22 December 2006
The (Un)Demise Of CrimLaw
I've been considering shutting down CrimLaw for a while now. In the last couple months I have seen two of my favorite blogs go down even though they still enjoyed great popularity (Commonwealth Conservative and Southern Appeal). On the other hand, CrimLaw's readership has slipped significantly over the last year. Without random hits from Google I'm not sure that the number of daily hits would rise much above 100 per day. There are numerous reasons for this which need not be dwelled upon. In any case, it has become harder and harder to justify the effort to keep up a blog which is limping along. There is also another project I am more interested in at the moment and I want to spend time developing it. Consequently, I am closing up shop.
I want to thank all those of you who have spent your precious moments (usually stolen from work if sitemeter is correct) reading my posts over the last few years. I especially want to thank everyone who has from time to time helped out by posting here either in comments or as a guest. In particular, there were times over the last few months when there would have no posting except for the efforts of Steve Armstrong (2L Appalachian School of Law) and Daniel Dovel (3L West Virginia Law). Thank you gentlemen.
As for me, I'm moving on to do a weekly videocast about the Virginia political scene. I've been doing it now for about 5 weeks and the bugs aren't all worked out, but I have high hopes. Feel free to click here to drop by and watch.
20 December 2006
AAAaarrgggg!!!!!
19 December 2006
Police Grab a Camera
Why were they after this particular camera? They weren't after the guy for trespassing and there were obviously other, high quality cameras filming. In fact, it should have been obvious that they had a crowd full of people waiting with baited breath to catch them doing something wrong on camera. The actions taken make no sense. If you were furthering a repressive, right wing conspiracy against the press you'd arrest the guy and take his film while he was in jail or you'd try to round up all the cameras.
As best I can figure it, one guy lost his head and the others followed his command. Any other theories?
via Amanda Congdon on ABC
Forsake That Robe
Should an AG be Allowed to Run for Governor?
If an elected Democratic AG turns his Bureau of Investigation against the Republican Governor should he be forbidden from running for governor against that same governor?
My take is different from KL's. I think that it is appropriate that the AG not be allowed to run. No noble act should come without a price, otherwise it could easily become an act of self-aggrandizement (and, yes, I am going to assume that Stumbo was acting on noble - not political - impulses). If there is no price paid then why wouldn't every AG keep an ongoing investigation in place against the sitting governor (a natural political enemy, especially if they are of different parties)?
Background for this: One, Two, Three, Four, Five
18 December 2006
Life in the Richmond Jail
The Richmond jail is a disaster and there's no change in sight. It's doubtful the city will have the money to build a new jail and all the nearby counties have already built their own and/or already joined a regional jail so it's unlikely that Richmond will be able to find financial partners either.
At least the new Sheriff isn't treating the canteen money as his own personal petty cash.
15 December 2006
Can You Be Convicted of Both Murder and Manslaughter?
Payne was drunk and driving her boyfriend's truck home from work when she lurched off the pavement and struck Patel as he walked alongside the westbound lanes of Midlothian Turnpike at the entrance ramp to north- bound Chippenham Parkway. At the time, she was fleeing from a rear-end accident she had caused.She was convicted on all counts
The jury found Payne guilty of felony murder, aggravated involuntary manslaughter and two counts of felony hit-and-run in connection with Patel's death. The jury imposed 20 years each for the murder and the manslaughter convictions and a total of six years for the hit-and-runs.It took me a minute to figure out how she could be convicted on both murder and manslaughter, but I think I've figured it out. Felony murder arises from the fact that she was fleeing from the felony and neither flight nor an ongoing felony is an element in manslaughter. Manslaughter comes out of the drimking while driving and DUI is not necessarily an element in felony murder (it could be if it was the third DUI in 10 years). Still, it will be interesting to see if they both survive appeal.
There's lots of case law in Virginia which supports felony murder for recklessly driving away from a felony crime in an attempt to escape and accidently causing a death through that recklessness. The problem is that reckless driving is a lesser included offense of DUI. There was a case a while back in which the Virginia Courts Appellate held that when a robbery was acquited a subsequent charge of grand larceny was barred by double jeopardy because both included petit larceny. Both had their own individual elements; grand larceny requires over $200 to be taken and robbery requires the use of force or threat. However, that was not enough to overcome the fact that they both had a lesser included offense in common.
I predict that the Court of Appeals will uphold the conviction based on the fact that the reckless driving could be based upon the manner of the driving rather than the fact she was DUI. The trickier question is how the Supreme Court will handle it.
Internet Intervention
Violent Sexual Offenders Shan't Be Allowed in Schools Anymore
13 December 2006
11 officers died in Virginia this year
No More Ten Talk in Virginia
Actually, I think the fact that the NY Federal Prosecutors are losing some cases is a good thing
Deadly Dumb
12 December 2006
Goofy Crime News
2) And today only!!!! with every house sold we're including a state of the art AK-47.
3) If you're going to get in a gun battle with security guards in order to steal the cash boxes you might want to wait until after they put the cash in them.
4) Not the brightest idea in the world to call the police and report a robbery of your $1,000 marijuana stash.
