
RICHARD LANGERT, NANCY BISHOP LANGERT and their
BABY
Nancy and Richard were absolutely
wonderful people, full of life, love, and friends. They had a very bright
future. They are pictured here on the happy day in 1990 that they
found out they were expecting their first baby. Nancy's glow was only to
last a few months. Richard was 28
and Nancy was 25 and so happy to be having their first baby.
Their killer brutally shot Richard execution style
point blank in the back of his head with a .357 magnum, and then turned
the gun on Nancy. She cowered in the corner of her basement floor, begging
for the life of her unborn child by holding her arms over her pregnant
abdomen.
"Please don't kill me, please don't kill my baby" she
begged, but the killer fired directly into her belly. Later autopsy
revealed that the bullet hit the young baby and exploded it
completely. Even the gender of the child could not be determined,
depriving us of even the ability to bury the child with the name Nancy had
chosen for her boy or girl baby.
The killer fled and left her there
to die. He reported to friends that he just "wanted to see what it would
feel like to shoot someone." He had plotted the murders for weeks, picked
them because their home was directly across from the police station, and
he could brag about what he did just under the noses of the local police.
As she lay dying, she managed to take her finger and draw with her own
blood a heart and a "u" - her last act in life was to tell us that she
loved Richard and all of us.
Their killer was four weeks shy of
his 17th birthday, at which point he would be tried as an adult for all
crimes in Illinois. He was certified and tried as an adult, and duly
sentenced to three life without parole sentences that he is currently
serving in the Illinois Department of Corrections.
He
did not act on impulse. He was not acting under peer pressure. He knew it
was completely illegal and horrifically evil. He was not on drugs. He was
not mentally ill or deficient in any way. He reported doing it later for
the "thrill of it". He continues to this day to be an unrepentant and
dangerous sociopath.
We all
need him to serve the three life without parole sentences he earned with
no further attention to his case. We deserve the peace of never having to
deal with him again. Our communities deserve to be safe from him.
Pictured here are Nancy and
Richard's memorial trees, in full spring bloom, which stand today outside
the Winnetka Community House.
See Jennifer, Nancy's sister,
discuss the JLWOP
issue on YouTube.

 RUEBEN
PULIDO and MARK LOPEZ
Young Ruben Pulido who was shot and
killed alongside his good friend, Mark Lopez in 2000. Both boys had
been playing basketball in their front yard and were sitting in the front porch
in suburban Chicago.
The parents of these two fine young men were very proud of the fact that
they were good and stayed out of gangs and yet they were targeted by two killers
who were simply looking for someone to shoot.
The 19 year-old
killer ordered a 16 year-old to "light them up." They both died with a
single bullet each in their hearts. One of the killers is a juvenile
lifer.
Rueben and Mark's parents, siblings, and extended family have
stood together in both devastation and tears that they want to make sure that
these murderers never walk free, and that they do not have to spend the rest of
their lives fighting to keep them where the law has sent them - to prison for
life - for taking deliberately and casually the lives of these two
promising young men who were greatly loved by their families.
JLWOP Victim Family suffers ANOTHER murder of
cousins by teenage killers:
http://vivirlatino.com/2008/11/12/antiimmigrantantilatino-hate-claims-another-vida-marcello-lucero.php
The email from the Pulido family who already lost a son to
a JLWOP killer in Illinois:
Some sad news hit home today for Steve (my love). His cousin was murdered - by
several high-school students in New York last night. The papers say
they caught all of the offenders and they would be charged as adults, but we
all know - that may not mean much. I"m not sure what the laws are in NY for
JLWOP. His brother (the victims), and entire family is obviously taking this
hard. Since this is so fresh they are talking to NY Media alot right now. If
you google the name Marcello Lucero, article after article will come up.
I'm going to try and give him your info/website. Maybe he can spread the word
in NY about the fight you are fighting here in IL for everyone across America.
Steve feels kind of lost right now not knowing what
could be done to help or what kind of advise to offer his surviving family in
NY.
"Seven high school students looking "to beat up some Mexicans" attacked an
immigrant from Ecuador on a Long Island street, with one of them fatally
plunging a knife into the man's chest during the brawl, police said. A
prosecutor compared Marcello Lucero's death over the weekend to a lynching,
and the attack was officially labeled a hate crime by Suffolk County
authorities."

ROSS
ELVEY
April 28, 1993. my husband Ross V.
Elvey was murdered, leaving me alone in what should
have been our happy retirement years. Instead, I still have to work, and
have lost my home and all savings, and am barely scraping by. Our children
have never fully recovered from this trauma.
Ross was closing his place of
business when one juvenile (DM) came in the front door and
distracted Ross while another juvenile (KK) came in the back door with a
metal pipe. KK proceeded to beat Ross over the head with the metal pipe;
they held him down on the floor and continued to beat him. They then
stole the
guns they had came for and stupidly ran out the
front door where one of Ross’s customers (LB) was driving by.
LB
jumped out of his truck and started to chase them. The 2 juveniles ran
through the neighborhood stopping to ask many people to give them a ride
home as a gang was chasing them. When LB could not catch them he went back
to the shop and called 911. The Sheriff’s Department drove through the
neighborhood and found a lady who had put them in her son’s car and had
him drive them home. Knowing the color and type of car these two where in,
they were caught within 45 minutes.
Ross was in a coma for 41 days
before he passed away on June 7, 2007.
DM was 4 month short of 16 so he could not be tried as an adult.
Their gang was called 187 Crips…DM’s street name was “NINE” as he could
get 9mm hand guns for others. At 14 he supplied
handguns to two other 14 year old juveniles who committed 2 murders.
Maybe if something had been done to DM when he first started passing out
guns, my husband may still be alive.
DM was in the Youth
Authority until the day before he turned 25. I don’t think he ever learned
a thing. I attended 8 yearly progress hearings
for DM.
KK was 2 months over 16 and was tried as an adult. His street
name was 187 insane. The Prosecutor and Judge on
the case were great. KK was found guilty in a day and a half trial
of First Degree Murder with Special Circumstances and the Judge gave KK a
LIFE WITHOUT THE POSSIBILITY OF PAROLE (LWOP) SENTENCE in September 1994.
Since then KK has tried to kill another inmate and received a 25 to
life sentence for attempted murder. I hope that with his two sentences, he
won’t ever be released.
It is hard to describe the pain, sorrow
and troubles this brutal murder of our loved one has caused our family.
Sit down and write a list of all the things you would lose if your SPOUSE
is brutally murdered, what you and your family would go through. I
still find new things everyday that I have lost and have to work though
all because of two juvenile’s bad choice.
One example that we
don’t think of, when married we file our tax return as married-joint
return, when you lose that spouse, you go down to single, which means you
now pay more in taxes unless you have small children. It would take many
pages to tell you what our family lost and goes through each and every
day.
We must make sure that
homicide victims survivors
of juvenile killers
have their voices heard across the country when
it comes to discussing changes in juvenile
sentences past and future. Maggie Elvey and
Family
 
