KNOXVILLE (WATE) -- An assistant with the district attorney's office fainted Friday during the Knox County medical examiner's testimony about the gruesome deaths of the Christian-Newsom murder victims.
Judge Richard Baumgartner said the jury will likely get the case to start deliberating on Monday.
LeMaricus Davidson is charged in the carjacking, rapes and murders of Christian and her boyfriend, Christopher Newsom in January 2007.
Newsom's body was found bound, shot and burned along a set of railroad tracks near Chipman Street.
Christian's body was found two days later, bound, wrapped in trash bags and stuffed in a trash can in a house on Chipman Street. The house was rented by Davidson and his then girlfriend, Daphne Sutton.
Dr. Darinka Mileusnic-Polchan did autopsies on Christian and Newsom.
Newsom's body
She said investigators and an assistant medical examiner went to the scene where Newsom's body was found and recorded it. The photos of that scene are only shown in court, not online or in later news broadcasts.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Newsom's body was face up, badly charred and his feet were bound by a belt. "The body was subjected to high heat."
Newsom's upper body was more burned. His ankles weren't burned, but they were charred.
In fact, Newsom's body was so charred, he was unrecognizable. His parents cried as they sat in the courtroom holding each other.
Newsom's arms were bound behind his back. He was gagged with an ankle sock and his head was covered with a sweatshirt. He was also blindfolded with a bandana.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said the gunshot to Newsom's head caused "instantaneous death." He was also shot in the neck and back.
She described the condition of Newsom's anal area saying it had tears and lots of bruising and explained that "indicates anal penetration."
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Newsom walked to his death barefoot, dressed in just his underwear, and there was dirt on his feet.
She said Newsom was raped one or two hours before his death.
"This is not just a rape," the medical examiner said. "This is the blunt trauma where an object comes in contact and severely damages the tissue. The depth of the injury was so grave there was no way that just the regular rape could inflict this."
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said her findings are consistent with the state's timeline that Newsom was shot around 1:45 a.m. Sunday. Previous testimony in this trial indicated smoke was seen coming from the railroad tracks at 7:45 a.m.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan used a mannequin and rods to show the trajectories of Newsom's gunshot wounds.
Prosecutor Takisha Fitzgerald suggested Newsom was bent over when he was shot in the back, explaining the trajectory of that bullet.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said there was blunt trauma to Newsom's head, perhaps from hitting the ground after being shot.
She said she collected blood samples for drug and alcohol screens of Newsom and found traces of alcohol, marijuana and adderall.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Newsom's stomach was empty, indicating he hadn't eaten the night of his death.
Christian's body
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Christian was found bound in a fetal position in the trash can. There were five trash bags around her body. A smaller white bag was around her head, which was turned at an angle.
She said asphyxia was the cause of death and it happened in the trash can.
Davidson appeared to glance at the photos and then looked away.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Christian had tears, bruising and swelling in her vaginal and anal areas, as well as signs of blunt force trauma.
At this point, an assistant to the district attorney's office, attorney Karen Manning fainted. Court recessed while officials gathered around her and a nurse was called. Officials said later Manning will be fine.
After the break, Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan returned to the stand and resumed testifying about Christian's body.
She said Christian was raped repeatedly, then kicked repeatedly in the vaginal area before she was stuffed in the trash can while she was alive. She also suffered blows to the head, her arms were grabbed with force and she had carpet burns.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said tests of Christian's blood found no evidence of drugs.
TBI technician: Davidson's DNA found in tests on Christian
Earlier in the day, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation technician Jennifer Millsaps testified on tests she did regarding DNA in this case. Davidson's DNA samples were taken shortly after he was arrested.
Judge Baumgartner stopped court briefly Friday morning because one of the jurors knew Millsaps in high school. The judge asked if the juror knew her well. He said no. The judge also asked if knowing Millsaps would influence the juror's opinion. He said no.
Millsaps told prosecutor Leland Price she had samples from all four defendants in this case, along with the victims and other people who were interviewed including, Vincent Wernimont, Daphne Sutton and Stacey Lawson, the girlfriend of another defendant, and Eric Boyd.
Boyd was convicted in federal court in October 2008 as accessory after the fact to murder, but never charged with these slayings. He was sentenced to 18 years in prison
Millsaps said bleach, moisture and extreme heat are some of the things that can affect the outcome of DNA testing.
Millsaps identified items she examined: jeans, a sweater and a camisole all belonging to Christian.
She showed the jury different swabs taken from Christian and Newsom in their sexual assault kits. Newsom's kit included tests on oral and anal swabs.
Millsaps said she examined the items for blood, semen and other fluids.
Using standards from known DNA, Millsaps said she compared the DNA under examination for any matches.
Millsaps said Christian's vaginal swab had a match to Davidson's DNA. When Price asked her about the odds of an identical match by anyone else, she said, "The expectation is, you'd never see a match."
She said an anal swab from Christian found Davidson's sperm and an oral swab found sperm from Davidson's half-brother, Letalvis Cobbins, who was convicted in August in this case and sentenced to life without parole.
Cobbins pleaded guilty to raping Christian at the start of his trial. Davidson has pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him.
Millsaps said her examination of the floral fabric found binding Christian had DNA matches to Christian, Cobbins, his then girlfriend Vanessa Coleman as well as inconclusive DNA.
She said Christian's jeans had five identifiable stains with DNA of Christian, Davidson and Cobbins. Christian's blood was also found in one of the stains.
The court took a recess and before the jury was brought back in, the judge agreed to have the Knox County Medical Examiner Dr. Darinka Mileusnic-Polchan to wait outside the courtroom.
The defense objected to the medical examiner's presence because they said she was listening to Millsaps' testimony.
Millsaps continued her testimony saying a pair of pink underwear was found in a purse with Christian's DNA and unidentifiable sperm.
She said Sutton can't be excluded from having touched a white strip of cloth with Christian's blood on it, but the cloth is from the Chipman Street home.
During cross examination, Millsaps told defense attorney David Eldridge that DNA can end up somewhere other than where it was deposited "through transfer."
