Prison denies liability for murder of inmate

3-31-17 Maine:

Warren — The state is claiming immunity for prison officials being sued by the brother of a Maine State Prison inmate who died after being beaten and stabbed 87 times by another prisoner with a known history of violence.

The state filed its response Jan. 26 to the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Bangor brought by Caleb Boland of Jefferson, brother of Micah Boland, who was murdered Feb. 28, 2014, at the state prison in Warren.

The lawsuit initially was filed in February 2016. Caleb Boland is also the personal representative of Micah Boland's estate. Named as defendants in the civil suit are Warden Rodney Bouffard, Deputy Warden Michael Tausek, and Unit Manager Antonio Mendez.

Micah Boland died Feb. 28, 2014, at the age of 37 in his cell at the Warren prison after fellow inmate Richard A. Stahursky entered the cell, tied him up, beat him — breaking bones and knocking out teeth — and then stabbed him 87 times with a homemade knife.

Marion County remains are those of Paul Winklebleck, suspect in Portland abductions

2-11-15 Oregon:

The Oregon State Medical Examiner's Office has determined that the remains found in Marion County in December are those of Paul Winklebleck.

Winklebleck had been sought in connection with the March 2010 kidnapping of two women from Portland's Old Town.

The Oregon Medical Examiner's Office has not determined the cause or manner of death.

The identification was based on evidence found at the scene and facts gathered by detectives. A DNA sample sent to the University of Texas awaits analysis, said Nici Vance, a forensic anthropologist at the medical examiner's office.

Detectives investigate murder of registered sex offender

2-2-14 Florida:

Lake County detectives have determined a possible suspect in the fatal shooting of a 31-year-old sex offender that happened in Groveland early Saturday, deputies reported.

Detectives say the victim, Justin Russell, got into an argument with 18-year-old Travis L. Miller early Saturday morning. The argument ended with Miller opening fire and fatally shooting Russell.

Around 2:30 a.m., deputies responded to a call about the shooting in the 15700 block of Stuckey Loop in Groveland.

By the time they got to the scene, Russell was being treated for a gunshot wound by EMS personnel, an incident report said.

Murderer says he killed Saginaw prison cellmate 'because he was a child molester'

3-2-2015 Michigan:

SAGINAW, MI -- When given the chance, a convicted murderer had straightforward explanation for killing his cellmate in October at the Saginaw Correctional Facility.

"The reason I killed him was because he was a child molester," Steven D. Sandison said Monday, Feb. 23, in Saginaw County Circuit Court.

Speaking during his plea hearing before Chief Circuit Judge Fred L. Borchard, the 51-year-old Sandison was polite, addressing the judge as "sir," in explaining why he killed Theodore Dyer on Oct. 29 at the prison in Freeland.

At Borchard's request, Sandison first answered questions from his attorney, James Gust, to establish a "factual basis" for why he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. After answering "Yes" to several of Gust's questions, Sandison then provided his explanation.

"But," Gust then asked, "you did, in fact, kill him?"

"Oh, sure," Sandison said. "Oh, sure, of course."

Borchard later in the hearing asked Sandison how he killed the 67-year-old Dyer.

"If it's all right," Sandison replied, "I can tell you where it started."

"Go ahead," Borchard said.

Convenience store robbery suspect shot dead by police in Klamath Falls

11-17-2014 Oregon:

Klamath Falls police officers shot and killed a man Sunday evening suspected of robbing a convenience store.

Officers from the Klamath Falls Police Department, the Klamath County Sheriff's Office and Oregon State Police pursued a trio of suspects leaving the Frontier Market in Klamath Falls allegedly with stolen cash.

Lenny Miles, 37, and two other suspects were on foot about two blocks from the market when the confrontation with officers took place, said Rob Patridge, Klamath County District Attorney. Miles was shot in an exchange of gunfire. He was pronounced dead at 9:41 p.m. at Sky Lakes Medical Center.