IN MEMORY OF JIMMY
My brother, Jimmy, was 28 at the time of his brutal death
He was
one of 7 children. His father was a successful business person; we grew up
on a beautiful lake in Oakland County. Our mother was a stay at home Mom.
All seven of us graduated from Waterford schools, many of us went on to
College and we are all productive and successful members of society. My
mother has since passed away but my Dad now enjoys his time with his, 11
grand children and proudly has one more on the way. My youngest brother is
about to adopt his second child. I tell you all this because I often sit
and wonder what my Brother Jim’s life would have been like. He was an
automotive mechanic and enjoyed working on cars. He told me once that he
enjoyed spring because people would roll down their windows and be able to
hear that their cars needed attention and his shop would get busy. He
loved to help people, often working on cars for free. I imagine that Jimmy
could have owned his own business. I will never know there are no second
chances given here!
Jim left his house to go to K-Mart on Mother’s Day, 1990, to buy our
mother a card. Barbara Hernandez had been at that same K-Mart the day
before to purchase the knife that would kill Jim. It was never determined
in court how Barbara was able to convince my brother to let her into his
car but he did and she took him to the house, where she knew her boyfriend
was waiting, with the knife she had purchased the day before. Jim was just
a random victim in a scheme to steal a car. It was brought out in court
that Barbara had concocted this “pre-meditated” scheme to lure someone to
the house to steal their vehicle so that she and her boyfriend could go to
New Mexico, get off of drugs, put their lives back together and live with
her father. Yes this would be the same father the ACLU states physically
and mentally abused Barbara. She wanted to live with him.
During the trial we heard all the brutal details of the crime. You see my
brother was not just stabbed once or twice. He suffered 25 wounds in all.
10 stabs and 15 incised. But the brutality did not stop here. Jim had
suffered many lacerations to his neck to the point of almost decapitation.
Just writing this makes me cringe and brings back the horrible thoughts of
my brother’s endless suffering and his horrible death. The pain had to be
tremendous; to this day I can imagine him bleeding to death. All for his
car!
Of greatest interest to the prosecutor were the defensive wounds present
to Jimmy’s hands. In Jim’s hand they found hair - forensic scientist
testified that “it was forcibly removed from Barbara Hernandez head
therefore she must have been near him during the time of his struggle.”
Not likely that he pulled her hair out while she sat innocently in another
room?
The medical examiner testified that Jim was a big guy at 175 lbs and
compared to James Hyde, Barbara’s boyfriend, my bother was almost twice
his size. The medical examiner testified that Hyde could not have fought
with Jim and proceeded to stab him alone. Barbara either held him down or
stabbed him while Hyde held him down. Hyde admitted himself to a hospital
in Finlay, Ohio. Hyde had suffered a stab wound to the stomach. When
admitted to the hospital the police where called and both he and Barbara
where apprehended. I can imagine my brother fighting for his life.
Hyde and Hernandez would not speak to the police. It took three days for
them to tell the police were to find Jim’s body. If Barbara did not kill
and if she was innocent and just afraid for herself, why would she not
have told the police were my brother was dying? Why did she make us suffer
for three days? We Searched for Jim for days, fearing the worst and hoping
for the best as we held vigil at our mother’s house. I had not slept for 3
days when they had found Jim… Our worst nightmare had come true, my
brother, my friend, gone, he was DEAD. How could this be?
During the trial, my Mother’s Health went frail. It was so difficult for
her to bury her son. She loved us all so much. After her death, as I was
cleaning out her dresser, I found a doctors record that indicated that my
Mother, several years early had had a scare with cancer. After speaking
with her doctor, I believe the cancer was in remission and the stress of
Jim’s murder resurfaced it. Jim died on May 12, 1990, Mother’s Day and my
sisters wedding anniversary. My mother died the next year on April 27th we
had the funeral on April 29th the same sister’s birthday.
We remember vividly calling my Mom from the pay telephone at court house
in Oakland County, she was in the hospital in Detroit , We promised her we
would call her and give her the verdict. We told her that they had been
charged with first degree murder and that they were going away to prison
for the rest of their life. The court was nice enough to schedule the
sentencing around my mother’s funeral.
The sentencing for James Hyde was first, his was easy because he was
considered an adult. Sentencing for Barbara was a little more difficult.
It had been decided After several hearings that she would be tried as an
adult but there needed to be another hearing to determine if she would be
sentenced as an adult. Prior to the hearing, she was seen by Doctor Holden
to evaluate her and see if she had “diminished capacity” - the inability
to form the intent to commit murder. After 5 hours of interviewing
Barbara, Dr. Holden found that Barbara did not have diminished capacity.
She did form the intent to commit murder.
Second she was evaluated by Mark Mudd - probation manager with Oakland
County Circuit Court Department of Corrections. He evaluated her and found
that due to “the gravity and brutality of the offense, the serious nature
of such offense, and for the long term protection of society.” she should
be sentenced as an adult.
Then she was evaluated by Ms. Tansil from the Michigan State Department of
Social Services who also found that she should be sentenced as an adult.
Then at the hearing the judge, based on the evidence, found that she
should be sentenced as an adult.
Unlike the ACLU we think the courts did a great job evaluating the
physiologic, and psychological and emotional capabilities of the killer
and gave full consideration of the circumstances surrounding the crime –
before they sentencing her to LWOP.
After Barbara was sentenced, we worked hard to pick up the pieces of our
lives. Although, nothing in our lives seemed right anymore. My brother was
gone, my Mother was gone. I found myself as a grown married woman, needing
to sleep with a nightlight so when I woke up scared from the nightmares
that raced through me I could be assured that no one was in my room. I
cried myself to sleep. We had not had time to mourn my brothers brutal
death or my mother. The healing process took years.
Now my family and I have learned to accept the things that we can not
change. We have learned to never take each other for granted. The one good
thing that has come from all of this is our family unit is as strong as
anyone could hope for. The bad thing for the supporters of this
legislation is that you can rest assured that we won’t rest until these
bills are dead!
Tell the truth ACLU. Barbara Hernadez did not hide in another room while
my brother was murdered, her hair was in his hand. He was held down by
her. Go to the court house and read the transcripts. No one ever denied
that she purchased the knife and then took Jim to the house to be killed!
Remorse is not a ticket to the chance for freedom! Rehabilitation is not a
get out of jail free card!
As I sit here tonight, once again completely consumed with this horrible
crime that has been done to my family, I realize that once again, I am
being victimized. I am being forced to relive this horrendous time in my
life, at the expense of all the other productive things I should be doing
with this time.
As long as legislatures introduce and support bills that provide criminals
sentenced to LWOP the opportunity for parole, my family will be sentenced
to LIFE WITH NO CHANCE OF PAROLE we will be a victim for life!
We love you Jim - From his sister Jody
See
Jody discuss
the crime on YouTube

DANNI REESE ROMIG
  
From mother Dawn Romig:
Our daughter was 12
years old when she was beaten, raped and murdered. The young man who did
all this was 17 years old. He is now serving a
life sentence with no parole in Pennsylvania.
Our daughter Danni Reese Romig was brutally beaten, raped , strangled to
death and thrown in a river 11 days after her 12th birthday by
a 17 year old “juvenile” who lived right around the corner from our home.
She was a 6th grader at
South Mountain Middle School.
She was very popular and had lots of friends who still love her, remember
her, and miss her very much. She was very loving, caring, and vibrant,
with amazing potential. She was just starting to blossom into a lovely
young girl. She was discovering pretty clothes, and the value of brushing
her hair. She had a passion
for animals. She dreamed that one day she would be a veterinarian. She
also loved being a big sister. At home, she had a younger sister, Destiny
and a new baby brother, Darryl Jr. Danni loved teaching him how to walk
all around the house. She beamed with pride in helping him achieve his
success. The day we buried
Danni he walked all the way across the living room by himself for the very
first time. We like to think she was right there with him holding his
little hands helping him along. Danni was a loving and nurturing big
sister to Destiny also. Danni and Destiny were the very best of friends.
They shared a bedroom together and they loved every minute of it. They
played games, played with dolls, drew and colored pictures, and rode their
bikes together. Unlike a lot of sisters who argue and fuss, Danni and
Destiny learned from each other to love and share the tender experiences
of their young lives. I give
tremendous credit to Danni for contributing to the kind and loving young
girl that Destiny is today. I see Danni every day, in Destiny; with the
love she has for her little brother.
Danni definitely taught her well how to be a great big sister.
See
Danni's mom discuss the crime on YouTube 

MADDIE
CLIFTON
Jacksonville,
Florida -Maddie Clifton's family, law enforcement
officials and religious figures involved in the case speak out.
Former Sheriff
Nat Glover: "I remember the number of days she was missing, the media
coverage and the level of attention, both here and nationally. ..."
Mark Foxworth, who lead the Clifton case: "Tuesday, Nov. 3, 1998, is a
day I will never forget."
Maddie's older sister,
Jessie Clifton: "As an 11-year-old, you think about toys, games, and
most of all, your family and friends."
Monsignor
John Lenihan: "Not a day goes by without some
memory of Maddie Clifton, her mother, father and sister, Jessica."

