The year was 1837, and Rochester, New York was growing rapidly. People were attracted to the bustling community on Lake Ontario, and the population had doubled over the last decade. The city enjoyed a reputation of having friendly residents and a low crime rate; in fact, violent crime was virtually nonexistent in Rochester…until the night of October 20, 1837. On that cool fall evening, a heinous crime would take place that would stun the people and leave them clamoring for justice, and Rochester would be forever changed.

Octavius Barron woke up with a plan on that fateful day. A French-Canadian dock worker who was known around town as a petty thief and gambler, 18-year old Barron spent the day watching and waiting. His target was William Lyman, a successful businessman who was respected and well-liked. Lyman’s honesty in his business deals was widely noted, and he was often entrusted with large sums of money to be deposited for his company. October 20, 1837, happened to be one of those deposit days, and when he finally left his office around 9:00 p.m., Barron made his move. Sneaking up behind Lyman, he fired a single shot into the back of Lyman’s head, killing the man instantly. He quickly found several hundred dollars that Lyman had in his coat pocket, but Barron missed the thousands that were hidden in Lyman’s hat. He fled with the money he found, and spent the rest of the evening at a tavern, boasting to his friends about the killing.

Investigators arrived at the crime scene shortly after the murder took place and immediately began combing the area for clues. Eye witnesses who reported seeing Barron hanging around Lyman’s office all day offered the best evidence for the police about the identity of the killer. Ten year old Thomas Dixon also provided important clues; it was he who heard the gunshot and rushed to the window in time to see a man in a shiny dock-worker’s cap running away. With these accounts, police had enough evidence to pinpoint the crime on Barron, and he was arrested less than 12 hours later at the train station trying to make his getaway.

Barron’s trial proved to be something of a spectacle. Rochester had never had a murder before, and the ensuing trial was an exciting distraction from everyday life. With one of the city’s more prominent citizens dead and a foreign killer behind bars, everyone’s interest was piqued. The trial lasted 10 days, had 39 jurors, 40 witnesses, and 12 city officials contributing. Barron didn’t stand a chance. His guilty verdict surprised no one, and neither did his sentence: execution by hanging. Interestingly, his sentence was almost pardoned due to his young age, but it seems his fate was already sealed. Though many of Rochester’s citizens wanted a public execution, New York’s “Act to Abolish Public Executions” denied them their wish. On July 25, 1838, a total of 49 people filled the jail, eager to watch Octavius Barron breathe his last and bear witness to their fine city’s first execution.

Fairstein is a Fellow of the American college of Trial Lawyers and for 30 years she ran the Sex Crimes Unit of the District Attorneys Office in Manhattan. She left that office in 2002. During her tenure, she helped to prosecute several high profile and controversial cases including the Robert Chambers’ “Preppy Murder” case in 1986.

Linda was born on May 5,1947 in Mount Vernon, New York. She graduated from Vassar College in 1969 with a B.A. in English Literature. Upon graduating from the University of Virginia Law in 1972, she joined the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office as an Assistant District Attorney.

In 2004, Linda was named in a 10 million dollar lawsuit against the state of New York by Dr. Oliver Jovanovic. Dr. Jovanovic, a biologist, was convicted in 1998, for the kidnapping, sexual abuse and assault of a college student that he had met on the internet. His case was overturned in 1999, siting an unfair trial.

Linda Fairstein draws on her legal expertise for her series character, Alexandra Cooper, a Manhattan prosecutor. Linda says she writes her series in the first person because, “I want them ‘the readers’ to see victimization and then hopefully the result in the courtroom from Alex’s perspective.” Linda’s first Alex Cooper novel, ‘Final Jeopardy,’ was made into an ABC television movie starring Dana Delaney.

Linda says that people that aren’t very bright probably commit 90% of crimes in this country. She says that in her books, she may invent the murders, but the motives of the murders come from the motives in real cases. She says she has never written about any of her actual cases.

Linda centers all her novels in notable places around New York City. She states, “I just love having places that are real and very rich with history, and then I let my imagination loose.” She says she wants each book to be an entertaining escapism, and for the reader to come away learning something new. She said for her, writing the first hundred pages is equivalent to having a root canal but after 200 pages, it’s smooth sailing.

Linda loves to collect historical trivia, antique jewelry, desk and writing objects. She collects first edition books, particularly of crime and mystery genre. She also collects nineteenth century British Literature. She loves reading mysteries and her favorite television show is CSI Special Victims Unit.

Linda and her husband, Justin Feldman, live in Manhattan and have a home in Martha’s Vineyard where they go each year for four months. She has a separate cottage where she plots and writes. Linda says that being a writer has been her passion since high school.

Linda is still a lawyer and takes a few cases for victims of violent crimes, usually pro bono. She also does consulting and is a keynote speaker lecturing on sex crimes and domestic violence.