Two other suspects who allegedly assisted Miles in the robbery, were uninjured. Garrett Michael Peterson, 27, and Samantha Darlene Robinson, 26, were arrested and lodged in the Klamath County jail on first-degree robbery and criminal conspiracy charges.

'I can't be friends with a rapist,' suspect told Coaldale man before killing him, police say; teen also charged

1-12-2015 Pennsylvania:

The yearlong mystery of Corey Samuels' death in Coaldale was solved Sunday when a man told state police that he and a teenage boy killed Samuels as revenge for an alleged rape, police said.

Oliver L. Trizarri, 21, of Reading and Stanley E. Kralik, 17, of Coaldale were arraigned Monday on charges of homicide, aggravated assault, robbery and theft in the death of Samuels, 24, of Coaldale.

"I can't be friends with a rapist," Trizarri said the night of Jan. 20-21, 2014, after Kralik hit Samuels with a shovel and Samuels pleaded for mercy in the woods near an old railroad bed, according to the police arrest affidavit.

Trizarri told police that, weeks before the killing, Kralik informed him that a female friend of Kralik's said Samuels had sexually assaulted her, according to the affidavit. Kralik wanted Samuels punished, police said.

"Trizarri stated that [Kralik] told him, 'I want to kill (Samuels),'" and Trizarri agreed to help Kralik carry out the slaying, the affidavit says.

Trizarri told police that he and Kralik separated Samuels from his girlfriend the night of Jan. 20 by telling her they were going on a "boys night out" in the woods, the affidavit says.

Samuels was not seen alive again, police said.

He was reported missing to Coaldale police on Jan. 23, but his body wasn't found for nearly eight months. On Sept. 16, two hikers found his remains in the woods off East Miner Street, Coaldale.

Authorities: Unknown who fatally shot man after attempted house break-in near Haysville

12-30-2014 Kansas:

Someone shot Cody Don Reid in the chest and left him to die Monday afternoon. Who shot him remained unknown Tuesday.

Sedgwick County sheriff’s Capt. Greg Pollock said Tuesday that the last thing the 27-year-old registered offender did before he died was try to break into a house in the 7800 block of South Broadway near Haysville.

But it wasn’t the resident who shot Reid, Pollock said. After the resident told Reid he was calling police, Reid ran off. The resident heard gunshots, looked out and saw Reid on the ground and a dark-colored car speeding down the driveway toward Broadway, Pollock said.

Deputies found Reid mortally wounded, and he died outside the house.

Authorities are seeking the fleeing car, described as a dark-colored 1980s or 1990s sedan. Pollock asked anyone with information about the car or the shooting to call sheriff’s investigators at 316-660-5300 or Crime Stoppers, 316-267-2111.

On Tuesday, Pollock read a statement about the shooting to reporters and said investigators don’t know who shot Reid. The resident didn’t know Reid, Pollock said. Two people were in the home at the time of the shooting. The resident called 911 about 4:08 p.m.

Inmate Stabbed to Death in Carlisle Prison

12-29-2014 Indiana:

A murder investigation is underway at the Wabash Valley Correctional Facility following an inmate death.

25-year-old Kango Douglas was stabbed multiple times in the face, neck and head shortly before noon on Friday. The incident took place in the south campus recreation yard.

Indiana State Police detectives and WVCF Internal Affairs investigators have a person of interest linked to the attack.

The offenders identity will not be released pending the outcome of the criminal probe. The suspect has been placed in a restrictive status housing unit.

Douglas was rushed from the WVCF by ambulance to Terre Haute Regional Hospital. He was then LifeLined by helicopter to and Indianapolis hospital. Douglas remained unresponsive for questioning.

Shooting Victim A Registered Sex Offender

12-26-2014 Illinois:

Police say a man shot to death in Peoria's North Valley had a criminal background, although they're still trying to figure out why he was gunned down.

The body of Rogelio Delarosa, 34, was found by officers around 10:20 p.m. Tuesday in an alley in the 1000 block of Northeast Peoria.