VICTORIA
LARSON
Vicki smiled all the time. That smile was contagious and could
light up a room. On July 12, 1979, Scott Darnell murdered that smile.
In 2009 We observe 30 years without her.
Victoria Joelle Larson was born February 8, 1969. She was brought
home to a town of 500 and two siblings. As Vicki grew she made lots
of friends, good grades and because she was so tiny she could out run
any kid in town. Everyone loved Vicki
. . . expect for one person.
Vicki was walking home from her brother's Little League game when
Darnell told her he had a pony for her. She had no reason not to
trust this 15 year old, as he had been to our home many times while
'visiting' his grandparents. He was handsome, smart and polite
telling us he had a crush on Vicki's sister. We had no idea of his
chilling past.
He took Vicki to a spot in a corn field, where
he had dug her grave 3 days earlier. Vicki must have tried to run
away when she saw the stakes and leather straps near the grave sight
for she was strangled from behind with his bandana. He raped her,
threw her small, lifeless body in the shallow grave. Before his night
long flight he buried his wallet, watch and murder weapon so that when
found he told the police that a gang of bikers stole his things before
taking Vicki. As the county and state officers talked to him, his
eyes kept going to a spot of fresh, turned dirt. Hand by hand the
police removed the dirt and found my 10 year old child.
Darnell was taken into custody and confessed to every part of the
crime, but said he had heard voices, "to kill". It was Friday, July
13, when Sheriff Cady came to our house, they had found Vicki earlier
that morning; she was dead. His trial was held, the verdict came on
Vicki's 11th birthday, GUILTY on all counts, his insanity plea was
denied. He was to serve 30 years for the rape and natural life for
the murder.
Later, his long criminal record was published; torturing small animals
at an early age, progressing, to sticking his hand down little girls
panties, threatening young girls, stealing guns and leaving
frightening letters, again for an under developed girl. He used
knives to scare girls and raped small girls. He began to dig graves
in the snow or plotted them in dirt. Darnell was incarcerated in
every juvenile prison in Illinois. The last time for planning another
girl's murder, he'd gone as far as digging her grave, but, that time
he changed his mind and didn't follow out the killing. His so called
'visit' was a summer release, the state said he was safe to go to his
grandparent's home, even though, he'd promised several times he would
KILL!
Even 30 years later, I have
nightmares, especially since I heard about the effort to free Darnell.
The thought of having to face him again, perhaps many times, in a
parole hearing, has been torture to me.
I can never have
my child back, but I will do whatever it takes to keep Darnell behind
bars, as he is a chronic pedophile and my greatest fear is if he is
ever released, there will be more little girls found dead in shallow
graves.

From the Down Officer Memorial Page:
www.odmp.org
Police Officer
Larry Elwood Lasater Jr.
Pittsburg California Police Department
End of Watch: Sunday, April 24, 2005
Biographical Info
Age:
35 Tour of Duty: 5 years Badge Number:
257
Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire Date of Incident:
Saturday, April 23, 2005 Weapon Used: Handgun
Suspect Info: Shooter sentenced to
death and accomplice sentenced to life without parole
Officer Larry Lasater succumbed to gunshot wounds
sustained the previous day while attempting to arrest two robbery suspects
on the Delta De Anza Regional Trail.
The two suspects had just
robbed a supermarket and bank branch and were fleeing from officers when
they crashed their vehicle in a residential area. The two then fled onto
the trail on foot.
As the officers searched for the suspect,
Officer Lasater spotted one of them hiding in the bushes near the trail.
As he ordered the suspect out of the bush at gunpoint, the suspect opened
fire, striking Officer Lasater in the neck and leg. Other officers
returned fire and took the suspect into custody. The second suspect was
arrested a short distance away.
Officer Lasater was taken to a
local hospital where he remained on life support for two days so that his
organs could be donated.
In September 2007 both suspects were
convicted of first degree murder. One of the suspects was sentenced to
death and the second was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
(He was a few weeks shy of his 18th birthday - a JLWOP case).
Officer Lasater was a US Marine Corps veteran and had served with the
Pittsburg Police Department for 5 years. He is survived by his expectant
wife.

BLAIR
HOLT
This heroic and
promising young Chicago star gave his life to protect a girl seated behind
him on a school bus when a gang shooting broke out on the bus. Blair's
father, Ron is an articulate and dedicated Chicago Police officer, and his
mother Annette Nance-Holt is a prominent respected Chicago Police Fire
Department Captain who has dedicated herself to helping other families
like hers. Blair was their only child, a very good person with a bright
future. But in the finest tradition of the the Biblical words "Greater
love hath no man than this - that a man lay down his life for a friend,"
Blair Holt personified the greatest love any person could ever have. He
was only 16 when his life was cut short.
Blair's murderers
were 17 and 15 respectively. The 17 year old handed the gun to the 15 year
old and ordered the shooting. The 17 year old is now serving only a 10
year sentence. The 15 year old received a 100 year determinate no-parole
sentence, an effective life sentence. And this case typifies the many
victims of violent teens who are serving a sentence that is effectively
life, but not officially life. All the work NOVJL does to advocate for
common sense sentencing, and victims rights in all matters pertaining to
their cases, helps families of victims beyond just the few cases of
"official" JLWOP. The Holt family continues to work to prevent
violence like this at
www.purposeoverpain.org.
See
Ron Holt discuss the crime on YouTube.

MATTHEW
WHITTINGTON
From
Judy Whittington,
Matthew Whittington's mother:
On
March 14, 2007 my precious beloved son who had just turned 16 years old
days before he was taken from our home in the early morning hours and
violently brutally shot a total of 9 TIMES with 2 guns
by an almost 16 year old neighbor who unprovoked shot to death his
biological mother and father March 13, 2007 with an additional third
gun - a 9 millimeter Glock.
Matthew
Whittington my precious baby son suffering with a broken knee cap &
waiting to have surgery was shot to death by a neighbor of over 10 years!
These were our neighbors and their was no conflict at all. We as neighbors
took care of each other. Connor
Wood Louisiana inmate #536827 almost 16 years
old at the time claimed he hated his mother & father because they wouldn't
let him to what he wanted to do when he wanted to do it so he shot them
over & over at close range, skin to point blank
range with the family 9 milimeter Glock gun! The
Wood family had one of the largest gun
collections in the south.
This low life scum of the earth burden on society is
not a child, juvenile or kid. Connor wood is a
young adult man
from a nice neighborhood and knows right from wrong! No drugs
involved here just pure evil. Louisiana inmate #536827 unprovoked forced
my son from his bedroom somehow. The Whittington family will always
believe Matthew was forced at gun point & that we Matt's parents may have
been threatened if Matt did not do as he was instructed. We lay asleep
just feet away & never heard a sound. Then Matthew seeing the horror of
Mr. & Mrs. Wood shot all to pieces and the terror of having someone you've
known your entire life shooting you over & over! My beloved son was shot
in his beautiful face, my son was shot in the back as Matthew was
desperately trying to get away and after Matt fell to the floor not able
to stand after being shot so many times Connor
Wood then shot my beautiful, loving, giving,
precious baby son that I loved with all my heart and soul and every bone
in my body and would have laid down my life for that low life scum of the
earth burden on society shot my precious Gift from God 2 more times in the
back of his forever cherished head. Louisiana inmate #536827 is in prison
for LIFE.
DO YOU WANT HIM AS YOUR NEIGHBOR ?

DYMIA WOODY
Dymia was just 8 years old when her life on this earth ended.
 The person responsible for taking her life was 14 years old at
the time of the crime. A day after
her mother reported her missing Dymia's body was found in a
vacant trailer. The coroner's findings were that she died of
asphyxiation. She was kidnapped, raped, and murdered by a 14
year old boy. The boy subsequently put her body in a closet in
that abandoned trailer. As the search for the missing girl
mounted, the killer even pretended to search for Dymia with
the search parties. All the while knowing the truth about her
fate and where she was.
August 2009 in Greenville, SC where the case will
be tried, it was determined that the killer would be charged
as an adult. The reasoning, the crime was far more adult than
that of a 14 year old, and the likelihood of the perpetrator
being rehabilitated in the 5 years it will take before he
would have to be released is highly unlikely.
The courts will prosecute him as an adult. Under the
possible prosecution on the table he could end up serving
anywhere from 30 years to life in prison. The family, is
reported to be relieved the case will move to adult court.
The 8 year old girl looking at you with those beautiful,
trusting eyes is no longer on this earth. Her parents, family,
and other loved ones have to live everyday with the reality
that she is no longer here, because of the actions of another
person. The justice system cannot offer her life back, it
cannot ease that pain, it can only offer them the comfort of
knowing the individual responsible for the kidnapping, rape,
and brutal murder of an 8 year old girl will spend his time in
prison and not have the opportunity to bring that kind of pain
to any other families.

