Red Bluff Daily News

July 29, 2015

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ByMichaelGraczyk The Associated Press HEMPSTEAD,TEXAS Texas authorities on Tuesday re- leased several hours of video footage showing Sandra Bland during her three days in jail, saying they wanted to dispel ru- mors that she was dead be- fore arriving there. Waller County Judge Trey Duhon said such con- spiracy theories — includ- ing one that Bland's mug shot was taken after her death — have prompted death threats against county officials. "Because of some of the things that's gone out on so- cial media, this county has been literally attacked," he said at a news conference, adding that the FBI is in- vestigating the most seri- ous threats. "Sandra Bland was alive and well" until she was found hanging on July 13 in her cell at the Waller County jail, Duhon said. Authorities have ruled that Bland's death, three days after her arrest dur- ing a confrontational traf- fic stop, was a suicide. The video released shows her arriving at the jail, being questioned by a jailer filling out forms, making phone calls, get- ting her mug shot taken, sleeping in her cell and be- ing taken in and out. She's calm when she ar- rives at the jail, sometimes smiling and at one point putting her head in her hands. The jailer let her use the phone at the book- ing desk instead of the pay phone in her cell, and she was seen talking with ani- mation during some of the calls. The video has no au- dio. Bland, a black 28-year- old from suburban Chi- cago, was found dead in the Waller County jail on July 13. Authorities have said Bland hanged her- self with a garbage bag, a finding that her family has questioned, saying she was happy. She was in cus- tody for allegedly assault- ing the white state trooper who pulled her over for an improper lane change. Her sister, Sharon Coo- per, did not immediately return a call from The Associated Press seeking comment on Tuesday. The death has garnered national attention amid in- creased scrutiny of police treatment of blacks in the wake of several high-pro- file police-involved deaths. On Monday, an initial toxicology report was re- leased for Bland that two experts said raised the pos- sibility that she may have used marijuana while in custody. Prosecutor War- ren Diepraam has said in- formation on her mari- juana use may be relevant to the case in determining her state of mind. The amount of THC, one of the active components of marijuana, in Bland's sys- tem was 18 micrograms per liter, according to the report. That's more than three times the legal limit for drivers in Colorado and Washington, states that permit the recreational use of marijuana. Police Capt. Brian Cantrell said Tuesday that he doesn't know if she could have used marijuana in the jail. He said there's no recent history of drug seizures there but noted things get smuggled into jails everywhere. A committee of outside attorneys will assist Waller County District Attorney Elton Mathis in investigat- ing Bland's death. "I don't know if we'll ever get an answer to all the questions," said attor- ney Lewis White of Sugar Land, one of the commit- tee members. "But our job is to get answers. There are going to be answers some people don't like." The Texas Rangers and the FBI are investigating the case. SEVERAL HOURS BRETTCOOMER—HOUSTONCHRONICLE Margaret Hilaire bows her head in prayer during a demonstration calling for the firing and indictment of Texas State Trooper Brian Encinia, Sunday in Katy, Texas. Jailreleasesmorefootageof Sandra Bland before her death By Sadie Gurman The Associated Press CENTENNIAL, COLO. The father of Colorado theater shooter James Holmes said he didn't know his son suf- fered from mental illness until he killed 12 people at a Batman movie. Emotions just weren't talked about on his side of the family, Robert Holmes acknowledged after de- fense lawyers put him on the stand in an effort to save his son from the death penalty. Robert Holmes said he wasn't aware of mental ill- ness in the family until in- vestigators researched it in preparation for this trial. "I assumed he might be depressed," Robert Holmes said. But he said he never knew his son had homi- cidal or suicidal thoughts after breaking up with a girlfriend and quitting his prestigious neuroscience program as his life unrav- eled before the theater at- tack. Holmes said his son is an "excellent kid," and he still loves him. "He's my son and we always got along very well." But his responses were terse, and neither father nor son smiled at each other, even when family videos brought chuckles to some audience members who weren't sitting in the vic- tims' side of the gallery. Robert and Arlene Holmes have attended every day of their son's 12-week trial, but the couple had not spoken publicly since prose- cutors denied their request for a pre-trial plea-deal to spare his life. While jurors found Holmes to be legally sane and eligible for the death penalty, his defense is try- ing to show that mental ill- ness reduced his moral cul- pability, so much so that capital punishment would not due justice. Death sentences must be unanimous, and the judge has explained to jurors that their decision will be highly personal. So the defense has a two- fold task during this phase of Holmes' sentencing: They must persuade at least one juror that Holmes was deeply mentally ill, even if legally sane; and they must show he deserves mercy. On the first point, the defense brought back the same court-appointed psy- chiatrist who found Holmes was legally sane during the attack, this time