Attorney: State Knew Chimp Was Dangerous
By LAUREN PETTY
NBC Connecticut
nbcconnecticut.com
Nov 4, 2009
Claiming the Department of Environmental Protection knew Travis the chimp was a serious threat but failed to act, attorney's for his victim, Charla Nash, filed a petition Wednesday with the state's Claims Commissioner asking to sue the state of Connecticut for $150 million.
"This is a tragedy that did not have to happen, should not have happened," Nash's attorney Charles Willinger said in March, when a lawsuit was filed against the chimp's owner, Sandra Herold, for $50 million.
Nash's attorney's now are taking aim at state officials who were aware of concerns about Travis for years...
For the next two years, Charla Nash will go through surgeries as she recovers from a vicious chimp attack in Stamford in February that left her disfigured, blind and near death. Her brothers are by her side through her recovery...
..."It is an accident waiting to happen," that's what a DEP biologist wrote in a letter obtained by the Associated Press dated October 2008, five months before Nash was mauled by Travis in Stamford in February.
55-year-old Nash lost her hands, nose, lips and sight after Travis attacked her when she came to help her employer, Sandra Herold, get the chimp back into the house...Nearly nine months later, Charla Nash remains at the Cleveland Clinic....
...They say she is walking around and using primitive prosthetics. "Charla has accepted her losses. She accepts that she can not change this."
...The Attorney General says hundreds of claims are filed against the state each year and it could take months for the Claims Commissioner to rule on Nash's claim...
read entire article here
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Smell permeated Cleveland neighborhood where 11 bodies found, in Anthony Sowell's house
November 4, 2009
From Susan Candiotti,
CNN.com
Cleveland, Ohio (CNN) -- The smell permeated the neighborhood, turning the stomachs of residents and curtailing their outdoor activities..."We used to think that it was coming from out of Ray's Sausage," said one resident. "But you smell these smells, and I live right there and ... we used to come out here and oh, these smells would just be horrible."
Ray's Sausage Co. replaced a sewer line and grease traps, trying to rid the area of the stench. But Ray's wasn't to blame after all. Instead, police said, the foul odor had a much more sinister source.
Eleven bodies have been found inside and outside a home adjacent to Ray's -- six inside and five outside...
The first victim was identified Wednesday as Tonia Carmichael, who was 52 when she was last seen on November 10, 2008, police said. Carmichael was identified using DNA. She disappeared from Warrensville Heights, a Cleveland suburb near Sowell's home.
Seven of the victims died from strangulation by a ligature, said Frank Miller, Cuyahoga County coroner. A ligature can include a string, cord or wire. All seven still had something tied around their necks, Miller told reporters...
Some of the victims could have been missing for up to five years, Cleveland Police Chief Michael McGrath told reporters, and he doesn't believe authorities were able to discern any pattern relating to the disappearance of African-American women. Eleven women go "missing" in the same area and they have no pattern? b-s. I wonder if the eleven women were white, would there have been more of an effort to see what was happening? Just saying...
...Sowell showed no emotion during his hearing Wednesday before Municipal Judge Ronald Adrine. Asked whether he could afford a lawyer, Sowell responded quietly, "No sir."
read article here
Also read:
Death count at Anthony Sowell's home rises to at least 10 Metro ...
Ohio rapist Anthony Sowell lived in rotting bodies of women he ...
Anthony Sowell Cruised Sex Fetish Site While Dead Bodies Rotted in ...
Suspected serial killer Anthony Sowell held without bond - WTOL ...
From Susan Candiotti,
CNN.com
Cleveland, Ohio (CNN) -- The smell permeated the neighborhood, turning the stomachs of residents and curtailing their outdoor activities..."We used to think that it was coming from out of Ray's Sausage," said one resident. "But you smell these smells, and I live right there and ... we used to come out here and oh, these smells would just be horrible."
Ray's Sausage Co. replaced a sewer line and grease traps, trying to rid the area of the stench. But Ray's wasn't to blame after all. Instead, police said, the foul odor had a much more sinister source.
Eleven bodies have been found inside and outside a home adjacent to Ray's -- six inside and five outside...
