline.
"His probation was in the process of being revoked, but he complied with the conditions," he said.
Though Short’s probation was not revoked, the judge did order him to spend an additional 10 days in jail as an added requirement of his probation. He is serving out that time on weekends at the Tarrant County Jail under the work-release program, Tarrant County records show.
Martinez said Short had submitted a few drafts of his apology for approval by the judge and Martinez.
"I got the feeling that he really was remorseful, especially in light of what he wrote," Martinez said. "I think it was a good idea on the part of the judge making this part of his probation."
Bobbie Tarpley, Leffall’s cousin, had not heard about the billboard Tuesday when reached by a reporter but planned to drive by and see it. Tarpley said she is still troubled that the "remains of a person would just be cast aside so casually."
But Tarpley said she believes that Short does feel bad about his actions and that his intentions were not malicious. She said she hopes the billboard will prevent others from making a similar poor choice.
"Maybe this won’t happen again by the judge making that," Tarpley said. "We’ll be a little more careful about the actions we do or don’t take."
Former Trooper Linked to Homicidal Crime Spree
A former Utah state trooper who attempted suicide during a standoff appears to be behind a shooting rampage that left two drivers dead during Monday evening's rush hour in Garland and northeast Dallas, police said Tuesday.
Dallas police said they have preliminarily matched ballistic evidence recovered after Brian Smith, 37, fired a bullet into his head in Garland early Tuesday with evidence in the fatal freeway shooting of truck driver William Scott Miller, 42.
Dallas police said they moved quickly to establish the link, in part because of growing concerns from the public that a killer randomly targeting motorists might be on the loose.
"It is safe to be out and about doing your Christmas shopping," homicide commander Lt. Craig Miller said. "Go about your business as normal."
Mr. Smith, who was also wanted on arrest warrants for robbery and burglary in Southlake, was on life support Tuesday night at Parkland Memorial Hospital.
Garland police stopped short of a similar link in the slaying of Jorge Lopez, 20, of Rowlett, who was shot north of LBJ Freeway minutes before Mr. Miller.
"Do things point in his direction? Yes, they do, but we want to prove that forensically and we just don't feel we've got enough evidence to say forensically, for sure, that's him," said Officer Joe Harn, Garland police spokesman.
Mr. Smith resigned from the Utah Department of Public Safety in May for drinking in his patrol car and theft.
He moved to North Texas and was suspected in several crimes, including a robbery at a Kroger pharmacy at Walnut Street and Garland Avenue shortly before the shootings were reported Monday night.
Police were called to the store about 5:30 p.m. after a man who identified himself as Brian Smith, armed with a handgun, jumped the counter and stole painkillers, Officer Harn said.
At 5:41 p.m., Garland police were called to the intersection of Jupiter Road and Marquis Drive. Mr. Lopez was stopped at a red light when someone pulled alongside his car and fired several shots, killing him, police said.
The next three shootings were reported in quick succession along westbound LBJ between Jupiter Road and Forest Lane. Kenneth Black Jr., 62, was not injured when shots were fired at him, police said.
Miller was shot and killed minutes later, his United Van Lines 18-wheeler coming to rest in a middle lane of westbound LBJ, just west of Miller Road.
Next, Gary Roberts, 46, suffered minor injuries when shots were fired into the cab of his 18-wheeler along westbound LBJ, near Forest Lane.
One witness to the Garland shooting reported seeing a tan extended-cab Ford F-150 pickup at the time. However, one of the surviving Dallas victims said he saw a black sport utility vehicle following closely behind him before shots were fired at him.
Several hours later, about 9:15 p.m., Garland police spotted Mr. Smith stopped at State Highway 66, near Commerce Street, in a black Honda sport utility vehicle. Police knew that he was wanted in Southlake and that he was reportedly suicidal and armed.
