Registered Sex Offender Linked to Body: Associated Press Writer Elliot Spagat reports today on the scheduled arraignment set for this afternoon on charges against John Albert Gardner. Gardner was arrested for the rape and murder of the San Diego high school student, Chelsea King. In 2000, Gardner, a 30-year-old ex-con, was facing 11 years in prison for molesting a 13-year-old female, but after a plea agreement he served only five. He was then released on parole for three years until September 2008. Gardner had been previously linked to an assault on a 22-year-old woman. Five days after King's disappearance, a body was found buried in a grave on the south shore of Lake Hodges. San Diego County Sheriff William Gore said there is a "strong likelihood" the body found is Chelsea's. Dr. Matthew Carroll, a psychiatrist who interviewed Gardner years ago, believed Gardner ought to have served a longer sentence: he was a "continued danger to underage girls in the community."
Convict Found Guilty of Attempted Murder and Mayhem: Jaxon Van Derbeken of the San Francisco Chronicle reports on yesterday's conviction of 29-year-old Scott Thomas for the attempted murder and mayhem charges in a stabbing attack at a bakery that nearly killed a 15-year-old San Francisco girl in 2007. A second phase of the trial is set to begin tomorrow to determine if Thomas was sane at the time of the attack. If Thomas is found sane, he will face life in prison. Prosecutor Scot Clark argues that the attack was premeditated and Thomas intended to decapitate the 15-year-old. The case stirred up public outrage after it was revealed Thomas was let out of prison by mistake without supervision the day before the crime. Linda Schaller, the mother of the victim, said Thomas has portrayed himself as a "poor boy": "He's not a poor boy; he's a monster."
Death Sentence Long Overdue for Self-Avowed Racist: Darci Marchese of the Associated Press reports that attorneys for rapist/murderer Paul Powell are asking Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell to commute his death sentence. Powell, a self-avowed racist, is scheduled to be executed on March 18. In 2000 Powell was sentenced to death for killing an acquaintance, 16-year-old Stacie Reed and raping her 14-year-old sister. The Virgina Supreme Court overturned his death penalty because no special circumstances to the murder was proven at trial. No longer facing the death penalty, Powell wrote a note to his attorney detailing Stacie's slaying. In the letter, Powell described confronting Stacie at her home about dating a black man and threatened to rape her. When she fought back Powell stabbed her in the heart. He then took a break to have a smoke and iced tea, while he waited for Stacie's sister to come home. He eventually raped the sister, who managed to escape before he could kill her. Armed with Powell's letter, Prince William County Commonwealth's Attorney, Paul Ebert, dropped the first indictment and prosecuted Powell for the attempted rape and murder of Stacie. In 2003, Powell was convicted again and sentence to death. Last July, Powell's execution was stayed by the U.S. Supreme Court, but the Court denied cert last month.
Convict Found Guilty of Attempted Murder and Mayhem: Jaxon Van Derbeken of the San Francisco Chronicle reports on yesterday's conviction of 29-year-old Scott Thomas for the attempted murder and mayhem charges in a stabbing attack at a bakery that nearly killed a 15-year-old San Francisco girl in 2007. A second phase of the trial is set to begin tomorrow to determine if Thomas was sane at the time of the attack. If Thomas is found sane, he will face life in prison. Prosecutor Scot Clark argues that the attack was premeditated and Thomas intended to decapitate the 15-year-old. The case stirred up public outrage after it was revealed Thomas was let out of prison by mistake without supervision the day before the crime. Linda Schaller, the mother of the victim, said Thomas has portrayed himself as a "poor boy": "He's not a poor boy; he's a monster."
Death Sentence Long Overdue for Self-Avowed Racist: Darci Marchese of the Associated Press reports that attorneys for rapist/murderer Paul Powell are asking Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell to commute his death sentence. Powell, a self-avowed racist, is scheduled to be executed on March 18. In 2000 Powell was sentenced to death for killing an acquaintance, 16-year-old Stacie Reed and raping her 14-year-old sister. The Virgina Supreme Court overturned his death penalty because no special circumstances to the murder was proven at trial. No longer facing the death penalty, Powell wrote a note to his attorney detailing Stacie's slaying. In the letter, Powell described confronting Stacie at her home about dating a black man and threatened to rape her. When she fought back Powell stabbed her in the heart. He then took a break to have a smoke and iced tea, while he waited for Stacie's sister to come home. He eventually raped the sister, who managed to escape before he could kill her. Armed with Powell's letter, Prince William County Commonwealth's Attorney, Paul Ebert, dropped the first indictment and prosecuted Powell for the attempted rape and murder of Stacie. In 2003, Powell was convicted again and sentence to death. Last July, Powell's execution was stayed by the U.S. Supreme Court, but the Court denied cert last month.
Leave a comment