The first victim was identified Wednesday as Tonia Carmichael, who was 52 when she was last seen on November 10, 2008, police said. Carmichael was identified using DNA. She disappeared from Warrensville Heights, a Cleveland suburb near Sowell's home.
Seven of the victims died from strangulation by a ligature, said Frank Miller, Cuyahoga County coroner. A ligature can include a string, cord or wire. All seven still had something tied around their necks, Miller told reporters...
Some of the victims could have been missing for up to five years, Cleveland Police Chief Michael McGrath told reporters, and he doesn't believe authorities were able to discern any pattern relating to the disappearance of African-American women. Eleven women go "missing" in the same area and they have no pattern? b-s. I wonder if the eleven women were white, would there have been more of an effort to see what was happening? Just saying...
...Sowell showed no emotion during his hearing Wednesday before Municipal Judge Ronald Adrine. Asked whether he could afford a lawyer, Sowell responded quietly, "No sir."
read article here
Also read:
Death count at Anthony Sowell's home rises to at least 10 Metro ...
Ohio rapist Anthony Sowell lived in rotting bodies of women he ...
Anthony Sowell Cruised Sex Fetish Site While Dead Bodies Rotted in ...
Suspected serial killer Anthony Sowell held without bond - WTOL ...
Raul Renato Castro confessed to putting 4 year old Alex Mercado in dryer
TRACIE CONE, Associated Press Writer
via The News-Herald
via hosted2.ap.org
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — A 14-year-old with a baby face told investigators he drowned his 4-year-old neighbor in a bathtub then hid the body in a dryer because the child was going to reveal the teen molested him, according to an affidavit released when he appeared in court Wednesday.
Raul Renato Castro, dressed in a purple T-shirt issued at the juvenile jail, appeared emotionless while staring at his hands in Fresno County Superior Court for the in his first appearance for the murder of Alex Mercado...
...Castro eventually told police he had enticed the dimpled, brown-eyed boy into his house across the street and sodomized him, the affidavit states. He said he killed Mercado after the child fell and hit his head, started crying, then threatened to tell his mother, the document states. "Castro said he panicked and decided to kill the victim by drowning him in the bathtub," the affidavit says.
...Castro had been scheduled for arraignment as an adult on charges of first-degree murder, sodomy, child molestation, kidnapping and murder to silence a witness...
Earlier the teen had nodded without expression when Judge Jon Kapetan asked him if he understood the proceedings."He told me he was scared," said Marousek, who spoke with the teen as he sat in the jury box. "He could be in shock."
Marousek said after the hearing that she doubted the teenager understood the Miranda Rights read to him by investigators, which could put his confession in doubt. He understood well enough when he raped, murdered and hid little Alex's body.
...Bail was set at $2.1 million. Castro, who turned 14 on July 29, cannot face the death penalty but could be sentenced to as long as 47 years-to-life if convicted.
Read entire article here
via The News-Herald
via hosted2.ap.org
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — A 14-year-old with a baby face told investigators he drowned his 4-year-old neighbor in a bathtub then hid the body in a dryer because the child was going to reveal the teen molested him, according to an affidavit released when he appeared in court Wednesday.
Raul Renato Castro, dressed in a purple T-shirt issued at the juvenile jail, appeared emotionless while staring at his hands in Fresno County Superior Court for the in his first appearance for the murder of Alex Mercado...
...Castro eventually told police he had enticed the dimpled, brown-eyed boy into his house across the street and sodomized him, the affidavit states. He said he killed Mercado after the child fell and hit his head, started crying, then threatened to tell his mother, the document states. "Castro said he panicked and decided to kill the victim by drowning him in the bathtub," the affidavit says.
...Castro had been scheduled for arraignment as an adult on charges of first-degree murder, sodomy, child molestation, kidnapping and murder to silence a witness...
Earlier the teen had nodded without expression when Judge Jon Kapetan asked him if he understood the proceedings."He told me he was scared," said Marousek, who spoke with the teen as he sat in the jury box. "He could be in shock."
Marousek said after the hearing that she doubted the teenager understood the Miranda Rights read to him by investigators, which could put his confession in doubt. He understood well enough when he raped, murdered and hid little Alex's body.
...Bail was set at $2.1 million. Castro, who turned 14 on July 29, cannot face the death penalty but could be sentenced to as long as 47 years-to-life if convicted.