Books by Linda Firestein:

Series:

Alex Cooper:

Final Jeopardy (1994)

Likely to Die (1997)

Cold Hit (1999)

The Deadhouse (2001)

The Bone Vault (2003)

The Kills (2004)

Entombed (2005)

Death Dance (2006)

Bad Blood (2007)

Killer Heat (2008)

Lethal Legacy (2009)

Omnibus:

Final Jeopardy/Likely to Die (2004)

Cold Hit/The Deadhouse (2005)

Novels:

I’d Kill for That (2004) (with Rita Mae Brown, Jennifer Cruise, Lisa Gardner, Heather Graham, Kay Hooper, Katherine Neville, Anne Perry, Kathy Reichs, Julie Smith and Tina Wainscott)

Hell Gate (2010)

Non Fiction:

Sexual Violence: Our War Against Rape (1993)

The Best American Crime Reporting 2007 (2007) (with Otto Penzler)

The killing of Ken Rex McElroy could well be the hottest cold case on record. On the morning of July 10, 1981, he was shot to death as he sat in his pickup on the main street of Skidmore, Missouri. Forty-five townspeople witnessed the killing. All denied seeing the shooters. After three grand juries and an eight-month FBI investigation, no one was indicted. Twenty-five years later, still no one has been charged with the murder.

In December 2006, St. Martins re-released In Broad Daylight, the story of McElroy’s incredible reign of terror in northwest Missouri, his killing, and the aftermath. The new epilogue contains startling information about the identity of McElroy’s killers and the killing itself.

In the spring of 2006, I obtained unprecedented access to the state police and FBI files on the killing. The files contain a hand-written statement from an eyewitness which corroborates in detail McElroy’s wife’s identification of Del Clement as the first shooter. The statement also identified, for the first time, Gary Dowling, a local farmer, as the second shooter. The statement is detailed and convincing. Interestingly, the eyewitness appeared at the sheriff’s office the following day in the company of Del Clement’s lawyer and recanted the statement. Despite this, the statement, combined with Trena’s identification, stands as convincing evidence of the identity of the shooters.

The files also dispel a great myth about the killing. The media seized on the notion that the entire town had killed Ken McElroy, characterizing it as a vigilante killing, or an example of vigilante justice. My interviews, and the numerous statements in the files, make it clear that, other than the two shooters, the men on the street that day were not part of a plan to kill Ken McElroy. They were involuntary witnesses to a murder.

I believe that the killing of Ken Rex McElroy will long remain the hottest cold case on record. No one–not law enforcement, not McElroy’s family or friends, and certainly not the residents of Skidmore–seems to care that his killers remain at large. The men on the street that day are bound in a silence that is immune to the passage of time or the glare of the spotlight. In their view, while murder might be a sin, what Ken McElroy did to the town and its residents, to young girls and old men, was unspeakably evil. It would be a far greater sin to turn the men who brought the nightmare to an end over to the very justice system that had failed the community for so many years.

I lived in the town for three years while researching the book. When I first arrived, I had doors slammed in my face, a shotgun pulled on me, and I was bitten by a dog. By the time I left, I was judging dance contests at the annual Punkin’ Show and selling tickets to the Mother’s Day bazaar at the local Methodist Church. I became quite attached to the town and the people, and I stayed in touch over the years.

Personally, my sympathy has always lain with the townspeople, although it bothers me as a member of civilized society that the two killers remain unpunished for their crime. I doubt, however, that any good would come of the prosecution of the men. A prosecutor would be hard pressed to find a jury of twelve Nodaway County citizens who would convict anyone of McElroy’s murder. Memories remain strong and hearts unforgiving, and even the youngsters in the area know well the story of Ken McElroy. When I was back in Skidmore for the one-year anniversary of the killing of Bobbi Joe Stinnett–the young pregnant housewife who was strangled and her baby ripped from her body–I asked two girls what they knew of Ken McElroy.

“He was a bad guy, who bullied lots of people,” the older of the two said.

“He was shot here in town,” the younger one joined in. “Right over there.” She pointed to the tavern.

“He had it coming,” the older one said.

Ken Rex was much more than a town bully. He had all of Northwest Missouri terrorized. Even the cops and judges were scared of him. Maybe, as the townspeople say, he needed killing; the main regret seems to be the way he was finished.

“The guys who did it deserve a medal,” one local told me. “But they should be strung up for the way they did it.” Meaning, I presume, In Broad Daylight.

I am an American law professor who has had the great opportunity in my earlier career to have lived and worked in the Caribbean. I have also been against the use of the death penalty in the United States and hope that someday the death penalty will be abolished in the United States as it has been in much of the world. While living and working in the Caribbean I came to learn that many of the islands still impose the death penalty for murder. The executions are done by hanging. This is a barbaric practice which I would like to see ended.

Since joining the legal academy I have had the opportunity to monitor legal trends with respect to the death penalty in the English-Speaking Caribbean [hereinafter ESC]. The countries that comprise the ESC are: Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Barbados, Dominica, Bahamas, and Suriname. Most Americans do not realize a death penalty debate has raged in the ESC for over twenty years as to whether the death penalty should be abolished or retained. Nor do most Americas realize that convicted murderers are hanged. The death penalty in the ESC is a vestige of English colonial rule. Ironically, England abolished the death penalty in 1991.

This article is not meant to be a grim report on the specifics of hangings in the English Speaking Caribbean, but instead a report that should give us hope that, perhaps, someday the death penalty will be abolished in the ESC; and I hope also someday abolished in the United States. In essence, we are now seeing a decrease in hangings in the ESC – this I consider a good trend. Although many travel to the ESC for fun, sun and rum, many of the islands since the late 1990’s have suffered increases in crime rates and rates of murder. Many ESC citizens believe that the death penalty is a deterrent to rampant crime and urge their governments to resist abolition of the death penalty. Unfortunately, studies do not bear out that the death penalty is a deterrent to crime or murder.