5) It's also not too bright to impersonate an officer so that you can go bowling.
6) Steal from jail inmates - go to jail.
Thomas Calls Out His Fellow Justices on Their Inconsistent Federal Jurisdcition Rulings
Off Point: A Catholic Moment
And a discussion at College Catholic as to whether he is for real about his Catholicism.
via Southern Appeal
11 December 2006
Witnessing a Death Imposition
Serial Killer: Yes or No
Gotta Respect this Lady
10 December 2006
41 Charges Dropped in Henry
09 December 2006
Infinite Creativity
You use a bulldozer from the construction site across the street. The real question is how they did it without a single witness.
Bringing a Cougar to a Kid's Birthday Party
Lie Detecting on the Cheap
08 December 2006
Global Warming in Action
My only question is whether I'm North of the line where Dennis Quaid says it's too late to evacuate because global warming is making the world freeze.
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow . . .
07 December 2006
Oh For Goodness Sake
Anybody out there who can guess what it is?
In the "This Person Deserved to Get Caught" Category
Not Only Virginia
06 December 2006
How to Avoid That Nasty Rape Charge
This is absolutely hilarious. I probably wouldn't play it at work, but if you don't make sure you see it at home.
05 December 2006
Tough Love. VERY Tough Love...
Read the police report here.
02 December 2006
Shameless Self-Promotion...
01 December 2006
Appalachia's Former Mayor Guilty 233 Times
So, I missed the 233 guilty pleas and 10 nolo contendere. That must have taken forever.
Translating Tom
Translation:
"The common sense of the majority of people" & "instinctively realize" = "gut reaction"
"certain heinous crimes" = "anything bad some Yankee done to me & mine"
"justice calls for a congruent satisfaction" = "get a rope"
Or, if you want a short and easy translation of the whole paragraph: "Some people just need to get kilt."
Hmmm . . . That sounds a lot like vengeance to me. Oh well, I can't possibly keep up with Tom's quoting of 13th century Latin screeds so I'm not in a position to get into a theological argument with him. Even if I tried he'd probably nuke me by starting to discourse in Latin, Greek, Hebraic, or Sanskrit (well, probably not Sanskrit).
BTW: Tom, Priti Patel looks kinda cute - any chance of getting me an introduction?
BTW, BTW: Why isn't the killing of likes instead of actuals acceptable as a valid punishment? For instance, if Jon Smith kills Peter Jones' infant child wouldn't society accomplish a more congruent punishment by killing Jon Smith's child? And wouldn't that, in general, create much more of a deterrent?
That there's a gator . . .
Polk County deputies handle the situation.
Ick.
Hurray for Bollywood!!!
He's been good while he's been on bond and therefore shouldn't get prison time. Wow. Ummm . . . That argument didn't sway many judges when I was representing people charged with illegal firearm possession and it really wouldn't sway me much now that I'm a prosecutor. But I guess if you're a big Bollywood star I might cut you a break (if you ever caught a charge in Wise).
30 November 2006
1 in 32
Why the pro hac vince concern?
29 November 2006
7 Years
HUH?
Feel Good Anti-Crime Zone
27 November 2006
Mentally ill superman who never should have represented himself
UPDATE: Judge Rules Whether Sex With A Dead Deer Is Legal
A Wisconsin man who was arrested after having sex with the carcus of a dead dear argued that he could not be prosecuted for having sex with the deer because the animal was dead at the time.
The judge (ruling on a pre-trial motion) said that the primary focus of the criminal statute dealing with crimes against sexual morality is on "human behavior and on protecting sexual morality in the community, and not necessarily on animal protection".
Hmmmm . . . This May Explain a Lot of Things
Police Raid and the Dead 92 Year Old Woman
This looks like a major FUBAR. Mind you, once the police were taken under fire they had the right to shoot back but it looks an awful lot like they screwed up before the raid (whomever they were there to get sure wasn't there). The closing of ranks afterward has not resulted in any persuasive argument for the raid; the police haven't told us the dealer actually lived there with his grandmother or that the house was in his name or that a huge meth lab was in the basement or anything else persuasive.
A more indepth discussion has been going on between Radley Balko and Orin Kerr:
A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6 A7 A8 VC1 VC2 A9 VC3
23 November 2006
Happy Thanksgiving to All
Anyway, may God have blessed you and yours so much so that you have trouble remembering all of it when you give thanks.
22 November 2006
Off Point: Lithwick Lectures at My Law School About the Personalities of the Justices
Thanks to Kentucky Law
I'll Take a Jury, Your Honor
Somebody in the Secret Service is in Deep *%#@*
21 November 2006
Sad Sicko Santa
20 November 2006
Court says websites not liable for libel in third-party postings
TASERmania!
"It means more than just a hat," the man said. "It's like my crown. It's like asking a king to remove his crown."
19 November 2006
When Should a Tazer Be Used?
Hand to Hand - This ranges from grabbing someone by the arm and yanking them out of their car thru the all too typical struggles when people resist being handcuffed all the way to out and out brawls. Typically, most confrontations do not go above this level.
