http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/26/nyregion/26family.html?_r=1&th&emc=th
The article above from the NY Times states that now the police are not so certain C.J. was the killer. I have to inject a "what did I say" in right about here.
They are now looking at his mother as a possible suspect. They say the portion of a handwritten note they found was in her handwriting, not in C.J.'s as previosly thought. The only words discernable were "am sorry". They further say that initial autopsy results discovered "some pills" in her stomach so perhaps that would indicate she was trying to commit suicide.
"Some pills"?? I don't know about you but if I am going to commit suicide by taking pills, I'm going to take far more than "some pills". I am going to take a boat load of pills. Also, I'm not going to set my house on fire while I wait for them to work. What if they don't work quickly enough? Besides if she is going to kill her children and then commit suicide why set the house on fire anyway? That's the part I just don't get. Someone explain to me why if you are going to commit suicide why set the place on fire? Who cares at that point if they find the bodies? I mean, the murderer is dead so what are they going to do? Also, what is the use of even writing a suicide note if you're going to burn the house down and destroy it?
None of this makes any sense to me at all.
I'd like to go on record as saying that NO one in that house committed these murders. It was someone she knew and she let them into the house and they committed these crimes. They say the father of the 2 year old has been cleared as a suspect. So what about his associates? Would it really be the first time that a person hired someone else to do the dirty work? What if he owed money to some unsavory folks?
The mother worked as a security guard part time. What if she saw or overheard something that was too delicate to allow her to walk the streets with that knowledge? What if they came to her apartment to find out exactly what she knew and what she intended to do with that knowledge and they wound up killing them all.
I keep going back to the father of the 2 year old. My main reason is the fact that the way these children were killed was very personal. Slashing someone's throat, especially the throat of a child, is a very personal and rage filled act. Usually murderers are more detached from their victims and will shoot them or tie them up and then set the house on fire. The amount of pressure needed to exert a deep enough cut that all the necessary arteries are severed is rather high. This is one reason I never thought C.J. did it in the first place. In order to do it quickly and effectively, one would have to pull the head up with one hand and then, while exerting some considerable force, slash the throat.
It is also extremely coincidental to me that the only person in that apartment whose throat wasn't cut was the 2 year old. To me that might indicate that whoever did this, couldn't bring themselves to slash that little guy's throat. To me that indicates a connection to that child. An absence of rage at him. To me that indicates the father of that child had something to do with this. Either he personally committed the murders (it wouldn't be the first time a murderer had fooled the police) or he personally knows who committed the murders.
I would be extremely surprised to find out that there were enough pills in Mrs. Jones stomach to effectively commit suicide. Rather I think they are going to find she was on depression or anxiety medication and that is what they will find. She had been going through some tough times financially and was only working part time when she died. That coupled with trying to raise 4 children alone is more than enough to necessitate a script for mood elevators.
It seems to me that when ordinary people are murdered, the level of police work is very low. There are no celebrities or wealthy well-connected people calling city hall on a regular basis to push them to solve the crime so they look at it at face value, make their call, close the case and move on to the next one. One less large family sucking out the taxpayers money on assistance. It seems that unless there is crystal clear, in your face, evidence pointing to a suspect or unless a tip gets called in that works out immediately, they can't seem to be bothered with spending any length of time looking for the killer.
From all reports I've seen, Ms. Jones had no close family in New York. They are not a rich family with high connections. They are ordinary folks.
Ms. Jones mother, Marcia Anderson, stated it best when she said, “My grandson is not a killer and my daughter is not a killer. She could never harm her babies.”
I believe you Ms. Anderson. I just hope the police do.
But that's just me.
Monday, July 26, 2010
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Carl Rodgers - Becky Marzo Afterthought (cont from earlier post)
Below are cases of missing women who fit the general description of Becky Marzo and were missing around the same time as Becky. Also I have gone forward to show that there are continuing cases of missing women in that same general area. As I don't have access to police data bases, these are all that I could find which means in all likelihood there are others that I simply don't know about.
Now are all these cases related? I have no idea. However, I am suggesting that perhaps some of them may be and if that's the case, then Becky's may be as well.
However, I will go with my original thought that Becky has skipped town and will probably never resurface. Especially after hearing that because of her actions Carl committed suicide. Or at least if she has any shred of conscience anyway.
2003
Becky Marzo - 12-2003
Areerat Chupracivh (body found. Have suspect but no charges) 4-2003
Carrie Ann Polega - 10-2003
2004
Gail Masset - 11-2004
Christine Rudy - 11-2004
Tarena Hopgood - 5-2004
Irene Schaefer - 8-2004
Beulah Ware - 3-2004
2005
Christina Thomas - 2-2005
2006
Deidre Harm 6-2006 (body found) suspect was serial killer Christopher Revak who had close and constant ties to Wisconsin.
