Neighbors, family shocked at shooting death of 92-year-old Flint man

10-30-2012 Michigan:

FLINT, MI -- Police continue to investigate the shooting death Oct. 30 of a man believed to be the oldest homicide victim in recent memory.

Iris Gardner, 92, heard a knock on his door around 2:15 p.m. Tuesday at his home on Race Street near Myrtle Avenue, police said. When he opened the door, someone shot him once in the torso and fled the scene, police said. Police have no suspect information.

Flint Police Capt. T.P. Johnson said he can't remember an older homicide victim in his 27 years with the department.

"Obviously he was no threat to anyone," he said. "This was a random act of violence that did not have any rhyme or reason to it."

Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton said Gardner was one of the older homicide victims he's heard of during his time as prosecutor.

"It's terrible, just terrible," Leyton said. "It's very difficult to imagine how a 92-year- old was a threat to anyone."

Gardner's niece, Joann Cooper, 55, of Flint, said her family is shocked that her uncle would die that way.

"I never figured he would get gunned down in his own house," she said. "One part is anger, and the other part is grieving. It's like two emotions wrapped into one."

Detective Robert Dunham said police have very little information to go on and that the crime is disturbing.

"The worst thing about the whole thing is the people that did it aren't talking," he said. "They are out running the streets. If they are willing to kill a 92-year-old, who wouldn't they kill?"

Cooper said her uncle grew up during the Great Depression in a small town in Georgia. He would talk about being so poor that he had to walk to school in his bare feet during the winter, she said.

He came to Flint in the 1950s or 1960s and worked as a supervisor at a junkyard for 30 years, Cooper said. In his older age, he still remained active, continuing to drive, walk around in the neighborhood and do yard work, family said.

"If you would have saw him, you would have thought he was still 78," Cooper said.

He was a World War II veteran and a big fan of the Detroit Tigers who was excited about the team's recent playoff run.

Gardner did have a brush with the law. He was on the state sex offender registry for a 1993 conviction of misdemeanor criminal sexual conduct, fourth degree, according to records. He served 90 days in the Genesee County Jail. Cooper said his family maintains that he was innocent, and his accuser later recanted her story.

Neighbor Elois Thames, 26, said Gardner was a friendly man. She was upset that he would die in a violent manner.

"It's just senseless, he didn't bother anybody," she said.

Cooper said Gardner did not have any children and was the last surviving member of his siblings. Funeral arrangements are being handled at Lawrence E. Moon Funeral Home.

In the meantime, his family will continue to grieve his death.

"It's like somebody ripped out your heart and took it," Cooper said. ..Source.. by David Harris

Death Of Convicted Sex Offender Under Investigation In Otero County

10-14-2012 Colorado:

The body of a registered sex offender was found inside a home outside La Junta Friday night, prompting officials to begin an investigation into the circumstances around his death.

Byron Griffy, 76, was a funeral home director in Fowler, Colo. prior to his 2011 arrest for sexually assaulting a child. Court records indicate Griffy pleaded guilty to the charge, and was sentenced in May of this year. He was put on strict sex offender probation.

The Otero County Sheriff's Office is investigating Griffy's death as suspicious, but will not say if they believe his death is related to his sex assault conviction. The Colorado Bureau of Investigation assisted in processing the scene.

The Sheriff’s Office says an autopsy is scheduled for early next week by the El Paso County Coroner's Office. ..Source.. by KKTV.com

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Cause of death released, family of Byron Griffy want him remembered for his lifelong kindness

New details today in the death of a Fowler man.

We've learned that Byron Griffy died from a gunshot wound to his head.

We spoke to those at the Otero County Sheriff Office who are investigating along with the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.

Family members found Byron Griffy dead in a home on his farm one day before his 76th birthday.

"The circumstances surrounding the gunshot wound are still pending," said Otero County Sheriff Chris Johnson.

Griffy did plead guilty to attempted sexual assault on a child several months ago, but his family says too much focus has been placed on that.

"My sisters and I would like you to know that our father was a caring, compassionate, love man who spent his life taking care of others in their time of need," said Amy Griffy, Byron Griffy's youngest daughter.

Many in Fowler told us they always admired Griffy and do not believe he was guilty.

"God knows it," said JH McCuistion, a close friend of Griffy. "He knows the truth of this whole thing, and I feel the same way God does."

Close friends believe he only pled guilty for a lesser charge, so he would be able to see his family more often.

"There will never be anybody to change my mind that Byron Griffy was one of our greatest men to help in our community of Fowler," said McCuistion.

Griffy was described around town as a funeral director who was so giving, those who couldn't afford a funeral had one for free.

He was also President on the school board for many years and always sent a lot of flowers to people in town.

"I had a little surgery a time or two," said McCuistion. "You know, I didn't even tell him I was going to have it, but he found out and he brought me a plant."

Sheriff Johnson says nothing at this time connects Griffy's death to his recent plea.

"We're still investigating," said Sheriff Johnson. "It's still early in the investigation. We're talking to a lot of people." ..Source.. by Lacey Steele

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Man Pleads Not Guilty In Murder Of Convicted Sex Offender

5-3-2014:

A Canon City man has pleaded not guilty in death of a convicted sex offender.

Anthony Wright, 43, will go to trial in September for the 2012 death of former funeral home director Byron Griffy. An autopsy showed Griffy died from a gunshot wound to the head.

Griffy, 76, was a funeral home director in Fowler, Colo. prior to his 2011 arrest for sexually assaulting a child. Court records indicate Griffy pleaded guilty to the charge, and was sentenced in May the following year. He was put on strict sex offender probation.

He was found shot to death five months later.

Wright has maintained his innocence, pleading not guilty to first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree murder on Thursday. He is out on a $250,000 bail. Wright will go to trial in September.

Wright and Griffy knew each other through the funeral home business. ..Source.. by KKTV.com

Detective Says Pair Admitted To "Humiliation" Of "Old Man" For Allegedly Touching Child Inappropriately

8-21-2012 Georgia:

A city detective testified Tuesday that Jennifer Hatfield-Streeval, 32, and John E Moncier, 28, admitted to carrying out the "humilation" of "an old man" for allegedly inappropriately touching Ms. Hatfield-Streeval's daughter.

However, detective Luke Fuller said he talked with the child and she never mentioned being touched by 76-year-old Garner Isbill in the incident on March 18 at Motel 6, 7300 Lee Highway.

He said Ms. Hatfield-Streeval and Moncier admitted dragging the victim down a set of concrete steps and then stripping and beating him. He was found naked in a pool of blood. He later died in a hospital at Rome, Ga.

General Sessions Court Judge Christie Sell bound charges of criminal homicide, attempted first-degree murder and aggravated assault to the Grand Jury against the pair. They remain in custody.

Detective Fuller said Ms. Hatfield-Streeval told him that another woman at the scene informed her that Isbill had touched the daughter in a private area while she had gone down the hall to get an extra chair.

He said she stated that she punched him in the face, knocking him down. Then she dragged him out of the room and down the stairs before she and Moncier administered the kicking and stomping.

He said Ms. Hatfield-Streeval said his clothes were taken off to add to the "humiliation."

The detective said he found one of the victim's boots at the scene and it had blood on the sole. He said he inferred that it was also used in the attack.

He said Moncier also gave a statement and acknowledged helping carry out the beating.

The motel manager said he walked up and saw Moncier stomping the victim. He said he dialed 911.

Jody Hughan, girlfriend of Moncier who is pregnant with his child, said after she and Ms. Hatfield-Streeval returned with the chair, the girl told her that "she had been touched by the old man" between her legs. She said she relayed that information to Ms. Hatfield-Streeval and she told her to take the child off and she would "take care of the old man." She said she looked back and saw him being dragged down the stairs.

She said she later saw Moncier kicking the victim. She told him they should leave, and they headed for his brother's house in Cleveland, Tn. But she said they returned to the motel room when Ms. Hatfield-Streeval called and said everything was okay. She said the victim was still lying naked outside the motel when they returned. His clothes had been thrown nearby.

The witness said his face "was demolished" and he was breathing in an odd way.

Formerly of Bryant, Ala., Garner Isbill lived most of his life in Chattanooga and had lived the past year in Resaca, Ga. He was a United States Navy veteran having served during the Korean War.

Ms. Hughan said she knew him as a homeless man who was always drunk.

She said they were all drinking that night. She said another person who was with them, Brian Owings, was passed out on a bed and slept through the whole incident. ..Source.. by The Chattanoogan

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Charges Upgraded To Murder Against Pair After Garner Isbill Dies From Injuries

5-30-2012:

Investigators with the Chattanooga Police Department’s Homicide Unit have added the charge of criminal homicide against Jennifer Hatfield-Streeval, 32, and John E Moncier, 28.