Capstun - The second most often used tool in a physical confrontation, this is more commonly known as "macing" someone. This is what usually happens when an officer perceives that someone is proceeding to physical combat against him or is being very resistant. It is painful and takes away sight and breath but has a low risk of actual harm. One problem is that it does not always work. Anyone who has spent any time with officers has heard them tell stories of people whom the spray did not effect. Another problem is that some officers do not like the spray. I've heard more than one officer complain about how using it can mean he gets it in his eyes and lungs as well; of course, this is both painful and dangerous for the officer.
Nightstick - I can't remember the last time that I heard of an officer using a nightstick (when not wearing a pink bunny suit). I think that, in general, it has been supplanted by capstun on the less lethal side and tazers on the more lethal side. There are circumstances wherein neither of those two options is valid and the nightstick is called for (like the capstun spray or tazer malfunctioning) but the nightstick isn't likely to be used as much as it used to be.
Tazer - This is a step down from the use of lethal force. Tazers should be used in those situations wherein the officer is faced with serious harm or death but can avoid it by using the tazer instead of using a firearm. An example of this would be an officer facing down someone with a knife. There are obvious reasons why an officer should not close with this person. Prior to tazers the options would have been to put his life in significant danger by closing with the knife wielder or use of a firearm. Now the officer can stand off and incapacitate the knife wielder without putting himself in danger.
There are obvious dangers with applying an incapacitating electrical shock to a person. There are persistent anecdotal claims of death caused by use of tazers and I strongly suspect that at least some of them are well founded (although it would seem to be a very small percentage). Unfortunately, some appear to be in denial over this and when sold tazers seem to be marketed as a replacement for capstunning. They're not. The potential lethality - if only for those with medical conditions or of a certain age - means they should not be used as readily as less lethal means. HOWEVER, this does not mean that tazers should not be available for officer use. The probability of killing someone thru the use of a firearm is much higher that it will ever be thru the use of a tazer. Faced with a valid choice between tazing or shooting an officer should taze every time.
Rubber Bullets - Although I've heard of prisons using these (and rubber grenades), I've never heard of police forces (I may be showing some ignorance here). Rubber bullets are a less lethal option. I say less lethal because if rubber bullets hit a vulnerable spot (eye, temple, etc.) they can be deadly. However, in most applications they are not. This option is something which could be used if the knife wielder mentioned above was down the street, beyond the range of the tazer's wires. It is also a method for use against groups of people; if charged by a group of people rubber bullets are an effective means of breaking the charge.
Lethal Force - Not going to insult everyone by telling them that this means the officer is required to use a firearm.
Drawing bright lines as to when escalation should occur is almost impossible. Factors which will cause different reactions will be the person confronting the officer (an 80 year old grandmother is going to get treated differently than a 350 lb. steroid freak), how many officers are present, how many non-officers are present, and probably an infinite number of other factors. Each situation must be addressed according to the situation at hand.
One thing we must remember is that the officer is nor require to "fight fair." He is allowed to react in a manner which is meant to insure his safety and bring the situation under control. This means that he can escalate beyond what is offered to him. Of course, the reaction must still be proportionate and that will vary from case to case. If the 80 year old grandmother calls him a "whipersnapper" and swings her purse at him he isn't going to be justified going for his tazer. On the other hand, if the 350 lb. steroid freak comes out of his car mumbling something about God's vengeance and starts chasing the 140 lb. officer the officer could very well be justified going straight for the tazer (maybe even the pistol).
So, I am left with the question: how would I advise officers in a similar removing a resistant person from the library situation to act. I'd advise them to "lay hands" on the guy (do police everywhere use that phrase?), put him in handcuffs, and then hook him under the arms and drag him out like they finally did. If he does anything stupid - resist getting handcuffed, flop around on the floor to keep you from lifting him, hook feet in doorframes, yell for others to jump you - capstun him. Get control and get him out; don't give the mob time to form.
Steve, you did this sort of thing for a living once upon a time. Comments? (or from anyone else)
Is Shaming DUI's Working in Tennessee?
The Big Game
Who gets the championship game? We've seen who wins between OSU and Michigan so another team should get its shot. It should probably either be Florida or Arkansas (depending on who wins the championship). However, I predict it will be USC. This is a mistake. I'm not sure an SEC team in a single game can beat OSU, but I'm certain that OSU will manhandle USC.
Oh well, the basketball has started so we UK fans are starting to wander away from that game which fills time until the real season starts anyway.
18 November 2006
Jail in Richmond in Trouble
And probably not even then. This is, after all, the city which was sued by its own judges because their courts were inadequate and in a condemned building.
17 November 2006
A Deputy's Worst Nightmare
From USA Today
Tazered at College
16 November 2006
You mean, guns are actually LEGAL?!?
"We have since learned, upon doing some research, that Virginia is one of the few states in the United States that allow guns to be worn in public," a museum spokesperson said.
I'm not sure this is real
Ouch! Bad Co-Counsel
15 November 2006
“Sick, not sexy”
You've Got to be Kidding Me: O.J.
"If I had known that sort of thing was frowned upon..."
How to know the Judge is mad at you
...