Jennifer Kesse 1-2006
Shannon Fischer 12-2006
2008
Unidentified skeletal remains found on 11-23-2008. Could have been dead for approximately 5 years or 2003.
Now are all these cases related? I have no idea. However, I am suggesting that perhaps some of them may be and if that's the case, then Becky's may be as well.
However, I will go with my original thought that Becky has skipped town and will probably never resurface. Especially after hearing that because of her actions Carl committed suicide. Or at least if she has any shred of conscience anyway.
2003
Becky Marzo - 12-2003
Areerat Chupracivh (body found. Have suspect but no charges) 4-2003
Carrie Ann Polega - 10-2003
2004
Gail Masset - 11-2004
Christine Rudy - 11-2004
Tarena Hopgood - 5-2004
Irene Schaefer - 8-2004
Beulah Ware - 3-2004
2005
Christina Thomas - 2-2005
2006
Deidre Harm 6-2006 (body found) suspect was serial killer Christopher Revak who had close and constant ties to Wisconsin.
Jennifer Kesse 1-2006
Shannon Fischer 12-2006
2008
Unidentified skeletal remains found on 11-23-2008. Could have been dead for approximately 5 years or 2003.
Did 14 yr old really kill his family and then commit suicide?
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/24/nyregion/24family.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&th&emc=th
The above article from the NY Times indicates that the police are convinced that a 14 year old boy slashed his siblings throats, killed his mother and then committed suicide by slashing his own throat.
I have questions and concerns about this case.
C.J. Jones was a very slight (some have described him as scrawny) 14 year old boy. Could his much larger mother not have fought him off? How did he manage to kill all these people without anyone getting away and running out of the door? It's not as if he did this during the night when he may have been able to sneak up on them while they slept. This was done around dinner time. Everyone was awake. The neighbors downstairs heard running and crying and furniture toppling over. There was a chase and a struggle going on in that apartment. Why the neighbors didn't go up there to check it out is beyond me.
How is it that everyone that has spoken describe C.J. as a quiet and helpful young man who helped his mother take care of the family. Who ran errands for his mother and watched his younger siblings as they crossed the street. He helped a neighbor tend to a vegetable garden. He is described over and over as doting when it came to his family.
His school has released information (which I find odd that they would release such information about a minor especially when a police investigation is ongoing) that they had recommended the boy be put into a special school for disabled youths. But they don't define "disabled". Was he homicidal, was he suicidal, was he slow, was he stupid, was he just behind all his fellow students perhaps? They don't say.
They have said that he attacked a vice principal. Attacked? As in murderously attacked? As in the vice principal grabbed his arm and he wrenched free?
The police have been quick to release this type of information as well as numerous stories detailing C.J.'s love of fire and of starting them. They released information that they found a mostly burned note attached to a lighter and (conveniently) all they could read were the words "am sorry". Was he sorry that he murdered his family or was he sorry that he hadn't done his homework and his mother had scolded him?
I'm getting weird feelings about this whole thing.
First off, leaking news that school officials wanted him to go to a school for the disabled but then not defining what exactly was disabled about C.J. leads the public to believe that C.J. was a murderous child running amoke.
What if he wasn't? What if he had a learning disability with a propensity to get easily frustrated as is often the case?
What of his attacking the vice principal? Please define attack. If he was being disruptive and the principal grabbed his arm and (using both hands) he wrenched it away forcefully, that technically could be considered as an attack. If the vice principal was in his face and he shoved him to get him out of his face, that could be considered an attack. I need clarification on this. He very well may have horribly attacked the principal but I'm just not certain of that. I am more convinced by the lack of detail in all these leaks that perhaps C.J.'s propensity towards violence and his "disturbed" psyche may well have been embellished.
Then there's the fire thing. A neighbor months before the murders saw C.J. on the stoop setting fire to a small piece of paper. When she reprimanded him, he put it out and stopped. Wow. This sounds like a rabid murderer to me.
A fellow student at his school stated that C.J. liked to play with fire. Now how would they know this? For one thing it has been stated that C.J. had no friends. Everyone at school taunted him because he wore the same clothes over and over to school. Because he had suffered an accident one of his eyes was messed up and he was teased about that. Doesn't sound to me as if he had any classmates that were close enough to him for them to know his secret addiction to setting fires. I mean surely on his first day in class the teacher said, "Class this is our new student. Please introduce yourself and tell us something about you" and at that point I'm sure he didn't reply, "Hi! My name is C.J. Jones and I love to start fires!"