They had previously been arrested for attempted first-degree murder and aggravated assault for the assault of 76-year-old Garner Isbill on March 18 at 7300 Lee Highway.

Mr. Isbill succumbed to his injuries last Wednesday.

Police said the couple beat the victim, then dragged him down some concrete steps.

He was found in a pool of blood.

Formerly of Bryant, Ala., Mr. Isbill lived most of his life in Chattanooga and had lived the past year in Resaca, Ga.

He was a United States Navy veteran having served during the Korean War.

Survivors include his two daughters, Yvonne (Jimmy) Trammell, of Resaca and Rhonda Isbill, of Ringgold; sister, Patricia Isbill, of LaFayette; brother, Edward Isbill, of Chattanooga; three grandchildren, Blane (Amber) Parton, Kris (Ashleigh) Parton, and Chelsea Isbill; and two great-grandchildren, Blake Parton and Destinie Parton; and several nieces and nephews.

He was buried at the Chattanooga National Cemetery with his daughter, Pastor Yvonne Trammell, officiating. ..Source.. by The Chattanoogan

Man who found Hanahan victim 'knew something wasn't right'

7-17-2012 South Carolina:

Hanahan — Roy Ray Bennett had been a victim of crime before.

Last week, a man was arrested on forgery charges after $10,000 worth of checks were cashed in Bennett's name.

And Bennett had been accused of crime, too.

He recently learned that prosecutors were pursuing a trial in his 2009 child pornography arrest.

But Bennett's son doesn't know why anyone would want to hurt the man, known by residents of his Otranto neighborhood as “Mr. Ray.” The retiree and Army veteran was found dead in his bed about 1 p.m. Sunday, his limbs bound with duct tape and a bag over his head, according to the person who discovered his body.

“Who kills a 71-year-old man?” Tim Bennett, a 47-year-old Columbia resident, said outside his father's home Monday. “I was just hoping he died in his sleep.

“I found out he was murdered instead. I thought he had passed peacefully.”

The Hanahan Police Department released few additional details Monday about the city's first homicide this year. Berkeley County Coroner Bill Salisbury said an autopsy Monday morning did not immediately indicate how he died and that toxicology tests might shed light on that.

Detectives found no sign of forced entry at Bennett's home at 2 Lombardi Lane and were still looking for his Toyota Tacoma pickup, which was thought to be stolen after the killing.

A neighbor who borrowed Bennett's lawn mower Sunday morning told The Post and Courier that he became suspicious when he spotted two men inside Bennett's Toyota. The neighbor said the men, who had been living with Bennett for a short time, scrambled back inside the house.

When the neighbor returned with the mower and to check on Bennett, he saw several empty bottles of alcohol on a counter. He walked through an unlocked door and found Bennett's body on the bed.

“He was a nice man, but he didn't let people take his truck,” said the neighbor, who cited fear of retribution in asking that his name be withheld. “I knew something wasn't right, but I didn't expect to find him in the state he was.”

Hanahan police Lt. Michael Fowler would not “confirm or deny” the account about how Bennett's body was found and said investigators still were looking for the Toyota. They intended to question several people but had developed no firm suspects, Fowler said.

At the request of the local police force, the State Law Enforcement Division was helping to run down leads and interview Bennett's acquaintances.

Neighbors said they recently saw several people from outside the community visiting the home. Some might have been staying there.

“There was a lot of traffic in and out of that house, but I can't go into details,” Fowler said. “Some of those people, we are desperately interested in talking to.”

Previous cases

Police officers knew of Bennett, though they did not visit the home frequently, according to Fowler.

An officer last spoke with him Friday, when Bennett said prosecutors were continuing to pursue the 2009 charge of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor.

That case was based on SLED agents' discovery of “visual materials” on his computer that showed children engaged in sex, according to a 2009 news release. He was accused of downloading and distributing the porn.

In letters to neighbors, he defended himself by saying someone else had put the images on his computer and used a peer-to-peer network to share them, according to his son.

On Friday, the Hanahan officer visited his house to follow up on an arrest that the North Charleston Police Department made July 10 in which a man was accused of forging 13 of Bennett's checks and cashing $9,800 worth.

The man, 39-year-old Harry Shane Dupree of Vine Street in Goose Creek, told police that a woman would forge Bennett's signature on the checks, then give them to Dupree to cash.

But Bennett refused to tell authorities about the activity because of his history with that woman, according to Dupree's statements to the police.

“(The woman) had been a neighbor of (Bennett),” Dupree said, according to an incident report. “While she was a child, (Bennett) had supposedly taken advantage of her that was criminal in nature.”

Fowler, the Hanahan lieutenant, would not say whether Bennett's past was connected to his slaying.

“The officer went there because someone was writing bad checks,” Fowler said. “But he ended up not wanting a report.”

'Had no enemies'

Though they were aware of the allegations against him, neighbors knew Bennett as a caring man who often would lend his possessions, such as power tools.

He was a skilled woodworker. He constructed much of his own furniture from cedar.

Children living in houses along his tree-lined, dead-end street often went for a swim in his backyard pool, including 18-year-old Cody Buehrer.

“If anyone here needed anything, he was the one who did it,” said Buehrer, a next-door neighbor of Bennett's for seven years. “This cul-de-sac is losing a good man.”

A native of Raleigh, Bennett graduated from North Carolina State University in the 1960s, his son said. He then spent two years in the Army, a requirement of his involvement with the school's ROTC program.

After serving a tour in Germany during the Vietnam War, he moved to Hanahan with his wife and only child. The couple later divorced.

He worked his entire career as an electrical engineer at the MeadWestvaco paper plant in North Charleston, where he retired during the last decade.

“He kept to himself, but he liked piddling in the yard and the garden. That was his life,” said his son, who last saw Bennett on Christmas, when they ate sugar cookies and exchanged gifts. “He always had his garden of tomatoes and corn.”

Tim Bennett said his father's Sunday newspaper had been retrieved from the yard and was on his living room couch, where he read it religiously each week. Nothing in the house seemed disturbed, though his wallet was missing.

“I'm just in a numb state right now,” Tim Bennett said. “He had no enemies.” ..Source.. by Andrew Knapp

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Hanahan homicide victim was charged for child porn in 2009

7-14-2012 South Carolina:

HANAHAN, S.C. (WCIV) -- A person is dead in the Otranto area of Hanahan, and police investigators believe foul play was involved.

The victim has been identified as 71-year-old Roy Bennett. An autopsy will be conducted today to determine the cause of death. Officials say his body was found by a neighbor.

ABC News 4 spoke with Lt. Fowler with Hanahan Police this morning who said Bennett was killed between 6:30 and 10 a.m. Sunday morning.

Fowler says investigators continue to believe that Bennett knew the suspect because there was no sign of struggle. He says there were many people coming and going from the house.

According to SLED records, Bennett was charged with felony first degree sexual exploitation of a minor back in April of 2009. SLED filed those charges when investigators reported they found pornographic images of minors on Bennett's computer.

Fowler does not believe the suspect in Bennett's death was connected to the 2009 incident.

The Berkeley County Coroner's Office released a statement Monday saying an autopsy was conducted and the results are pending.

"We will be awaiting the results of toxicology test before a final cause of death can be determined," said Coroner Bill Salisbury.

Police have asked for the public's help in this investigation by locating a 2009 Toyota Tacoma taken from the home. The truck is Silver and has a license tag number of CBP-692.

Lt. Fowler said the homicide is the first in Hanahan for 2012. ..Source.. by WCIV.TV

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Arrests made in Hanahan killing

7-20-2012:

Roy Bennett may have been killed over money.

Hanahan police arrested three people Thursday night in connection with the 71-year-old's death, saying that's what drove them to go to his home over the weekend.

Brittany Lynn Swagner, 24; Robert Andrew McFadden, 24; and Robert Randolph Clark, 39, are charged with murder, according to Lt. Michael Fowler of the Hanahan Police Department.

Police believe Bennett was killed Sunday, between 6:30 a.m., when he picked up his newspaper from his Lombardi Lane home, and 1 p.m., when a neighbor found him dead in his bedroom.

The three accused in Bennett's slaying were living in area motels and didn't have permanent residences, Fowler said. They're being held in the Berkeley County jail and are scheduled for a bond hearing at 11:30 a.m. today.

Goose Creek police also will charge McFadden with possession of a stolen motor vehicle, Fowler said.