Here is my report. I hope it provides food for thought. Amnesty International and other human rights groups report that over half the countries in the world have now abolished the death penalty in law or practice. Specifically, Amnesty International reported in April 1998, 63 countries and territories had abolished the death penalty for all crimes, while 91 other countries, a number of which are in the ESC, retain and use the death penalty. A number of human rights groups have decried what they believe to be a resurgence of the use of the death penalty in some of these ESC nations.

On October 15, 1998, at 8 am, Trevor Fisher, a black Bahamian citizen, age 28, was hanged inside the walls of Fox Hill Prison in Nassau, Bahamas. One hour later Richard Woods, also black, age 51, followed Fisher to the gallows. Woods was also hanged. Both had been convicted of murder. Prior to the Fisher and Woods hangings only two people, Thomas Reckley and Dwayne McKinney, both hanged in 1996, had been executed in the Bahamas since 1984. A local Bahamian newspaper reported that the last double hanging in the Bahamas was on September 6, 1983, when Lavan Newbold and Colin Evans were executed. Since 1942 there have been five double hangings and two triple hangings in the Bahamas. The last triple hanging was January 19, 1980, when Charles Dickenson, Vernal Storr and Winsette Hart were executed.

In June of 1999, over a three day period Trinidad hanged convicted drug lord and murderer, Dole Chadee, and eight of his co-defendants in a murder conspiracy case. These were the first executions in Trinidad carried out since 1994, and only the second since 1979. In July 1999, Trinidad carried out the execution of Anthony Briggs, bringing the total to ten executions for the year. All those executed were men. However, an April 1999 report by Amnesty International revealed that Trinidad was the only ESC nation with women on death row. There were seventy-six men and five women on death row in Trinidad. In that same report it was further revealed that there were seven men on death row in Antigua, twenty-four men on death row in the Bahamas, two men in Barbados, one man in Dominica, twenty-three men in Guyana, eight men in Grenada, forty-three men on death row in Jamaica, three on St. Kitts and Nevis, nine men in St. Lucia, and three men on death row in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. And then, all was quiet with respect to hangings in the ESC until 2008.

On December 19, 2008, as the small island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis prepared to celebrate Christmas, bells rang out from the prison in the heart of the capital, Basseterre. Charles Laplace had been hanged that morning for killing his wife five years earlier. This was the first execution in the ESC for eight years. The day before, the United Nations General Assembly had voted by 106 nations to 46, for a worldwide moratorium on the death penalty. Against the trend of world opinion, all 12 countries of the ESC retain the death penalty by statutes. These countries make up a substantial chunk of the execution lobby. Yet, hangings have been rare of late because most of the twelve ESC nations still retain the Privy Council in London, the Judicial wing of the House of Lords, as their court of final appeal. The Privy Council ruled in 1993 that the gap between sentence and the execution cannot be longer than five years and successive appeals usually take longer.

So we are seeing fewer hangings in the ESC, let us hope that this barbaric practice will soon end altogether with an absolute abolition of the death penalty in the ESC.

The murder of the young Irish bride on their honeymoon at Legends has just unveiled the real facet of the high class hotel in Mauritius. The phenomenon is growing in recent years and involves employees who want to conflict their own clients. By the beginning of the year 2011 the prospect of Mauritian Hotel seems not to be very bright. The murder of the Irish Michaela Harte, moreover a beloved daughter of a well known football coach, during full honey moon at Legends Hotel has just unveiled some harmful practices that take place in hotels. Sooner or later the image of Mauritius Paradise Island famous to be among the best destinations for honey moon has been dented. Stealing the fabulous properties of tourists is a relatively common practice among some hotel employees.

When suspicions can be proved, then some hotel enterprises prefer to evade the tragedy so that their reputation is not tarnished. This time, a banal theft has turned into a sordid murder. All information channels in the world have the news being broadcasted in the loop. At the moment the Irish lady was going to fetch some crackers in her room number 1205, she surprisingly came nose to nose to the murderers. She was looking some crackers to break with her coffee, but never had she thought that she is going to die. Ignoring the habits of the bride, the room attendant and his supervisor had used the master key of the room to break into the room and search among the personal effects of the bride. When the Irish lady has caught the two employees within the midst of their full action, the supervisor strangled her. During her struggle the other man immobilized her by the feet.

Next to the luxury and magnificence, employees want to completely avail their opportunities from clients. They begin by simply dealing on small objects. Recently, the criminal police of Trou aux Biches came across a minor case that is considered to be least unusual. A hotel employee of Veranda Hotel went each day in the room of a client and stole from her a banknote. The client had in the end been able to trap him by marking a sign on each and single note. The petty thief can however turn into a criminal overnight; and that is the case for Legends Hotel. Everyone remembers the dreadful murder of the Indian billionaire Mir Mujeeb in January 31, 2005. Residing in a luxury bungalow at Cap Malhereux, he was the target of Prabakar Takar, the latter was a former employee of Paradise Cove converted into vigil on behalf of Gray Security Ltd after suspicion of theft against him. Instead of ensuring the welfare of the heir to an empire Prabakar had structured his gangs, the taxi driver Navin Koonjul, the gardener Rajiv Mungrah and Rajiah Dookee the head of the hotel, to try to rob the victim of his “millions “. When they had finally stolen his credit cards, they had brought him in a sugar cane field in Grand Bay where they tortured him. They knocked him, stoned him and in the end they drove a car over his body before burning him while he was still alive. The death of the man was much later, after a terrible long suffering. His father, Abdul Rashid Mir, narrated his story to a journalist of the media that his son had moved to the island in 1996, yet he always said that “Mauritius Was The Safest Place in the World “.