Eldridge wanted to know if sperm found on Christian's items could have traveled from one orifice to another. He asked if it was possible she put her jeans on after having sex with Davidson, causing a stain with a DNA match on the crotch area. "Yes, it's possible," Millsaps said.
Eldridge asked if tests showed a presence of semen in Newsom. "Yes, but no sperm," Millsaps said.
Eldridge also asked about Y-STR testing for DNA. It's a specific help in separating male DNA. The TBI doesn't do Y-STR testing.
Y-STR testing was used in this case to try to identify two sperm samples found in Christian's underwear, but the tests didn't match any of the defendants, anyone who was interviewed or Newsom.
Millsaps told Eldridge it's possible that bleach can degrade DNA. Investigators believe bleach was poured down Christian's throat. A stain was found on her camisole and a bottle of spray bleach cleaner was found in the Chipman Street house.
In rebuttal questioning, Millsaps said no DNA profile could be obtained from a Newsom swab with semen and no sperm.
Defense witness has misgivings
Susan Hill, a witness the defense plans to call, said Friday she fears for her life and isn't certain she wants to testify.
She said she doesn't have anything relevant to add to this case, but believes the defense wants to call her because she has knowledge of prior contact between Davidson and one of the victims.
Hill said if she does testify, she doesn't want any cameras in court.
Hill's motion to block a subpoena from the defense will be heard Monday
Judge Richard Baumgartner said the jury will likely get the case to start deliberating on Monday.
LeMaricus Davidson is charged in the carjacking, rapes and murders of Christian and her boyfriend, Christopher Newsom in January 2007.
Newsom's body was found bound, shot and burned along a set of railroad tracks near Chipman Street.
Christian's body was found two days later, bound, wrapped in trash bags and stuffed in a trash can in a house on Chipman Street. The house was rented by Davidson and his then girlfriend, Daphne Sutton.
Dr. Darinka Mileusnic-Polchan did autopsies on Christian and Newsom.
Newsom's body
She said investigators and an assistant medical examiner went to the scene where Newsom's body was found and recorded it. The photos of that scene are only shown in court, not online or in later news broadcasts.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Newsom's body was face up, badly charred and his feet were bound by a belt. "The body was subjected to high heat."
Newsom's upper body was more burned. His ankles weren't burned, but they were charred.
In fact, Newsom's body was so charred, he was unrecognizable. His parents cried as they sat in the courtroom holding each other.
Newsom's arms were bound behind his back. He was gagged with an ankle sock and his head was covered with a sweatshirt. He was also blindfolded with a bandana.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said the gunshot to Newsom's head caused "instantaneous death." He was also shot in the neck and back.
She described the condition of Newsom's anal area saying it had tears and lots of bruising and explained that "indicates anal penetration."
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Newsom walked to his death barefoot, dressed in just his underwear, and there was dirt on his feet.
She said Newsom was raped one or two hours before his death.
"This is not just a rape," the medical examiner said. "This is the blunt trauma where an object comes in contact and severely damages the tissue. The depth of the injury was so grave there was no way that just the regular rape could inflict this."
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said her findings are consistent with the state's timeline that Newsom was shot around 1:45 a.m. Sunday. Previous testimony in this trial indicated smoke was seen coming from the railroad tracks at 7:45 a.m.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan used a mannequin and rods to show the trajectories of Newsom's gunshot wounds.
Prosecutor Takisha Fitzgerald suggested Newsom was bent over when he was shot in the back, explaining the trajectory of that bullet.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said there was blunt trauma to Newsom's head, perhaps from hitting the ground after being shot.
She said she collected blood samples for drug and alcohol screens of Newsom and found traces of alcohol, marijuana and adderall.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Newsom's stomach was empty, indicating he hadn't eaten the night of his death.
Christian's body
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Christian was found bound in a fetal position in the trash can. There were five trash bags around her body. A smaller white bag was around her head, which was turned at an angle.
She said asphyxia was the cause of death and it happened in the trash can.
Davidson appeared to glance at the photos and then looked away.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said Christian had tears, bruising and swelling in her vaginal and anal areas, as well as signs of blunt force trauma.
At this point, an assistant to the district attorney's office, attorney Karen Manning fainted. Court recessed while officials gathered around her and a nurse was called. Officials said later Manning will be fine.
After the break, Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan returned to the stand and resumed testifying about Christian's body.
She said Christian was raped repeatedly, then kicked repeatedly in the vaginal area before she was stuffed in the trash can while she was alive. She also suffered blows to the head, her arms were grabbed with force and she had carpet burns.
Dr. Mileusnic-Polchan said tests of Christian's blood found no evidence of drugs.
TBI technician: Davidson's DNA found in tests on Christian
Earlier in the day, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation technician Jennifer Millsaps testified on tests she did regarding DNA in this case. Davidson's DNA samples were taken shortly after he was arrested.
Judge Baumgartner stopped court briefly Friday morning because one of the jurors knew Millsaps in high school. The judge asked if the juror knew her well. He said no. The judge also asked if knowing Millsaps would influence the juror's opinion. He said no.
Millsaps told prosecutor Leland Price she had samples from all four defendants in this case, along with the victims and other people who were interviewed including, Vincent Wernimont, Daphne Sutton and Stacey Lawson, the girlfriend of another defendant, and Eric Boyd.
Boyd was convicted in federal court in October 2008 as accessory after the fact to murder, but never charged with these slayings. He was sentenced to 18 years in prison
Millsaps said bleach, moisture and extreme heat are some of the things that can affect the outcome of DNA testing.
Millsaps identified items she examined: jeans, a sweater and a camisole all belonging to Christian.
She showed the jury different swabs taken from Christian and Newsom in their sexual assault kits. Newsom's kit included tests on oral and anal swabs.
Millsaps said she examined the items for blood, semen and other fluids.
Using standards from known DNA, Millsaps said she compared the DNA under examination for any matches.
Millsaps said Christian's vaginal swab had a match to Davidson's DNA. When Price asked her about the odds of an identical match by anyone else, she said, "The expectation is, you'd never see a match."