Additional charges may follow, Fowler said, as police continue their investigation.

McFadden was spotted in surveillance footage abandoning Bennett's 2009 Toyota Tacoma in the Goose Creek Walmart parking lot and walking toward a nearby Murphy USA gas station, Fowler said.

The State Law Enforcement Division scoured the truck for clues Wednesday and found fingerprints, and investigators examined surveillance video from Walmart and the gas station.

McFadden ditched the pickup in the far reaches of the Walmart camera's range, Fowler said, but police analyzed the gas station's footage Thursday and were able to capture “a really good view” of him.

A North Charleston police officer recognized McFadden in that image and knew where he hung out, Fowler said. He was arrested and helped lead police to Swagner, then to Clark.

“Everything really got rolling after we found that truck,” Fowler said.

From interviews, police also learned that the three took guns from Bennett's home, and Fowler said Clark and McFadden stole duct tape from Walmart before Bennett's death.

The neighbor found Bennett's body with duct tape around his arms and legs and a bag over his head after he returned a lawn mower he had borrowed.

Fowler said late Thursday that police are confident that they have found the three people who were at Bennett's home in the Otranto neighborhood Sunday. They haven't ruled out the possibility of other related arrests.

“The real work has just begun,” Fowler said. “It's entirely conceivable that once they realize they're charged with murder that they might be forthcoming with even more information.”

Early in their search, investigators said they hadn't found signs of forced entry in Bennett's home, leading them to think he knew his killers.

Fowler said police think Clark and Bennett knew each other “in some form or fashion.”

All three knew that Bennett had money, and police say that was the trio's motive.

Bennett's money had been exploited previously, authorities said.

On July 10, a North Charleston man was charged with forging 13 checks totaling nearly $10,000 in his name. He worked with a woman who was not charged. She was “supposedly blackmailing” Bennett over an incident from her childhood, according to a police report.

Bennett “had supposedly taken advantage of her (in a way) that was criminal in nature,” the report said.

Whether those cases are related is not clear. “We haven't made any connection as of yet to North Charleston's arrest last week,” Fowler said.

Bennett was charged in 2009 with second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor. He was accused of downloading and distributing child pornography and had been recently told that prosecutors were pursuing a trial.

An autopsy Monday didn't indicate how Bennett died, and toxicology tests are still pending. Those usually take two to three weeks to complete, said Berkeley County Coroner Bill Salisbury. ..Source.. by Thad Moore

Dad pleads guilty in beating death of suspected molester

Posted in Related Deaths

10-4-2006 Delaware:

A man pleaded guilty Wednesday to criminally negligent homicide for beating to death [4-17-2006] a 77-year-old man he believed had molested his young daughter. Robert Fontanez Jr., 27, had faced the more serious charge of second-degree murder in the April death of Bismark Vasquez before agreeing to the plea. He faces up to five years in prison at sentencing, expected early next year.

According to police, Fontanez became enraged when his 5-year-old daughter told him that Vasquez had touched her inappropriately. He went to Vasquez's home and punched him so hard that the older man went through the back door, police said. Investigators said Fontanez continued to beat Vasquez as he lay bleeding on the concrete outside. Vasquez died in a hospital three days later.

Police detective Scott Chaffin said there was no physical evidence to support the molestation allegation, though he said the child's comments to police were consistent with what she had told her mother. In a similar case in Fairfield, Connecticut, a man was charged with stabbing to death a 58-year-old neighbor in August whom he had suspected of molesting his 2-year-old daughter. ..more.. by Associated Press

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9 Months for Killing Molestation Suspect

1-5-2007 Delaware:

WILMINGTON, Del. -- A man was sentenced to nine months in prison Friday for beating to death a 77-year-old man he believed had molested his 5-year-old daughter.

Robert Fontanez Jr. pleaded guilty last year to killing Bismark Vasquez. Police have said that although there was no physical evidence to support his daughter's allegations that Vasquez had fondled her, the account she gave police was consistent with what she had told her family.

In April, an infuriated Fontanez punched Vasquez so hard that Vasquez went through the back door of his home. Fontanez punched him several more times as he lay bleeding on the concrete outside, police said.

Fontanez, 27, of Elsmere, had been charged with second-degree murder but pleaded guilty to criminally negligent homicide.

Superior Judge Joseph Slights III sentenced Fontanez to far less than the maximum five years, telling him, "The circumstances surrounding this crime were taken into consideration by the state" and the court. ..more.. by The Associated Press

Opening statements to begin in mistaken identity murder trial

The choice of "mistaken identity" in the title implies that, if the neighbor WAS a RSO it would be OK to kill him. Poor choice of words..

4-5-2012 florida:

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Opening statements are expected to begin Thursday in the trial of an Orange County man accused of a mistaken identity murder.

Prosecutors said Michael Garay and another man killed his 79-year-old neighbor because he thought he was a sexual offender.

It's been two years since investigators say that Garay and his friend Robert Pascale beat 79-year-old Hugh Edwards to death.

After Pascale was caught by deputies hiding in the mud, he even admitted to his role in the alleged crime to WFTV.

"What did you do to him?" WFTV asked.

"I hit him twice with a bat. That was it," replied Pascale.

Investigators said Garay and Pascale were drunk and angry when they attacked Edwards, who they thought was a sex offender, but it turns out he was not.

Pascale hit Edwards with the bat and then threw it into the woods, police said.

Detectives also said that both of them also disposed of bloody clothes, information the prosecution is expected to share.

Pascale will face a judge later in a separate trial.

At one point on Wednesday Garay wanted to defend himself. WFTV found out that is because he tried to fire his defense attorney. But Judge Mike Murphy ruled that Garay's arguments were not legally sufficient.

Prosecutors offered Garay a plea deal, which would put him in prison for 33 years, but he turned it down and now he's facing life behind bars if convicted.

WFTV will have a crew in the courtroom before opening statements begin at 8:30 a.m. ..Source.. by wftv9.com

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Trial starts in elderly man's baseball bat beating death

4-11-2012 Florida:

One of two men charged in the killing of an elderly Bithlo resident beaten to death almost two years ago faces trial this week in Orlando on a murder charge.

Deputies found Hugh Edwards, 78, dead in a trailer in Bithlo on May 12, 2010, after a woman who lived nearby called to report she thought two men she knew had killed him.

She had been drinking with Michael Garay, 33, and Robert Pascale, 22, an arrest report states, when Garay asked her what she would do if she lived "next to a sex offender."

Her response, the report states: I would kill him.

Soon after the conversation, the woman told deputies, she saw the two men enter Edwards' trailer and heard thumping sounds coming from inside.

An arrest report states the men later ditched a baseball bat used to beat Edwards and their bloody clothes in a wooded area. Edwards, records show, was not a sex offender.

Garay's trial began Wednesday with jury selection before Circuit Judge Mike Murphy. Opening statements are expected early Thursday. ..Source.. by Jeff Weiner, Orlando Sentinel

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Man convicted in Bithlo baseball bat murder

4-12-2012:

After a trial that lasted several days, a jury today returned a murder conviction for Michael Garay, one of two men accused in the beating death of an elderly Bithlo man almost two years ago.

The jury began deliberating about noon Wednesday, and returned its verdict this morning. Garay was also convicted of accessory after the fact. He faces life in prison.

Hugh Edwards, 78, was found dead in a trailer in Bithlo in May 2010. Garay and co-defendant Robert Pascale are accused of beating him to death with a Louisville Slugger.

According to testimony, the men mistakenly thought Edwards was a child molester.

Before deliberations, Prosecutor William Jay showed the jury Edwards' driver license.

"This was a senseless beating of a little old man," Jay told jurors. "Why? Because a few people thought he was a sex offender."

Jay described the injuries suffered by Edwards before showing jurors a photo of his bloody corpse, collapsed on a broken, overturned tabletop on the floor of his trailer.

"He was struck with a bat hard enough that his head actually caved in," Jay said.

The defense, however, argued that the state failed to prove not only that Garay had a hand in Edwards' killing, but that Garay was even in Edwards' trailer.

Garay's defense lawyer, Joseph Haynes Davis, told the jury that it was Pascale that killed Edwards. Any actions Garay took, Davis said, were for fear of Pascale.

It remains unclear why the men suspected that Edwards, who had no criminal history, was a molester.

During the trial, jurors heard multiple witness accounts of the night of the killing, as well as DNA and other forensic evidence. Pascale is currently awaiting trial on a murder charge. ..Source.. by Jeff Weiner, Orlando Sentinel

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Bithlo man guilty of beating 78-year-old man to death

7-19-2012:

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — A Bithlo man will spend the rest of his life in prison for beating to death a 78-year-old man he mistakenly thought was a sex offender

Robert Pascale, 22, had no reaction on Friday as the judge read the “guilty of first-degree murder’’ verdict in the 2010 slaying of Hugh Edwards. The sentence carries a mandatory life sentence.

