Archive for the ‘murder’ Category

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Wrongfully Convicted Man Awarded $25 Million

By Dawn in Chicago, court cases, Crime, Illinois, Investigations, MSI Detective Services, murder, testimony, witness statement at January 25th, 2012 | No comments

T. Jimenez with Anita Alvarez - State's Attorney

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thaddeus “T.J.” Jimenez spent 16 years in prison for a murder he didn’t commit. Unfortunately, this is not an uncommon occurrence. There are many people behind bars for crimes they did not commit. I just watched a program where a man could not get help through the regular channels. He hired a private investigator who eventually dug up the truth, the man was given another trial, and he was found not guilty. He had spent about 20 years in prison.

Most wrongfully convicted people are not fortunate enough to be exonerated, let alone receive the type of reward Mr. Jimenez received. Attorneys for the plaintiff say they believe the award made Tuesday is the largest ever by a U.S. jury in a wrongful conviction case. Of course, you can’t put a price tag on someone’s life. You can never give back what that person lost.

“Sometimes the criminal justice system makes a mistake,” said Jon Loevy, one of Jimenez’s attorneys. “In this case, we proved that’s exactly what happened.”

Jimenez sued the City of Chicago and his attorneys won his case. A federal jury awarded him $25 million.

After sitting through a two-week trial at the Dirksen Federal Building in Chicago, the jury deliberated for about a day. The evidence exonerating Mr. Jimenez must have been overwhelming for the jury to reach a decision so quickly. Read the full article »

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Missing Indiana Girl Found Dead, Babysitter Charged With Murder

By Dawn in Crime, Investigations, Locate Investigations, Missing Children, Missing Persons, Missing Persons Investigations, MSI Detective Services, murder, Violence at December 27th, 2011 | No comments

 

 

 

 

 

A missing 9-year-old Indiana girl, Aliahna Lemmon, was found dead on Monday night. She had been reported missing on Friday evening. The details of her death are incredibly gruesome.

The neighbor who had been watching Aliahna, 39-year-old Mike Plumadore, was interviewed by police and taken into custody at 9 p.m. and charged with murder on Monday night. Plumadore had been watching Aliahna and her sisters before she was reported missing. Plumadore told investigators on Monday where the girl’s body could be found.

Police say Plumadore bludgeoned Aliahna with a brick, then dismembered her with a hacksaw.

After beating Aliahna Lemmon to death last Thursday, Michael Plumadore told police he stuffed her body into trash bags and hid her in his freezer, according to an affidavit filed by the Allen County sheriff’s department. Plumadore said he later chopped up her body, stuffed her remains into freezer bags and hid some at his trailer and some at a nearby business. Read the full article »

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GPS Tracking Device Could Have Prevented Tragic Murder

By Dawn in court cases, Crime, gps, gps tracker, Investigations, MSI Detective Services, murder, Police Records, Safety, stalking, Violence at December 22nd, 2011 | No comments

 

 

 

 

According to a report made by a local news station in Denver, CO, a teacher was fatally shot and killed by her ex-boyfriend outside her Denver apartment on December 16. A GPS tracking device that would have been able to warn the victim that the suspect was nearby was not requested by the Denver District Attorney’s Office.

If the suspect, Ryan Miller, had still been wearing the GPS tracker, it would have alerted Andrea Roan that he was just outside her apartment; however, it was removed after a previous domestic violence case involving Miller and Roan was taken over by the Denver District Attorney. Upon taking on the case, the District Attorney decided they did not need to track the suspected killer.

Without being privy to the details of this case, I would still have to surmise that this man was considered a dangerous character for the court to have required him to wear a GPS tracker. I wonder what changed, if anything, that led to the decision of the District Attorney to have the GPS tracker removed. This is a tragic death that could have been avoided.

“We don’t ask for it [GPS tracking devices] in every case, just those cases where we think it would be appropriate and necessary,” says Vince DeCroce. Although he was unable to talk about any specific cases, he did explain that authorities often request GPS tracking devices when they believe the victim’s life could be in danger.

Apparently, Andrea Roan’s life was in danger because she lost her life as a result of this decision.

“First and foremost is victim safety,” DeCroce says. “The tracking device sends an alert to the monitoring company if the suspect gets near the victim’s home or workplace. The company then immediately warns the victim.”

It doesn’t sound like “victim safety” was a priority here.

According to law enforcement authorities, Miller waited outside Roan’s apartment last Friday morning and then shot her in the head as she drove away. Read the full article »

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FBI Placed GPS Tracker on Bank Robber’s Car

By Dawn in Crime, gps tracker, Investigations, MSI Detective Services, murder, Police Records, robbery, Stolen Property, Theft Investigations at December 20th, 2011 | No comments

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a story where miscommunication, and lack of willingness to share crucial information, resulted in the death of a police officer. The controversy surrounding this incident is primarily directed at the FBI.

FBI agents knew of a bank robbery before it occurred, but they were keeping the details to themselves. The FBI contacted Muskegon County (Michigan) dispatchers to warn them about the possibility of a bank robbery. FBI Resident Agent in Charge, John King, had called the Muskegon Dispatch Center at roughly 10:20 a.m. to alert them to a bank robbery that was about to occur – 16 minutes later - ChoiceOne Bank was robbed.

“Hey, this is John King with the FBI in Grand Rapids,” dispatch tapes recorded. “We are right now tracking a couple individuals up in the Muskegon County area around Ravenna. And so, if there happens to be a bank robbery come out, can you make sure we end up getting a phone call?” The FBI had been tracking the two bank robbers with a GPS tracking device placed on the suspect’s car and on a phone.

Although the FBI had placed a GPS tracker on the suspect’s vehicle, they did not provide a vehicle description when asked by a Muskegon dispatcher.

Dispatch tapes also show that one of the FBI agents appeared to know beforehand that suspects Derryl LaFave and Kristopher Cheyne were going to be in a black Chevrolet Blazer that they used as their first getaway car. The Blazer had been stolen the day before the robbery. The suspects abandoned the Blazer, which had the GPS tracker, not far from the bank before escaping in a blue Oldsmobile Bravada.

“We had our suspects in there before the bank robbery, so I’m sure that’s it,” FBI Task Force member Pat Harig told a dispatcher. At the time, he was discussing the Blazer. Harig told dispatchers the FBI had been tracking the suspects into Ravenna through GPS, and they wanted to keep that a secret. “Without putting this on the air, we have GPS on the vehicle and on a phone,” Harig told a dispatcher. “We do not need that on the air.” Read the full article »

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