Now before anyone starts saying that he was a loner just like the Columbine kids, let's remember that C.J. didn't kill the kids that were taunting and alienating him, he is accused of killing the people he loved and who loved him. Big difference.
Now let's get to the actual crime. According to police, he murdered his 30 year old mother, his 10 year old sister, his 7 year old sister and his 2 year old brother before slashing his own throat. Actually the 2 year old brother died from smoke inhalation and burns later at the hospital. As I stated earlier, it was not during the middle of the night when all of the above were soundly sleeping. It was during waking hours and by the neighbors accounts, there was a lot of commotion going on in that apartment.
Exactly how, armed only with a common kitchen knife, did he manage to chase down each member individually and kill them without any of them running out of the door while he was busy killing another? Did he make them form a line and wait patiently for their turn??
How did he accomplish this without his mother picking up something and whacking this kid in the head with it? It just doesn't seem feasable to me. Something just isn't right with this scenario.
Here is my biggest problem with this. He then slashed his own throat.
How many teenage suicides have you ever heard of where it is done by slashing their own throats? Very few. Slashing their wrists, shooting themselves, hanging themselves, jumping out of windows, etc. But rarely from slashing their own throats.
As a matter of fact in their article "Atypical Suicidal" Doctors Shetty, Padubitri and Bhandarkar state that, "Suicide is one of the leading causes of death in the world. The incidence and pattern of suicide vary from country to country. Cultural, religious and social value plays a vital role. Hanging, poisoning, drowning are the common methods of committing suicide. Suicide by incising one's own throat remains rare, and only a few cases have been reported in the forensic literature".
Based upon what I've read and articles that I've been able to uncover pertaining to teen suicides, two-thirds of all suicides under 25 were committed with firearms. The second most common method was hanging, third was poisoning or suicide by overdose.
The police reported that he was found slumped over a bed and the knife was found beneath him.
So he killed his entire family, then set the apartment on fire, apparently wrote a note that he knew was probably going to be burned up in the fire and then, WHILE STANDING, slashed his own throat and slumped on the bed. What?
Does any of that sound the least bit credible to you?? It doesn't to me. Am I the only person who finds this a bit difficult to swallow?? Is it just me or do the police appear to be determined to pin this on C.J. and close the book??
But that's just me.
The above article from the NY Times indicates that the police are convinced that a 14 year old boy slashed his siblings throats, killed his mother and then committed suicide by slashing his own throat.
I have questions and concerns about this case.
C.J. Jones was a very slight (some have described him as scrawny) 14 year old boy. Could his much larger mother not have fought him off? How did he manage to kill all these people without anyone getting away and running out of the door? It's not as if he did this during the night when he may have been able to sneak up on them while they slept. This was done around dinner time. Everyone was awake. The neighbors downstairs heard running and crying and furniture toppling over. There was a chase and a struggle going on in that apartment. Why the neighbors didn't go up there to check it out is beyond me.
How is it that everyone that has spoken describe C.J. as a quiet and helpful young man who helped his mother take care of the family. Who ran errands for his mother and watched his younger siblings as they crossed the street. He helped a neighbor tend to a vegetable garden. He is described over and over as doting when it came to his family.
His school has released information (which I find odd that they would release such information about a minor especially when a police investigation is ongoing) that they had recommended the boy be put into a special school for disabled youths. But they don't define "disabled". Was he homicidal, was he suicidal, was he slow, was he stupid, was he just behind all his fellow students perhaps? They don't say.
They have said that he attacked a vice principal. Attacked? As in murderously attacked? As in the vice principal grabbed his arm and he wrenched free?
The police have been quick to release this type of information as well as numerous stories detailing C.J.'s love of fire and of starting them. They released information that they found a mostly burned note attached to a lighter and (conveniently) all they could read were the words "am sorry". Was he sorry that he murdered his family or was he sorry that he hadn't done his homework and his mother had scolded him?
I'm getting weird feelings about this whole thing.
First off, leaking news that school officials wanted him to go to a school for the disabled but then not defining what exactly was disabled about C.J. leads the public to believe that C.J. was a murderous child running amoke.
What if he wasn't? What if he had a learning disability with a propensity to get easily frustrated as is often the case?
What of his attacking the vice principal? Please define attack. If he was being disruptive and the principal grabbed his arm and (using both hands) he wrenched it away forcefully, that technically could be considered as an attack. If the vice principal was in his face and he shoved him to get him out of his face, that could be considered an attack. I need clarification on this. He very well may have horribly attacked the principal but I'm just not certain of that. I am more convinced by the lack of detail in all these leaks that perhaps C.J.'s propensity towards violence and his "disturbed" psyche may well have been embellished.