"In short, we must ask: Why is this case here? There may have been some justification for going to trial because there were disputed questions of fact about how the officers behaved during the course of the intrusion into Frunz’s house. But a jury made up of seven members of the community heard the evidence and unanimously ruled in Frunz’s favor. By not only finding defendants liable, but also imposing punitive damages, the jury determined that the officers acted in reckless or malicious disregard of plaintiff’s constitutional rights. Only the most misguided optimism would cause defendants, and those who are paying for their defense, to appeal the verdict under these circumstances. Surely, the citizens of Tacoma would not want to be treated in their own homes the way the jury found officers Stril, Morris and Alred treated Frunz and her guests. A prompt payment of the verdict, accompanied by a letter of apology from the city fathers and mothers, might have been a more appropriate response to the jury’s collective wisdom."10
10 "Defendants and their counsel shall show cause within 14 days why they should not be assessed double costs and attorney’s fees for filing a frivolous appeal. Fed. R. App. P. 38."
Those are the opening and closing paragraphs of Frunz v. Tacoma.
Via Eugene Volokh (with a discussion) and How Appealing.
14 November 2006
Felony Second Degree Murder
Bob Beasley, the Commonwealth Attorney for Powhatan, has filed murder charges against Khalil Jerry Walker, the person who drove away from the check point and led police on a chase that got up to 100 mph. Commonwealth Attorney Beasley has actually charged Walker with four charges: misdemeanor DUI, felony driving on a suspended license, felony eluding, and 2d degree murder.
It's an interesting case to try to unravel. Admittedly, when I first read that it was a felony murder charge I thought that it was a stretch. Somewhere from the dark recesses of my mind I remembered a list of felonies which could be used in felony murder. However, after doing a little bit of research, I found out that this is only if the felony murder is in the 1st degree. There is a specific statute for 2d degree:
§ 18.2-33. Felony homicide defined; punishment.Still, I'd never heard of a felony murder charge based upon an eluding charge. I poked around a little with FastCase last night and found one case wherein it was the underlying charge, Bazemore v. Commonwealth. However, in Bazemore the defense didn't contest it, except to argue that an instruction was wrong (thrown out as not preserved by objection). In other cases the Virginia appellate courts seem to ignore the eluding and concentrate on whatever felony led to the eluding. Specifically, the Virginia Supreme Court, in Montague v. Commonwealth, was faced with a situation wherein a person in a stolen car fled a checkpoint, was pursued by an officer, and struck and killed a child. While the flight was an important part of the case the court's analysis was based upon the theft of the car. However, this case doesn't exactly fit because the Commonwealth seems not to have presseludinging as the underlying charge. So, basing a felony murder on eluding appears to be novel.
The killing of one accidentally, contrary to the intention of the parties, while in the prosecution of some felonious act other than those specified in §§ 18.2-31 and 18.2-32, is murder of the second degree and is punishable by confinement in a state correctional facility for not less than five years nor more than forty years.
Anyway, the issue of whether eluding is a solid basis should be a moot point. Assuming the felony driving suspended stands up there is a case which almost mirrors this one. In Davis v. Commonwealth the court held that a defendant who fled the police because he was driving with his license revoked (a class 6 felony) was guilty of 2d degree murder when he hit a police car and killed his passenger. The question then becomes whether the death of Deputy Green was part of the res gestae of the felony driving without a license. In other words, was his death a part of the crime as determined by its close connection in time, distance and continuity of action, as part of the same criminal enterprise. See Motague. Here the case of Haskill v. Commonwealth, might be somewhat instructive. In Haskill a group of men attempted to commit a robbery. When their robbery attempt failed they fled and the victim pursued. One of the would be robbers shot and killed him to facilitate escape. The court ruled that in this case a fact finder could find the escape intertwined with the crime and set a rule:
We do not say, however, that in every case a homicide committed during escape from a felony must be construed, as a matter of law, to come within the felony-murder statute. Usually, as in the present cases, the question will present an issue of fact to be determined from the evidence.So, the decision as to whether the death of Deputy Green was part of the res gestae of the felony driving will be up to the jury.
The connection in time is easy to make. Deputy Green was starting to pursue while the ongoing crime of felony driving suspended was ongoing. Continuity of action and being part of the same criminal enterprise are also fairly simple to show. Walker was attempting to escape from police and while he was trying to escape was continuing his felonious driving. Distance is the one element which might be somewhat harder to prove. In most of the cases I looked thru the homicide is something within an immediately proximate zone. For instance the ones involving vehicles seem to all be about the driver wrecking into someone and causing a death. Nevertheless, this is not the type of felony which is a close up felony. If someone is fleeing down country roads in a rural county at 100 mph the range of effect is going to be much larger than a mugging. An objective person would understand that felonious driving and fleeing will cause officers to converge from other roads and do so at a high rate of speed in order to intercept or pursue - clearly endangering their lives. Thus the distance which would be considered "close" in this felony driving charge is going to be much larger than in most felonies. Clearly, the Deputy was within the range of those reacting to the crime and flight.
The res gestae satisfied about the only thing left to show is mens rea. Under the statute this is satisfied if the defendant acted in a manner which demonstrates "extreme recklessness demonstrating total indifference to human life." Cotton v. Commonwealth. Driving in a rural county, at night, at 100 mph with deputies in pursuit fulfills that nicely.