Read entire article here
Shannon Lea Dedrick, 'Please, please save that child'
Months before 7-month-old girl went missing, baby sitter
e-mailed Gov. Charlie Crist
November 4, 2009
CHIPLEY, FL — Months before a 7-month-old girl disappeared from her family’s home, her baby sitter, Susan Baker, pleaded with the governor to “please, please save that child” from her parents’ alleged pattern of drug use, abuse and “really strange things,” according to an e-mail obtained Tuesday by The News Herald.
.
In response — on the third day in the search for little Shannon Dedrick — top officials with the state Department of Children and Families told The News Herald they were revisiting the case to see if they missed signs of danger...
.
[From the parents] “The only things they can come up with is exactly what they’re saying: ‘I don’t know.’ ” (reminds me of Misty Croslin)
.
...Susan Baker said she received a call from a Child Protective Services worker who said he would investigate...DCF, Digre said he received two reports on the family. The allegations included marijuana use around Shannon and a complaint that she had been shaken...
.
Digre said...DCF would be poring over records for any signs they might have missed. Those records would become “totally open” if Shannon is found dead, Digre said.
.
Baker identified the mother as Tina Mercer and her boyfriend as Rusty Dedrick. However, the Washington County Sheriff’s Office – which has released little information about the case – would not confirm those names...
.
For days, investigators have feared Shannon is hidden in the woods or in one of many trash bins near her family’s trailer on a dirt drive off Brown Street. Dozens of searchers have labored there, hoping to find clues...
.
More than 50 people and eight teams of dogs were looking through the woods. Helicopters were flying late into the evening.
.
Baker said she had no clue where the girl could be, but she expressed a firm belief that Shannon often went ignored by her parents, who she said lived in the trailer among roaches.
.
Baker told of an evening she tried to make Shannon’s parents notice her turning over in her playpen — a rare feat. But “Tina and Rusty couldn’t take their eyes off the TV long enough to see their child turn over,” she said...a night two weeks ago when Mercer sat on a bed and “said she wished that Shannon would disappear because Shannon’s not Rusty’s daughter, and she wished that Shannon was gone, so she could have a baby with Rusty.”
.
It disturbed Baker to see Shannon’s parents so uncaring, she said. She claimed there were many times she was allowed to take Shannon away for “as long as I wanted.”
.
But a stranger’s abduction was impossible, she said, as the family’s door remained latch-bolted shut every day, and “there was no way in this world that anybody could get in that trailer.”
...Call the Washington County Sheriff’s Office at 850-638-6111 with any information.
.
Read entire article here
.
Read entire article here
Also read:
Tuesday, November 3, 2009
Shannon Lea Dedrick, 7 months old, Missing From Home In Florida Panhandle
7-Month-Old Disapeared On Saturday
November 2, 2009
CHIPLEY, Fla. -- A 7-month-old infant has gone missing from her home in Chipley, a small town on the Florida Panhandle. The Washington County Sheriff's Office said Monday that Shannon Dedrick disappeared sometime between 3 a.m. and 11 a.m. on Saturday.
Since then, about 75 search and rescue workers from three counties have exhaustively scoured the surrounding area. They were joined by K-9 teams and volunteers from local fire departments in a 14-hour search beginning late Saturday morning, and continued nonstop since 7 a.m. on Sunday.
The arm-to-arm search has covered a 1/2-mile radius of Shannon's home, and deputies are expanding the area each hour.
Shannon was described as 2-feet tall and 11 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes.
read more here:
Search continues for missing baby in Chipley
Search continues for missing baby in Chipley
Cleveland Police: Four More Bodies Found At Anthony Sowell's Home
Right: Rapist Anthony SowellNovember 3, 2009
by JOHN SEEWER,
Associated Press Writers
via freep.com
AP Photo/Cleveland Police Department
CLEVELAND -- More remains were discovered Tuesday at the Cleveland home of a convicted rapist, raising to 10 the number of bodies that have been found there, authorities said.
Four more bodies and a skull were found at the home, where the remains of six women were removed last week, said police Chief Michael McGrath. Fifty-year-old Anthony Sowell, who lives in the home, is in jail and was charged Tuesday with five counts of aggravated murder.