SWAT officers called to the scene surrounded him and tried to contact him for nearly three hours, to no avail. Shortly after midnight, Mr. Smith drove the vehicle forward, a SWAT truck blocked him in and he struck it with his car.
As officers rushed toward him, he fired a single shot.
At the scene early Tuesday, Garland police said there was no indication that Mr. Smith was connected to the motorist shootings. But over the next several hours, the investigation began to point in his direction.
A $20,000 reward was posted for information in the case, and hundreds of tips poured in from across the country. Many tipsters referred to a recent episode of the TV series Criminal Minds, in which a man kills blond women driving luxury cars on Southern California freeways, according to the show's Web site.
The families of the victims, meanwhile, grappled with the senseless killings.
When Mr. Miller was shot, he was on his way to park his rig before flying home to Frankfort, Ky., to be with his wife and children.
"He was a good man – honest and hardworking," said Dennis Tolson, president of Vincent Fister Inc., an agent of United Van Lines. "Customers loved him. He had great personal skills."
Mr. Miller, who was in the National Guard and served in Desert Storm, worked in a tool-and-die shop and was a cabinet maker before becoming a trucker.
"He always had a smile on his face and was the first to lend a hand to family and friends in need," said Donna Hammons, Mr. Miller's sister.
Mr. Lopez's friends and family mourned a young man who had planned to propose to his girlfriend of three years on Christmas Day.
"The whole family is just in shock. ... We just can't believe it," said his brother Luis Lopez. "You know, he was so innocent, he never would try to do anything to nobody."
Mr. Lopez, 20, enjoyed fishtailing in his small Nissan. The car he died in was an ongoing project of his. For those who narrowly escaped serious injury or death, the shootings remained a frightening ordeal. Mr. Black was driving west on LBJ Freeway when he heard a "pop" that shattered the window on the passenger side of his truck.
The Euless man ducked to avoid any more bullets, raising his head only long enough to steer his vehicle.
"I was trying to keep my rig on the road," said Mr. Black. "I tried to outrun him but couldn't, so I slammed on the brakes."
"It was scary," said Mr. Black. "I was just trying to get away from him."
Dallas police said they have preliminarily matched ballistic evidence recovered after Brian Smith, 37, fired a bullet into his head in Garland early Tuesday with evidence in the fatal freeway shooting of truck driver William Scott Miller, 42.
Dallas police said they moved quickly to establish the link, in part because of growing concerns from the public that a killer randomly targeting motorists might be on the loose.
"It is safe to be out and about doing your Christmas shopping," homicide commander Lt. Craig Miller said. "Go about your business as normal."
Mr. Smith, who was also wanted on arrest warrants for robbery and burglary in Southlake, was on life support Tuesday night at Parkland Memorial Hospital.
Garland police stopped short of a similar link in the slaying of Jorge Lopez, 20, of Rowlett, who was shot north of LBJ Freeway minutes before Mr. Miller.
"Do things point in his direction? Yes, they do, but we want to prove that forensically and we just don't feel we've got enough evidence to say forensically, for sure, that's him," said Officer Joe Harn, Garland police spokesman.
Mr. Smith resigned from the Utah Department of Public Safety in May for drinking in his patrol car and theft.
He moved to North Texas and was suspected in several crimes, including a robbery at a Kroger pharmacy at Walnut Street and Garland Avenue shortly before the shootings were reported Monday night.
Police were called to the store about 5:30 p.m. after a man who identified himself as Brian Smith, armed with a handgun, jumped the counter and stole painkillers, Officer Harn said.
At 5:41 p.m., Garland police were called to the intersection of Jupiter Road and Marquis Drive. Mr. Lopez was stopped at a red light when someone pulled alongside his car and fired several shots, killing him, police said.
The next three shootings were reported in quick succession along westbound LBJ between Jupiter Road and Forest Lane. Kenneth Black Jr., 62, was not injured when shots were fired at him, police said.
Miller was shot and killed minutes later, his United Van Lines 18-wheeler coming to rest in a middle lane of westbound LBJ, just west of Miller Road.