This is an interesting case. I look forward to reading how it turns out.
13 November 2006
LA Jailees Will Have to Serve More Than 10%
Cop Combat
Unconstitutional Magistrate?
Blonde Justice Discusses
Need a Birthday Present?
12 November 2006
"Batman and Robin" Catch Drug Suspects
Police officers in England put on superhero outfits in a bid to unsettle the badguys. They pretended to be drunks looking for a costume party and knocked on the door of a suspect's home.
Read more HERE.
The greatest shock on Election Day
The Most Important Film of 2007
And the officers react:
11 November 2006
What is a Vet?
War makes strange giant creatures out of the little routine men who inhabit the Earth. -WWII correspondent Ernie Pyle.
Some veterans bear visible signs of their service: a missing limb, a jagged scar, a look in the eye. Others may carry the evidence inside them: a pin holding a bone together, a piece of shrapnel in the leg - or perhaps another sort of inner steel: the soul's alloy forged in the refinery of adversity. Except in parades, however, the men and women who have kept America safe wear no badge or emblem. You can't tell a vet just by looking.
What is a vet?
He is the cop on the beat who spent six months in Saudi Arabia sweating two gallons a day making sure the armored personnel carriers didn't run out of fuel.
He is the Nebraska farmer who worries every year that this time the bank really will foreclose.
He is the barroom loudmouth, dumber than five wooden planks, whose overgrown frat-boy behavior is outweighed a hundred times in the cosmic scales by four hours of exquisite bravery near the 39th Parallel.
She - or he - is the nurse who fought against futility and went to sleep sobbing every night for two solid years in Da Nang.
He is the POW who went away one person and came back another - or didn't come back at all.
He is the Quantico drill instructor who never has seen combat - but who has saved countless lives by turning slouchy no-'counts into soldiers, and teaching them to watch each others' backs.
He is the parade-riding legionnaire who pins on his ribbons and medals with a prosthetic hand.
He is the career quartermaster who watches the ribbons and medals pass him by.
He is the anonymous hero in the Tomb of the Unknowns, whose presence at Arlington National Cemetery must forever preserve the memory of all the other anonymous heroes whose valor died unrecognized with them on the battlefield or in the ocean's sunless deep.
He is the old guy bagging groceries at the supermarket - palsied now and aggravatingly slow - who helped liberate a Nazi death camp, and who wishes all day long his wife were still alive to hold him when the nightmares come.
He is an ordinary and yet an extraordinary human being - a person who offered some of his life's most vital years in the service of his country, and who sacrificed his ambitions so others would not have to sacrifice theirs. He is a soldier and a savior and a sword against the darkness, and he is nothing more than the finest, greatest testimony on behalf of the finest, greatest nation ever known.
-This editorial first was published in 1995 and has appeared annually since 1999.
10 November 2006
Commonwealth Conservative is Down
Chad, I'd say I'm going to miss your insight, but thankfully I can get it without the blog (I just have to cross the hall).
The question now becomes: who will fill the vacuum in Virginia political blogging?
09 November 2006
Talk About Mistaken Identity!
In case you haven't seen this yet, a 17-year-old girl who was wrongly locked in jail for seven days might still be in jail, facing criminal charges that included aiding and abetting a robbery, were it not for an anonymous tip to a Crimestopper hotline.
The girl cried in court October 24 as the judge read the charges to her.
"I wasn't even there," the girl said. "I know these guys but don't understand why they're using my name."
"That may be all true but at this point; I just don't know," the judge said.
"Talk to your attorney."
(The girl pictured 1st is the actual suspect)
Fumigation
The Struggle to Heal
08 November 2006
Duke Prosecutor's Office Gets Complaint
Creepy courtroom picture
Tired of Going Out to Dark Street Corners to Buy Your Illegal Drugs?
07 November 2006
Drivers Steal Money From Toll Baskets
"As they approach, they take the newspaper or the paper towel into the feeder, they shove it in there with a stick, and then they would come back later on … with a vacuum apparatus (like) a shop vac and suck the coins out."
Read more and watch the video HERE.
Police
2) SanFran is recruiting gay cops.
3) Ouch! Two police cars on an emergency response to a bank robbery crash into each other.
Don't Get Raped in Saudi . . .
Hospital Escape
UK Acheives True Color Blindness
06 November 2006
Duct Tape Abuse
City Cop cars equipped with GPS
Drinking game leads to murder confession
Man Ordered to Wear "Sex Offender" T-Shirt
Defendant's Final Statement
Meece, convicted of killing a family of three (Husband, Wife & Son) had previously confessed to the murders. However, he recanted for these reasons given: "so he could delay his capital murder trial. Meece also claims he was disappointed by the lack of preparation by his attorney." As well, "he'd had a conflict with one of his court-appointed attorneys and thought pleading guilty and then taking back the plea was the only way to get new lawyers and a fair trial." The confessions were admitted at trial and they were damning.