Then there's the fire thing. A neighbor months before the murders saw C.J. on the stoop setting fire to a small piece of paper. When she reprimanded him, he put it out and stopped. Wow. This sounds like a rabid murderer to me.
A fellow student at his school stated that C.J. liked to play with fire. Now how would they know this? For one thing it has been stated that C.J. had no friends. Everyone at school taunted him because he wore the same clothes over and over to school. Because he had suffered an accident one of his eyes was messed up and he was teased about that. Doesn't sound to me as if he had any classmates that were close enough to him for them to know his secret addiction to setting fires. I mean surely on his first day in class the teacher said, "Class this is our new student. Please introduce yourself and tell us something about you" and at that point I'm sure he didn't reply, "Hi! My name is C.J. Jones and I love to start fires!"
Now before anyone starts saying that he was a loner just like the Columbine kids, let's remember that C.J. didn't kill the kids that were taunting and alienating him, he is accused of killing the people he loved and who loved him. Big difference.
Now let's get to the actual crime. According to police, he murdered his 30 year old mother, his 10 year old sister, his 7 year old sister and his 2 year old brother before slashing his own throat. Actually the 2 year old brother died from smoke inhalation and burns later at the hospital. As I stated earlier, it was not during the middle of the night when all of the above were soundly sleeping. It was during waking hours and by the neighbors accounts, there was a lot of commotion going on in that apartment.
Exactly how, armed only with a common kitchen knife, did he manage to chase down each member individually and kill them without any of them running out of the door while he was busy killing another? Did he make them form a line and wait patiently for their turn??
How did he accomplish this without his mother picking up something and whacking this kid in the head with it? It just doesn't seem feasable to me. Something just isn't right with this scenario.
Here is my biggest problem with this. He then slashed his own throat.
How many teenage suicides have you ever heard of where it is done by slashing their own throats? Very few. Slashing their wrists, shooting themselves, hanging themselves, jumping out of windows, etc. But rarely from slashing their own throats.
As a matter of fact in their article "Atypical Suicidal" Doctors Shetty, Padubitri and Bhandarkar state that, "Suicide is one of the leading causes of death in the world. The incidence and pattern of suicide vary from country to country. Cultural, religious and social value plays a vital role. Hanging, poisoning, drowning are the common methods of committing suicide. Suicide by incising one's own throat remains rare, and only a few cases have been reported in the forensic literature".
Based upon what I've read and articles that I've been able to uncover pertaining to teen suicides, two-thirds of all suicides under 25 were committed with firearms. The second most common method was hanging, third was poisoning or suicide by overdose.
The police reported that he was found slumped over a bed and the knife was found beneath him.
So he killed his entire family, then set the apartment on fire, apparently wrote a note that he knew was probably going to be burned up in the fire and then, WHILE STANDING, slashed his own throat and slumped on the bed. What?
Does any of that sound the least bit credible to you?? It doesn't to me. Am I the only person who finds this a bit difficult to swallow?? Is it just me or do the police appear to be determined to pin this on C.J. and close the book??
But that's just me.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Justice for Terry King
There are a few things surrounding the death of Terry King in his Cantonment, Florida home on which everyone can agree. They agree that on November 26, 2001, Terry King lay in his recliner napping after work. They agree that as he lay sleeping he was bludgeoned to death by a metal baseball bat and his house set afire in an attempt to destroy evidence. Those are pretty much the only facts that all involved can agree on.
Terry King was 40 at the time of his death. Before the boys were born, he had married their mother, Kelly Marino, who according to all sources made her living as a pole dancer/stripper.
On Vance Holmes site, he includes what appears to be a transcript from an interview between Connie Chung and Terry King's father who states the following: "WILBUR KING: Well, their mother -- what can I say about the mother? When the four boys were there. After the four boys were born, the mother deserted the home and went to live with another man. This man beat her up. And she came back to Terry. And then she left Terry again. And so my son Terry had four boys to raise, had no one to help except the family. And the family did what they could for Terry, but it wasn't enough. And so the boys did not get the home care that they needed while they were young".
In an interview with Larry King Live, Kelly Marino mentions her 4 children. However, I can find no mention of their names or what has happened in their lives like who they live with, how their lives have gone since they were deserted by their mother, if they remember their father or even if they know he's dead.
As far as I can tell, while Terry and Kelly were still together, they allowed all 4 boys to go into a boys home because Terry and Kelly were having financial difficulties. That facility closed a few months later and the boys all had to go to separate foster homes. Apparently, the only two that Terry ever took back were Alex and Derek. The mother never took any of them.
When Kelly left the second time she never came back. Not to live and not to visit. This left Terry a single father.