Next, Gary Roberts, 46, suffered minor injuries when shots were fired into the cab of his 18-wheeler along westbound LBJ, near Forest Lane.
One witness to the Garland shooting reported seeing a tan extended-cab Ford F-150 pickup at the time. However, one of the surviving Dallas victims said he saw a black sport utility vehicle following closely behind him before shots were fired at him.
Several hours later, about 9:15 p.m., Garland police spotted Mr. Smith stopped at State Highway 66, near Commerce Street, in a black Honda sport utility vehicle. Police knew that he was wanted in Southlake and that he was reportedly suicidal and armed.
SWAT officers called to the scene surrounded him and tried to contact him for nearly three hours, to no avail. Shortly after midnight, Mr. Smith drove the vehicle forward, a SWAT truck blocked him in and he struck it with his car.
As officers rushed toward him, he fired a single shot.
At the scene early Tuesday, Garland police said there was no indication that Mr. Smith was connected to the motorist shootings. But over the next several hours, the investigation began to point in his direction.
A $20,000 reward was posted for information in the case, and hundreds of tips poured in from across the country. Many tipsters referred to a recent episode of the TV series Criminal Minds, in which a man kills blond women driving luxury cars on Southern California freeways, according to the show's Web site.
The families of the victims, meanwhile, grappled with the senseless killings.
When Mr. Miller was shot, he was on his way to park his rig before flying home to Frankfort, Ky., to be with his wife and children.
"He was a good man – honest and hardworking," said Dennis Tolson, president of Vincent Fister Inc., an agent of United Van Lines. "Customers loved him. He had great personal skills."
Mr. Miller, who was in the National Guard and served in Desert Storm, worked in a tool-and-die shop and was a cabinet maker before becoming a trucker.
"He always had a smile on his face and was the first to lend a hand to family and friends in need," said Donna Hammons, Mr. Miller's sister.
Mr. Lopez's friends and family mourned a young man who had planned to propose to his girlfriend of three years on Christmas Day.
"The whole family is just in shock. ... We just can't believe it," said his brother Luis Lopez. "You know, he was so innocent, he never would try to do anything to nobody."
Mr. Lopez, 20, enjoyed fishtailing in his small Nissan. The car he died in was an ongoing project of his. For those who narrowly escaped serious injury or death, the shootings remained a frightening ordeal. Mr. Black was driving west on LBJ Freeway when he heard a "pop" that shattered the window on the passenger side of his truck.
The Euless man ducked to avoid any more bullets, raising his head only long enough to steer his vehicle.
"I was trying to keep my rig on the road," said Mr. Black. "I tried to outrun him but couldn't, so I slammed on the brakes."
"It was scary," said Mr. Black. "I was just trying to get away from him."
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Tarrant County Family Law Attorney Sentenced to State Jail and Probation for Forging Judge's Signatures.
FORT WORTH — Family court attorney Kimberly Ashley-Stevens was sentenced Tuesday night to 180 days in state jail after being convicted of two felony counts relating to forged documents she presented to a judge in a 2006 adoption case.
Ashley-Stevens was sentenced to 10 years’ probation on a third felony connected to the forged documents. State District Judge Elizabeth Berry ordered her to pay a $3,500 fine as a condition of probation.
Ashley-Stevens was taken into custody, but could be released on bail while she appeals her conviction, her attorney said.
On Monday, a Tarrant County jury convicted her of fabricating physical evidence, tampering with government records, and passing a document containing the forged signatures of her client and another attorney in the 2006 adoption case.
During the punishment hearing, the jury heard evidence that Ashley-Stevens also presented documents containing the forged signature of a judge in a 2005 annulment and the forged signature of another attorney in another 2006 adoption.
In seeking probation for Ashley-Stevens, 40, defense attorneys noted her years of free legal work for poor clients and said the loss of her law license was enough punishment.