Since then, various incidents have been recorded more frequently among customers of five star hotels. In September 2007, Jean Suzanne, the boss of Infinity and advisor to the Office of the Prime Minister, has been deprived of a watch Jaiga Lecoultre (worth Rs 900,000) at Shanti Ananda. In this case, an investigation by the CID of Chemin Grenier would sort out the security guard known by Ramanah. A former gardener of the establishment known by Jerico was involved, after he made an “inventory” of client assets. So far, the hotel boasted of being in the top-level security. They looked down the “informal sector” where many clients preferred to rent private homes. Many disgusting incidents have nearly slipping in some other villas and bungalows; among others there was a case of an attack on a Korean couple at Belle Mare in August 2008. The husband was beaten with a cudgel while his wife with a wound, they preferred to leave the country immediately instead of reporting the complaint.

Since Mauritius is unwilling to disclose the numbers of attacks and robberies against tourists, yet in March 2008, Prime Minister revealed that within one year, beginning in March 2007, five assaults, one rape and 805 cases of theft had been recorded against tourists. The thefts involved for the majority of bags left on the beach. Those in hotels are not sorted out because the clients often think of their losing property while arranging their bags. In other cases, police doubt the tourists making a false statement to receive their insurance premiums. Many hotel employees aware of these deficiencies and they are being tempted. Later at the end of last year, the CID of Trou aux Biches has cracked down a gang of twelve robbers all being the staff of Veranda Hotel. In the same region, close investigation among a handful of employees at the Meridian Hotel has seen a drop in the number of reported thefts between November and December last year.

At 15 o’clock this Friday, January 14, four days after the murder in the room 1025, the AHRIM prefers to keep silent, indicating that a release is in the process of drafting this “crisis” that is the case Mrs Harte.

Remember, the criminal prime directive says: “Get over on as many people as possible. Get away with crime as often as you can! If and when caught, do whatever you have to, including lying, shifting blame, saying whatever people want to hear, including confessing, as long as you lie and shift blame, and plea bargain enough to reduce the burden of justly deserved consequences.”

I saw this directive acted out in a recent Durham (NC) court case. Police had charged Calvin Nicholson with gunning down 18-year-old Todd Antonio Douglas about three years ago. In a local newspaper account of court testimony from the director of the Durham Police Department’s homicide squad, we read the following: “First degree murder defendant Calvin Nicholson appeared to be ‘forthcoming, very truthful and remorseful’ when he confessed nearly three years ago to fatally shooting another man as part of an alleged gang initiation ritual, the head of the Durham Police Department’s homicide squad testified Thursday (March 20, 2008). “Nicholson told officers he needed to ‘put in work’ for the Bloods criminal street gang if he wished to join, according to Sgt. Jack Cates. Quoting Nicholson, Cates said the order to do ‘work’ came from a man named Justin Hatch, a co-defendant in the homicide who will be tried later. Such orders are common in the gangland arena, Cates added. The sergeant testified that in his experience gang ‘work’ includes robberies, rapes, assaults and even murders. The more serious the crimes people commit, the higher they can rise in a gang’s hierarchy, Cates added.”

Nicholson was just 16-years-old when he killed Douglas.

I don’t doubt that what detective Cates said in court, based upon Nicholson’s confession is the confessed murderer’s version of the “truth.” Please remember, though, that this story, as Nicholson tells it, is designed to reduce as much as possible the justly deserved consequences of his crime. According to Nicholson’s so-called confession, he fired twice at Douglas, but others in the car were also shooting in the 18-year-old’s direction. So, according to the defense attorney’s theory of this case, someone else’s bullet could have and probably did kill Douglas. In his confession, Nicholson told police: “I don’t know if I hit him or not.”

Do you see the prime directive? He shifted blame. He didn’t want to kill Douglas. The Bloods–a so-called street gang– initiated the murder by setting this crime as one of its initiation rites. In this specific killing, Nicholson attempted to shift responsibility from himself to an alleged gang leader–Justin Hatch–who, according to the defendant in this case, handed Nicholson a high powered handgun and said: “It’s time to do some shooting.” That part of Nicholson’s version of this murderous scenario probably occurred pretty much as he described it, though I have questions about who provided the handgun and who said: “It’s time to do some shooting.”

Now here comes the lie, the heart and core of Nicholson’s strategy to reduce the responsibility burden, and get out with a sentence somewhat lighter than the mandatory life sentence he faced if convicted on the first degree murder charge. In his confession to the Durham police, Nicholson is quoted as saying: “The reason I shot the gun at [Douglas] was because I thought I wanted to join the gang. When I realized I didn’t, it was too late . . . I’m truly sorry for what I did and know that I don’t want to be a gang member.” How convenient! According to Nicholson, his desire to be a “Blood” ended as a young man’s life seeped away from bullet wounds. Why didn’t that epiphany occur before Nicholson began shooting? Here’s the key question that reveals Nicholson’s lie: How could the Bloods initiate several people into the gang when no one knew for certain who fired the killing shot, if killing someone was the price of initiation?