Although Terry apparently liked to "farm" his kids out to foster families quite often, by all accounts Terry was not an abusive person and was a hard worker. The boys said his habit was to come home from work and sit in his recliner and nap. They have never alleged physical abuse and have indicated that while Terry might not have been a nurturing father and they moved frequently, he nonetheless made sure they had decent clothes to wear, food and a roof over their heads.
When Derek was about 6 it has been stated that he became more than Terry could handle and Terry turned him over to a foster family named Lay. Derek lived with them for about 8 years. Derek has stated in interviews that he enjoyed living with that family and that they treated him as one of their own. However, for whatever reason, Derek began to act out and the family gave him back to Terry. Within seven weeks after Derek came home Terry King was murdered.
Alex has stated that oftentimes his father would take him to work at the printing company and he would sleep there while his father worked. Alex didn't attend school regularly and by his own admission had no friends or outside contact for much of his early life. He and Derek had been apart for so long that they had failed to develop the usual brotherly bond and they neither saw one another nor corresponded during the 8 years that Derek lived with the foster family. Extended family is never mentioned anywhere as having maintained a regular contact with the boys.
Other than Terry there was one constant presence in Alex' life. The presence of a convicted pedophile named Rick Chavis. It's not clear exactly how Rick and Terry became friends or even how close they were as friends. It is further not known if Terry had any knowledge that Rick was a pedophile. What is known is that in a pinch Terry would ask Rick to babysit with Alex from time to time beginning when Alex was 7 years old.
According to a handwritten confession by Alex (found on the Smoking Gun website), Rick began a sexual relationship with him at about the age of 12. Rick lived in a mobile home not far from Terry King's house. It was filled with video games, big screen TV's and an assortment of others games and electronics that young boys love. It was here that Rick encouraged both the boys to smoke pot and it was here that Rick sexually abused Alex eventually convincing Alex that he was gay and in love with Rick.
In this same written statement by Alex, he says that Rick had convinced him that Terry was a "very abusive" father because of the icy stare Terry would give to Alex when he was angry. Rick gave Alex $20 and a key to both his gate and trailer and said that anytime Alex could no longer stand living with Terry he could come live with Rick and he would hide him until he turned 16 at which time he could decide on his own who he wanted to live with.
This was the crazy mixed up situation that Derek walked into when he returned from the foster family. He was told by Rick and Alex that Terry was abusive and was convinced by them that the only way out was to kill Terry.
The timing couldn't have been better for this plan. After all, I'm sure, Derek carried his own anger and resentment towards Terry for having been given away to a foster family while Terry kept Alex. It also might appear to a child that just as he was becoming accustomed to a "real family" life, he was yanked away from that and back into Terry's house. After 8 years, it must have been like going to live with rank strangers.
All the reports that I view and read on this matter have one thing in common. They all pity poor Alex. Proof of this must include the fact that Rosie O'Donnell and the boys own mother campaigned relentlessly to get ALEX acquitted. To get his confession thrown out of court.
A professor of journalism named Kathy Medico took a special interest in Alex and after his release brought him into her home to live with her and her family. She has also co-authored a book about the entire matter.
No one overtly campaigned for Derek. Certainly no one ever visited the Larry King show or was interviewed by Connie Chung on Derek's behalf. Lisa Altdan and Dan Daley were the only 2 people to my knowledge who lifted a finger to keep in touch with Derek. They sent him books and wrote letters to him. Mr. Daley embarked on the long car drive to Florida from Texas every chance he got to visit Derek and even offered Derek a place to live once he got out which Derek took him up on.
It was on Mr. Daley's isolated land that Derek finally was given a moments peace to reflect, to grieve, to plan for his future, to dream about what might be, to exhale.
While I have no doubt that Alex was abused and extremely badly influenced by Rick, I also have no doubt that Derek was a puppet and a pawn for both Rick and Alex in their quest to live together. After all, with Terry dead and Derek in prison, who would possibly be left to stand in their way?
Understandably Alex was a child and not responsible for the creation of this conspiracy. That notwithstanding, Derek was caught up in protecting and avenging his brother and perhaps in the process, avenging his own personal rage against Terry.
The most believed version of what happened comes from interviews with both the boys after their release and from court documents taken at their trials and appearances.
They considered shooting Terry but decided it was too noisy and there was always a risk of simply wounding him and giving him a chance to fight them off. Then they considered a hammer but they couldn't find one in the house. So they finally decided on the aluminum baseball bat.
Derek and Alex both now admit that Derek swung the bat while Alex stood by and watched. Alex even described the sounds coming from his dying father to the Court. The Coroner said that Alex' description of the "death rattle" was the best description he had ever heard and that because of this, Alex had to be in the room with him when he died. He simply could not have made that up.