She said an anal swab from Christian found Davidson's sperm and an oral swab found sperm from Davidson's half-brother, Letalvis Cobbins, who was convicted in August in this case and sentenced to life without parole.
Cobbins pleaded guilty to raping Christian at the start of his trial. Davidson has pleaded not guilty to all the charges against him.
Millsaps said her examination of the floral fabric found binding Christian had DNA matches to Christian, Cobbins, his then girlfriend Vanessa Coleman as well as inconclusive DNA.
She said Christian's jeans had five identifiable stains with DNA of Christian, Davidson and Cobbins. Christian's blood was also found in one of the stains.
The court took a recess and before the jury was brought back in, the judge agreed to have the Knox County Medical Examiner Dr. Darinka Mileusnic-Polchan to wait outside the courtroom.
The defense objected to the medical examiner's presence because they said she was listening to Millsaps' testimony.
Millsaps continued her testimony saying a pair of pink underwear was found in a purse with Christian's DNA and unidentifiable sperm.
She said Sutton can't be excluded from having touched a white strip of cloth with Christian's blood on it, but the cloth is from the Chipman Street home.
During cross examination, Millsaps told defense attorney David Eldridge that DNA can end up somewhere other than where it was deposited "through transfer."
Eldridge wanted to know if sperm found on Christian's items could have traveled from one orifice to another. He asked if it was possible she put her jeans on after having sex with Davidson, causing a stain with a DNA match on the crotch area. "Yes, it's possible," Millsaps said.
Eldridge asked if tests showed a presence of semen in Newsom. "Yes, but no sperm," Millsaps said.
Eldridge also asked about Y-STR testing for DNA. It's a specific help in separating male DNA. The TBI doesn't do Y-STR testing.
Y-STR testing was used in this case to try to identify two sperm samples found in Christian's underwear, but the tests didn't match any of the defendants, anyone who was interviewed or Newsom.
Millsaps told Eldridge it's possible that bleach can degrade DNA. Investigators believe bleach was poured down Christian's throat. A stain was found on her camisole and a bottle of spray bleach cleaner was found in the Chipman Street house.
In rebuttal questioning, Millsaps said no DNA profile could be obtained from a Newsom swab with semen and no sperm.
Defense witness has misgivings
Susan Hill, a witness the defense plans to call, said Friday she fears for her life and isn't certain she wants to testify.
She said she doesn't have anything relevant to add to this case, but believes the defense wants to call her because she has knowledge of prior contact between Davidson and one of the victims.
Hill said if she does testify, she doesn't want any cameras in court.
Hill's motion to block a subpoena from the defense will be heard Monday
Murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Hugh Christopher Newsom, Jr., 23, and Channon Gail Christian, 21, were a couple from Knoxville, Tennessee. They were both raped and murdered after being kidnapped early on the morning of January 7, 2007. Their vehicle had been carjacked.[1][2] Five suspects were arrested and charged in the case.[3] The grand jury indicted four of the suspects on counts of murder, robbery, kidnapping, rape and theft. One of those arrested, Letalvis D. Cobbins, was convicted on multiple charges including several counts of felony murder. Another has been convicted of federal charges as accessory after the fact to carjacking.[2]
Contents[hide]
1 Crime
1.1 Reaction
2 Victims
3 Suspects and indictments
4 Trials
5 Verdicts
6 References
7 External links
//
[edit] Crime
According to news reports, Christian and Newsom had gone on a date at a local restaurant on Saturday, January 6, 2007, but did not return home. During their night out, the couple was "hijacked, bound and blindfolded and taken back to Lemaricus Devall 'Slim' Davidson's rented house on Chipman Street."[4]
Christian's parents found her abandoned Toyota 4-Runner two blocks away from the Chipman Street house the following Monday with the help of her mobile phone provider. An envelope recovered from the vehicle yielded fingerprint evidence that led police to Lemaricus Davidson and 2316 Chipman Street. When police went to the address on Tuesday, January 9, they found the home unoccupied and Christian's body in a trash can in the kitchen.
According to the testimony of the Knox County Acting Medical Examiner Dr. Darinka Mileusnic-Polchan at the subsequent trial of Eric Boyd, Newsom was repeatedly raped and then blindfolded, gagged, arms and feet bound and his head covered. Barefoot, he was either led or dragged outside the house to a set of nearby railroad tracks. He was shot in the back of the head, the neck, and the back, and his body then set on fire.