DANNY
SLEDGE
You never do get over it because the littlest thing
will take you right back to that terrible day.
Joseph Daniel (Danny) Sledge was murdered by two teen brothers on a
Friday evening the 12th of March in 1999.
It was the next morning before he was found dead and we wondered
for months how long he lay there, alone, suffering and dying.
Law enforcement spent that weekend looking for the killer(s).
We spent the weekend trying to hold each other up, sharing
memories, notifying people, and wondering if we were safe.
One family member refused to leave her home as it was the only
place she felt safe.
That Monday we got the call that they caught them and
we headed for the first of many trips to the courthouse.
We were told the father of the two teens turned them in because he
was afraid he was going to be next.
The two were Nathan Boyd age 17 (214724)
and Eric Boyd age 19 (216553).
Nathan was well known to law enforcement.
We would find out he was supposed to be in jail but someone’s
mistake did not keep him there.
The two murderers had spent the stolen money on drugs, partied at a
club then stayed high in their apartment that weekend.
Danny knew Nathan from work.
Danny ran a restaurant called “The Galley” on the banks of Shoals
Creek in Florence, Alabama.
Nathan had been thrown out of his house like his brother Eric when
the parents got tired of dealing with them.
We learned during the trials they had been abused by their parents
as children and now were big enough to fight back.
So frightened of retribution that
the parents put them out to fend for themselves.
Danny had given Nathan a job more than once but he only worked long
enough for drug money and would not show for work.
In July of 1998 we had a cousin murdered doing his job as a police
officer. Danny gave Nathan
another chance to work at The Galley so Danny could leave town with the
rest of us for the funeral.
It made the national news and Nathan and Eric assumed that we were a rich
family given the funeral our cousin had.
Halloween was the first time they stalked him, they had
a gun that time, watched the restaurant, waiting for Danny to be alone.
Something happened and they left.
There would be other times as well, bringing in different people with them
who told their stories during the trials.
Why none of them went to the police, we’ll never know.
The Galley’s busy season was during the warmer months
and was pretty boring in the winter.
That evening it was rainy and Danny let the one worker leave early
and he was left alone. The
brothers were there and went to the door as Danny was locking it and
pushed their way in.
Different family members have had their own businesses and the attitude
had always been life over money.
So we knew the fight that followed wasn’t over money, Danny would
have given it to them. Both
Nathan and Eric were much bigger in size than Danny but he fought back
through each of the 27 stab wounds and then a knife broke off in his back.
They estimated this all started about 8 PM.
The next morning the first worker to come in was
Bonnie, she knew something was not right, the door was not locked, their
appeared to be a struggle that ended up in the kitchen and she found our
father, son, brother, cousin, nephew, friend sitting up against the wall
in a pool of blood, his eyes were open.
A sister, Mary Anne, lived just down the road and was
leaving her home when she looked in the direction of The Galley and saw
all the police cars in the parking lot.
She was the first of the family to learn that Danny was dead.
The word had to spread fast because in such a small town someone
might hear it from the press or a stranger.
Family members were awakened from their last night of sleep for
some time to the terrible news that Danny was gone.
Questions were answered with “I don’t know”, not wanting to be the
one to tell the terrible details of Danny’s last moments alive.
St. Patrick’s Day had
always been great fun for our Irish family but from now on it would be the
day we buried Danny. He was
not eulogized by anyone that knew him for we were all in shock and crying
non stop. The words were left
to strangers to most of us.
“Butterfly Kisses” a favorite of Danny’s was played at the service
as it was at his oldest daughter’s wedding and would be again in few
months ahead at his youngest daughter’s wedding.
“Danny Boy” never brought so many tears to a room.
The one thing we knew for sure was that he was always at family
gatherings and that made his absence even greater, he would have loved it.
There is a lot more to tell but what matters is that
his death was described as heinous, like a passion killing.
The two teen age brothers ravaged Danny and the horror of the crime
scene confused the law enforcement officers.
The detectives asked questions about his personal life that were
painful to hear. We answered
no, on and on but they continued to ask.
They needed our help but we were at a loss as why anyone would want
him dead and do so so brutally.
He had made a bank deposit that morning which was his usual, if it
was robbery it could not have been for very much money.
And we always said, hand over the money, it all did not make sense.
But then we were trying to make sense out of something that was
senseless.
When we first saw the teen brothers in court we were
surprised at their height and build, Danny did not stand a chance against
them. He liked to say he was
5 10 but that was pushing it.
At his heaviest he was probably 160 pounds but he had lost weight those
last few months. The
difference in size did not stop Danny from fighting, he left many a wound
on those two, but he had to have known they were there to kill him to
fight back as hard as he did.
Both were charged with capital murder, there was a
trial for each of them, a change in venue for the second to be sure he got
a fair trial. Nathan, the
younger and biggest of the two, the one with the criminal record was
sentenced to life without parole.
It was probably all those stories of the father’s drinking and
abuse of prescription drugs that led to frequent beatings, one of which
broke Nathan’s arm that kept him from the death penalty.
Eric, the older of the two got life but could possibly be paroled.
We tried to take comfort that maybe we would not be on
the national news fighting for the death penalty for Nathan as it was
cruel and unusual punishment for someone who was 17 at the time he did the
crime. Maybe it was God’s way
of protecting us from that battle.
Maybe so but now it’s legislatures trying to save a buck or two in
the budget that we struggle with. There
was one session that a bill was introduced to release terminal prisoner’s
home to their families. And
now it’s the efforts at the national level to consider the convicted
criminal a child. There was
nothing child like in that crime scene or what had been delivered as so
hard a blow as to break the handle off of a knife.
No child ended Danny’s life at age 43 years old.
No child fought with him to enter 27 stab wounds.
These murderers were not children in any shape or form; they were
calculating, cold blooded murderers.


THE FLORES FAMILY
Richard Flores, 42
Sylvia Flores, 13
Matthew, 10
Richard Jr., 17 . . .all murdered
. . .and Mother Sylvia wounded.
July 21, 2000 - Pico Rivera,
California:
Offenders Michael and
Monica stabbed Richard Flores, 42, his wife,
Sylvia, and three of their children -- young Sylvia, 13, Matthew, 10, and
Richard Jr., 17. Of the five, only the elder Sylvia survived.
Monica was Flores' niece who they were raising. They took her into their
home out of the goodness of their hearts, and loved her as their own,
because her own mother could not handle her. Monica was 16 when she
murdered the Flores family and was later sentenced to life in prison.

Surviving the rampage were Monica's half sister, Laura Reta, and
the eldest Flores daughter, Esperanza, who were both 18 and shared a
bedroom. Boyfriend Michael did most of the
stabbing but that Monica's "involvement in this crime is equal to" that of
her partner, says sheriff's Sgt. William Marsh, lead investigator on the
case.
Syliva attended the Parents of
Murdered Children Conference, devastated beyond words. Her family gone,
her life destroyed, still having to face new trials and appeals for the
teen killer, her niece she had taken in and raised. How could words even
describe this agony . . .her whole family . . .
   

ALAN AND DIANE JOHNSON

Meet Alan and Diane Johnson . . .a happily
married husband and wife from Idaho with 2 children. Their lives came to a
brutal and tragic end on September 2, 2003. When police arrived at the
home they found,
quote one officer, "There was blood and hair on
the carpet. It was on the ceiling. It was on all the walls. There was part
of a skull cap in the hallway." They had been shot to death in their beds
with a Winchester Rifle. Alan Johnson was shot in the chest, while Diane
was shot in the head. Their killer leaving their bedroom a bloody
testament to the rage it took to commit this crime.
The individual
sentenced to 2 life terms in prison for killing this couple was 16 at the
time of the crimes. She is a Juvenile offender serving a life sentence.
She is also the daughter of these victims. She had a dispute over her
personal life, that police say led her to cold blooded murder.
Police found her pink bath robe along with gloves in the trash while
investigating the crime. After this 'child' had shot her parents point
blank, she hid this evidence in the trash. Family members described her as
upset that police had cut her nails after the murder. She was fixated on
getting her nails done for the funeral service, rather than grieving the
murders.
This family has lost two of its members to murder, and
then had to see another sentenced to life in prison. At the time of the
sentencing the family told the media that they were satisfied that a life
sentence without parole was appropriate for the crime. If there was a
change to retrospective sentencing of juvenile offenders, it is possible
that this family would have to rip open all of these wounds and revisit
this gruesome and troubling part of their lives.