"All the things she is accused of doing all helped her clients," they said. "That’s not the same thing as someone taking your check and stealing your bank account." Defense lawyers said Ashley-Stevens didn’t harm anyone because Kristy Ward’s overturned adoption was reinstated with the help of other attorneys.
Prosecutors Joe Shannon and David Lobingier said lawyers should be held to higher standards than other people. That doesn’t mean breaking rules to help their clients, Shannon said.
"Fortunately, Kristy Ward didn’t lose her baby," Shannon said. "But rules are important. You can’t just cut corners. It’s not just paperwork."
Shannon said family court judges who reviewed Ashley-Stevens’ cases after the first forged document was found discovered only three cases of wrongdoing.
Although a few people have inquired about cases connected to Ashley-Stevens, Shannon and some family law attorneys say it is unlikely that many, if any, cases will be overturned because of her involvement.
Ashley-Stevens was sentenced to 10 years’ probation on a third felony connected to the forged documents. State District Judge Elizabeth Berry ordered her to pay a $3,500 fine as a condition of probation.
Ashley-Stevens was taken into custody, but could be released on bail while she appeals her conviction, her attorney said.
On Monday, a Tarrant County jury convicted her of fabricating physical evidence, tampering with government records, and passing a document containing the forged signatures of her client and another attorney in the 2006 adoption case.
During the punishment hearing, the jury heard evidence that Ashley-Stevens also presented documents containing the forged signature of a judge in a 2005 annulment and the forged signature of another attorney in another 2006 adoption.
In seeking probation for Ashley-Stevens, 40, defense attorneys noted her years of free legal work for poor clients and said the loss of her law license was enough punishment.
"All the things she is accused of doing all helped her clients," they said. "That’s not the same thing as someone taking your check and stealing your bank account." Defense lawyers said Ashley-Stevens didn’t harm anyone because Kristy Ward’s overturned adoption was reinstated with the help of other attorneys.
Prosecutors Joe Shannon and David Lobingier said lawyers should be held to higher standards than other people. That doesn’t mean breaking rules to help their clients, Shannon said.
"Fortunately, Kristy Ward didn’t lose her baby," Shannon said. "But rules are important. You can’t just cut corners. It’s not just paperwork."
Shannon said family court judges who reviewed Ashley-Stevens’ cases after the first forged document was found discovered only three cases of wrongdoing.
Although a few people have inquired about cases connected to Ashley-Stevens, Shannon and some family law attorneys say it is unlikely that many, if any, cases will be overturned because of her involvement.
New Trial granted in 1985 Lake Worth Bombing Murders (Prosecutors withheld evidence favorable to the accused.)
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday granted Michael Roy Toney the right to a new trial, agreeing that Tarrant County prosecutors improperly withheld evidence during his capital murder trial in the 1985 bombing deaths of three people.
Toney will likely be transferred from Death Row to Tarrant County, where he will await a decision from prosecutors on whether to retry the 23-year-old case.
Toney’s attorneys say that he is not guilty and that no reliable evidence connects him to the bombing.
"We are very happy that relief was granted today," said Jared Tyler, an attorney with the Texas Innocence Network. "We believe it is a big step toward proving Michael’s innocence."
Chuck Mallin, chief of the appellate division of the district attorney’s office said prosecutors will meet with District Attorney Tim Curry and decide whether to retry the case "probably sometime in the near future."
"I am sure that it is our intention right now [to retry it], but we will discuss the decision," Mallin said.
The district attorney’s office acknowledged this year that at least 14 documents that could have been favorable to Toney’s defense were not given to his lawyers during his 1999 trial.
Prosecutors and Toney’s attorneys jointly requested a new trial.
The court ruling Wednesday affirmed an order signed in October by state District Judge Everett Young that Toney should receive a new trial. Young presided over Toney’s first trial.