Christian's death came only after hours of sexual torture, medical examiner Mileusnic-Polchan testified. Christian suffered horrific injuries to her vagina, anus and mouth. She was not only raped but savaged with "an object," possibly a broken chair leg, the doctor testified. She was beaten in the head. Some type of chemical was poured down her throat, and her body, including her bleeding and battered genital area, likely scrubbed with the same solution - all while Christian was alive, the forensic expert said. She was then "hog-tied," with curtains and strips of bedding, her face covered tightly with a small trash bag and her body stashed inside five large trash bags before being placed inside a large trash can and covered with sheets. Christian died slowly, suffocating, the medical examiner said.[5]
[edit] Reaction
The national news media was criticized for allegedly ignoring the story because the victims were white and the suspects black.[4][6][7] This criticism was also fueled by erroneous early reports of dismemberment and mutilations.[8] Most of the original reports with misinformation (reported from a federal deputy after the suspects' arrest in Kentucky) were later denied by the District Attorney.[8]
One commentator explained that "as bad as this crime is, the apparent absence of any interest group involvement or any other 'angle' might also explain the lack of coverage." Police Chief Sterling Owen IV said that there is no indication the crimes were racially motivated and that the murders and assault "appears to have been a random violent act."[9] "There is absolutely no proof of a hate crime," said John Gill, special counsel to Knox County District Atty. Randy Nichols. "We know from our investigation that the people charged in this case were friends with white people, socialized with white people, dated white people. So not only is there no evidence of any racial animus, there's evidence to the contrary."[10]
Some commentators have continued to disagree, claiming that such a crime would include a motive of racial hate. Conservative media, notably including blogger Michelle Malkin on her blog and on Fox News's O'Reilly Factor program, have also repeated this accusation.[11] Prior to the DA's statement, Newsom's mother sympathized with the "hate crime" position stating, "It may have started out as a carjacking, but what it developed into was blacks hating whites."[10] Christian's father (addressing those who used his daughter's death to suit their own agenda) appeared ambivalent, stating "[the crime] ain't about you."[11]
The case also attracted the attention of white supremacists. On May 27, 2007, around 30 white supremacists led by Alex Linder rallied in downtown Knoxville in protest of the murders. They were met by a larger number of counter-protestors, many dressed as clowns (parodying the Ku Klux Klan).[12]
An October 16, 2009 article in The Daily Mail stated, "Ironically, the case has now generated more publicity surrounding the furore over whether or not political correctness was behind the US media’s decision to largely ignore the story than it did for the murders themselves." The same article quoted conservative commentator Michelle Malkin as saying, "This case – an attractive white couple murdered by five black thugs – doesn’t fit any political agenda. It’s not a useful crime. Reverse the races and just imagine how the national media would cover the story of a young black couple murdered by five white assailants."[13]
[edit] Victims
Christian moved from Louisiana to Tennessee with her family in 1997. She was a graduate of Farragut High School and a senior majoring in sociology at the University of Tennessee. On January 12 her family released a statement to thank the Knoxville community "for all their prayers and everything." A candlelight vigil was held on the university campus January 25, 2007 in her honor. In 2008, a Golf Tournament and Memorial Foundation were established in Channon Christian's memory to provide a scholarship for a Farragut High School Senior to attend the University of Tennessee.[citation needed]
Newsom, a former baseball player for the Halls High School Red Devils, graduated in 2002. He was interred at Woodhaven Memorial Gardens. A little-league baseball tournament in Newsom's honor was held at the Halls Community Park in 2008 and 2009. A memorial scholarship is given annually to a graduating Halls High baseball player.[citation needed]
[edit] Suspects and indictments
The four indicted were:
Letalvis "Rome" Cobbins, 24, (b. December 20, 1982) also faces the same 46 charges as Thomas. In 2003, Cobbins was convicted of third-degree attempted robbery in New York state. He and Davidson are brothers. He has also been charged with assaulting a correctional officer while incarcerated pending trial. He was convicted on August 25, 2009 of 33 of the 37 counts against him. Given Life without the possiblity of Parole.
Lemaricus Devall "Slim" Davidson, 25, (b. June 13, 1981) faces the same 46 charges as Thomas. Davidson had also completed serving a five-year sentence in Tennessee on a previous felony conviction for carjacking and aggravated robbery on August 5, 2006.
George Geovonni "Detroit" Thomas, 27, faces a total of 46 charges. Thomas was indicted on 16 counts of felony murder growing out of the rape, robbery, kidnapping, and theft of Christian and Newsom, 2 counts of premeditated murder, 2 counts of especially aggravated robbery, 4 counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, 20 counts of aggravated rape, and 2 counts of theft.
Vanessa Coleman, 18, was arrested by the Lebanon Police Department in Lebanon, Kentucky. She faces 40 Tennessee state charges. Coleman was indicted on 12 counts of felony murder growing out of the rape, robbery, kidnapping, and theft of Christian and Newsom, 1 count of premeditated murder (of Christian only), 1 count of especially aggravated robbery (of Newsom only), 4 counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, 20 counts of aggravated rape, and 2 counts of theft.[14]
In each indictment, the large number of rape counts were included to provide a range of options for prosecutors, not to reflect the number of rapes which actually occurred.[15]
Further, Eric DeWayne "E" Boyd, 34, was arrested in connection with the fatal carjacking, though not indicted by the Knox County grand jury. Still, Boyd was charged in United States district court as an accessory after the fact for helping the suspects evade the police. Later, Boyd was also accused by Thomas and Cobbins of rape and murder, and a search warrant was obtained for his DNA.[16] The accusations did not result in charges.[17]
[edit] Trials
The four suspects indicted in Knox County were originally scheduled to be tried separately, at trials scheduled between May and August 2008.[18] However, the trial date for the subjects indicted in Knox County was moved back to 2009 in February 2008.[19] In an apparent attempt to force the prosecution to try the case with the least forensic evidence first, the attorneys for Thomas filed a motion for a speedy trial, arguing there was no forensic link between their client and the crime scene.[20] Thomas has been granted the motion and is scheduled to go on trial on August 11. Judge Baumgartner recently ruled that Thomas' phone calls made from the jailhouse to his acquaintances are admissible as evidence.[21]
District Attorney Randy Nichols has announced that the state would be seeking the death penalty for both Cobbins (currently the first to go to trial) and Coleman if convicted.[22][23] Davidson has also been indicted for a second robbery which was committed after the murders.[18] The publicity against the accused led the defense to argue that a change of venue was required in order to ensure a fair trial. However, the state argued that an impartial jury could be found during voir dire, and the presiding judge subsequently denied the motion as "premature".[24]
[edit] Verdicts
On April 16, 2008, Eric Boyd was found guilty in Federal court of being an accessory to a fatal carjacking and for failing to report the location of a known fugitive.[25] Boyd's was the first case to go to trial, and he was the only suspect not charged with murder.[26] He has been sentenced to the maximum of 18 years in Federal prison.[27] He is currently incarcerated at Beckley FCI.