Statement Before Sentencing
---------------------------
My name is William Henry Mece, and I am the defendant. I am here to be final sentenced on this illegal and unconstitutional conviction. I intend to appeal and I have instructed the Court's appointed attorneys to do so. If we are in fact a nation of laws, where the rule of law applies to all, then this conviction will not stand.
All I ever asked for, pleaded for, demanded and expected was and is a fair trial under the laws and Constitution of this Commonwealth and these United States of America. It is that Constitution of the United States of America that every soldier, sailor, airman and marine, past present and future, is sworn to defend against all enemies, foreign and domestic. Such a lawful, constitutional fair trial was and is apparently beyond the capacity of the Commonwealth, its Attorney, its department of Public Advocacy, and this Court.
I stand convicted based on the coerced and involuntary statements made as part and parcel of what this Court recognized as an involuntary and coerced plea; lies of my own telling, proven tobe lies. There exists no credible testimony, no credible physical evidence, and not a single eyewitness {the can or did} say I did this, had anything to do with this, or was within 100 miles of these murders. Therefore this conviction can only be based upon my own lies, wrongfully admitted by this Court in order to get a conviction, not under the laws of this State and Nation, but by any means necessary. In doing so, this Court follows in the best traditions of the "legal" systems of Nazi Germany, Communist China, and Soviet Russia, where I would have gotten to see and hear all the evidence against me, which I have not in this case.
The Court relied on the case of U.S. vs. Marks, 209 F3d 577 to allow those statements to be heard by a jury. In that case the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals allowed post plea statements to the police because those statements were not to the attorney for the prosecution and therefore were not forbidden by law. This is not the case here where the statements used were made to Commonwealth Brian Wright on 15 Nov 04 and 15 Dec 04 as part of and required by the written plea agreement. That plea had not been finalized, as this Court made clear on15Nov04 when it reserved the right to reject the plea under R.Cr. 8.10. Mr. Wright recognized it on 15 Nov 04 as well on the record in asking to keep the record sealed.
The true case precedent should be and is Roberts vs. Commonwealth, Ky, 896 SW2d 4 (1995), as I brought to the attention of the Court's appointed attorneys before trial. In that case, the Kentucky Supreme Court, this states "highest" court, held that although the defendant did not keep his part of a "plea bargain" - just as I did - the statments he made as part of that plea agreement are not admissable at a subsequent trial. He, too, lied to the Commonwealth and the police, as they lie to us. KRE 410 and Roberts are the law as I stand here today.
All I ever wanted and expected and worked for was a fair trial under the law, applied equally to the State and the defendant. I expected too much, where the Commonwealth Attorney has not been held to the rule of law, including KRE 410, the rules of discovery, and this Court allowed him to present what he knew were material and false evidence and flagrantly lie to this Court, the defense, and the jury and this Court refused to correct it.
I bemoan the loss of the American ideal of a fair trial under the law if this conviction stands, if it ever existed. It will have ceased to exist for my children and their children, the Constitution rendered moot, outdated, and antiquated, except as propaganda. We have come much further down the road to a police state than even I feared or anyone not on trial and caught up by the system would ever expect or believe. Long Live the King, His Gentry, and His Courts. I can only hope the higher courts prove me wrong.
No less than 108 people have been from Death Row, not on technicality but on the physical evidence, having been convicted and sentenced by Courts in proceedings just like this one. I am not the first wrongfully convicted and I will not be the last. Unfortunately the evidence in this case does not and can not prove my innocence, it can only not prove me guilty.
Throughout this trial, the prosecutor was permitted to put my religious faith on trial and claim I was some sort of occultist pagan witch. Not even my ex-wife and all her lies supported such prejudicial nonsense. By making it an issue, the State put into evidence my Jewish faith. I am proud to be a Jew, as my ex-wife and my children were and may still be. To understand what that means, one only has to look to the Old Testament of the Christian Bible and these words credited to Jesus Christ founded there, written in red, I would point out that Numbers 35:30 in a modern translation of the original Hebrew says:
"Whenever someone kills a person the evidence of witnesses is required for the execution of the murderer. The evidence of a single witness is not sufficient for putting a person to death."
So says the law older than Western Civilization itself.
The stands no second witness in this case, only the desperate coerced lies of a defendant forced to say what the State wanted to hear to fight in vain for a fair trial under the law. There is no one who said or can say they saw me kill the Wellnitz family or that I was there. I didn't and I wasn't. Not my lying vengeful ex-wife who wanted and got me out of her life, not my co-defendant who risked her life to come forward to finally tell the truth.
I stand before the Court for sentencing. This Court has the power to condemn me to die in the State's prisons, be it a death sentence in the 9 to 15 years the appeals take if not overturned, or under a Life Sentence. Parole is not, and has never been, a realistic possibility. The Court rejected the Commonwealth's first offer of 50 years on the false possibility of of parole after 12 years, and yet stands today possibly prepared to sentence me to those same 12 years before I die.
May the One True G-d, called Our Father in Heaven by the Jewish Carpenter Jesus, have mercy and find forgiveness for the police, Mr. Wright, those witnesses who testified falsely with the best intentions against me, and this Court. May no man suffer ill on my account.