to say that it was severe mental illness that drove Holmes to kill. "Having psychosis doesn't take away your ca- pacity to make choices. It may increase your capac- ity to make bad choices," Dr. Jeffrey Metzner testi- fied Monday. "He acted on his delusions, and that's a reflection of the severity of his mental illness." On the second, they showed images of him as a baby and a young boy, and introduced friends and family to show that even this killer was a good per- son once. Family videos of him playing with neighbors and team pictures from af- terschool soccer leagues were put on the screen. SENTENCING PHASE Father of James Holmes: 'He might be depressed' THE ASSOCIATED PRESS James Holmes, top fourth from right in light-colored shirt, gets a pat on the arm from a member of his defense team following testimony from Holmes' younger sister Chris, during the penalty phase of Holmes' trial, Monday in Centennial, Colo. By Tom Krisher The Associated Press DETROIT A Georgia judge has cut the damages that Fiat Chrysler must pay the family of a child who died in a Jeep SUV fire from $150 million to $40 million. Decatur County Superior Court Judge J. Kevin Cha- son also denied Fiat Chrys- ler's motion for a new trial, dismissing arguments that jurors acted irrationally in the case. In a ruling issued Friday and made public Tuesday, Chason decided that the family of 4-year-old Rem- ington Walden should get $30 million for his death and $10 million for pain and suffering. The ruling was accepted by the fami- ly's attorneys and opens a path for Fiat Chrysler Auto- mobiles NV to appeal. The company said in a statement that the ruling doesn't cure errors that tainted the verdict and de- nied it a fair trial, and that it is considering legal op- tions. Walden died after the Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by his aunt in Bainbridge, Ga., was hit from behind in March 2012 and exploded into flames. The Jeep's gas tank was mounted behind the rear axle, leaving it vul- nerable in a rear crash. A 12-person jury found Fiat Chrysler negligent and asked for $120 million for wrongful death and $30 million in pain and suffer- ing following a seven-day trial in the rural southwest- ern Georgia community in early spring. Earlier this month, FCA attorneys sought during a hearing to cut the judgment to $5 million to bring it in line with court-approved judgments in other Geor- gia cases. The attorneys contended that jurors acted with passion and prejudice against the Italian-Amer- ican automaker, and they were irrational. Chason, however, re- jected those arguments, writing in his ruling that the evidence against FCA was overwhelming. "The court saw nothing to indi- cate, nor has it been pre- sented with persuasive ev- idence or argument to sug- gest that the jurors were inflamed or irrational," Chason wrote. DAMAGES Georgia judge cuts damages in Jeep fire death from $150M to $40M COURTESY OF BUTLER, WOOTEN & FRYHOFER This is the burnt-out Jeep Grand Cherokee that 4-year- old Remington Walden was riding in when it was hit from behind by a pickup truck and burst into flames, killing the boy, in Bainbridge, Ga. By Kate Brumback The Associated Press ATLANTA A former high- ranking corrections offi- cer at a southeast Georgia women's prison used his position of power to prey on inmates, targeting their vulnerabilities and forcing them to have sex with him, according to investigators. Over at least four years, Edgar Daniel Johnson groped and fondled women and forced some to have sex with him, according to sworn statements filed in warrant applications by an investigator for the Georgia Department of Corrections. He faces criminal charges, and his lawyer said Johnson, 48, looks forward to defending himself. "Mr. Johnson vehemently denies the allegations, and we look forward to having the opportunity to confront these charges in court," at- torney Kendall Gross said. The Associated Press spoke to four of more than a dozen women who say Johnson victimized them while they were inmates at Emanuel Women's Facil- ity in Swainsboro. The AP generally does not name alleged victims of sexual crimes. Johnson initially seemed like someone who cared, a comforting thing in a scary place, said one woman who was 25 and had never been in prison when she landed at Emanuel on charges re- lated to an injury her son suffered while with her ex when the boy was supposed to be in her custody. John- son said he was a pastor and recited passages from the Bible. Then, she said, he started telling her how pretty she was, how a girl like her didn't belong in prison. He asked about her family. He was a captain, so he could help her get to a transi- tional center closer to her children, he told her. "He got a feel for your story to see what angle he could come at you with," she said. Her assigned work detail included cleaning his office, but she said he'd summon her more often than needed — up to five or six times a day — sometimes having an officer wake her from a nap to come see him. He'd give her tasks to keep her in the office or sometimes he'd just have her sit there, she said. He quickly started mak- ing sexual comments and brushing up against her in a way that was too familiar, she said. CRIMINAL CHARGES Georgia ex-prison guard accused of forcing inmates to have sex FacebookPage 4,112 fans. .. and growing, every week! Daily News Facebook fans receive special posts of breaking news, sports, weather and road closures, clicking right to full stories and photos published on redbluffdailynews.com ... 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