On August 25, 2009, Letalvis D. Cobbins was found guilty of the murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom. Cobbins faced the possibility of the death penalty because he was convicted of first degree felony murder in the murder of Christian. He was also found guilty of facilitation of murder for Newsom. He was also acquitted of Newsom's rape. The jurors worked about 10 hours Monday and on Tuesday morning before reaching a verdict. They never asked Judge Richard Baumgartner any questions during their deliberations.[28] On August 26, Cobbins was sentenced to life without parole.[29]
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Hugh Christopher Newsom, Jr., 23, and Channon Gail Christian, 21, were a couple from Knoxville, Tennessee. They were both raped and murdered after being kidnapped early on the morning of January 7, 2007. Their vehicle had been carjacked.[1][2] Five suspects were arrested and charged in the case.[3] The grand jury indicted four of the suspects on counts of murder, robbery, kidnapping, rape and theft. One of those arrested, Letalvis D. Cobbins, was convicted on multiple charges including several counts of felony murder. Another has been convicted of federal charges as accessory after the fact to carjacking.[2]
Contents[hide]
1 Crime
1.1 Reaction
2 Victims
3 Suspects and indictments
4 Trials
5 Verdicts
6 References
7 External links
//
[edit] Crime
According to news reports, Christian and Newsom had gone on a date at a local restaurant on Saturday, January 6, 2007, but did not return home. During their night out, the couple was "hijacked, bound and blindfolded and taken back to Lemaricus Devall 'Slim' Davidson's rented house on Chipman Street."[4]
Christian's parents found her abandoned Toyota 4-Runner two blocks away from the Chipman Street house the following Monday with the help of her mobile phone provider. An envelope recovered from the vehicle yielded fingerprint evidence that led police to Lemaricus Davidson and 2316 Chipman Street. When police went to the address on Tuesday, January 9, they found the home unoccupied and Christian's body in a trash can in the kitchen.
According to the testimony of the Knox County Acting Medical Examiner Dr. Darinka Mileusnic-Polchan at the subsequent trial of Eric Boyd, Newsom was repeatedly raped and then blindfolded, gagged, arms and feet bound and his head covered. Barefoot, he was either led or dragged outside the house to a set of nearby railroad tracks. He was shot in the back of the head, the neck, and the back, and his body then set on fire.
Christian's death came only after hours of sexual torture, medical examiner Mileusnic-Polchan testified. Christian suffered horrific injuries to her vagina, anus and mouth. She was not only raped but savaged with "an object," possibly a broken chair leg, the doctor testified. She was beaten in the head. Some type of chemical was poured down her throat, and her body, including her bleeding and battered genital area, likely scrubbed with the same solution - all while Christian was alive, the forensic expert said. She was then "hog-tied," with curtains and strips of bedding, her face covered tightly with a small trash bag and her body stashed inside five large trash bags before being placed inside a large trash can and covered with sheets. Christian died slowly, suffocating, the medical examiner said.[5]
[edit] Reaction
The national news media was criticized for allegedly ignoring the story because the victims were white and the suspects black.[4][6][7] This criticism was also fueled by erroneous early reports of dismemberment and mutilations.[8] Most of the original reports with misinformation (reported from a federal deputy after the suspects' arrest in Kentucky) were later denied by the District Attorney.[8]
One commentator explained that "as bad as this crime is, the apparent absence of any interest group involvement or any other 'angle' might also explain the lack of coverage." Police Chief Sterling Owen IV said that there is no indication the crimes were racially motivated and that the murders and assault "appears to have been a random violent act."[9] "There is absolutely no proof of a hate crime," said John Gill, special counsel to Knox County District Atty. Randy Nichols. "We know from our investigation that the people charged in this case were friends with white people, socialized with white people, dated white people. So not only is there no evidence of any racial animus, there's evidence to the contrary."[10]
Some commentators have continued to disagree, claiming that such a crime would include a motive of racial hate. Conservative media, notably including blogger Michelle Malkin on her blog and on Fox News's O'Reilly Factor program, have also repeated this accusation.[11] Prior to the DA's statement, Newsom's mother sympathized with the "hate crime" position stating, "It may have started out as a carjacking, but what it developed into was blacks hating whites."[10] Christian's father (addressing those who used his daughter's death to suit their own agenda) appeared ambivalent, stating "[the crime] ain't about you."[11]
The case also attracted the attention of white supremacists. On May 27, 2007, around 30 white supremacists led by Alex Linder rallied in downtown Knoxville in protest of the murders. They were met by a larger number of counter-protestors, many dressed as clowns (parodying the Ku Klux Klan).[12]
An October 16, 2009 article in The Daily Mail stated, "Ironically, the case has now generated more publicity surrounding the furore over whether or not political correctness was behind the US media’s decision to largely ignore the story than it did for the murders themselves." The same article quoted conservative commentator Michelle Malkin as saying, "This case – an attractive white couple murdered by five black thugs – doesn’t fit any political agenda. It’s not a useful crime. Reverse the races and just imagine how the national media would cover the story of a young black couple murdered by five white assailants."[13]
[edit] Victims
Christian moved from Louisiana to Tennessee with her family in 1997. She was a graduate of Farragut High School and a senior majoring in sociology at the University of Tennessee. On January 12 her family released a statement to thank the Knoxville community "for all their prayers and everything." A candlelight vigil was held on the university campus January 25, 2007 in her honor. In 2008, a Golf Tournament and Memorial Foundation were established in Channon Christian's memory to provide a scholarship for a Farragut High School Senior to attend the University of Tennessee.[citation needed]
Newsom, a former baseball player for the Halls High School Red Devils, graduated in 2002. He was interred at Woodhaven Memorial Gardens. A little-league baseball tournament in Newsom's honor was held at the Halls Community Park in 2008 and 2009. A memorial scholarship is given annually to a graduating Halls High baseball player.[citation needed]
[edit] Suspects and indictments
The four indicted were:
Letalvis "Rome" Cobbins, 24, (b. December 20, 1982) also faces the same 46 charges as Thomas. In 2003, Cobbins was convicted of third-degree attempted robbery in New York state. He and Davidson are brothers. He has also been charged with assaulting a correctional officer while incarcerated pending trial. He was convicted on August 25, 2009 of 33 of the 37 counts against him. Given Life without the possiblity of Parole.
Lemaricus Devall "Slim" Davidson, 25, (b. June 13, 1981) faces the same 46 charges as Thomas. Davidson had also completed serving a five-year sentence in Tennessee on a previous felony conviction for carjacking and aggravated robbery on August 5, 2006.
George Geovonni "Detroit" Thomas, 27, faces a total of 46 charges. Thomas was indicted on 16 counts of felony murder growing out of the rape, robbery, kidnapping, and theft of Christian and Newsom, 2 counts of premeditated murder, 2 counts of especially aggravated robbery, 4 counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, 20 counts of aggravated rape, and 2 counts of theft.