What a convenient epiphany! I’ve had them myself! One in particular that occurred in the early Fall of 1959 sticks indelibly in my mind. On this particular Sunday, I was relaxing at Clementine’s house. Clementine, a beautiful young woman in Durham, was my girlfriend. Two criminal cohorts came by and declared that they had a lot of good stuff stashed from a Saturday night break-in. They wanted me to help them sell it. They also wanted me to go and help them get it from the stash, because, as they said, it was too much for the two of them to carry. In a valiant, but ineffective effort to save me from myself, Clem begged me not to go, not to leave her. “This won’t take long,” I declared. “Let me get this money and then I’ll get back to you.” Wrong! I never made it back.

Wait a minute, I think now, not then, if the stolen property is too much for the two of you to carry on Sunday, then how did you get it stashed on Saturday night? Why didn’t I ask that question? Because crime is stupid and the more you do it, the more stupid you become. Why didn’t Nicholson ask Hatch: “Why is killing an innocent person the price of joining this gang? What if I’m not willing to pay that price? Same answer! Crime is stupid! Nicholson, like myself in the late 1950s, had done crime so long that he, like I did then, teeters on the brink of incurable stupidity.

Now my epiphany! On the way back to the house, my two cohorts in crime decided to rob a drunk man. A woman called the police. We ran. I needed to get back to Hayti, to the the security of Clem’s house. As I ran down a path between some houses onto South Roxboro Street, the cold words of a Durham police officer stopped me in my tracks: “Get your black a . . on the ground ni . . . r, or we will blow you away. I was armed. I had two pistols. But as I felt myself easing closer and closer to the ground, I said to myself: “I wish I had never gone and picked up any of this hot s . . . Besides, if I was as bad as I claimed to be, I would pull my two pistols and go down in a blaze of glory.” What an epiphany!

At the police station, I declared as sincerely as possible that none of this was my fault. I had met these two guys whom I knew casually and they had asked me to help them carry some things. I had no idea, according to what I told police, that the stuff had been stolen. No, I had nothing to do with trying to rob the old man. In fact, I tried to talk them out of it. That’s when I realized that I had made a mistake and tried to run home.

You see, I know Nicholson was lying about being sorry or remorseful that he killed Douglas. I know he was lying about no longer wanting to be part of a gang. You see, here’s what’s not in his confession or revealed in his stoic demeanor in court: 1) a renouncing of his criminal mindset, lifestyle and cohorts, 2) an acceptance of total responsibility for his current circumstances, 3) an acknowledgment that if he ever expects to become a contributing member of society, he must change his thinking and his behavior.

So-called remorsefulness is simply not enough! A young man is dead! A mother continues to grieve! All of us have been cheated out of whatever contributions Douglas could have made to his times. As God said to Cain, the first murderer, “An entire bloodline of unborn children cry for justice.”

Here’s the really bad news! Nicholson’s ploy worked! He was sentenced to 12 years and nine months in prison. Imagine that! An 18-year-old young man was viciously murdered, and his convicted killer will be 29-years-old when released from prison in November 2017. All we can do now is hope one day Nicholson will realize that even with having to spend 12 years in prison, he still got a better end of this sorry deal than Douglas did.

BAIL JUMPING:

In Washington State, a person commits the crime of “Bail Jumping” if he or she has been released on their personal recognizance, or on bail, and released with the knowledge they are required to return to court for a subsequent hearing. Revised Code of Washington 9A.76.170(1). A person is also guilty of bail jumping if they have knowledge of the requirement to report to a correctional facility to serve a sentence and fail to do so. Id. In layman’s terms, if you are charged with a crime and do not show up to court when you know you are supposed to, or if you do not report to jail (or prison) to serve your sentence when you know you are supposed to, you are guilty of the crime of bail jumping.

The crime of bail jumping can be a felony or a misdemeanor. The class, or level, of the bail jumping charge depends on the offense you are originally charged with and fail to appear for. Bail jumping is:

(a) A class A felony if the person was held for, charged with, or convicted of murder in the first degree;

(b) A class B felony if the person was held for, charged with, or convicted of a class A felony other than murder in the first degree;

(c) A class C felony if the person was held for, charged with, or convicted of a class B or class C felony;

(d) A misdemeanor if the person was held for, charged with, or convicted of a gross misdemeanor or misdemeanor.

Revised Code of Washington 9A.76.170(3).

DEFENSES:

Is there any defense to bail jumping? Yes. There is an affirmative defense. An affirmative defense means you admit that you committed the act, but it was legally justified. The defense is laid out in the bail jumping statute. It states:

It is an affirmative defense to a prosecution under this section

that uncontrollable circumstances prevented the person from

appearing or surrendering, and that the person did not contribute

to the creation of such circumstances in reckless disregard of the

requirement to appear or surrender, and that the person appeared

or surrendered as soon as such circumstances ceased to exist.

Revised Code of Washington 9A.76.170(2).