Once Terry was dead, Derek then went into his dad's bedroom and set the bed on fire. They then hurried to a neighborhood store where they called Rick who promptly came and picked them up. Rick drove them into the edge of Alabama and told them to strip their clothes off. He then put the boys in the trunk with their bloody clothes to avoid anyone from seeing them in Rick's car and drove them to his house. Rick apparently had a trap door in the floor of his bedroom covered up with a small roll of carpet. Beneath the house was a lamp and that is where the boys hid on each occasion that the police came to Rick's house looking for them during the two days between the murder and the time Rick turned them in to the police.
Alex states that the first thing Rick did once they got to his house was to wash all their clothes to remove the blood. He then coached them on what to tell the police and 2 days after the murder, he drove them to the police station and sat outside while they confessed to their fathers murder.
I have read of conspiracy theories as to why Rick wasn't convicted of murder in this matter or of any sex related charges as he was tried before the boys and was acquitted of capital murder and sex related charges. I have heard that he was friends with the then Sheriff, that he knew things about some of the police there that they didn't want to get out. Various and sundry theories.
I, for one, find it hard to believe there was ever such a conspiracy. The legal system hounded Rick relentlessly until they were able to finally put him away in March, 2003. He was sentenced to five years in prison for witness tampering (coaching the boys and destroying the forensic evidence by washing their clothes) and 30 years for accessory to murder.
According to CNN.com, "Derek King, 14, will spend eight years in state prison, and his 13-year-old brother Alex will spend seven years in state prison. The sentences announced by Circuit Court Judge Frank Bell came after they agreed to plead guilty to arson and third-degree murder in the slaying of their father, Terry King. This agreement represents a reduction of the second-degree murder convictions the boys were given in September and which Bell threw out. The pleas and sentences came out of a court-ordered mediation that reached resolution Wednesday. Attorneys entered mediation after Bell tossed out a jury conviction just before a sentencing last month that could have put the boys in jail for life".
There was a vast and thundering uproar from the public when it was announced that these two angelic looking children had been convicted of 2nd degree murder and faced life sentences in an adult prison. Both sides were able to move the boys from an adult prison to a juvenile facility where they served the remainder of their sentences.
CNN also reported that, "(Kelly)Marino's attorneys filed a motion for a competency hearing for the boys just before Thursday's hearing, but Bell ruled that because those attorneys were not the attorneys of record they had no standing with the court to file motions.
"A big issue was made out of the children's competency in court today," one of Marino's attorneys, Ron Johnson, said after the sentencing. "She's not saying they're crazy. She's saying they (were) 12 and 13 years old and she thinks it's only reasonable for them to be evaluated by a psychiatrist before they enter a plea agreement to such serious charges."
Marino told reporters that she believed the boys' guilty plea was involuntary because they "don't know the seriousness of this." She also said she had talked with the boys "a million times" and they had repeatedly assured her they did not commit the crimes of which they were accused.
Johnson also claimed the process was illegal, but mediator Bill Eddins said he was "confident" that the process was legal and proper.
Prosecutor Rimmer dismissed Marino -- who left the family when the boys were very young -- saying the King brothers "would not be going to the state pen if she'd paid more attention to them in their playpens."
Alex was released on April 9, 2008. When asked if he wanted his mother to pick him up. He replied quite simply, "No". He was met by Kathyrn Medico and to my knowledge lives with her and her family to this day.
Derek was released on March 7, 2009. He was met by his mother and Mr. Daley.
I watched an update on this story yesterday. It was called Second Chances and the correspondent was Keith Morrison on Dateline NBC. It showed 2 very attractive young men. Alex seemed to smile more readily than Derek. Derek still shows signs of reticence around others. His eyes still appear solemn even when he smiles.
Derek reminds me of a pit bull puppy I found when he was a few months old and had been mistreated by every human he had ever met. I have had that puppy for over a year now and still, he mistrusts most humans. He shakes, growls and hides when too many unfamiliar faces are in the room. My vet tells me he may always be that way and recommended I put him down. Rather than putting my dog down, I changed vets. I can see a small change in him from when I first found him. I believe there's hope for him.
I would like to think the same thing about Derek. I would like to think that after a while he will let down his guard just a little at a time until one day he finds himself with more friends and truly loved ones than he can handle and a life that is filled to the brim with joy and happiness.
It goes without saying that I wish the same thing for Alex. I just feel that Alex is far more narcissistic than Derek and as such will aggressively pursue a life that will please him.