STEVE
LANFORD
On November 28th 1995, the day before
Thanksgiving, Christopher Mitchell a 17-year-old man killed my son
Steve age 44 just for a "thrill".
|
On that day Mitchell met my granddaughter’s school
bus. This was about three hours before Steve and his wife would be
home from work. He stated to my grand daughter that he had a “need” to
kill someone and asked my grand daughter to help him kill both her
parents, take their money, car & credit cards and go all over the
country. Telling her they would go wherever she wanted to go. This boy
often talked about doing weird things and my grand daughter paid him
no attention and certainly did not take him serious.

About an hour before he met my grand daughter at the bus he
broke into his dad’s gun cabinet and took a 20 gauge pump action shot
gun and some buck shot shells and jumped on hid ATV and drove about
two miles to my son’s house. When my son and his wife got home from
work at 4:30pm my daughter in law and granddaughter headed off to the
store in town to buy some drapes. When they left Christopher Mitchell
got on his ATV and left too but the minute my daughter in-laws car was
out of sight he turned around and went back to the house.
When Mitchell got back to the house he grabbed his gun loaded
it with the buckshot and racked one in the chamber then knocked on the
door. Steve, who was home getting things together for a hunting trip
the next day. Steve answered the door and was asked by Mitchell if he
would look at his shotgun because it had been malfunctioning. Mitchell
had the chamber of the gun open so it looked empty and Steve told him
to follow him downstairs to the basement workshop where he worked on
his sporting equipment and he would take a look. When they got the
basement Mitchell racked a shell into the chamber and shot Steve in
the back from only 6 feet away. Then as Steve lay on his basement
floor Mitchell racked another shell and shot him in the head from two
inches away this time and this shot killed Steve instantly.
Realizing he had no means of leaving the area
Mitchell grabbed Steve billfold and went upstairs where he found $100
in coins which were rolled with Steve’s name and address on them.
Altogether Mitchell made off with $170.00. He then went to a friends
house and no one was home so he went in and dialed 911 and told them
he had accidentally shot a killed someone. The dispatcher got Steve’s
address and sent out the State Police one to Steves house the other to
the location of Mitchell. State Police Sergeant Wellman told me later
that they got to the house where Mitchell was and he was crying and
sobbing you could hardly understand him while the officer questioned
Mitchell a call came from the trooper that was sent to Steve’s house
telling them that Steve had been shot twice, once in the back and once
in the head when the sergeant questioned Mitchell how this was a
accident when Steve had been shot twice and with a pump action shotgun
he would have had to rack the second shell into the chamber in order
to shoot again. Sergeant Wellman said it was like Jackle and Hyde he
went from sobbing to bragging about how he killed Steve. While waiting
in the county jail in Saginaw Mitchell wrote a letter to his friend,
which was turned over to the prosecutors office. In this note Mitchell
explained what a thrill a “RUSH” he got out of killing Steve. It took
over a year for the trial at which time a videotape was shown of the
interrogation and confession of Mitchell. It shows Mitchell
demonstrating how he shot Steve and him bragging about it.
My wife developed Cancer towards the end of the trial and
because of the stress and hardship of going through loosing a son her
Oncologist felt that the chemo treatments were not working, as they
should because of her grief. And the cancer spread through her body
and brain killing her. To
me Mitchell not only killed my son he also killed my wife.
For any judiciary committee or legislation to ever
recommend the release of these murderers from prison is a slap in the
face to everyone that has lost a family member, friend or loved one to
these killers. The only satisfaction we could possibly get is that
there is no way these killers will ever get out of prison and will
never hurt anyone again.
In loving memory from the Lanford Family