The question is: What is considered “uncontrollable circumstances”? Uncontrollable circumstances mean you have no control over the circumstances that caused you to miss court. An act of God may qualify. For example, if you miss court because a tornado picks up your car (or you) and smashes it (or you) to the ground, then you may have a pretty good defense that you missed your required court date based on uncontrollable circumstances. If you are in the hospital, that may qualify if you can get a note from your doctor that you were hospitalized and were physically unable to go to court. Be careful, however, if you were in the hospital because of something you did, the prosecutor may argue that you “contributed to the creation of such circumstances”. If you are kidnapped and being held hostage, that may also qualify as a defense. Whatever the uncontrollable circumstance that keeps you from making your court date, just make sure that as soon as you are able, you get yourself on the court calendar so that you comply with the requirement of appearing or surrendering as soon as your uncontrollable circumstance, ceases to exist.

There may be other defenses that would fall under the category “burden of proof”. That means the prosecuting authority simply does not have enough evidence to prove each element of the charge beyond a reasonable doubt. For example, they may not have any record that you were given notice of the required court date and therefore, could not prove the element of knowledge.

Generally speaking however, proving a charge of bail jumping is relatively easy for the prosecutors. All they need is 1) a certified copy of the promise to appear to court on the specific day that was signed by the defendant when they received the court date, and 2) a witness, such as a court clerk who can testify that on the date the defendant was required to appear, the court record indicates he or she did not appear.

A copy of the promise to appear signed by the defendant shows knowledge of the requirement to appear. In the county where I practice, the language in the order setting the next mandatory court date states:

The Defendant is ordered to appear at all Fit for Trial Hearings

[a pretrial or status hearing]… The Defendant’s failure to appear

at Trial or at the Fit for Trial or any other hearings set by the

Court may result in issuance of a Bench Warrant, Forfeiture of

Bail and/or criminal prosecution for Bail Jumping pursuant to

Revised Code of Washington 9A.76.170.

A bail jumping charge can be very difficult to defend against. Simply forgetting your court date is not a defense. Division Two of the Washington State Court of Appeals held that based on a plain reading of the statute, “I forgot” is not a defense. The prosecution only has to prove that he received knowledge of the court date, not that he had knowledge of the date everyday thereafter.

For the defense attorney, they must research the law and the records in the case. They must determine whether the hearing was one for which the defendant was actually required to appear. There are different types of hearings and not all require mandatory appearances. They must research and determine if the defendant actually had knowledge of the requirement to appear at the hearing and if so, if there is any actual evidence to prove it. Is there a live witness like a clerk that will be called by the prosecution? Is there a certified copy of a signed promise to appear? Finally, they must investigate the reason for the failure to appear and determine if it was an “uncontrollable circumstance”.

SENTENCES FOR BAIL JUMPING:

As stated above, bail jumping is a misdemeanor if the defendant “was held for, charged with, or convicted of a gross misdemeanor or misdemeanor.” Revised Code of Washington 9A.76.170(3)(d). The maximum penalty for a misdemeanor is 90 days in jail and a $1000 fine. In those cases, the sentencing judge has the authority to sentence the bail jumper anywhere from 0 to 90 days in jail and up to a $1000 fine. In addition, the defendant may be placed on probation and be required to pay probation fees.

If the bail jump offense falls into one of the felony classes, it becomes a little more complicated. In Washington, the sentencing scheme basically works on a grid system. The vertical edge of the grid is the “seriousness level”. The horizontal edge is the “offender score”. There are 16 levels of seriousness in the Washington system. Level sixteen has only one offense: Aggravated First Degree Murder. The only two penalties for that offense are Life in Prison Without the Possibility of Parole and the Death Penalty, regardless of your offender score. The lowest seriousness level is One. That level includes crimes such as Second Degree Theft (theft of property valued between $750 and $5000) and Forgery. The offender score consists of qualifying prior felony convictions. When you determine the seriousness level of the offense and the offender score, you will find the “standard range” sentence the court must impose. There are exceptions to imposing a sentence within the standard range but that is a discussion for another day. Generally, the court must impose a sentence within the standard range. If that happens, no one may appeal that sentence. If the court imposes an “exceptional” sentence outside the standard range, either party may appeal.

Bail Jumping on a charge of First Degree Murder has a seriousness level of six. With an offender score of 0 (zero), the standard range sentence is twelve months plus one day (which means prison) to fourteen months. The offender score only goes to nine on the sentencing grid. Anything higher than nine will fall into the standard range for an offender score of nine. The standard range for Bail Jumping with First Degree Murder with an offender score of nine is 77 to 102 months in prison.

Bail Jumping on an original charge of a Class A felony has a seriousness level of Five. The standard sentencing range begins with 6 to 12 in your local county jail. For an offender score of nine-plus, the range is 72 to 96 months in prison.

Finally, Bail Jumping on a Class B or C felony has a seriousness level of Three. With an offender score of 0, the range is one to three months in jail. The range for an offender score of nine-plus is 51 to 60 months. Sixty months, or five years, is the maximum sentence.

CONCLUSION:

As you can see, the offense of bail jumping is easy to commit. If you simply forget your court date, you can be charged and convicted of bail jumping. You can also see it is easy to prove for the prosecution and difficult to defend against for the defense and the consequences are serious.