Prosecutors said Pascale and Michael Garay, who had previously been convicted, beat Edwards to death with a baseball bat in May 2010 because they thought he was a sex offender.

On Friday, paramedics had to be called to Orange County Courthouse after Ruth Pascale, the defendant’s mother, was overcome with emotion and collapsed on the courtroom floor. She did manage to walk out of the courthouse on her own.

Moments after the verdict, Robert Pascale said as he was being led away, "It's not over until God says it is. I'm still coming home."

Prosecutor William Jay emphasized during closing arguments that Pascale admitted several times, including in an interview aired on WFTV, that he beat Edwards with a baseball bat.

Pascale’s attorney, Roger Weeden, argued that his client was only guilty of aggravated assault and not premeditated murder. Weeden said Pascale chose not to testify in his own defense because prosecutors could have then asked him about his prior felony convictions for robbery, battery and grand theft.

Garay is already serving a life sentence. ..Source.. by WFTV.com

Fort Worth shooting suspect identified as accused 70- year-old sex offender

7-14-2011 Texas:

Fort Worth Police are investigating a shooting involving their force on Tuesday around 7p.m.

Officers shot and killed a fugitive child sex offender from Georgia after they said he pulled a gun on them.

Fort Worth officers were assisting a US Marshal's Fugitive Task Force.

They tried to talk the man out of a home in the 2000 block of Williams Place in North Fort Worth.

The man is identified as 70-year-old Robert Nabors.

Georgia authorities wanted Nabors for sexual assault of a child and enticing a child.

Witnesses said police surrounded the home and tried to talk Nabors out for about an hour.

Police said Nabors finally came out the back of the house, and pulled a handgun on officers.

Investigators are still looking into whether the man shot at officers who were armed with assault rifles and fired multiple shots.

Some witnesses tell news 8 the man was heard yelling that he would not go back to prison. ..Source.. by JIM DOUGLAS

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Fort Worth police investigate fatal shooting of sex offender suspect

Fort Worth police are investigating a fatal shooting Tuesday evening involving multiple officers.

Witnesses said they heard many rapid-fire gunshots as a stand-off with an accused sex offender ended in a sheet of bullets from police rifles.

"They just said, 'Get your hands out of your pockets! Get your hands up in the air where we can see them!'" recalled Mickey Canchola. "He said, 'No, I'm not going back.' He was really calm."

It happened just over Canchola's back fence on Williams Place in north Fort Worth. Police said 70-year-old Robert Nabors refused to surrender when U.S. Marshals tried to arrest him.

They had tracked Nabors from Georgia, where he was accused of molesting a young girl several years ago. The girl made a recent outcry.

The marshals requested help from Fort Worth police, who surrounded the house and spoke with Nabors through a loudspeaker.

After more than an hour, police said he emerged from the back door and raised a handgun toward officers. Police said they are still investigating whether he fired the first shot.

"He was just calm and saying, 'I'm not going back to jail, I'm not going back,'" Canchola said. "And they're like, 'Don't make this hard.'"

Records show Nabors had multiple arrests in Georgia on methamphetamine charges, and a marijuana charge from Tarrant County in the late 90s.

It's not clear how long Nabors had been living in Fort Worth, but police in Georgia said he was in that state as recently as last month. ..Source.. by JIM DOUGLAS

Senior found strangled and beaten identified as Robert Moncrief, 65

9-28-2010 Ohio:

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Cuyahoga County coroner's office has identified the man found dead Friday at a public-housing high-rise at East 13th Street and Superior Avenue in Cleveland.

Robert Moncrief, 65, was asphyxiated with a ligature and beaten on the head, according to Cuyahoga County Coroner Frank Miller.

Police have not released information about the investigation.

Moncrief, who lived at the Ernest J. Bohn Tower, was the second older man discovered killed in eight days at Cleveland subsidized housing for seniors.

On Aug. 26, the body of 87-year-old Phillip Gossett was found in his fifth-floor apartment in Lupica Towers on Community College Avenue. He, too, was beaten and strangled.

Gossett's case remains under investigation. Police said they do not believe the homicides are connected. ..Source.. by Amanda Garrett, The Plain Dealer

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Further research on Robert Moncrief

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Notice that Amanda Garrett (Reporter from the Plain Dealer [see above]), in response to a comment from Born2Hang [below, copied from comments following article], admitted she knows that Robert Moncrief was a registered sex offender. Accordingly this qualifies for our blog.

Comment by: Born2Hang on 9-4:

Question: Was his muder in any way related to the fact that Moncrief is a registred sex offender from some 1989 sex crimes against children in Alabama?

"THE VICTIMS WERE HIS DAUGHTERS AND STEPDAUGHTER AGES 8,10,12.SENTENCED TO 3 YEARS IN PRISON AND 7 1/2 YEARS IN PAROLE. " See the sex offender list at either the Cuyahoga County Sheriff web site, or the list at the Ohio Attorney General's site called eSORN.

his description: "GLASSES; SCAR - on throat; SCAR ON BACK - lower back; DENTURES, UPPER; TATTOO ON LEFT ARM - upper arm a little devil w/'raise hell"; TATTOO ON LEFT ARM - lower arm a black panther; TATTOO ON RIGHT ARM - inside lower park of arm a naked woman; DEAF IN RIGHT EAR"

His classification: "(Pre AWA) Habitual Sex Offender With Notification"

Did he harm someone else's child? Did a past vitcim come after him?

It seems pretty personal when someone is strangled to death. But, then again, the other senior citizen was strangled, too, so maybe it is someone preying on these senior citizens' homes. I just thought it was interesting that a habitual sex offender who victimized kids met this fate, and wondered if someone was out for revenge against him.

Obviously no one has to a right to murder someone for their past crimes.

Comment by Amanda Garrett, The Plain Dealer:

FYI: I am aware of his criminal history and had already posed this question to both police and CMHA. Moreover, I have asked whether felons and/or sex offenders are eligible for CMHA housing. I am awaiting those answers.

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Later article on who was arrested for Robert Moncrief's murder

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Bank robbery suspect Lateeshia Scott charged with murder of Robert Moncrief

CLEVELAND -- A 32-year-old Cleveland woman suspected of robbing four area banks is now accused of murdering a 65-year-old man who was found dead in his apartment earlier this month.

Lateeshia Scott has been charged with the murder of Robert Moncrief at his 12th-floor apartment at the Ernest J. Bohn Tower, 1300 Superior Ave., according to Cleveland police.

Moncrief was found on Sept. 3. He had been strangled and beaten on the head, according to the Cuyahoga County coroner's office.

Scott appeared in Cleveland Municipal Court on Monday. Bond was set at $4 million.

Scott was wanted for robbing a U.S. Bank on West 25th Street on Sept. 4, a Key Bank branch on Broadway on Sept. 14, a Key Bank branch on West 25th on Sept. 17 and a Charter One Bank branch on Euclid Avenue on Sept. 20.

According to court documents, Scott has been charged with only one count of aggravated robbery at this point.

Police arrested Scott at a four-suite building on East 83rd Street on Sept. 22. She was found hiding behind a washer and dryer in a laundry room.

Scott told authorities at the time of her arrest that she was seven months pregnant and was high on crack cocaine, according to Deputy U.S. Marshal Brian Koerbel. ..Source.. by Tonya Sams, The Plain Dealer

FL- Mom who shot man she thought abused her daughter is ready for prison

10-16-2009 Florida:

Sylvia Neeley believed her Land O'Lakes neighbor was molesting her 12-year-old mentally disabled daughter. She said he even bragged that he could do it again. She told the authorities, but they never charged him with anything — even though one investigator said he may have done it. So, on May 24, 1998, Neeley pumped Arthur Danner full of bullets. Swimming in a haze of beer and Valium, she fired into his chest, then reloaded and took aim at his groin.

Thursday morning, she stood before a judge in Dade City, her last stop on her way to state prison.

"I'm very sorry for the crime I committed," said Neeley, 48, who wore a black suit and heels. "I just felt like no one was helping my daughter."

The price of Neeley's crime is separation from the daughter who still needs her.

Jenny, who is now 23 but still has the mind of a child, will have to live in a group home until her mother gets out in about five years.

• • •

Neeley doesn't offer any excuses for what she did, but her life took a destructive course long before she confronted Danner.