By: Kevin Doyle - Sheilah's Son
(From the Sheilah Doyle Foundation website
July 3, 1993, was a day in the life of Sheilah A. Doyle
(40 years old) that will never be forgotten by those who
loved her dearly.
Sheilah worked the 3pm-11pm shift as a nurse at
Little
Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park, IL. On her way home,
she was followed for 30 minutes by three men who wanted the hood of
her 1993, black, Toyota Camry. At 11:40pm, Sheilah entered her Mill
Creek subdivision situated in Palos Park, IL, a small town just
outside of Chicago. As she pulled into her family's garage, she was
startled by two men who demanded that she get out of her car. She
noticed that one of the two men was holding a gun. As she pleaded
forher life, one of the men asked her to get in the trunk of the car.
She refused and then was forced in, shot once in the back of the head,
and left to die.
 Bill Doyle
(44 years old), her husband, awoke at 12:30am and noticed that
everything was still the same as it was when he went to bed. He
noticed that his wife was not in bed, so he went downstairs to see
where she was. He did not see her anywhere, so he proceeded to the
family garage. As he opened the access door, he noticed that her car
was in the garage, her purse and nurse bag were on the passenger seat
of the car, but that she was nowhere to be found. At that time,
Bill's oldest daughter Kelly (19 years old) woke up and asked her dad
what was wrong. Bill told Kelly that he could not find her mom
anywhere. At that time, Kelly offered to get in her car and drive
around the neighborhood in hopes of locating her mom. At the same
time, Bill called the Cook County Sheriff's police. A squad car
arrived at the Doyle home at the same time Kelly arrived back. She
told the police officer and her dad that she was unable to locate her
mom. The officer then asked Kelly for a picture of her mom for
identification purposes. The police officer then called for backup
and minutes later a second officer arrived at the Doyle home. Both
officers shined their flashlights around the garage, Sheilah's car,
and the front of the house. They then asked Bill for his second set
of car keys to the '93 Toyota Sheilah drove and asked Bill and Kelly
to step into the house for a few minutes. Not even two minutes had
passed when one officer arrived back in the house where Bill and Kelly
were waiting. He told Bill and Kelly that "there was a crime scene in
the garage" and that "the lady in the picture was found in the trunk
of the car." Kelly asked if her mom was ok, and the officer said that
they checked for a pulse and that there was not one, so at that time
Kelly and Bill knew that Sheilah had died. The officer then told
Kelly and Bill that the garage was declared a crime scene and that no
one was allowed to leave or come to the house.
At 1:30am, two
Cook County Sheriff investigators arrived on the scene not long
after the conversation Bill and Kelly had with the police officer.
The investigators took Bill into the family's downstairs bedroom and
asked him if he was aware that 85% of homicides were family related.
Bill said he was not aware, but said that he wanted to know what was
going on. The investigators told Bill that his wife Sheilahwas
found shot to death in the trunk of her car. Bill began crying and
the investigators began asking more questions. They asked Bill if he
owned a gun, and Bill told them that he did not. They asked to go
upstairs to Bill and Sheilah's bedroom as well as the home's basement
to look around. The searching and the questioning continued
until 5am. During the time Bill was being questioned, Kelly was also
questioned and helped investigators inventory Sheilah's belongings
that were left in the '93 Toyota Camry. Kelly asked investigators
numerous times if family members could come to the house in fear of
having to tell her younger brother, Kevin (17 years old), and sister,
Kristin (8 years old), about the happenings in the family garage that
night. Kelly was able to call her mom's twin sister, Sharon. Sharon
wanted to come to the house, but Kelly told her that no one was
allowed at the house until entry was cleared by the Sheriff's
department. At 4am Bill was taken to the Cook County Court House in
Bridgeview, IL for further questioning. Kelly remained at the house,
and Sharon's husband Ray arrived and was allowed in at approximately
6am. Bill arrived back at the house at 9am to a group of his and
Sheilah's family. Bill was tired, but now he knew he had to let his
other two children know about their mom.
Kevin woke up at 9:15am on Sunday, July 4th. He had his clothes in
one hand and a bath towel in the other. He was ready to shower for
11am Sunday mass at
Our Lady of The Woods Church in Palos Park, IL; a weekly
ritual for the Doyle family. Kevin proceeded down the upstairs
hallway and down the stairs where he was alarmed to see the entire
family sitting around the kitchen and dining room tables. His dad,
Bill, was standing at the end of the stairway crying. Kevin asked,
"Where is mom at?" Bill said, "She died last night. She was murdered
and found in the trunk of her car in our family's garage."
Shocked, Kevin turned around, walked back up the stairs, closed the
bedroom door and remained there for most of the day.
Kristin was asleep on the downstairs couch. When she woke up earlier
in the morning, she was told by a family member that her dad was not
home yet and that she should try to get some more sleep on the family
room couch. Bill was still with investigators at the Bridgeview court
house. When Kristin woke up later that morning, Bill carried her into
the family kitchen. He sat her on his lap and told Kristin that her
mom had passed away last night. Immediately, Kristin began crying.
For seven weeks, the Doyle family lived in fear. They were always
worried that the person who killed Sheilah would come back to kill
them. They tried coming up with thousands of motives on why this
could have happened, and each time, they went to bed with no good
answers. Even Sheilah's husband Bill was seen as a suspect in the
murder of his wife, both by the Sheriff's police and the Chicago
media. Sheilah's murder was a top news story on the local NBC, ABC,
CBS, and Fox channels. The Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun Times, and
the Southtown Economist ran articles weekly, and sometimes daily,
about the happenings of Sheilah's case.
On August 20th, 1993, the case was finally cracked. The head
investigators on the case called the Doyle home and asked Bill if
Sheilah had ever shopped at the Evergreen Park Plaza Mall, if she had
ever picked up hick-hikers, or when the last time Bill washed the
black '93 Toyota Camry that Sheilah was driving the night she was
killed. Bill answered the questions that were asked by the
investigator, and wanted to know why there were so many questions.
The investigator told Bill that they had someone in custody that
appeared to be lying a lot. The next day, August 21, 1993, two
investigators arrived at the Doyle house to tell them that they had a
suspect in custody and that his fingerprints matched the ones on the
lid of the trunk and the driver's side door jam of Sheilah's car.
Over the next few days, the Cook County Sheriff's police arraigned
three men in connection with the Sheilah Doyle murder. The
explanation from police was that it was a robbery that went bad. Each
of the three individuals gave a written confession of the events that
occurred at the Doyle house the night of July 3rd.
In the end, justice prevailed for two of the three men. The two
individuals who ran up the driveway and forced Sheila out of her car
the night she was murdered, are now serving life sentences without the
possibility of parole in a Cook County Jail. The third individual,
who drove the get-a-way car, the night of the murder, was found not
guilty on all counts of attempted armed robbery and first degree
murder. 
PHILIP WHITMARSH
02-06-1950 – 12-22-1981
By
Nancy Whitmarsh
I am the Chapter Leader for the Central Missouri Area Wide Chapter of
Parents of Murdered Children, Inc.
I am a Volunteer Court Advocate with The Shelter For Victims of
Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault. I am a member of the Missouri
Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence (MCADSV) and Missouri
Victim Assistance Network (MoVA)
I have lost two family members to homicide. On December 22, 1981, my
31 year old husband, Philip V.
Whitmarsh,
was
shot and killed by a 16 year old male in a robbery holdup while working at
a service station in Columbia, MO. Carlos Henry Allen received a
second degree murder plea bargain and was sentenced to life with the
possibility of parole.
Mr. Allen is in prison at Jefferson City Correctional Center located at
Jefferson City, MO with an
upcoming parole hearing in August 2011.
On May 2, 2005, my 77 year old mother-in-law, Zelpha Turner, was strangled
to death in her Boone County home by a neighbor. Dearl Wayne Jackson was
found guilty of first degree murder and sentenced to life without the
possibility of parole. Mr. Jackson is in prison at Southeast Correctional
Center in Charleston, MO.
Philip Whitmarsh
was 31 years old when he was murdered. Our son, James, was 10 years
old. At the time of his death, Philip worked during the day for the
University of Missouri-Columbia and a second job in the evening at a
service station in downtown Columbia, MO. He was working a second
job so I could complete my college degree at the University of
Missouri-Columbia. On December 22, 1981, at approx. 9:00 pm, a 16
year old male with a gun entered the service station office, demanded and
took the money in the cash register and shot Philip in the shoulder and
heart on his way out of the service station. Carlos Henry Allen
received a second degree murder plea bargain and was sentenced to life
with the possibility of parole. Since I lived out of state and was
unaware of Mr. Allen’s parole hearings, Mr. Allen has been paroled three
times returning to prison each time for parole violations. At Mr. Allen’s
recent parole hearings in May 2007 and August 2009 which I was able to
attend, his parole release was denied. At present, Mr. Allen is in prison
at Jefferson City Correctional Center located at Jefferson City, MO with
an upcoming parole hearing in August 2011.

KRISTINA
GRILL
By
Bobbi Jamriska
That's my sister, Krissy, as I called her. This is the last picture
I have of her, it was taken at school about a week before she was
killed. It came in the mail from the school about two weeks after
the funeral. She never saw it, but you can...
As the holiday
of Halloween draws near, it felt like the right time to tell my own
family experience with a Juvenile serving Life without Parole. I
distinctly recall throwing away the candy she collected trick or
treating a week before she was murdered, so the two stay together in
my mind.
It was a difficult time for my 15 year old sister.
She had been secretly seeing a boy from school, as she was sure my
family would not accept him. They were together for several months
before he broke it off. Unfortunately, by the time he broke it off,
she was pregnant. She carried that secret for a few months, and
finally decided she had to tell my Mom the truth. I remember being
15 and thinking that if you ignored stuff that bothered you it would
just go away. This wasn't that kind of problem...
My sister
set up a meeting in a school yard with her former boyfriend, who she
still loved, to talk about the baby. She had resolved that she would
meet with him, and then tell our Mom that night. That never
happened, we found out about the pregnancy, and the boyfriend from
the Pittsburgh Police Department. We found out the details from her
diary, which also led them to her murderer.
Her killer, also
15 at the time, brought a kitchen knife to the meeting. He would
later tell police he planned to kill himself after the meeting. I
don't know what was said at that meeting, I've often wondered how
she spent those last few minutes of her life before he attacked her.
At some point, he lashed out at her with the knife he "just happened
to have with him". He proceeded to stab her 11 times about the neck
area and punched and kicked her repeatedly. After he had stabbed her
to the point that she would bleed to death in that school yard, he
zipped up her jacket, watched her 'twitching' on the ground and
departed for home. A seven year old neighborhood boy would find my
sister dead in that school yard and go tell his Mom.
When my
Mom reported her missing that evening, her friends lied about where
she was. They thought they were doing her a favor. Shortly after
calling the Police, they came to my Mother's home with a ring my
sister had been wearing to do a preliminary ID. That is the moment,
the point where all the air is sucked out of your life and it sort
of becomes like you are watching a movie. We then had to decide who
would go do the identification, thankfully my sister's step mother
volunteered. The media was calling our homes and knocking on doors
looking for quotes. We had to keep the funeral quiet to avoid news
cameras at the grave site.
The strain and emotional impact
this had on my Mother was just too much. She was just 54 years old
when I buried her with my sister.It was 9 months after my sister's
death, and one day before the trial started.
The trial process is intended to help you find closure and
justice. In some ways that is true. But, the reality is, it is just
day after day of pain and revisiting the most painful thing you've
ever experienced. Shortly after the preliminary hearings, the
District Attorney told us she'd be pursuing adult charges and a life
sentence due to the violence and premeditation of the crime.
We sat through juror selection, trying to find people who hadn't
heard all of this on the news and formed an opinion. And then the
trial began. I can still vividly describe the images of my sister's
body that the coroner used during his testimony. I actually had
nightmares about it for months after the trial ended. The police
explained that they were able to identify shoe prints on her
pregnant belly from her killer. He, had gone home, showered, and
went about his day after leaving her, with his child inside her, to
bleed to death in the school yard.
In the end, after several weeks in court, he was found guilty, and
subsequently sentenced to Life without Parole. We all walked away
with the relief that the justice system had provided the best they
could for us to move on. We believed that we would never have to
revisit the judicial process for her case. We thought we could try
to find our way out of the emotional abyss this had created. We
accepted the word of the justice system that he would never be free.
As I write this, the momentum and media focus on the 'poor' kids
serving these sentences is rampant. Both the Federal and State
governments are investigating changes to these laws that allow life
sentences to Juveniles offenders. It is perfectly understandable
that people who have never heard a coroner describe their loved ones
last moments might support this kind of action. If it must be that
the courts will go that way, it is morally imperative that any such
decision not be retroactive. We had our verdict, and it was just, we
should not have to testify and relive that pain every year, or every
so many years in order to preserve what the law promised us to be.
I pray that no one else ever has to go through this experience, and
if they do that the justice system is there to offer them what is
just.