Susan Blount, whose daughter Angela, 15, and husband, Joe Blount, died in the bombing, said she wanted Toney to be convicted again but was not looking forward to another trial.
She said she was disappointed that prosecutors "did not complete their jobs" the first time.
"I just want this over and done with," she said. "I’ve been dealing with this for over 23 years now. I tell people that I’ll probably be in my grave before I ever see this thing come to an end."
However, she added "Yes, we’ll be there for another trial," she said.
Mike Parrish, the lead prosecutor at Toney’s trial, whose responsibility it was to turn over the evidence to the defense, left the district attorney’s office this year. He told the Star-Telegram recently that he is "unable to comment on pending criminal cases."
Rebecca Bauer Kahan, another of Toney’s attorneys, said it is unclear when Toney could be transferred to the Tarrant County Jail; he is awaiting a mandate from the appeals court.
The crime On Thanksgiving Day 1985, Angela Blount, 15, found a briefcase outside the door to her family’s trailer in the Hilltop Mobile Home Park in Lake Worth. After she brought it inside and opened it, a bomb exploded, killing her; her father, Joe Blount, 44; and her cousin Michael Columbus, 18.
The investigation The case was unsolved for 12 years until a prisoner in the Parker County Jail told authorities that Toney had boasted about the bombing. The prisoner later recanted.
The trial No physical evidence connected Toney to the bombing. His ex-wife, Kim Toney, and former best friend Chris Meeks testified 14 years later that they saw him the night of the bombing carrying a briefcase in the direction of the Blounts’ trailer. Toney was convicted and sentenced to death in May 1999.
The new evidence Toney’s lawyers say the new evidence suggests that Meeks and Kim Toney were manipulated and intimidated into giving statements that fit investigators’ preconceived notions of how the crime occurred. Prosecutors say they remain convinced that Toney is guilty.
Toney will likely be transferred from Death Row to Tarrant County, where he will await a decision from prosecutors on whether to retry the 23-year-old case.
Toney’s attorneys say that he is not guilty and that no reliable evidence connects him to the bombing.
"We are very happy that relief was granted today," said Jared Tyler, an attorney with the Texas Innocence Network. "We believe it is a big step toward proving Michael’s innocence."
Chuck Mallin, chief of the appellate division of the district attorney’s office said prosecutors will meet with District Attorney Tim Curry and decide whether to retry the case "probably sometime in the near future."
"I am sure that it is our intention right now [to retry it], but we will discuss the decision," Mallin said.
The district attorney’s office acknowledged this year that at least 14 documents that could have been favorable to Toney’s defense were not given to his lawyers during his 1999 trial.
Prosecutors and Toney’s attorneys jointly requested a new trial.
The court ruling Wednesday affirmed an order signed in October by state District Judge Everett Young that Toney should receive a new trial. Young presided over Toney’s first trial.
Susan Blount, whose daughter Angela, 15, and husband, Joe Blount, died in the bombing, said she wanted Toney to be convicted again but was not looking forward to another trial.
She said she was disappointed that prosecutors "did not complete their jobs" the first time.
"I just want this over and done with," she said. "I’ve been dealing with this for over 23 years now. I tell people that I’ll probably be in my grave before I ever see this thing come to an end."
However, she added "Yes, we’ll be there for another trial," she said.
Mike Parrish, the lead prosecutor at Toney’s trial, whose responsibility it was to turn over the evidence to the defense, left the district attorney’s office this year. He told the Star-Telegram recently that he is "unable to comment on pending criminal cases."
Rebecca Bauer Kahan, another of Toney’s attorneys, said it is unclear when Toney could be transferred to the Tarrant County Jail; he is awaiting a mandate from the appeals court.
The crime On Thanksgiving Day 1985, Angela Blount, 15, found a briefcase outside the door to her family’s trailer in the Hilltop Mobile Home Park in Lake Worth. After she brought it inside and opened it, a bomb exploded, killing her; her father, Joe Blount, 44; and her cousin Michael Columbus, 18.