She grew up in Tampa with three siblings and a single mom who struggled to provide. She dropped out of school after eighth grade. As a young teenager, she started using marijuana, then alcohol, then pills. By the time she was 15, Neeley had been everywhere from California to New York to New Orleans, hitching rides in the cars and truck beds of strangers.

"I always ran," she said recently. "It wasn't until years of being sober that I realized you take the same person with you."

Once, she said, a guy in a four-wheel-drive truck picked her up on Florida Avenue in Tampa, gave her beer, drove her to Morris Bridge Road and raped her. Then he dropped her at her boyfriend's house.

She worked as a stripper and a prostitute and has a history of minor arrests from disorderly conduct to DUI.

She had her first daughter at 17, and another 11 months later. The younger is married and raising three kids; the older is addicted to painkillers, her own four children scattered.

When Jenny was born, Neeley could tell she was different from her other girls. At 6 months old, the baby had several seizures and nearly died.

Jenny was diagnosed as high-functioning but developmentally delayed. She likes to fish and play cards and talks about having kids of her own, but she lacks the maturity of an adult and cannot care for herself.

• • •

Arthur Danner was a friend and Land O'Lakes neighbor to Sylvia Neeley, whose last name then was Maraman. Danner became a father figure to a woman who had never had one.

But Neeley gradually grew suspicious of Danner, 73, who she says was obsessed with Jenny, heaping gifts on her and chastising Neeley for disciplining her.

In early 1998, a family friend told Neeley he walked into a troubling scene in Danner's mobile home: Jenny was on the floor. Danner was on a couch naked from the waist up; the rest of his body under a blanket.

Neeley reported the incident to state child welfare authorities and the Pasco County Sheriff's Office. The agencies investigated, but two months passed and no charges were filed.

Marilyn Loper, a counselor with the Department of Children and Families, told Neeley there was some evidence Danner may have abused her daughter, but not enough to press criminal charges.

"I said, 'It's likely. It's not 100 percent, but it's quite likely that he will indeed get away (with) it,' " Loper later testified at Neeley's trial. "So it's your job to make sure that he doesn't bother your child anymore.' "

In the meantime, Neeley said, Danner was harassing her with constant phone calls. One night, she couldn't take it anymore. She confronted him in his trailer, and when he admitted his acts, she said, she walked home and grabbed a .357-caliber gun that belonged to her ex-husband. Danner sat on the couch as Neeley, who had never fired a gun before, squeezed the trigger again and again.

She was drunk and stoned and doesn't remember much else.

Neeley was convicted in 2000 of second-degree murder and sentenced to 25 years, but won a new trial on appeal. Two weeks ago she pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter, and on Thursday she was sentenced to 10 years in prison. She will probably serve about half that because of time credited from her previous conviction.

• • •

Neeley moved Jenny into a group home in Riverview, near Neeley's mother's house, a few weeks ago. Jenny has her own bedroom with her name on the wall, stuffed animals from home and a metal replica of her Dalmatian, Perdita, who recently died. She can have visitors anytime.

Jenny says she hates her new home, but she understands why she's there and why her mother's going to prison. She remembers what happened.

"He used to touch me down there all the time," she said.

Neeley is as ready as she can be for prison. For the first time in years, she says she's clean. She had a new Bible with her when she went to prison Thursday.

The only part about going to prison that splinters Neeley's tough shell is the thought of her daughter, who can't keep track of days, going weeks without hearing from her mother.

As they visited earlier this week at the group home, Jenny was in a sullen mood. She rolled her eyes and gave her mother attitude as Neeley henpecked.

But when talk turned to prison, Jenny buried her face and clung tightly to Neeley's waist.

"You're a grown woman now, why you going to cry?" Neeley asked.

" 'Cause I know you're leaving," Jenny said.

Neeley stroked her hair and tried to stay composed.

"As long as I know you're okay, I'm okay," she told her daughter, and herself. ..source.. by Molly Moorhead, Times Staff Writer

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Pasco mother heads to prison for shooting daughter's alleged abuser

10-15-2009 Florida:

DADE CITY — Sylvia Neeley, dressed in a black suit and high heels, turned herself in this morning to begin serving her prison sentence for killing a man a decade ago who she believed was molesting her mentally retarded daughter.

Neeley, 48, shot Arthur Danner on May 24, 1998, in his Land O'Lakes mobile home. She told authorities he had boasted about sexually abusing her daughter, then 12, and said he could do it again. Stoned on beer and painkillers, she went to her home next door, grabbed a gun, returned to Danner's trailer and unloaded into his chest.

Then she reloaded and fired at his groin.

Neeley had reported the suspected abuse three months earlier to authorities. The Pasco County Sheriff's Office and child welfare workers investigated, but they had not found enough evidence to charge Danner, 73, with anything.

She told Circuit Judge Pat Siracusa in court this morning that she wished Danner had been arrested.

"I'm very sorry for the crime I committed," she said through tears. "I just felt like no one was helping my daughter."

One Department of Children and Families counselor, Marilyn Loper, had testified at Neely's trial that their investigation found some evidence Danner may have abused her daughter, but there probably wasn't enough to press criminal charges.

"She said, 'You mean he is going to get away with this?' " Loper testified. "I said, 'It's likely. It's not 100 percent, but it's quite likely that he will indeed get away (with) it. So it's your job to make sure that he doesn't bother your child any more.' "

Neeley was convicted of the killing once at trial in 2000, but an appeals court found that the judge had made errors and granted her a new trial. She has been out on bail since December 2002.

With her new trial looming, Neeley instead pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison, but will be credited for the more than four years she has already spent behind bars.

Siracusa gave her two weeks before today's sentencing to get her affairs in order and move her daughter, now 23, into a group home.

Neeley said before the hearing that she visited her daughter at the home this morning.

As she was led away in handcuffs, she carried a Bible, glasses case and small book of photos. Her family sat a few rows away, crying.

"I'm heartbroken, absolutely heartbroken," said her mother, Frances Hayman. "She was my wild child, but she's still my child." ..Source.. by Molly Moorhead, Times Staff Writer

AZ- Officials discuss motives in slaying of 3 in Ariz.

10-1-2009 Arizona:

ST. JOHNS, Ariz. — An Arizona man who confessed to killing three people and pronounced himself a serial killer told authorities he committed the crimes because one man shot a dog, he didn't want the second to hurt anyone else and his attempts to get a 16-year-old off drugs failed.

William Inmon of Springerville faces prison sentences of 25 years to life on each of three counts of first-degree murder. Authorities said the 21-year-old's killing spree started in April 2007 with 72-year-old William "Stoney" McCarragher, continued with 60-year-old Daniel Achten nearly two years later and ended with the death of teenager Ricky Flores in August.

Inmon pleaded guilty to the murders on Wednesday.

Apache County Attorney Michael Whiting said Thursday that Inmon's overwhelming motive in the murders was that he wanted to rid society of less-than-desirable people. He told authorities he would have continued his vigilante killing spree had he not been caught.

Authorities said Thursday that money and guns also were motives.

Inmon's attorney, Albert Lassen said in a statement Thursday that his client agreed to cooperate with authorities only if the death penalty was taken off the table. Prosecutors agreed.

McCarragher was the first known of Inmon's victims, but authorities say they are investigating whether he might be involved in at least two other murders.

McCarragher lived on a small rural ranch outside of St. Johns and was known to carry large amounts of money, sometimes thousands of dollars. In court documents, those interviewed by investigators said McCarragher was a "potty mouth" and was rough on kids. He also had a criminal history of sex offenses under an alias, according to court documents.

Inmon, who was considered a potential suspect at the time, denied fatally shooting McCarragher and said, "the whole town is suspect because a lot of people did not care for Stoney."

Inmon recently confessed to the murder, saying he did not want McCarragher to violate anyone else.

Achten, who had been missing for five months before his remains were discovered in a shallow grave on his rural property outside of St. Johns last week, was a Vietnam veteran who locals said couldn't hear well. He was known to some as "Hummer Dan," because he was constantly humming, Apache County sheriff's Sgt. Richard Guinn said.

The gangly Inmon told authorities that Achten used drugs, shot his longtime dog and generally mistreated people, so he believed he had a duty to rid society of him.

Authorities said Inmon was proud of committing the murders of Achten and McCarragher, but was remorseful about the death of Flores, whom he killed with a single shotgun blast.

Springerville Police Chief Steve West said Inmon initially claimed that Flores' had threatened him with a firearm and he acted in self-defense. He eventually confessed and broke down in tears — one of only three moments when he showed real emotion, West said.

