On March 12, 1976, Robert Eagan, then state attorney, wrote to Mayor Marvin Peele, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, and the Orange County Court House, that he is very concerned about the way the evidence in the Zeigler case is being handled. The entire letter is here: In Dec 1975, a quadruple murder took place […]
Hawley Harvey Crippen
I enjoyed reading Crippen by John Boyne about of course, Hawley Harvey Crippen. On October 18, 1910, almost 100 years ago, the murder trial of Dr. Hawley Harvey Crippen started at the Old Bailey, UK. It gripped the public, as had his flight with his mistress who was dressed as a boy, and the police chase across the […]
Hagy pleads no contest, sentenced to life
William R. Hagy Jr., convicted of first-degree murder for strangling a Roanoke woman in 1984, pleaded no contest today to the 1985 murder of another woman in her Old Southwest home and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Hagy, 49, was sentenced to two concurrent life terms by Roanoke Circuit Judge William Broadhurst. Under a plea […]
DNA: a civil right?
The Houston Chronicle has an interesting article related on DNA as related to the Skinner case. It discusses that the United States Supreme Court (USSC) must consider if inmates’ requests for DNA testing can be handled as civil rights claims — a question that has split the nation’s top federal courts. The USSC on Thursday […]
Update Ray Hagy trial
William Ray Hagy Jr., who was convicted this week of one 1980s murder and is accused of another, is to plead no contest Friday to resolve the remaining charges against him, said his attorney, Gary Lumsden. Ray Hagy, 49, also is to be sentenced Friday, the Roanoke Circuit Court Clerk’s office confirmed. Ray Hagy, who […]
Update Yolanda Baker Trial
Closing arguments have began in the Yolanda Baker trial. She went missing about 11 years ago and was legally declared dead in 2009. She was the mother to twins, a boy and a girl. This is only the third time that a “no body” murder case was tried in D.C. according to a U.S. attorney’s […]
The order to stay the Skinner execution
(ORDER LIST: 559 U.S.) WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24, 2010 ORDER IN PENDING CASE 09-9000 SKINNER, HENRY W. V. SWITZER, LYNN (O9A743) “The application for stay of execution of sentence of death presented to Justice Scalia and by him referred to the Court is granted pending disposition of the petition for a writ of certiorari. Should the […]
Hank Johnson to be exhumed
Hank Johnson was murdered more than 100 miles away from home almost two years ago and a key clue may be buried with him. His mother, Sandi Johnson will be at Forest Park Lawndale Cemetery to watch what she thinks should have been done a long time ago. She believes he was buried with crucial […]
Zeigler, Part III
The Unusual Crime Scene, Zeigler (part 3): Despite that this large, dark furniture store was a crime scene with multiple bodies inside, police did not hesitate to enter it several times. Orange County Sheriff’s Office deputies and other officers violated basic rules of procedure by entering a dark crime scene knowing they will disturb evidence. […]
Execution halted for Hank Skinner!
The U.S. Supreme Court stopped the Hank Skinner execution about an hour before he could have been taken to the Texas death chamber. The brief order grants him the delay but does not ensure he will get such testing. The court order came as relatives of Busby were climbing the steps of the Huntsville prison […]