So was there justice for Terry King? Many would say no. I'm really on the fence about it. Alex, Derek and Rick either have been or are being punished for their roles in Terry's death. Was it enough? I'm not sure. Is it ever really enough? Terry was brutally murdered - can anything bring him back or make up for that? I don't think so. The best we can hope for is that out of this tradegy there comes some goodness and that Terry King's sons lead a most productive and socially acceptable (and long) life.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
LiLo's Angst
Today's blog is about crime. However, not the usual serial killer/simple murderer crime that I love to blog about. Today's blog is about Lindsey Lohan crime. Yep. After watching her court appearance yesterday on TV in its entirety (it was like a train wreck and I simply could not turn away from it), I felt the urge to address this drama queen.
When LiLo was arrested this last time, I was stunned that she only got probation and the ankle alcohol monitoring bracelet. I mean come on!! In ONE year this chick was arrested for not one but TWO DUI's, she hijacked an SUV and careened down the public highways chasing the middle aged mother of her assistant, she was caught with cocaine in her possession and even admitted to being under the influence of cocaine during her second arrest. Probation and bracelet??
Had that been ME, I would have been forced to surrender my license and go to the pokey for a year or better. But she is a "star" so in my opinion, she was given preferential treatment. I guess the judge figured someone had to support that family of hers and with Lindsey in jail what would the Lohan family do? They might be forced to move to an apartment (shudder) or (God forbid) trade their vehicles in for something horrendous like perhaps a Camry! No, the judge couldn't do that to them! So, probation, required education classes and ankle bracelet it is!
In watching Lindsey yesterday, I was aghast at her behavior. I kept waiting for the judge to ask Lindsey's attorney to get her client under control or risk contempt charges. But the judge simply ignored Lindsey's tantrum when her sentence was read.
Now, you may be thinking "Tantrum? The poor child had just been sentenced to 90 days in jail! Anyone would have reacted the same way!" To that I say "Nope". Lindsey wasn't sentenced to life without parole or given a death sentence for pity's sake! She got 90 days in the slammer in a private cell no less. And let's not forget that in California, the state will allow those in private cells to bring in personal items for their own comfort. Since the law is vague as to defining "personal items" it has been abused time and time again by celebrities.
Lindsey cried loudly, she talked while the judge was speaking, she turned in her seat and spoke to people in the courtroom, she talked to her attorney, she continuously displayed her nails which had "F-U" painted on them.
Then it came time for her to address the court. Now at this time, every citizen knows, this is your one and only moment to make the judge your friend. Did Lindsey do that? Nope. She whined. "I did everything I was supposed to do" "I tried to balance work and my sentence as best I could" "I thought I was in compliance"
Hmmm. "I did everything I was supposed to do". Obviously you didn't. And if you didn't know that, perhaps the attorney sitting next to you should have made that abundantly clear. You were supposed to abstain from ALL alcohol yet your bracelet went off on two separate occasions. The first one, you convinced the Court, was a misreading and they gave you that one. However, the second one immediately after the MTV awards? They didn't go for your explanation.
Then there was the inconvenient matter of attending the required alcohol classes. How did you address that little matter? You stated in court that you were too busy with work to be bothered with those. The court allowed you to even travel outside the country on more than one occasion and you thank them by not attending or even attempting to attend your required classes. Guess you figured who needs alcohol classes? You seem to know everything there is to know about consuming alcohol so a class about it would be rather redundant, don't you agree?
And how about those annoying court dates? Seriously. Would anyone cut their vacation on a tropical island short just to go back to LA and sit in a stuffy court room and be forced to listen to people talk? I mean, like she'd even understand what they were talking about unless they gave her the transcript and it was heavily illustrated.
We have all heard (ad nauseaum) of her parents from hell. News flash Lindsey! LOTS of people had horrible parents. Thousands of people in this country had parents that would make yours look like Ozzie and Harriet yet they don't snub the court. Most of them will never even appear in a court room. So, my advise to Lindsey is to drop the "poor me" act. She has used the last ounce of public pity in that department. At least as far as I'm concerned.
In reality, she's actually one lucky gal.
She's lucky she didn't kill or permanently maim someone while driving drunk.
She's extremely lucky that she was busted in LA, where she was let go after her first DUI arrest, only to do it again two months later.
She's lucky because when she was busted in May, carrying cocaine, she didn't have enough for a felony charge.
Want to talk about being lucky? How about the fact that when she was arrested again in July, the arresting officer actually threw away the powder which was concealed in a Clinique Sun Care card, because he thought it was a crushed mint. (really, I'm not making that up)
Lindsay did admit to being under the influence of cocaine and alcohol and she was lucky again - serving just 84 minutes in jail for hijacking an SUV and chasing down the middle-age mother of her assistant.
At this point, her attitude could have been, "Wow, I can't believe that cop just threw my cocaine away thinking it was crushed mint!" or, "Wow, I was in the pokey less time than it takes to watch one of my films!" ... Thank you, God, Now I think maybe I'll get my act together."