ELIZABETH OLTEN
This is Elizabeth Olten in an undated photo provided by the
Cole County, Missouri Sherif f's
Department. She was 9 years old when she left this earth at the hands
of a juvenile murderer.

It all started on a Wednesday evening, when Elizabeth never came home
after leaving a friends house on foot. The police were called after
she never showed up. The family described her as shy, and that she was
afraid of the dark. Their immediate reaction was that something bad
had happened, and they were correct. There are still many
details to come in this case. The police were able to track the killer
through 'written evidence' that has yet to be revealed. On
October 24th, 2009 a 15 year old was arrested as a suspect in the
murder of this 9 year old girl. Under current law, the suspect will
start out in the Juvenile system and if warranted, be moved to the
adult system. The charges are First Degree Murder. This 9 year
old will never have another birthday, never see another day, and has
family and loved ones who have to deal with that void everyday. This 9
year old was taken from this earth by a 15 year old individual who
should and shall be held accountable for their actions.
From his mother Kimberly: "Here is Daniel's story. It isn't easy to tell
or to read. On Wednesday November 7, 2007, my husband Jim's and
my son, Daniel, was brutally killed and dismembered by a 17-year
old young man named Jean Pierre Orlewicz, aided by his friend
Alexander Letkemann, age 18. (Letkemann, who took part in the
clean-up of the murder scene, but not the actual act of murder
pled guilty to Second Degree Murder under a plea agreement that
netted him 20-30 years in prison w/o the possibility of an early
release before the minimum sentence is served.)
Dan was
lured to the garage of Orlewicz's grandfather under the false
pretense of obtaining money that was due Orlewicz by one of his
friends. Dan was supposed to scare the friend (Adam) in order to
obtain the money. Not the greatest thing to do, but certainly not
in the same league as what was about to happen to Dan. The scheme
was just a ruse. Adam was never told to come to the home. When
the time came to enter the garage, Letkemann entered the side door
entrance first, followed by Dan and then Orlewicz, who immediately
jumped Dan from behind, slitting his throat. Dan fell to his
knees, hands held to his throat, gasping for air. Orlewicz
continued to stab Dan 12 more times before Dan finally died from
loss of blood.
My son, trained in self-defense, 6'0"
tall, and weighing approximately 240 pounds, never stood a
chance. He tried to deflect the blows of the knife with his arms
and hands, he tried to get up off the floor, but a sociopathic
monster no taller than 5'7" and 150 pounds meticulously planned
how he could overpower and kill a man much stronger and bigger
than he. As Dan lay dying upon the floor of the garage gasping
for air, Orlewicz said to him, "Just go with it, man."
Now, this event was bad enough, especially when you consider that
the motive was merely to see what it would be like to take another
human life and to get away with it. However, after Dan died,
Orlewicz burned Dan's fingertips and beheaded him. After the
beheading, Orlewicz, seeing that Letkemann was in distress, used
Dan's head as a puppet, moving the jawline and saying, "Hey Alex,
how're you doing?" Then, with Dan's body tied up in a tarp,
Letkemann and Orlewicz attempted to load Dan's body into the bed
of Orlewicz's truck without success. Orlewicz called another
friend to come over and assist. Once the body was loaded into the
truck, Orlewicz and Letkemann drove Dan's headless body to an
undeveloped cul-de-sac where Orlewicz dumped the body, poured
gasoline upon it, and set it ablaze.
The next day, they
disposed of Dan's head in a local river. Believe it or not,
Orlewicz's defense was "self-defense", despite the fact that
Alexander Letkemann never claimed that Dan acted offensively in
any way. The only person who could claim "self-defense" in that
garage on Nov. 7, 2007 was Dan. In May 2008, Jean Pierre
Orlewicz was given two terms of life in prison without the
possibility of parole, and four to ten years for what he did to
Dan's body post mortem. He is appealing his conviction, having
been granted a new trial based upon a perceived error made by the
original trial judge. The Wayne County Prosecutor is appealing
that decision.
Jean Pierre Orlewicz told Alexander
Letkemann that he made some mistakes when planning and committing
Dan's murder. "Next time", he continued, "I won't make the same
mistakes."
Orlewicz is serving his life sentence in the state of Michigan.


"Catherine was my mother, and my touchstone to life as I knew it. She
was murdered in her home in 1993 by a 14 year old girl who was a
runaway from a juvenile detention home, and from that moment on 'life'
as I knew it ceased to exist. Ruth Ann Veal was 6 feet tall and 200
lbs. just 3 weeks shy of her 15th birthday, and had previously been
adjudicated 11 times, 5 of those for assault. Veal culminated her
criminal career by entering my mother's house and beating her which
split Catherine's lip, broke 4 ribs and bruised her skull. Veal then
took my mother's favorite kitchen knife and stabbed her 23 times, only
stopping because the 6 inch blade actually broke off from the force
used.
From that moment on, my family and I were thrown
into the abyss of darkness and despair. I felt like I resided in the
Twilight Zone, in a parallel universe where everything looked the same
but nothing was the same. Even going on 17 years later I can still
vividly feel what those first few years felt like. The effects of my
mother's murder will never be over--not for me, and certainly not for
my children who were 14, 11 and 4 at the time of the murder. Ruth
Ann Veal was convicted of first degree murder and sentenced to life
without parole, but she continues to file briefs fighting for her
release. She is being represented by the Restorative Justice group
out of Alabama and her case for post-conviction relief is currently
being decided by the Iowa State Supreme Court. I fear the battle to
keep her in prison will outlast my lifetime and become my children's
cross to bear as well. I miss my mother every day of my life."

In the fall of 1996 Matthew Foley was, in many
ways, a typical 16-year-old boy. A Junior at
Bennett (Colorado)
High School, he loved cars, playing sports and hanging out with
his friends. He was starting to think about his
future and dreamed of attending
Notre Dame University
and becoming a sports writer.
The things that made Matthew truly special,
though, are things not normally associated with typical
16-year-old boys. Instead of rebelling against
his family or being embarrassed by them, Matthew truly loved his
family. His best friends in the world were his
parents, Gail and Wayne and his grandpa, Stub.
Wayne
coached him in baseball and they even built a full baseball
diamond at the house to play. He was a regular
golf and pool partner with Stub and the two had been inseparable
as long as anyone could remember. Matthew’s
kindness wasn’t limited to his family, though, as he always had a
friendly smile and time to spare for anyone in need be it friend,
family or total stranger.
Matthew was on his way into growing into a
decent, honest and caring man. Unfortunately,
he never got that chance. On November 21, 1996,
he found himself in the most terrifying situation of his young
life. He was robbed at gunpoint by a schoolmate
who was a few months shy of his 18th birthday.
The guy holding the gun, Trevor Jones, was everything Matthew
wasn’t. By his own admission he was a drug-user
and “gangsta rap” fan who was infatuated with “thug culture” and
cared more about being feared than respected.
He learned quickly that holding a gun was a quick way to get what
he wanted and to instill that fear in others.
On that night he decided to escalate that fear one step further.
So, after he took Matthew’s money and started to walk away
he stopped, turned and shot Matthew point-blank, killing him.
He used the $100 he stole from Matthew to go out to dinner
and buy some cigarettes.
Given the depravity of his crime, his prior
run-ins with the law and his impending 18th birthday, Trevor was
tried as an adult. Since Matthew’s murder
occurred during the commission of a robbery, it was considered
“felony murder” and Trevor’s conviction carried a mandatory
sentence of life without parole.
After his incarceration Trevor was able to see
the “thug life” he so desperately coveted up close and personal.
It was more than enough to make him decide that it wasn’t
everything he hoped it would be and now he wants another chance at
the life he squandered. He makes regular
appearances in the press blaming the pot he smoked or the music he
listened to for his actions. His family cries
about the “loss” of their son and brother while he is able to walk
in the sunshine, talk to his family and even learn foreign
languages.
Meanwhile, Matthew’s family is left with only
the memory of a remarkable young man who had the whole world in
front of him. They are continuously tortured
and taunted with the threat of “clemency” for the man who was
justly sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison for
Matthew’s murder. They have been characterized
as “vengeful” for wanting to see Matthew’s killer serve the
sentence he was given at the conclusion of a fair trial.
Undaunted, they have established the Matthew
Foley Scholarship Fund which has awarded 22 scholarships.
The scholarship fund helps to ensure that Matthew’s legacy
and memory will live on well beyond his killer’s well-orchestrated
public relations campaign and serves as a reminder of the
remarkable son, grandson, cousin and friend who was so recklessly
and callously taken from us.