Inmon told authorities he wanted Flores to change his life, and authorities believe drugs were the issue.

The latest confessions are likely to further shake up the tiny town of St. Johns where violent killings had been rare. Last November, a then 8-year-old was charged with fatally shooting his father and his father's roommate. He pleaded guilty to the roommate's death and prosecutors dropped charges against him in his father's death. The boy, now 9, is awaiting sentencing. ..Source.. by FELICIA FONSECA

CA- Homicide Victim A Registered Sex Offender

All stories kept saying "Police believed Keeley's background had nothing to do with his death." However, when the killer was apprehended he used the registry to find Keeley! BINGO, the police do not want to tarnish the image of the registry, knowing it is harmful to registrants..

8-12-2009 California:

Edward Vaughn Keeley, the victim of an apparent homicide in North Palm Springs, was a registered sex offender. Keeley, who was found dead in his back yard Monday, is registered on the California Megan's Law web site as a sex offender. He was convicted of lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14.

Mike Keeley, his son, says he was not a predator but said he had gotten involved with the young daughter of an ex back in the1980s.

The Riverside County Sheriff's department says there is no indication Keeley's criminal past had anything to do with his death. Deputies have released few details beyond that. They are investigating the case as a homicide.

Given they have no idea what the motive was, why specifically jump to this reasoning, others are also possible? One possible answer -which runs through these deaths- is, that law enforcement does not want to damage the image of the registry as a motive, lest it be taken down. We will watch for further reports...

"He was beaten pretty bad," Mike said. Mike did not know what murder weapon was used. Deputies have not released that information.

Keeley's family, who was visiting his ranch Wednesday, said he lived alone but often took in homeless people and drug abusers.

"He would see someone walking down the street, bring them in, get them job, get them work," said Troy Tehart, Keeley's son-in-law.

Tehart said Keeley had someone living on his ranch at the time of his death. That person, a contractor who had recently lost his job and home, had found his body. The contractor wasn't available for comment.

Mike Keeley said his father's home was ransacked and his car was found burned nearby. Mike said his father didn't have many valuables so it's hard to imagine why anyone would kill him.

"He buys a lot of yard sale stuff to build this place so it's not like he had cash or anything," Mike said.

Edward Vaugh Keeley was found dead Monday afternoon in the back yard of his home at 64600 block of 16th Ave. ..Source.. by Kimberly Cheng, KPSP Local 2 News

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Man, 75, found dead in own backyard; homicide suspected

The death of a 75-year-old man found in the backyard of his North Palm Springs home is being investigated as a homicide, investigators said Tuesday.

The body of Edward Vaughn Keeley was discovered about 5 p.m. Monday at 64-635 16th Ave. in an unincorporated area of Riverside County, Sheriff's Deputy Herlinda Valenzuela said.

The coroner is performing an autopsy to determine cause of death.
No arrests have been made.

Valenzuela released no further information, such as why investigators believe the death is a homicide.

The man's home is on a gravel road in a sparsely populated area just north of Dillon Road.

Investigators were in the area Tuesday interviewing neighbors.

“He's my ex,” said Teddy Jones, sitting in a car parked near the home.

“We talk and see each other all the time,” she said.

Jones said she had been in a relationship with the man for about 16 years. She moved out and into a home next door about five years ago, she said.

Jones, who said she was questioned by investigators, was waiting in a car in front of her home while her son was being interviewed.

Jones described the man as a “putterer” and said he volunteered at the Desert Hot Springs Senior Center.

“He had lunch there every day,” she said.

Keeley is a registered sex offender on the Megan's Law Web site. According to registration information, he was convicted of lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14.

``There is no information to suggest that he was murdered because he is
a registrant,'' Valenzuela said.

The sheriff's department asks anyone with information about the homicide to contact the Central Homicide Unit Investigator Joshua Button at (760) 393-3500 or Palm Desert station investigator Robert Garcia at (760) 836-1600. ..Source.. by Denise Goolsby • The Desert Sun

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Accused Sex Offender Gunman Pleads 'Not Guilty'

2-10-2010 California:

INDIO - A reputed drug dealer accused, along with another man, in the death of a convicted sex offender in North Palm Springs pleaded not guilty today to a murder charge.

Travis Martin Cody, 27, faces one count of first-degree murder and two special circumstance allegations -- committing a murder during a robbery and a burglary -- in the Aug. 10 death of Edward Vaughn Keeley, whose body was found in his back yard in the 64000 block of 16th Avenue.

Cody was in state prison on an unrelated offense and was transported on Feb. 5 to the Indio Jail for prosecution.

Also accused in Keeley's death is self-avowed white supremacist Steven Banister, 28, who is accused of using California's Megan's Law registry to track down Keeley.

Banister also faces the same special circumstance allegations, which make both men eligible for the death penalty if convicted. Prosecutors will decide later in the case whether to seek capital punishment for the defendants.

Both men are due in court on Feb. 18 for a felony settlement conference.

Banister was released from prison less than a month before Keeley's death, according to a declaration filed in support of an arrest warrant.

Keeley's address was listed as the home of a convicted sex offender on a publicly accessible database created as a result of Megan's Law, said sheriff's Investigator Josh Button, who prepared the declaration.

Banister reportedly bragged in prison that he planned on assaulting homosexuals, rapists and pedophiles, according to Button. He allegedly used Megan's Law to target pedophiles and sex offenders for his burglaries.

Banister told his girlfriend that he had gotten into a fight with an old man, but did not know if the victim was dead or not, according to Button.

After Keeley's death, Banister went to Tennessee, where he was arrested in December.

Cody, who is being held without bail, told his mother and girlfriend in recorded jail conversations that he was at Keeley's home during the murder, Button wrote. ..Source.. by KESQ.com News Services

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Accused Sex Offender Gunman Pleads 'Not Guilty'

2-14-2010 California:

INDIO - A reputed drug dealer accused, along with another man, in the death of a convicted sex offender in North Palm Springs pleaded not guilty today to a murder charge.

Travis Martin Cody, 27, faces one count of first-degree murder and two special circumstance allegations -- committing a murder during a robbery and a burglary -- in the Aug. 10 death of Edward Vaughn Keeley, whose body was found in his back yard in the 64000 block of 16th Avenue.

Cody was in state prison on an unrelated offense and was transported on Feb. 5 to the Indio Jail for prosecution.

Also accused in Keeley's death is self-avowed white supremacist Steven Banister, 28, who is accused of using California's Megan's Law registry to track down Keeley.

Banister also faces the same special circumstance allegations, which make both men eligible for the death penalty if convicted. Prosecutors will decide later in the case whether to seek capital punishment for the defendants.

Both men are due in court on Feb. 18 for a felony settlement conference.

Banister was released from prison less than a month before Keeley's death, according to a declaration filed in support of an arrest warrant.

Keeley's address was listed as the home of a convicted sex offender on a publicly accessible database created as a result of Megan's Law, said sheriff's Investigator Josh Button, who prepared the declaration.

Banister reportedly bragged in prison that he planned on assaulting homosexuals, rapists and pedophiles, according to Button. He allegedly used Megan's Law to target pedophiles and sex offenders for his burglaries.

Banister told his girlfriend that he had gotten into a fight with an old man, but did not know if the victim was dead or not, according to Button.

After Keeley's death, Banister went to Tennessee, where he was arrested in December.

Cody, who is being held without bail, told his mother and girlfriend in recorded jail conversations that he was at Keeley's home during the murder, Button wrote. ..Source.. by KESQ.com

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Alleged white supremacist charged with killing convicted registered sex offender

1-10-2010 California:

PALM SPRINGS - An alleged white supremacist has been charged with using California's Megan's Law registry to track down and kill an convicted sex offender, it was reported today.

Steven Banister, 28, had been free from prison less than one month when he killed a 75-year-old Palm Springs man in his house on Aug. 28, 2009 according to Palm Springs police quoted in the Desert Sun. The victim, Edward Keeley, had apparently been convicted in years past of an undetermined sex crime.

Keeley's address was listed as the home of a convicted sex offender on the publicly-available roll of such properties created by Megan's Law. Banister had reportedly boasted while in prison that he was planning to hurt or kill people who had sexually abused children.

Banister, an avowed white supremacist from Desert Hot Springs, fled to Tennessee after the killing and was arrested there Dec. 10, the Desert Sun reported.

Earlier last year, Banister was living on parole in Desert Hot Springs when he was arrested during a highly-publicized roundup of parole violators, the newspaper reported. He was sent back to prison, where he boasted to other inmates he had robbed the elderly Keeley during his interlude of freedom.