Shima Yisrael: Adonai Eloheimu Adonai Achod. Roruch Shem K'uod valchutoh l'olam va-ed. Amen.
Hear O Israel: The Lord is Our God, the Lord is One. Blessed is His Glorious Kingdom forever and ever. Amen
That is all I have to say.
----------------------------
The section between the {} I couldn't make out.
05 November 2006
Duke Lacrosse Case
Yes, You Must Produce All 240 Witnesses
Governor Required to Allow Parole
Sadam Sentenced to Death
04 November 2006
Pawn Shop sued for wrongful death
02 November 2006
Feds arrest Sheriff and lots of law enforcement in Henry County, Virginia
Indictment here.
Kansas AG reviewing records of abortion clinic for evidence of possible crimes
A 5 Second Rape?
What drew my attention in the article was the scenario. A 15 year old asks an 18 year old to have sex. She agrees "as long as he stops when I tell him to." During the sex she feels pain and tells him to stop. He stops in "five or so seconds."
Ummm . . . That's mighty thin.
Anybody got any info about this case? I suspect that the government might have actually argued that the entire situation was coercive and she had no real choice, no matter what she said. The paper implies that this was the situation but doesn't say anything about the government arguing it.
01 November 2006
The going rate of a teenage life? $200
Need North Carolina Law
I can find the modern statutes, but for some reason I don't have my copy of the last 200 years of North Carolina statutes anymore. Maybe they were lost when I moved. ;-)
Anyway, if anyone can help please email me. Thanx.
Around the Web
2) Was it a fishing boat or not? We'll never know - not that it matters.
3) Hmmmm . . . Sex at a football game wasn't one of the perks I was told to expect when I took the job as a prosecutor. I think I need to talk with Chad. I might be getting short changed here.
On second thought, the whole getting arrested thing just doesn't work for me. I think I'll pass.
4) Ever wonder why the feds are concentrating on the street corner crack dealer instead of big, interstate or international white collar crimes?
5) We all knowthat all legal shows are bad; ie Law and Order is terrible (I keep waiting for Law & Order: Grand Theft Auto). Blonde Justice fills us in on how bad this year's legal fare is: Shark and Justice
If you want to extradite a criminal from New Zealand . . .
31 October 2006
Police Stun Gun Kills Teen
Heavy Handed
A doctorate student who is studying computer security read about a long known flaw in airport security. It has long been known that people can make fake boarding passes. So what does the guy do? He proves the theory and sets up a web page with script so that anyone can use it.
He puts a link to it on his blog and gets all sorts of publicity. The FBI came by and ordered him to take it down. By the time he could get somewhere to do it the government had already killed the site.
Okay, up to this point the reaction is proportionate.
The next thing the FBI did was raid the student's house in the middle of the night. The student was spending the night elsewhere so he doesn't know when it happened exactly (the FBI broke in), but the warrant was signed at 2 am. They took all the computers in the apartment and tossed the apartment.
Why? Is this guy such a terrible threat that the FBI needed to hit his house at night? Aren't there drug dealers or others (ooh, say real terrorists) for which they could reserve that tactic? Granted, the kid could have destroyed "evidence" (it's not like he denied doing this) but if he were going to do that he could have easily destroyed all his hard drives between the 7 pm when they let him go and the post 2 am raid. If there was going to be evidence it would have been there when they dropped by the next afternoon.
Now back to our regularly scheduled program
30 October 2006
The Country's Most Dangerous Cities...
"The list starts with the safest cities and ends with the most dangerous. Only cities that reported crime rates were included in the list. For example, New Orleans was not included this year because its police department did not report figures."
Richmond, VA (my hometown) is listed at #357 out of 371. Take THAT, Camden, NJ!
27 October 2006
Is just being ‘Snoop Dogg’ enough to give police probable cause to search?
Judiciary Under Fire
Wanna see what crime takes place around the White House?
Drug Dealers with Top Secret Docs
26 October 2006
Nurse anesthetist poisoned rival because she stole her boyfriend back in high school some 30 years ago
Woman convicted of Midlothian hit-and-run death
This is just one the saddest stories I’ve read in a while. On one hand you have the poor 51 year old man that was hit and died on the side of the road. On the other hand you have the alcoholic woman that did the slaying. There is some stuff in this story that makes me feel bad for this woman, but in the end she really should be in jail.
Sheriff's department confirms the presence of Shaquille O'Neal at mistaken child porn raid
Disturbing Things You Hear in a Courthouse
There's a maybe 4 year old kid in the hall who is fussing and making noise. The mother is trying to quiet the kid and looking exasperated. Finally, she almost yells at the kid "You know what the judge is doing to your father because of how you're acting?"
Every time I think I've seen how low humanity can descend someone comes along and proves me wrong. How do you do that to a kid?
25 October 2006
Pressuring the Coach
Anyway, you ask, what's that got to do with criminal law? I'm glad you asked.
The coach in Friday Night Lights is under crushing pressure but nobody has drawn a gun on him like one parent did to this coach. I guess they take their football a little more serious in Pennsylvania than they do in Texas.
24 October 2006
'Catch me before I kill again,' suspect taunted
Fire chief, 3 volunteers charged with arson
See, I knew O.J. didn’t do it – it’s those damned underpaid backlogged LA forensic analysts.