Vanessa Coleman, 18, was arrested by the Lebanon Police Department in Lebanon, Kentucky. She faces 40 Tennessee state charges. Coleman was indicted on 12 counts of felony murder growing out of the rape, robbery, kidnapping, and theft of Christian and Newsom, 1 count of premeditated murder (of Christian only), 1 count of especially aggravated robbery (of Newsom only), 4 counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, 20 counts of aggravated rape, and 2 counts of theft.[14]
In each indictment, the large number of rape counts were included to provide a range of options for prosecutors, not to reflect the number of rapes which actually occurred.[15]
Further, Eric DeWayne "E" Boyd, 34, was arrested in connection with the fatal carjacking, though not indicted by the Knox County grand jury. Still, Boyd was charged in United States district court as an accessory after the fact for helping the suspects evade the police. Later, Boyd was also accused by Thomas and Cobbins of rape and murder, and a search warrant was obtained for his DNA.[16] The accusations did not result in charges.[17]
[edit] Trials
The four suspects indicted in Knox County were originally scheduled to be tried separately, at trials scheduled between May and August 2008.[18] However, the trial date for the subjects indicted in Knox County was moved back to 2009 in February 2008.[19] In an apparent attempt to force the prosecution to try the case with the least forensic evidence first, the attorneys for Thomas filed a motion for a speedy trial, arguing there was no forensic link between their client and the crime scene.[20] Thomas has been granted the motion and is scheduled to go on trial on August 11. Judge Baumgartner recently ruled that Thomas' phone calls made from the jailhouse to his acquaintances are admissible as evidence.[21]
District Attorney Randy Nichols has announced that the state would be seeking the death penalty for both Cobbins (currently the first to go to trial) and Coleman if convicted.[22][23] Davidson has also been indicted for a second robbery which was committed after the murders.[18] The publicity against the accused led the defense to argue that a change of venue was required in order to ensure a fair trial. However, the state argued that an impartial jury could be found during voir dire, and the presiding judge subsequently denied the motion as "premature".[24]
[edit] Verdicts
On April 16, 2008, Eric Boyd was found guilty in Federal court of being an accessory to a fatal carjacking and for failing to report the location of a known fugitive.[25] Boyd's was the first case to go to trial, and he was the only suspect not charged with murder.[26] He has been sentenced to the maximum of 18 years in Federal prison.[27] He is currently incarcerated at Beckley FCI.
On August 25, 2009, Letalvis D. Cobbins was found guilty of the murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom. Cobbins faced the possibility of the death penalty because he was convicted of first degree felony murder in the murder of Christian. He was also found guilty of facilitation of murder for Newsom. He was also acquitted of Newsom's rape. The jurors worked about 10 hours Monday and on Tuesday morning before reaching a verdict. They never asked Judge Richard Baumgartner any questions during their deliberations.[28] On August 26, Cobbins was sentenced to life without parole.[29]
The Patriot Post – August 20, 2009Media BlackoutBy Mark Alexander“Equal and exact justice to all men…” – Thomas Jefferson
Editor’s Note: PG suggested – this essay contains graphic descriptions of a brutal crime.
In 1775, John Adams wrote, “There is in human nature a resentment of injury, and indignation against wrong, a love of truth and a veneration of virtue … if the people are capable of understanding, seeing and feeling the differences between true and false, right and wrong, virtue and vice…”
Adams understood that a shared penchant for justice and virtue is essential to liberty, and depends upon the ability of people to discern between right and wrong. Today, it is evident to every astute social scientist (and most anyone with common sense) that among definable American subcultures the capacity for distinguishing between right and wrong is severely diminished. The origin of these deteriorating standards for justice and virtue is rooted in the dissolution of the family, and the failure of our places of worship and our schools to instill those values necessary for self-government – self-government being the foundation of family-government and that being the foundation of social responsibility. U.S. urban centers, and to a lesser extent suburban and rural areas, are now home to generations of sociopaths who do not value your life, simply because they do not value their own.
Making matters worse, the MSM perpetuates a virtual blackout of news regarding select sociopaths, while trumpeting allegations and speculations of others. This results in a distorted popular understanding of the extent of the social degradation around us.
Three years ago (March 2006), the Leftmedia spent a year relentlessly convicting in the court of public opinion three white Duke University lacrosse players for a “hate crime” – the alleged gang rape of a black woman named Crystal Gail Mangum. Millions of dollars in defense-lawyer fees later, it turns out that there was no evidence and that Mangum was a liar. The real victims were, in fact, the accused men: David Evans, Reade Seligmann and Colin Finnerty. (All charges were dropped, but there has been no apology yet from 88 Duke professors who jumped on the bandwagon, condemning Evans, Seligmann and Finnerty in an open letter before the first day of their trial.)
Four weeks ago, Barack Hussein Obama interrupted a live media propaganda confab promoting his administration’s most critical national initiative (nationalizing health care) in order to accuse a white Cambridge, MA, police officer, James Crowley, of “acting stupidly” for arresting Obama’s black friend, Henry Gates. That accusation was followed by similar knee-jerk pronouncements of racism by the black governor of Massachusetts and the black mayor of Cambridge. Under such heavy-handed political and media pressure, all charges against Gates were dropped. The Gates’ story dominated the national media headlines for a couple weeks, until it was determined that the officer’s actions were, in fact, justified. Obama attempted to make amends by tossing back a few beers with the Gates and Crowley in the Rose Garden, but BO offered no public apology. (Narcissists do not apologize, they just reinterpret the facts.)
This week, there is a trial underway which is racially charged, but, unless you were reading The Patriot back in 2007, chances are you have not heard of this one since it involves a savage black-on-white crime, rather than MSM feeding frenzy accusations of white-on-black crimes. I am referring to the brutal torture, mutilation and murder of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom by four black men in Knoxville, Tennessee. In the event you were not a reader in ‘07, allow me to recount this horrendous incident … because you won’t see or hear it from any MSM news outlets.