The investigation The case was unsolved for 12 years until a prisoner in the Parker County Jail told authorities that Toney had boasted about the bombing. The prisoner later recanted.
The trial No physical evidence connected Toney to the bombing. His ex-wife, Kim Toney, and former best friend Chris Meeks testified 14 years later that they saw him the night of the bombing carrying a briefcase in the direction of the Blounts’ trailer. Toney was convicted and sentenced to death in May 1999.
The new evidence Toney’s lawyers say the new evidence suggests that Meeks and Kim Toney were manipulated and intimidated into giving statements that fit investigators’ preconceived notions of how the crime occurred. Prosecutors say they remain convinced that Toney is guilty.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Texas Supreme Court Allows Judge to Bar Taping of Criminal Trial.
The Texas Supreme Court refused on May 11 to review the constitutionality of a Dallas trial judge's decision to deny a television station permission to videotape a court case allegedly because the television station had previously broadcast stories critical of the judge.
The nine-member court denied the petition for review without comment. Justice Nathan Hecht, joined by Justice Priscilla Owen, dissented from the denial of review, noting that the trial court's "order may be a significant intrusion on KTVT's constitutional rights. . . . This court's summary denial of KTVT's petition, given the significance of the press's interest here, is to me inexplicable."
The case concerns trial judge Jim Pruitt's July 1999 refusal to allow Dallas-Fort Worth CBS affiliate KTVT-TV to film court proceedings through the courtroom's back door window. According to the television station, Pruitt's court coordinator explained to the station that its request had been denied because of prior negative stories that had been broadcast about Pruitt. Pruitt's bailiff later allegedly told another station that it could film through the window so long as they were not KTVT.
Pruitt then denied the station's motion for reconsideration from the bench. "I don't think KTVT is a reputable news organization, and as such, I'm not going to allow you to film," he said, according to court records quoted by the Associated Press.
The AP reported that Pruitt's reaction may have been prompted by an Emmy-award winning November 1998 story about lazy judges that accused Pruitt of spending part of a work day in a bar. Another judge mentioned in the 1998 broadcast has sued the television station for libel, according to the AP.
The station had argued to the court that its First Amendment right to cover a criminal trial had been violated by Pruitt's decision. The station's attorney, Roger Diseker, told the AP that Pruitt's action was a "clear violation of the First Amendment" and that it "does not bode well for the press when a judge can retaliate against the media for a negative story."
http://www.dwicriminaldefenselawyer.com/
http://www.sloanelaw.com
The nine-member court denied the petition for review without comment. Justice Nathan Hecht, joined by Justice Priscilla Owen, dissented from the denial of review, noting that the trial court's "order may be a significant intrusion on KTVT's constitutional rights. . . . This court's summary denial of KTVT's petition, given the significance of the press's interest here, is to me inexplicable."
The case concerns trial judge Jim Pruitt's July 1999 refusal to allow Dallas-Fort Worth CBS affiliate KTVT-TV to film court proceedings through the courtroom's back door window. According to the television station, Pruitt's court coordinator explained to the station that its request had been denied because of prior negative stories that had been broadcast about Pruitt. Pruitt's bailiff later allegedly told another station that it could film through the window so long as they were not KTVT.
Pruitt then denied the station's motion for reconsideration from the bench. "I don't think KTVT is a reputable news organization, and as such, I'm not going to allow you to film," he said, according to court records quoted by the Associated Press.
The AP reported that Pruitt's reaction may have been prompted by an Emmy-award winning November 1998 story about lazy judges that accused Pruitt of spending part of a work day in a bar. Another judge mentioned in the 1998 broadcast has sued the television station for libel, according to the AP.