Stealing Coke’s secret formula: If Coke and Pepsi can get along, can’t we all?
23 October 2006
40 year old man on his way from Seattle to Alberta ends up in Denver with no memory
Don’t spit in a cop’s food – or don’t let him see you – just don’t do it
John Hinckley Jr. can visit aged parents
Exhuming the remains of Billy the Kid
“If one can't be a great artist or a great soldier, the next best thing is to be a great criminal.” Edgar Jepson and Maurice Leblanc
Prosecutor Wants a Retrial on a Guilty Finding
Can anybody find the video for this?
I saw a video segment about this guy's speech on Lexington's local news and have been looking for either a video or transcript of it. This channel claims to have it but when I click thru I get a neighborhood watch bit.
The whole thing looks interesting and I really want to see if he talks about confessing and recanting in order to get rid of his PD.
I know People Fall for These Things, But I Always Wonder Why
Part time Job Offer
************************************************
My name is Kayode Martin. I just came about your email address through an email listing affiliated with the US Chamber of Commerce and I would be very interested in offering you a part-time paying job in which you could earn allot without quitting your present Job or having problem with your employers.
I am a man with 4 kids all boys and the love of my life, my wife. I am a some what multitalented man and I do quite a lot of traveling and get to meet quite a lot of people.
I just resigned my job as a research scientist for ARINI (Agricultural research Institute of Northern Ireland ) but I still work as a freelance consultant for the institute which gives me very much time to do my own work which is basically being a freelance researcher who could be employed by research institutes to do research
projects anywhere in the world.
I reside in Ireland, Dublin even though I have lived most of my life in other parts of the world, I am fully residing in Ireland. Presently, I have just been granted a funding to head a research project in the tropical regions of West Africa regarding rare and vulnerable plant species and this would be commencing very soon.
However my funding were by my American counterparts who send me the bunch of payments mostly in US based money orders. Getting an accountant in the states or opening an account would have been my best choice but I have a deadline to meet and taking any of those choices would cost me time and a whole lot of other requirements. I am not ready to deal with, as I would be traveling a lot in the meantime.
So presently, assuming you would be able to deal with cash, I would be willing to employ you on contract basis to be my payment representative back in the states, this way I could issue and make payments in form of Money Orders, Cashier's Check, etc out to you, you could then cash them easily, withdraw 10% of the total amount on these payment instruments as your commission and then send the rest back to me through wire transfer.
Please, bear it in mind that we would be dealing with quite a handful of cash and you a could be making up to $5000 just working with me in a short period of time within 1-2 weeks.
I would be glad if you accept my proposal and I intend to commence on starting as soon as you are ready. If you are interested, please email me back so we could make concluding arrangements.
Thank You
Kayode Martin
Agricultural Research Institute of Northern Ireland
Hillsborough, Ireland BT12 3rd
+44 123456789
How can anybody read the passage I put in bold and not realize this is a scam?
20 October 2006
19 October 2006
Killer facing execution commits suicide 15 hours before he was supposed to die
Q: Do you swear to tell the truth? A: No
Feds Net 125 Nationwide In Kid-Porn Case
18 October 2006
This Lady is Cool as a Cucumber
That's just plain impressive.
You Too Can Win a Federal Trial
Ken Lay died so his convictions are done away with.
Skimming an Article = Reading
If you find the abandoned drug money first . . .
Turkey and Eggs
Prosecutor in Trouble
Docket must mean something different in South Africa. In Virginia it means a list of the cases to be tried on a specific date. You couldn't give that away to an officer here.
When You Give the Bond Money to the Chief of Police
17 October 2006
Jury in drunken driving case slowed down by “biblical understanding of the meaning of depravity”
The Pacific becomes schizophrenic
[With thanks to markm, who was kind enough to point out the error I made when I wrote this while still half-asleep this morning]
If you intend to mug somebody . . .
16 October 2006
Nurse sues for 'emotional distress' over ticket
Civil Rights Attorney gets 28 months for aiding terrorists
Assistant U.S. Attorney said : "What she was doing was smuggling terrorism messages and smuggling out Abdel-Rahman's responses."
15 October 2006
Family Group Activities Are Usually a Good Thing
Again I Say - The Japanese are Different
It's Good To Be a Sport's Fan
Wanna destroy a fellow businessman?
Police cannot wear their uniforms . . .
I'd say this is probably the right decision, but I wonder how useful it will be. When there are 30 guys sitting there with high-and-tight haircuts I think the jury will figure out who they are.
Another Man Cleared by DNA
14 October 2006
Flags of Our Fathers
13 October 2006
Ken found the worst mother of the year ……here could be the worst father of the year
He "believed it was in the best interest of the child."
Pregnancy Exception to the Death Penalty?
Here's where I'd make some sort of joke about immaculate conception except I'm afraid Tom would probably take me to task about it and start quoting obscure 13th century encyclicals and Popes of old to tell me how wrong I was. ;-)
We don't have to show a motive . . .
If you make a false rape claim . . .
Oh, and she also dumped her baby in a trash bin.