On 6 January 2007, Channon (age 21) and Christopher (age 23) were out for a Saturday dinner date, after which Channon called her mom to report that they were on the way to visit friends. But Channon and Christopher never arrived at their friends’ house – nor returned home. The next day, the mutilated and burned remains of Chris Newsom were found along a railroad track. Two days later, Channon’s mutilated body was recovered from a trash bin.
Channon and Chris were in Channon’s Toyota 4-Runner when they were carjacked. They were taken to a nearby house, brutally gang-raped, mutilated and then murdered. They were subjected to lengthy torture in each other’s presence. Newsom was raped, his genitals were cut off, and then taken to the railroad tracks where he was shot execution-style. The perpetrators soaked his body with an accelerant and burned his body. Christian was kept alive for a while longer, repeatedly raped, mutilated, had cleaning solution poured down her throat in an attempt to destroy DNA evidence, and then stuffed inside a trash can where she suffocated to death.
This appalling attack is more than a case study in sociopathic evil. It is a case study about which stories the MSM headlines and which they do not. Yes, there are some 17,000 murders committed in the U.S. each year, but this double murder was clearly far more barbaric, far more monstrous, than most.
Regrettably, there is nothing new about the racial aspect of this story, which may explain why it was not national news. Although blacks represent just 12% of the U.S. population, black perpetrators are convicted by a jury of their peers in more than half of all murder and manslaughter cases. Additionally, per-capita black-on-white crime is far more prevalent than the inverse. The underlying social factors contributing to such racially unbalanced crime statistics have been delineated by many conservative black leaders and academicians. However, their solutions – most notably promoting family unity, faith-based programs, better schools and individual responsibility and accountability, contradict leftist political objectives, which seek to maintain black folks’ status as wards of the state. (The modern Democrat implementation of a plantation system.)
Charged in the torture/murder of Chanon and Christopher were Eric Boyd, Letalvis Cobbins, Lemaricus Davidson, George Thomas and Vanessa Coleman.
In April 2008, Boyd was convicted in federal court of being an accessory after the fact, but the MSM was too busy fawning over the candidacy of Barack Obama to report that conviction. (Boyd’s case is on appeal.)
“One down. Four to go,” said Channon’s father, Gary Christian. He and Channon’s mother, Deena have been present at all the proceedings. “We do this for Channon,” said Deena. “We’ve been through the worst. We and the Newsoms have lost our children. We can endure anything.”
This week, the trial of a second defendant, Letalvis Cobbins, is underway, but it’s safe to say that the prosecution of this defendant will pass without a satellite news-link truck anywhere in sight. I draw your attention to this case not only to mourn the murder of this young couple, but also to call attention to a despicable political double standard which includes the MSM’s complicity in advancing that standard.
In 1998, three white men in Jasper, Texas, beat a black man, James Byrd, then chained him to the back of a pickup truck and dragged him three miles to his death. Not surprisingly, Byrd’s murder received national media attention – as it should. Clearly, hate was a motivating factor in the Jasper case, but it was also a motivating factor in Knoxville, though not a “hate crime” as defined by federal law. So, why do white-on-black hate crimes invariably result in a media feeding frenzy, while black-on-white hate crimes receive nary a mention?
What about the double standard when it comes to race-hustling poverty pimps like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton (who fabricated the Tawana Brawley rape hoax)? The only difference in racists such as Jackson and Sharpton and those in the KKK is that the latter are not Leftmedia celebs. To that end, my colleague Walter Williams posited this query: “What have we heard from the NAACP, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and others who rushed to judgment and outrage as they condemned whites in the cases of the ‘Jena 6′ and Don Imus when he referred to the Rutgers ladies basketball team as ‘nappy-headed ho’s’? Where were the national news media and public officials? You can bet the rent money that, were the victims black and the perpetrators white, Knoxville would have been inundated with TV crews, with Jackson, Sharpton and other civil rights spokesmen and politicians from both parties condemning racism, possibly blaming it all on George Bush…”
As for the defendants in this case, Knox County has already paid in excess of $350 thousand to prosecute and defend these monsters. Based on the eyewitness account of defendant Vanessa Coleman, the question before Cobbins’ jury, and those yet to be empanelled for the other defendants, is not one of guilt or innocence, but guilty of what charges. Those found guilty will be treated to either life imprisonment, with all entitlements, or life on death row for maybe a couple decades – all at a cost to taxpayers of more than $100 thousand per year per convict.
Martin Luther King, in his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail, proclaimed, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” The MSM blackout of this crime is a grave injustice.
To the families and friends of Channon and Christopher, we share your grief and will continue this vigil with you until justice is served.
Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus et Fidelis!http://patriotpost.us
Editor’s Note: PG suggested – this essay contains graphic descriptions of a brutal crime.
In 1775, John Adams wrote, “There is in human nature a resentment of injury, and indignation against wrong, a love of truth and a veneration of virtue … if the people are capable of understanding, seeing and feeling the differences between true and false, right and wrong, virtue and vice…”
Adams understood that a shared penchant for justice and virtue is essential to liberty, and depends upon the ability of people to discern between right and wrong. Today, it is evident to every astute social scientist (and most anyone with common sense) that among definable American subcultures the capacity for distinguishing between right and wrong is severely diminished. The origin of these deteriorating standards for justice and virtue is rooted in the dissolution of the family, and the failure of our places of worship and our schools to instill those values necessary for self-government – self-government being the foundation of family-government and that being the foundation of social responsibility. U.S. urban centers, and to a lesser extent suburban and rural areas, are now home to generations of sociopaths who do not value your life, simply because they do not value their own.
Making matters worse, the MSM perpetuates a virtual blackout of news regarding select sociopaths, while trumpeting allegations and speculations of others. This results in a distorted popular understanding of the extent of the social degradation around us.
Three years ago (March 2006), the Leftmedia spent a year relentlessly convicting in the court of public opinion three white Duke University lacrosse players for a “hate crime” – the alleged gang rape of a black woman named Crystal Gail Mangum. Millions of dollars in defense-lawyer fees later, it turns out that there was no evidence and that Mangum was a liar. The real victims were, in fact, the accused men: David Evans, Reade Seligmann and Colin Finnerty. (All charges were dropped, but there has been no apology yet from 88 Duke professors who jumped on the bandwagon, condemning Evans, Seligmann and Finnerty in an open letter before the first day of their trial.)