ALYSSA MICHELLE
CASE
 Alyssa
Michelle Case age 13, a native of Morgan City and resident of
Lafayette, murdered by a 15 year old. died May 29, 2002 mass of burial
was celebrated at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Morgan City; burial
was at St. Joseph Cemetery in Thibodaux daughter of Jean Cantrell and
Ron Rose; stepdaughter of Bert Cantrell; sister of Ashely Doiron,
Bobbie Case, Abbie Cantrell and Camron Case; granddaughter of Mary
Bouterie Breaux and Larry Case preceded in death by her grandparents,
Richard Joseph Bouterie and Linda Hebert Case seventh grade honor
student who loved reading and liked to dance and cheer Hargrave
Funeral Home of Morgan City


From the Foundry Blog of the Heritage
Foundation - Adult Time for Adult Crime: OFFEnder Samuel
Puebla

Defendant:
Samuel Puebla (17) Victim: Valerie Zavala
Crimes: First degree murder, attempted rape
and felony murder Crime date: January 1,
2003 in Fillmore, California
Summary Samuel Puebla
attempted to rape a college student whom he met at a party
and, when she resisted, beat her head and chest before
strangling her to death with his bare hands.
Facts Valerie Zavala
was an attractive 19-year-old student attending college in San
Jose, California. She had graduated from Fillmore High School
and was returning home to visit her family during the
Christmas and New Year’s break. On December 31, 2002, Zavala
attended a New Year’s Eve party at the home of a friend in
Fillmore. There she ran into Puebla, a senior at Fillmore High
School. At around 2 a.m., as the party was winding down,
Puebla asked Zavala for a ride home. Zavala agreed and offered
to drive an intoxicated female friend to her home, too. After
dropping off her friend, she set off for Puebla’s home. As
Zavala was driving, Puebla attempted to sexually assault her.
When Zavala resisted, Puebla choked her until she fell
unconscious for a short period of time. After she came to, she
managed to escape Puebla and ran. Puebla chased Zavala and
caught her in the parking lot of a nearby church. He struck
her head with such force that it ruptured her eardrum. Zavala
fell to the ground. Puebla ripped off her clothing, yanked out
her tampon, and attempted to rape her, without success. Zavala
struggled to defend herself, but Puebla struck her repeatedly
on the head, sat on her chest, and ultimately strangled her
with his hands. Puebla dumped Zavala’s body in a drainage
culvert, where a jogger found it the next morning. A search of
the crime scene produced Zavala’s earring, tampon, and
underwear. Trace, circumstantial, and biological evidence,
including DNA, connected Puebla to the crimes, and he was
convicted and sentenced to life without parole.
Her father wrote NOVJL to express his
concern that the offender in this case actually be made to
serve the life sentence that he earned.
Download his full story in testimony here.

CHAZ BETTENCOURT
Here is a
picture of my nephew Chaz. He was 21 at the time of his murder. He
and a friend had went to a local convenience store to purchase
some snacks. When they walked out of the store to their car they
were approached by 3 young men. 2 of the 3 suspects pulled out
guns and demanded the car keys. What happened next we have not
been told yet by the police, but Chaz's friend ran back into the
store to ask the clerk to call 911 when 2 shots rang out. The
friend then ran back outside to find Chaz on the ground having
been shot twice. Chaz died by the time the ambulance arrived.
Police identified the assailants, they are Daniel Pantoja 18,
Turlock Diaz 14 and Jah-Kari Phyall 15. All 3 are documented gang
members with several prior arrests. The irony in all of this is
Chaz planned on going to school to become a counselor to help the
exact kids who killed him.
Thank you for all for support,
Kevin Bettencourt


VICTIMS OF THE DC SNIPERS
The Memorial at Brookside
Gardens to the 11 murdered by "Juvenile Lifer" Lee Boyd Malvo and
his adult accomplice John Allen Muhammed in the Washington DC area
in 2002. Muhammed was executed in Virginia in 2009.
This a horrible reminder
that if offender advocates were to have their way and abolish the
life sentence for all teens, even those most violent - the truly
only "worst of the worst", it would include
Lee Boyd
Malvo.
Every one of these
families would have to spend every few years for the rest of their
lives, and into the lives of their children and grandchildren, in
some cases, going through the trauma of the parole process. Having
to travel, take off work, draw up petitions, talk to the media,
reopen wounds, stay constantly focused on the man who killed their
family members. These families deserve the peace of a life without
parole sentence, and the nation deserves to have Malvo stay behind
bars serving the life without parole sentence he earned by his
vicious crimes.
In Memory of the
Murdered and in Tribute to the Wounded (chronological):
James Martin 55 Deceased October 2, 2002 at
6:04 PM Wheaton, Maryland
James Buchanan 39 Deceased October 3, 2002 at
7:41 AM
Rockville, Maryland
Premkumar Walekar 54 Deceased October 3, 2002
at 8:12 AM
Aspen Hill, MD
Sarah Ramos 34 Deceased October 3, 2002 at 8:37
AM
Silver Spring, Maryland
Lori Ann Lewis-Rivera 25 Deceased October 3,
2002 at 9:58 AM Kensington, Maryland
Pascal Charlot 72 Deceased October 3, 2002 at
9:20 PM
Washington, D.C.
Caroline Seawell 43 Living October 4, 2002 at
2:30 PM
Spotsylvania, Virginia
Iran Brown 13 Living October 7, 2002 at 8:09 AM
Bowie, Maryland
Dean Harold Meyers 53 Deceased October 9, 2002
at 8:18 PM Manassas, Virginia
Kenneth Bridges 53 Deceased October 11, 2002 at
9:40 AM
Fredericksburg, Virginia
Linda Franklin 47 Deceased October 14, 2002 at
9:19 PM
Falls Church, Virginia
Jeffrey Hopper 37 Living October 19, 2002 at
8:00 PM
Ashland, Virginia
Conrad Johnson 35 Deceased October 22, 2002 at
5:55 AM
Oxon Hill, Maryland

And there are hundreds more .
. .
Names we do not know and are not being told, even
though millions of dollars have been spent to name, identify, and
communicate with and for their murderers.
The precious lives of these Victims - lost to
those who choose to commit murder -
causes more damage than most people can ever measure or understand.
These murders have left catastrophe in their wake, and have
ramifications that cause damage for a lifetime. And the toll is not
just on the family and friends - it has staggering costs for all in our
society.
For years and years and years after the first act of
horror - the killing continues to exact its toll.
A toll too large to measure.
We can only work with our every breath to remember and honor them by
working to make sure no one else has to go through what we have gone
through.
We want to give no more place to
their murderers in our lives.
They have lost the right to
walk among us.
We beg the leaders of our nation to give us, at the very least, legal
finality in these cases.
We have been through the trials, the
agony, and we deserve, at the very least, not to endure any more
torture. We want them to serve out their life in prison sentences, permanently
and anonymously. Some of us are praying that these offenders grow
to learn to be better human beings,
and that they dedicate their lives to helping others, from where they are,
working to make restitution to their victims and to society. Being
sorry is not enough. They can still save their souls. They can and
should work to redeem these tragedies,
as we also work to redeem these tragedies.
But all this they can
do while they serve their sentences. For even in prison they get to
live, love, learn, laugh, be with family, and experience pleasure and
joy. The killers owe us the rest of their lives.
Our loved ones are gone forever. The generations
that would have come from them are gone forever. All that they would
have accomplished in their lives is gone forever. All the ways they
would have touched and shaped the world and people around them is gone
forever. The love and light they added to the world is gone forever.
Our hearts are broken forever. |