Police found some of Banister's property, including a Derringer-style pistol and leather holster, in the home of Banister's friend, Travis Cody, the Desert Sun reported. ..Source.. Valley News

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Defendant accused of killing a sex offender has move to fire lawyer denied

4-8-2011 Texas:

A convicted felon accused of killing a sex offender tried to fire his attorney Thursday but was overruled by a judge, who is expected to set a trial date for the man and his alleged cohort in June.

Travis Martin Cody, 28, and Steven Aruther Banister, 29, could face life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted of first-degree murder with special circumstance allegations of killing during a burglary and robbery in the Aug. 10, 2009, death of Edward Vaughn Keeley.

Trial proceedings were slated to get under way Thursday, but a motion by Cody to dismiss his court-appointed lawyer, James Silva, delayed the process.

Following a closed-door hearing at the Indio courthouse, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Steven Counelis denied Cody's request and scheduled a trial-setting conference for Cody and Banister on June 7.

Silva told City News Service he would need at least that amount of time to review recorded jailhouse phone conversations initiated by Cody.

Banister, an avowed white supremacist, is accused of using the California Megan's Law registry of convicted sex criminals to track down Keeley, whose body was found in the backyard of his house in the 64-000 block of 16th Avenue in North Palm Springs.

Banister was released from prison less than a month before Keeley's death, according to court papers.

He and Cody are longtime friends.

They were convicted in 2002 of burglarizing a Desert Hot Springs storage facility.

Banister allegedly bragged in prison that he planned on assaulting homosexuals, rapists and pedophiles, according to court documents.

He allegedly used the Megan's Law database to target pedophiles and sex offenders for burglaries.

The defendant told his girlfriend that he had gotten into a fight with an old man, but did not know if the victim was dead or not, according to sheriff's Investigator Josh Button.

After Keeley's death, Banister went to Tennessee, where he was arrested in December 2009.

Cody told his mother and girlfriend in recorded jail conversations that he was at Keeley's home during the murder, Button said.

Investigators also found some of Banister's property, including a Derringer-style pistol and leather holster, at Cody's residence.

Cody was in state prison on an unrelated offense when he was arrested in connection with the Keeley slaying.

The defendants could have faced the death penalty, but prosecutors decided late last summer not to pursue capital punishment. ..Source.. by City News Service

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Trial date set for suspects in Palm Springs killing

1-6-2012 California:

A Jan. 20 trial date was set today for two men, one of them a white supremacist, accused in the killing of a sex offender in Palm Springs.

Travis Martin Cody, 29, and Steven Arthur Banister, 30, could face life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted of first-degree murder with special circumstance allegations of killing during a burglary and robbery in the Aug. 10, 2009, death of 75-year-old Edward Vaughn Keeley.

Banister -- an avowed white supremacist -- is accused of using the California Megan's Law registry of convicted sex criminals to track down Keeley, whose body was found in the backyard of his house in the 64000 block of 16th Avenue in North Palm Springs.

At a trial-readiness conference today at Indio's Larson Justice Center, Riverside County Superior Court Judge Thomas N. Douglass set a Jan. 20 trial date for the two men.

Banister was released from prison less than a month before Keeley's death, according to court papers. He and Cody are longtime friends. They were convicted in 2002 of burglarizing a Desert Hot Springs storage facility.

Banister allegedly bragged in prison that he planned on assaulting homosexuals, rapists and pedophiles, according to court documents. He allegedly used the Megan's Law database to target pedophiles and sex offenders for burglaries.

The defendant told his girlfriend that he had gotten into a fight with an old man, but did not know if the victim was dead or not, according to sheriff's Investigator Josh Button. After Keeley's death, Banister went to Tennessee, where he was arrested in December 2009.

Cody told his mother and girlfriend in recorded jail conversations that he was at Keeley's home during the murder, Button said.

Cody was in state prison on an unrelated offense when he was arrested in connection with the Keeley slaying.

The defendants could have faced the death penalty, but prosecutors decided in 2010 not to pursue capital punishment. ..Source.. by City News Service

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2 convicted of robbing, killing homeowner, 75, near Desert Hot Springs

3-8-2012 California:

INDIO — Two men were convicted Thursday of murdering a 75-year-old man during a burglary at his home near Desert Hot Springs.

Jurors deliberated about a half-day before returning guilty verdicts against Travis Martin Cody, 29, and Steven Arthur Banister, 30, and finding true special circumstance allegations of killing during a burglary and robbery in the Aug. 9, 2009, death of Edward Vaughn Keeley.

A man living in a trailer on the victim's property in an unincorporated area of Riverside County near Desert Hot Springs found Keeley dead in his home the next day.

Cody and Banister face life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The special circumstance allegations made them eligible for the death penalty, but prosecutors decided in 2010 not to pursue capital punishment.

Deputy District Attorney Scot Clark told jurors that Banister and Cody weren't happy with what they found when they broke into Keeley's home.

They ransacked the residence before binding Keeley with a necktie and beating him in the head with the stock of a shotgun, the prosecutor said.

“Ed Keeley was asphyxiated and strangled after — after — they inflicted that beating,” Clark said in his closing argument Wednesday. “Ladies and gentlemen, Ed Keeley was alive through all of that it almost takes on a torture quality when they did to Ed Keeley. Somebody was mighty, mighty angry they didn't get what they came to get.”

Clark said the two men had previously broken into some outbuildings on Keeley's property and thought they'd find something better in the principal dwelling.

“Someone was looking for something; someone was looking to take his property,” Clark said.

He said authorities later found property belonging to Keeley at the defendants' homes, including a pistol hidden, with a lighter, inside a television set at Cody's house. Keeley's car was found burned about a mile and a half from his house, the prosecutor said.

He said that in a prison phone call, Cody told his mother that he was at Keeley's home at the time of the murder and expected to go to prison “forever.”

Banister — who left for Tennessee after Keeley's death and was arrested there — told his girlfriend the day after the victim's death that he had gotten into a fight with an elderly man and did not know if he was dead or not, Clark said.

“I don't get to say this very often — take the defendants' words for it,” he said.

The prosecutor said one witness, Michael Madrid, had information he could only have gotten from someone involved with the crime. Madrid told police that Cody had told him about the robbery and killing, then said in court this week that he made it up or didn't remember.

“There's a level of detail he wouldn't get from talk out on the streets,” Clark said.

Cody's attorney, Leni Jacobs, argued there was no physical evidence linking her client to the crime and that witnesses were inconsistent in their testmony.

“There's no DNA, no fingerprints — even the tire tread marks check by Detective (Kenneth) Patterson, they didn't match,” she said in her closing argument.

Banister's attorney, Greg Johnson, said his client had been in prison in the past and had made mistakes, but maintained that he was innocent of murder.

“Yes, he's a thief — he steals cars, he steals dirt bikes.

“But he is not a killer,” Johnson said. ..Source.. by Joy Juedes, City News Service

CA- Petaluma suspect shot 27 times

10-9-2005 California:

5 officers fired total of 42 rounds in 2 volleys at child molest suspect who pointed loaded gun at police
2005 California

A suspected child molester killed by Petaluma police last weekend was shot 27 times after he pointed a loaded handgun at officers, authorities said Friday.

Five officers fired 42 rounds, striking 72-year-old James Anthony Decosta over much of his body, including his head, neck and chest.

Petaluma Police Chief Steve Hood said the officers risked their own lives while standing down an armed fugitive.

He said the 42 shots were necessary to stop Decosta, who had led officers on a brief car chase last Saturday before pulling over in an industrial park.

Hood said officers began firing on Decosta when the ex-Marine got out of a car and pointed a 9 mm semiautomatic handgun at them.

When Decosta lowered the gun, Hood said, the officers stopped firing and shouted for him not to raise it again. Decosta ignored the order, raising the weapon a second time, prompting more gunfire from the officers, Hood said.

Hood said he doesn't know if Decosta was struck by the initial volley. Decosta's gun, which contained three rounds, apparently jammed, but police said it's not known if he tried to fire or if it was misloaded or damaged when he fell.

"Clearly, it took that many shots to end the threat," Hood said. "The restraint officers showed after the first series of shots put them at risk. Had it not been for the malfunction, we could have easily had an officer shot, which I believe was his (Decosta's) intent."

The shooting is being investigated by Santa Rosa police and the Sonoma County district attorney per a protocol governing officer-involved shootings.

"From all the information I've received from investigating agencies . .. it appears that our officers acted in an appropriate manner and consistent with their training," Hood said.

Petaluma police went into greater detail about the shooting Friday in response to information released by the Sonoma County coroner revealing that Decosta was shot 27 times.