So, the word to the wise is DO NOT MISS COURT! The wise will not even be late. If they call your name and you are not there, you risk getting a Failure To Appear, a bench warrant and a charge of bail jumping. Assist in your defense, not your prosecution; do not miss your court date.

January of 2003, a waitress in Germany named Dagmar Polzin saw the picture of a convicted murderer while waiting at a bus stop in Hamburg. The photo was of Bobby Lee Harris, posted by an anti-death penalty group. Bobby Lee of North Carolina was on death row for stabbing his boss to death during a robbery. Polzin was profoundly influenced by the photo of Bobby Lee and fell in love that moment.

Later she said: “It was something in his eyes; there was this remorse, the sadness. I was attracted and knew he was the one.” In less than a year Polzin and Harris was engaged and she moved to North Carolina to live with his family. For many who read these words this story is astonishing; but if you saw the picture that Polzin fell in love with it would difficult to understand. Harris may be very charming with qualities of a good husband; but he is no leading man. Right now there are more than one hundred British and German women engaged or married to men on death row in the United States. The desire to love men convicted of murder is not limited to European women alone

Prison romance between Polzin is not an isolated incident. it doesn’t matter how extreme or appalling the crime with which the individual is convicted of, there is always a woman willing to stand by her man. The marriage vows “until death do us part” takes on a new and unique meaning when your spouse has a date with the executioner. Yes, it is very difficult for the average person to understand why so many well-educated, intelligent women are drawn to men convicted or murder and sentenced to death or to spend the rest of their lives behind bars.

For example, Scott Peterson recently convicted and sentenced to death for murdering his pregnant wife Laci. It was reported by officials at San Quentin Prison that in just a few hours after Peterson arrived on death row he received a proposal from a woman who wanted to be the next Ms. Peterson. And according to the warden his office received more than three dozen phone calls on Peterson’s first day at San Quentin from women pleading for his mailing address.

Several studies have shown that there is no shortage of women who dream of finding a husband on death row and the deadliest criminals get the most proposals. Take Richard Ramirez, the night starker, he murdered at least 14 individuals, robbed, raped, and beaten many more than that. During his trial he declared “hails Satan” and was considered the embodiment of pure evil. Still, dozens of women flocked to his side after he was arrested. And long lines formed outside the prison; letters arrived by the box filled. After courting several women from behind bars he married 40 year old Doreen Lioy, a freelance magazine editor, in 1996.

John Wayne Gacy, for instance, this guy, a convicted murderer, rapist who murdered thirty-three young boys; even he received many love letters from women. And I understand there’s a book published with a collection of letters that women sent to him; basically throw themselves at him seeking a relationship with him. John Wayne did have a relationship with a woman who was delusional and in denial who did not believe that he had committed the murders he was convicted of even though he was on death row about to be executed.

Carol Ann Boone moved from Washington State to Florida to be near Ted Bundy, who was convicted of killing over thirty women across the country. Boone and Bundy got married in 1980 and had one child. However, when she became convinced that Bundy was guilty of his crimes she moved away with their child.

These are just a few instances where women go to the extreme to love men, convicted of murder, on death row. Expert, in the field, say that many of these women do not believe that these serial killers are capable of committing the crimes which they are convicted. Expert like Shelia Isenberg says these women are in denial.

Shelia Isenberg the author of, Women Who Love Men Who Kill, did an in dept psychological analysis of women who are drawn to men who had committed violent acts. During her research Isenberg interviewed many of the women themselves, as well as psychologists, social workers, and prison authorities.

From Isenberg’s research it’s clear that these women are not all outcasts of society, uneducated ghetto residents, or trailer tramps. These women are teachers, nurses, social workers, waitresses, office workers, and housewives. Isenberg stated that many of the women have been victims of abuse and violence themselves. And there are those who know exactly what type of relationship they are getting into; but their capacity for denial, and the overwhelming desire for a safe, idealized, romantic fantasy of love eclipses their better judgment.

Isenberg went on to say that; “this phenomenon involve a complicated series of reasons. The first reason is that if you are in a relationship with a man behind bars for life or a man on death row, then you have a lot of control over the relationship. You can decide when to make the visit, when to accept the phone call, or if you will accept the call, and you are that man’s primary link with the outside world. So as you can clearly see it’s a very powerful position to be in.”

In addition to power and control, women in relationship with men behind bars receive nearly absolute attention from the inmate; with little or no distraction or serious competition. Men in prison have hours of free time to study the women they are involved. These men study the women’s vulnerability and personality traits and use this knowledge to manipulate the women to meet their immediate needs and desires. After all, serial killers and murderers were predators in the real world. Why would anyone think that they would change in prison?

Isenberg points out that; “when you have a man with notoriety, like a serial killer, like Ted Bundy, or Richard Ramirez, or the Melendez brothers, or someone like Scott Peterson, there is a different element. Then the women are also attracted to the notoriety and the fame, and this is her 15 minutes of fame.”

Final thoughts; the psychopath

There are many theories and speculations why certain women gravitate to men convicted of murder. Some experts say that these women are mentally-retarded. Why would any rational woman find anything appealing about someone who wants to rape you and murder you.