Four weeks ago, Barack Hussein Obama interrupted a live media propaganda confab promoting his administration’s most critical national initiative (nationalizing health care) in order to accuse a white Cambridge, MA, police officer, James Crowley, of “acting stupidly” for arresting Obama’s black friend, Henry Gates. That accusation was followed by similar knee-jerk pronouncements of racism by the black governor of Massachusetts and the black mayor of Cambridge. Under such heavy-handed political and media pressure, all charges against Gates were dropped. The Gates’ story dominated the national media headlines for a couple weeks, until it was determined that the officer’s actions were, in fact, justified. Obama attempted to make amends by tossing back a few beers with the Gates and Crowley in the Rose Garden, but BO offered no public apology. (Narcissists do not apologize, they just reinterpret the facts.)
This week, there is a trial underway which is racially charged, but, unless you were reading The Patriot back in 2007, chances are you have not heard of this one since it involves a savage black-on-white crime, rather than MSM feeding frenzy accusations of white-on-black crimes. I am referring to the brutal torture, mutilation and murder of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom by four black men in Knoxville, Tennessee. In the event you were not a reader in ‘07, allow me to recount this horrendous incident … because you won’t see or hear it from any MSM news outlets.
On 6 January 2007, Channon (age 21) and Christopher (age 23) were out for a Saturday dinner date, after which Channon called her mom to report that they were on the way to visit friends. But Channon and Christopher never arrived at their friends’ house – nor returned home. The next day, the mutilated and burned remains of Chris Newsom were found along a railroad track. Two days later, Channon’s mutilated body was recovered from a trash bin.
Channon and Chris were in Channon’s Toyota 4-Runner when they were carjacked. They were taken to a nearby house, brutally gang-raped, mutilated and then murdered. They were subjected to lengthy torture in each other’s presence. Newsom was raped, his genitals were cut off, and then taken to the railroad tracks where he was shot execution-style. The perpetrators soaked his body with an accelerant and burned his body. Christian was kept alive for a while longer, repeatedly raped, mutilated, had cleaning solution poured down her throat in an attempt to destroy DNA evidence, and then stuffed inside a trash can where she suffocated to death.
This appalling attack is more than a case study in sociopathic evil. It is a case study about which stories the MSM headlines and which they do not. Yes, there are some 17,000 murders committed in the U.S. each year, but this double murder was clearly far more barbaric, far more monstrous, than most.
Regrettably, there is nothing new about the racial aspect of this story, which may explain why it was not national news. Although blacks represent just 12% of the U.S. population, black perpetrators are convicted by a jury of their peers in more than half of all murder and manslaughter cases. Additionally, per-capita black-on-white crime is far more prevalent than the inverse. The underlying social factors contributing to such racially unbalanced crime statistics have been delineated by many conservative black leaders and academicians. However, their solutions – most notably promoting family unity, faith-based programs, better schools and individual responsibility and accountability, contradict leftist political objectives, which seek to maintain black folks’ status as wards of the state. (The modern Democrat implementation of a plantation system.)
Charged in the torture/murder of Chanon and Christopher were Eric Boyd, Letalvis Cobbins, Lemaricus Davidson, George Thomas and Vanessa Coleman.
In April 2008, Boyd was convicted in federal court of being an accessory after the fact, but the MSM was too busy fawning over the candidacy of Barack Obama to report that conviction. (Boyd’s case is on appeal.)
“One down. Four to go,” said Channon’s father, Gary Christian. He and Channon’s mother, Deena have been present at all the proceedings. “We do this for Channon,” said Deena. “We’ve been through the worst. We and the Newsoms have lost our children. We can endure anything.”
This week, the trial of a second defendant, Letalvis Cobbins, is underway, but it’s safe to say that the prosecution of this defendant will pass without a satellite news-link truck anywhere in sight. I draw your attention to this case not only to mourn the murder of this young couple, but also to call attention to a despicable political double standard which includes the MSM’s complicity in advancing that standard.
In 1998, three white men in Jasper, Texas, beat a black man, James Byrd, then chained him to the back of a pickup truck and dragged him three miles to his death. Not surprisingly, Byrd’s murder received national media attention – as it should. Clearly, hate was a motivating factor in the Jasper case, but it was also a motivating factor in Knoxville, though not a “hate crime” as defined by federal law. So, why do white-on-black hate crimes invariably result in a media feeding frenzy, while black-on-white hate crimes receive nary a mention?
What about the double standard when it comes to race-hustling poverty pimps like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton (who fabricated the Tawana Brawley rape hoax)? The only difference in racists such as Jackson and Sharpton and those in the KKK is that the latter are not Leftmedia celebs. To that end, my colleague Walter Williams posited this query: “What have we heard from the NAACP, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton and others who rushed to judgment and outrage as they condemned whites in the cases of the ‘Jena 6′ and Don Imus when he referred to the Rutgers ladies basketball team as ‘nappy-headed ho’s’? Where were the national news media and public officials? You can bet the rent money that, were the victims black and the perpetrators white, Knoxville would have been inundated with TV crews, with Jackson, Sharpton and other civil rights spokesmen and politicians from both parties condemning racism, possibly blaming it all on George Bush…”
As for the defendants in this case, Knox County has already paid in excess of $350 thousand to prosecute and defend these monsters. Based on the eyewitness account of defendant Vanessa Coleman, the question before Cobbins’ jury, and those yet to be empanelled for the other defendants, is not one of guilt or innocence, but guilty of what charges. Those found guilty will be treated to either life imprisonment, with all entitlements, or life on death row for maybe a couple decades – all at a cost to taxpayers of more than $100 thousand per year per convict.
Martin Luther King, in his “Letter from a Birmingham Jail, proclaimed, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” The MSM blackout of this crime is a grave injustice.
To the families and friends of Channon and Christopher, we share your grief and will continue this vigil with you until justice is served.
Semper Vigilo, Fortis, Paratus et Fidelis!http://patriotpost.us
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