.
"It appears that this man had an insatiable appetite that he had to fill," McGrath said.
He said the additional bodies were found buried in the backyard of the home. The skull was found in a bucket in the basement.
"It appears that this man had an insatiable appetite that he had to fill," McGrath said.
He said the additional bodies were found buried in the backyard of the home. The skull was found in a bucket in the basement.
Authorities do not know whether the skull belongs to an 11th victim, said police spokesman Lt. Thomas Stacho. The search was to continue Wednesday, with fire department crews planning to search in the walls of the home, McGrath said...
.
Police discovered the first six bodies Thursday and Friday after a woman reported being raped at Sowell's home, and Sowell also was charged Tuesday with rape, felonious assault and kidnapping related to her complaint. Sowell is to be arraigned Wednesday, Stacho said...
Sowell is a registered sex offender and required to check in regularly at the sheriff's office. Officers didn't have the right to enter his house, but they would stop by to make sure he was there. Their most recent visit was Sept. 22, just hours before the woman reported being raped...
.
Defense Says Casey Anthony Was Overcharged
Right: My favorite photo of Casey--in full chains. 
"When they got within three feet of the white Pontiac, George smelled a distinctive unpleasant odor. He’d once worked in law enforcement. He knew that smell, and it filled him with dread. He thought of his daughter and granddaughter. Please don’t let this be what I think it is...
“Whoa, does that stink!” Simon exclaimed....
.
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Also read motion articles from cfnews13:
The Case Against Casey
Motions to Preclude Death Procedures
Motion To Dismiss Defective Motions
Motion To Dismiss Violation Of Double Jeopardy
Motions to Preclude Death Procedures
Motion To Dismiss Defective Motions
Motion To Dismiss Violation Of Double Jeopardy
.
ORLANDO -- In motions filed on Tuesday, Casey Anthony's defense team said police and prosecutors made mistakes in charging Anthony in her check fraud case.
ORLANDO -- In motions filed on Tuesday, Casey Anthony's defense team said police and prosecutors made mistakes in charging Anthony in her check fraud case.
.
Anthony's defense is filing new motions, which legal analysts say means the defense are getting their ducks in a row. When a person's life is at stake, you can't leave any stone unturned, and if the case goes through an appeals process, these are the natural steps to take...
.
Anthony's defense is filing new motions, which legal analysts say means the defense are getting their ducks in a row. When a person's life is at stake, you can't leave any stone unturned, and if the case goes through an appeals process, these are the natural steps to take...
.
A trial has been set for January and the defense is trying to move it out of Orange County...
. In September, the defense tried to get the death penalty thrown out. Motions were filed, but never argued in front of the judge. The state responded to that motion, and now the defense is responding back. The defense said the State does not have enough evidence for a first degree murder charge, let alone the death penalty.
.
The last motion filed is regarding October 2008, when a grand jury indicted Casey Anthony. The defense said the indictment is "unconstitutionally vague." Florida law requires an indictment for a first degree murder charge...
The last motion filed is regarding October 2008, when a grand jury indicted Casey Anthony. The defense said the indictment is "unconstitutionally vague." Florida law requires an indictment for a first degree murder charge...
.
There are still a number of other motions that haven't been heard before the judge. There is no word on when these new motions will be heard.
.There are still a number of other motions that haven't been heard before the judge. There is no word on when these new motions will be heard.
New Book Out On The Case Against Casey
.As these new motions are filed, there is word of a new book that is due on book store shelves Tuesday. It is called "Mommy's Little Girl," and is written by Diane Fanning.
Here is an excerpt from that book (from cfnews13):
Here is an excerpt from that book (from cfnews13):
"When they got within three feet of the white Pontiac, George smelled a distinctive unpleasant odor. He’d once worked in law enforcement. He knew that smell, and it filled him with dread. He thought of his daughter and granddaughter. Please don’t let this be what I think it is...
“Whoa, does that stink!” Simon exclaimed...
News 13 has checked with several bookstores around Central Florida, and so far found only one store with copies -- but they only had six.
..
Think I'll pass on the book. Maybe when the trial is complete a book will come out with things we don't already know.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