A more pathological scenarios is that women who love men who kill are women who have a background of abuse and getting involved in this type of relationship; is they way of undoing and re-writing the past. This time, however, she is in control and he’s behind bars with no means to hurt her. What is certain, however, the psychological motivation of these women are as varied as the women themselves.

The psychological constitution and the personality traits of serial killers and murderers, on the other hand, is no mystery; they are seasoned psychopaths. The psychopath is forever, and they live in a world of their own.

Even Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, had little to say about the psychopath. He did singled-out the psychopath as an exception to the average criminals. Freud said: “Among adult criminals we must no doubt accept those who commit crimes without any sense of guilt, who have either developed no moral inhibitions or who, in their conflict with society, consider themselves justified in their actions as psychopathic.”

The psycho-dynamic of the psychopath is defined in this manner; a lack of remorse or shame, poor judgment and failure to learn from experience, egocentricity and incapacity for love, poverty of affective reaction, and loss of insight

Women who seek out serial killers, murders, rapists, and society’s rejects should first take into account the personality of the psychopath. The psychopath is a rebel; his rebelliousness is designed to achieve goals satisfactory to him alone; he is incapable of vigorous effort, of any kind, for the sake of others. All his efforts, no matter what shape it takes, represent investments aimed to satisfy his immediate wishes and desires.

Women who seek intimate relationship and marriage with psychopath behind prison walls should be conscious that when he says “I do” he means I do for myself; everything that I do is to meet my immediate needs and desires.

Women should never forget; there are no prince among serial killers and murderers … only frogs.

http://www.sheilaisenberg.com

Happy Birthday parties are extremely special and memorable. They have to be given lots of thought. Keep reading to familiarize yourself with distinct and variable birthday celebration ideas.

Happy Birthday parties create the special events in your life truly memorable. They’re like a treasure of memories which stay for a lifetime. The way to start planning a birthday celebration and everything can be achieved is listed below.

Planning for a happy birthday celebration starts with invitations. If You are

The invites, you can add some 21st birthday expressions in an interesting manner. Mention the place and time of the party.

If You Would like to have a Little gathering, then a house or backyard party would be a fantastic idea.

You may arrange the celebration at a restaurant, hotel, nightclub, or bar, and dancing the night away.

Decorations are an essential part of a birthday celebration. Decorate the Party place with birthday banners, cards and colorful balloons. Various decorations in line with the topic of the happy birthday celebration.

For Example, if you are planning to get a murder mystery theme, then Decorate the venue as the offense setup with some props like murder weapons. Tablecloth, and pink balloons are a perfect.

Theme party is truly an excellent idea for enjoyment. Various topics such as 80s night, murder mystery, Vegas celebration, wonderland.

For doing it the Exceptional manner, you can keep a fancy dress theme for example Beautiful masquerade mask and fairy tale characters like Wizard of Oz, angel, fairy or princess.

Another interesting thing that can be achieved is throwing a barbecue party? Arrange an Excellent outdoor celebration with some sumptuous barbecue menus. Contain hotdogs and hamburgers on the grill along with a few refreshing drinks.

Play exciting games on your birthday celebration to keep the guests participated and interested. Some of the favorite party games are karaoke and twister, pink poker table, and cocktail-making sessions.

If You are adventure-loving, then you can plan some outside Activities with friends, collage mates, relatives and family. You can go for trekking or large wave surfing. These adventurous activities provide great excitement. But, while Enjoying these adventurous activities, take appropriate precautions to prevent any accidents.

You may arrange a one-day picnic into a nearby mountain station. It is Definitely a good idea to spend time with your nearest and dearest. Or It’s quite a romantic Thought to celebrate this special day, is not it?

You can check birthday images, ideas and other details at https://www.birthdayfunnymeme.com/

Only used in 38 out of 50 states, the death penalty is one of the forms of capital punishment. Texas does have the death penalty available as a capital punishment, but there are a number of qualifications that you must meet before you can be assigned a capital punishment. Anyone who is up for getting a capital punishment must be at least 17 years of age or older.

Only people that have committed a capital crime can be given the death penalty. A capital felony is a crime that is committed on the highest degree level possible. This includes murder of a police officer, multiple murders, murdering of a child under 6, or murder during a prison escape. This is just a small list of the many people that can and are sentenced to the death penalty on a daily basis. The death penalty can be a very serious conviction and many people need just the right criminal lawyer to take care of it.

Each case is normally looked at on a case by case basis. The judge will usually give you a trial which will either be a bench trial or a jury trial. With a bench trial, the judge will make the decision to whether the person is guilty or not. They judge will also make a ruling to what punishment the person will get. A jury trial, means that the jury will make the decision or guilty or not and the judge will rule on the punishment. You always have the choice to speak with your lawyer and decide what type of trial you want. They each have their positives and negatives that you could understand if you were in a trial for capital punishment.

Appeals normally go through the Court of Appeals, Texas Supreme Court, US Circuit Court of Appeals, and finally reach the US Supreme Court. Each of these courts will make a ruling to whether or not the person is guilty. Once the ruling has been made over the US Supreme Court, the trial is over. The person will then be put on death row and will wait for his sentence to be carried out.

The court system requires that the person have exhausted all types of appeals before the death sentence be carried out. The person will have to have an attorney before anything can ever take place. The court also requires that you have someone representing you before you will go into a trial.