But alas, this was not the case. Instead, she just kept feeling sorry for herself. After all, this is LiLo's drama, and we are all just so blessed to be allowed to live in it.
But that's just me.
When LiLo was arrested this last time, I was stunned that she only got probation and the ankle alcohol monitoring bracelet. I mean come on!! In ONE year this chick was arrested for not one but TWO DUI's, she hijacked an SUV and careened down the public highways chasing the middle aged mother of her assistant, she was caught with cocaine in her possession and even admitted to being under the influence of cocaine during her second arrest. Probation and bracelet??
Had that been ME, I would have been forced to surrender my license and go to the pokey for a year or better. But she is a "star" so in my opinion, she was given preferential treatment. I guess the judge figured someone had to support that family of hers and with Lindsey in jail what would the Lohan family do? They might be forced to move to an apartment (shudder) or (God forbid) trade their vehicles in for something horrendous like perhaps a Camry! No, the judge couldn't do that to them! So, probation, required education classes and ankle bracelet it is!
In watching Lindsey yesterday, I was aghast at her behavior. I kept waiting for the judge to ask Lindsey's attorney to get her client under control or risk contempt charges. But the judge simply ignored Lindsey's tantrum when her sentence was read.
Now, you may be thinking "Tantrum? The poor child had just been sentenced to 90 days in jail! Anyone would have reacted the same way!" To that I say "Nope". Lindsey wasn't sentenced to life without parole or given a death sentence for pity's sake! She got 90 days in the slammer in a private cell no less. And let's not forget that in California, the state will allow those in private cells to bring in personal items for their own comfort. Since the law is vague as to defining "personal items" it has been abused time and time again by celebrities.
Lindsey cried loudly, she talked while the judge was speaking, she turned in her seat and spoke to people in the courtroom, she talked to her attorney, she continuously displayed her nails which had "F-U" painted on them.
Then it came time for her to address the court. Now at this time, every citizen knows, this is your one and only moment to make the judge your friend. Did Lindsey do that? Nope. She whined. "I did everything I was supposed to do" "I tried to balance work and my sentence as best I could" "I thought I was in compliance"
Hmmm. "I did everything I was supposed to do". Obviously you didn't. And if you didn't know that, perhaps the attorney sitting next to you should have made that abundantly clear. You were supposed to abstain from ALL alcohol yet your bracelet went off on two separate occasions. The first one, you convinced the Court, was a misreading and they gave you that one. However, the second one immediately after the MTV awards? They didn't go for your explanation.
Then there was the inconvenient matter of attending the required alcohol classes. How did you address that little matter? You stated in court that you were too busy with work to be bothered with those. The court allowed you to even travel outside the country on more than one occasion and you thank them by not attending or even attempting to attend your required classes. Guess you figured who needs alcohol classes? You seem to know everything there is to know about consuming alcohol so a class about it would be rather redundant, don't you agree?
And how about those annoying court dates? Seriously. Would anyone cut their vacation on a tropical island short just to go back to LA and sit in a stuffy court room and be forced to listen to people talk? I mean, like she'd even understand what they were talking about unless they gave her the transcript and it was heavily illustrated.
We have all heard (ad nauseaum) of her parents from hell. News flash Lindsey! LOTS of people had horrible parents. Thousands of people in this country had parents that would make yours look like Ozzie and Harriet yet they don't snub the court. Most of them will never even appear in a court room. So, my advise to Lindsey is to drop the "poor me" act. She has used the last ounce of public pity in that department. At least as far as I'm concerned.
In reality, she's actually one lucky gal.
She's lucky she didn't kill or permanently maim someone while driving drunk.
She's extremely lucky that she was busted in LA, where she was let go after her first DUI arrest, only to do it again two months later.
She's lucky because when she was busted in May, carrying cocaine, she didn't have enough for a felony charge.
Want to talk about being lucky? How about the fact that when she was arrested again in July, the arresting officer actually threw away the powder which was concealed in a Clinique Sun Care card, because he thought it was a crushed mint. (really, I'm not making that up)
Lindsay did admit to being under the influence of cocaine and alcohol and she was lucky again - serving just 84 minutes in jail for hijacking an SUV and chasing down the middle-age mother of her assistant.
At this point, her attitude could have been, "Wow, I can't believe that cop just threw my cocaine away thinking it was crushed mint!" or, "Wow, I was in the pokey less time than it takes to watch one of my films!" ... Thank you, God, Now I think maybe I'll get my act together."
But alas, this was not the case. Instead, she just kept feeling sorry for herself. After all, this is LiLo's drama, and we are all just so blessed to be allowed to live in it.
But that's just me.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)