An autopsy Monday showed Decosta was shot in the head, neck, chest, abdomen, groin, left arm, left leg and right foot. Five of the shots could have proved fatal on their own, authorities said.

Six shots grazed Decosta, Sheriff's Lt. Dave Edmonds said.

Most of the entry wounds were on the left side of Decosta's body, suggesting he was hit as he was turning on officers who had pulled up behind his car. Hood called that "speculation."

He said officers were attempting a high-risk traffic stop, which involves an overwhelming show of force so that the suspect gives up.

The five officers, riding in four cars, fanned out behind Decosta's car in such a way as to prevent them from accidentally firing at one another and minimizing risk to civilians, Hood said.

"The ultimate success depends on compliance from the suspect, which in this case, the suspect immediately exited his car and was confrontational," he said.

Petaluma police, along with a Sacramento police detective and a special agent with the state Department of Justice, had been searching for Decosta since the day before the shooting.

Sacramento authorities had recently learned that Decosta might be cashing Social Security checks in Petaluma. He had been sought since 1998 on a $100,000 arrest warrant accusing him of child molestation.

Sacramento Police Sgt. Justin Risley said Friday that the case involved allegations Decosta had raped and sodomized his 10- and 11-year-old stepdaughters.

"He packed everything and left before she (Decosta's wife) realized it," Risley said. "We investigated it and were never able to locate him."

After spotting Decosta at a gym on Old Corona Road, two Petaluma detectives radioed for two uniformed officers to stop Decosta's car. They were joined in the pursuit by another officer when Decosta didn't stop.

During the two-minute, seven-second chase, officers noted Decosta seemed to be reaching for something in his car, Hood said. They also learned from a dispatcher moments before Decosta pulled over that he had a weapon registered in his name.

Bob McMenomey, the use-of-force commander for the Sheriff's Department, said deputies are trained to use deadly force to protect themselves or others from an immediate threat of death or serious injury.

In situations where deputies resort to firing their gun, McMenomey said, "you shoot until you perceive the threat has been stopped, until it is no longer a threat."

All the officers involved in Saturday's shooting were carrying semiautomatic .40-caliber Glock handguns, which usually have 10 to 15 rounds.

Most U.S. law enforcement agencies switched to semiautomatics from revolvers after shootouts in the 1970s and 1980s in which officers were outgunned.
Lt. Danny Fish, who oversees special operations for Petaluma police, said officers don't carry semiautomatics because they are easier to fire but because they are more technologically advanced.

"We try to provide our people with the best item out there," he said. "Right now, that's semiautomatic weapons." ..more.. by DEREK J. MOORE, THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

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5 police officers on paid leave after shooting molestation suspect

10-5-2005 California:

The Petaluma Police Department will be operating indefinitely without the services of five officers due to the fatal shooting of a suspected child molester on Saturday. The officers -- Rick Cox, 33; Garrett Glaviano, 26; John Lipanovich, 30; Dan Miller, 33; and Mike Pierre, 35 -- were placed on indefinite, paid administrative leave, as is typical when officers are involved in shootings that are being investigated. "This is standard practice, but the length of leave is left up to individual departments," said Sgt. Dave Negri of the Santa Rosa Police Department. Petaluma Police Capt. Dave Sears says that the officers' absence will not affect services.

"We have enough staff (68 officers) to take care of our needs," he said. James Anthony Decosta, 72, wanted since 1998 on a $100,000 felony warrant for forced child molestation, was shot and killed by Petaluma police officers at around 5 p.m. after allegedly exiting his Ford coupe with a handgun, said police department sources. An agent from the California Department of Justice in Sacramento and a Sacramento Police Department detective tracked Decosta to Petaluma, and asked Petaluma police for help. DeCosta has a brother who lives in Petaluma. Petaluma police detectives found him leaving the Peta-luma Valley Athletic Club at 85 Corona Road after working out, and requested help from uniformed police officers.

They attempted to stop his vehicle, and he initially cooperated, but then led them on a brief chase, stopping in the area of North McDowell and Dynamic streets. The officers eventually were able to make a "high-risk" traffic stop, which typically includes officers drawing their guns before a suspect exits a vehicle. Decosta, a former resident of Sacra-mento, stepped out of the Ford coupe with a semiautomatic pistol and pointed it at officers, police said. Nine officers were at the scene, and Cox, Glaviano, Lipanovich, Miller and Pierre fired shots at him.

Paramedics and police officers administered CPR on Decosta, who later was transported by ambulance to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. An autopsy was being performed on Tuesday. The California Department of Justice agent and the Sacramento police detective who had been attempting to find Decosta -- who was charged with committing forced, lewd and lascivious acts on a juvenile under the age of 14 -- arrived at the scene after the shooting. ..Source.. by DAN JOHNSON, ARGUS-COURIER STAFF

Man's body recovered from Mississippi River!

2-28-2004 Minnesota:

Almost four months after a legally blind 73-year-old man (a registered sex offender) disappeared from his St. Paul home, his body was recovered from the Mississippi River, police reported Friday..

Kimberly Jackson, a daughter-in-law, said the family is suspicious about the death because he did not have his house keys and was found without shoes or a jacket.

Police checked the man's house after the disappearance and found nothing missing or suspicious, Schnell said. Jackson was sentenced in Hennepin County in 1981 for attempted incest with a minor and incest with a minor. He was in and out of prison for more than a decade, last getting out in the mid-1990s. (Star Tribune)

Man Charged With Shooting Grandfather Arraigned

9-14-2006 Connecticut:
.A man charged with murdering his grandfather Tuesday in Plainfield had planned the attack for several days as he drove up from Louisiana armed with a shotgun and a .45-caliber handgun, according to state police.

Joseph Basley, 35, was arraigned today in Superior Court in Danielson on murder and kidnapping charges. He was ordered held on $2.5 million bond.

State police detectives reported that Basley told them "he had to do this because he was tired of being abused." He also said his grandfather, Leonard Basley Sr., 75, was a pedophile and that his father, Leonard Basely Jr., had physically abused him, according to police.

Joseph Basely was arrested Tuesday evening after an hour-long standoff at his grandfather's house. Police said he shot his grandfather and briefly took his father hostage, then released him unharmed. A relative said that the grandfather had been terminally ill.

Court records indicate that during the 1990s Leonard Basley Sr. was charged with fourth-degree sexual assault and risk of injury to a minor, and that he was convicted on the risk-of-injury charge. Police said Joseph Basley told them that he is "mentally screwed up" and that he had been in mental institutions.

When he shot his grandfather, he was wearing a T-shirt that said "Have A Nice Day" and had a picture of a hand with its middle finger extended. ..more.. : by TRACY GORDON FOX, The Hartford Courant

Woman sentenced for killing abusive father

8-27-2004 South Carolina:
YORK, S.C. - A woman was sentenced on Friday to seven years in prison for killing her father.

Janice Clark Smith, 50, pleaded guilty to shooting George Manley Clark three times in the chest on Dec. 11. She said the man had abused her for nearly all of her life.

During five hours of testimony on Thursday, nearly 40 other people told Judge Howard King of Sumter that they either were molested by Clark or knew someone who had been.

All asked the judge to have mercy on Smith. ..more.. Associated Press

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Parole brings her peace after killing abusive dad
January 2006 SOuth Carolina:

CATAWBA, S.C. -- Down a dirt road named Copperhead lives a woman who had good reason to kill the man who gave her life.

But Janice Clark Smith, who was paroled from prison last week for fatally shooting her father, George Manley Clark -- decades after he sexually abused his daughters and assaulted his grandchild, executed family pets and held a shotgun to his wife's head -- said it still wasn't good enough.

"I done wrong; I should not have shot him in the chest like I did," said the 51-year-old grandmother of eight as she held her squirming 3-year-old grandson Austin Lamb in her lap. "And now I'm a criminal. But someone had to stop that man before he hurt someone else."

Smith is flying this morning to Los Angeles to tell her story tonight on ... ..more.. by DAN HUNTLEY

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Woman Convicted for Killing 73-Year-Old Father Who Molested Her, Dozens of Others

Aug. 28, 2004 – A South Carolina women was sentenced to seven years for killing her 73-year-old father, who she said abused her nearly all of her life.

About 40 other people told the judge that they either were molested by George Manley Clark or knew someone who had been. Clark was convicted in 1987 of molesting two girls. Witnesses testified that Clark executed family pets, invited drunken friends to his house where his daughters were abused and wreaked havoc on his children all their lives.

His daughter, Janice Clark Smith, 50, shot him three times in the chest last December. ..Source..