The station had argued to the court that its First Amendment right to cover a criminal trial had been violated by Pruitt's decision. The station's attorney, Roger Diseker, told the AP that Pruitt's action was a "clear violation of the First Amendment" and that it "does not bode well for the press when a judge can retaliate against the media for a negative story."
http://www.dwicriminaldefenselawyer.com/
http://www.sloanelaw.com
Supreme Court Turns Down Appeals of 2 Ft.Worth Killers
WASHINGTON (AP) ― A convicted rapist paroled from Ohio and then condemned for the robbery and strangulation of his 64-year-old stepmother in Texas lost an appeal Tuesday before the U.S. Supreme Court, moving him closer to execution.The high court refused to review the case of Reginald Perkins, 53, sent to death row for the slaying of Gertie Mae Perkins in Fort Worth 7 1/2 years ago. The woman's body was found in the trunk of her car in a parking garage.A Tarrant County jury took just 30 minutes in 2002 to decide Reginald Perkins should be put to death. Shortly after the jury's verdict was read in court, Perkins proclaimed his innocence in a written letter read by his lawyer.In November, a federal appeals court rejected claims he was mentally retarded and ineligible for the death penalty, that his legal help earlier had been ineffective, that the Texas sentencing statute was unconstitutional and that he was innocent of the murder. It's that appeal the Supreme Court refused to review Tuesday.Evidence at his trial showed he pawned his stepmother's wedding ring and wrote fraudulent checks from the account of the family trucking business in Fort Worth. When Gertie Perkins showed up missing, police summoned to her home found a carpet removed, a phone cord disconnected and sheets missing from a bed.He became a suspect after detectives learned of his previous convictions in Ohio for rape and attempted rape and that he had been a suspect in two killings in Cleveland in the 1980s. When arrested, he directed his father and police to the body.Perkins also acknowledged the slaying to a fellow inmate while awaiting trial and said his motive was robbery.At the punishment phase of his trial, jurors heard testimony that he pleaded guilty to rape and attempted rape of two 12-year-old girls in 1982 and that he had been implicated in the strangulation of two women. One of them was the mother of the girl he raped. The other was the sister of his ex-wife.In 1986, he had been paroled from Ohio after receiving a life prison term for the rape conviction. He was returned from parole eight years later but released again in February 2000. His stepmother's murder occurred 10 months later.Perkins does not have an execution date.In a second Texas death row case Tuesday, Elkie Taylor, convicted in another Fort Worth case, lost his bid for a rehearing before the justices.In March, the court refused to review Taylor's conviction and sentence for strangling a 65-year-old Fort Worth man with two wire coat hangers and then leading police on a four-hour chase in a stolen 18-wheeler.Like Perkins, Taylor also had been contending in appeals he shouldn't have been condemned because he is mentally retarded. He was sentenced to die for the 1993 robbery and murder of Otis Flake at Flake's Fort Worth home. Authorities said it was the second killing linked to Taylor over an 11-day period. The Milwaukee native had been on parole for about three months at the time of the slayings, freed after serving less than nine months of an eight-year sentence for burglary.In 2003, two days before he was set to be executed, he won a reprieve from the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals because state prison records showed he may be mentally retarded and ineligible for execution under Supreme Court guidelines.The Texas appeals court later lifted its reprieve. Lower federal courts also have denied his subsequent appeals.Taylor, who does not yet have an execution date, climbed in the cab of the stolen truck and led police on a chase from Fort Worth to Waco that ended when a state trooper shot out the truck's tires. In the chase, he tried to ram police cars and run over two troopers standing on the side of a road.Authorities contended Taylor and an accomplice took cash and items from Flake's house so they could be sold to buy crack cocaine. His accomplice, Darryl Birdow, was sentenced in 1994 to life in prison. Authorities said Taylor admitted involvement in a similar slaying of an 87-year-old Fort Worth man 11 days earlier but blamed the killing on a partner.
http://www.dwicriminaldefenselawyer.com/
http://www.sloanelaw.com
http://www.dwicriminaldefenselawyer.com/
http://www.sloanelaw.com
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