Officials say Delarosa was last living at the Heritage Inn in Peoria.

"We're trying to locate his movements and contacts over the past 24 hours," says Peoria Police Capt. Mike Scally, "to find out where he was and where he's been."

Sex offender is latest Wichita homicide victim

12-26-2014 Kansas:

WICHITA, Kan. -- A registered sex offender is the victim of Wichita's latest homicide. The neighbor who called police after the victim showed up on his porch is talking tonight. "Having Someone, your neighbor, come over and just die right on your porch. It was a terrible thing before Christmas," said Jim Ormerod.

He was home at 11:30 P.M. on Christmas Eve listening to a sermon before bed when his Christmas was changed for good. His 32 year-old neighbor Steven Manuel was bleeding. A 16 year old boy was with the victim begging for help.

"They were both over here", Ormerod explains. "I mean he was laying on the ground blood all over everything. But it was the young boy that asked me to call 911 and that's basically what i did."

When police arrived they transported Manuel to Via Christi Saint Francis. He died at the hospital shortly after. Ormerod lived next door to Manuel for a few years, but never saw the 16 year old before. A young man will likely never forget.

Officer-involved shooting victim was a convicted sex offender

11-13-2014 Mississippi:

"We were coming outside last night and the cop that was standing over there told us to get back in. And then about 10, 15 minutes later a cop came banging on the door and told us we needed to get our kids, that there was a man over there who had a gun to his head, and SWAT was coming in, and they needed us to get our kids and get out," says Jessica Grant.

Grant lives next door to the home where 42-year old Mark Bartlett was fatally shot by a Pearl Police Officer Friday night. The officer had to use deadly force to subdue Bartlett.

Bartlett was shot in the chest after posing a threat to his wife and the officers who responded to the domestic disturbance call earlier in the evening. A bullet hole is visible in a window of the home.

The incident took place at the Highlands Mobile Home Park in Pearl.

Grant says her children play outside quite a bit, running from yard to yard. She lives in the home with her husband, children, her friend Crystal Farrar, and Farrar's children. They were forced to leave the area until the threat was gone.

Homicide victim once indicted for failure to register as sex offender

11-13-2014 Georgia:

The same day patrol officers found him fatally shot in the head, the Muscogee County Superior Court indicted Chad Aaron Herring of failure to register as a sex offender, according to court documents.

Wednesday's indictment came more than two years after 32-year-old Herring was arrested and charged with the offense. He was booked into the Muscogee County Jail on April 5, 2012, after he falsely reported that he lived on the 1500 block of 15th Avenue.

Herring's body was discovered around 11:47 p.m. Wednesday when officers investigated a Chevrolet Impala parked on Roosevelt Street near Brewer Elementary School, Columbus Police Lt. Consuelo Askew said Thursday morning. Askew said there was no evidence of other shots fired in the area and reported no damage to the vehicle.

Muscogee County Chief Deputy Coroner Freeman Worley said Herring was pronounced dead at 12:26 a.m. He will be transported Friday for autopsy, Worley said.

Sex offender shot to death in Cleveland, TN after daylight abduction

11-26-2014 Tennessee:

A kidnapped woman and three children were in the house where Cleveland, Tenn., police shot to death a convicted sex offender who lunged at them with a knife, authorities said.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is still piecing together what happened on Tuesday that led to the death of Robert Edwin Eaves, 51, a self-described "jack of all trades" who was convicted of attempted rape in 2006.

The TBI and Cleveland police said Eaves, who lived on Vista Drive NW, abducted a 28-year-old woman who lived nearby at about 11:30 a.m. -- broad daylight -- and took her to a house on Phillips Street, halfway across town and a few blocks off of South Lee Highway in Cleveland.

He took the woman inside the house, authorities said, where there were three children, including a 16-year-old baby sitter. It's not known what relationships, if any, Eaves had to any of the other people involved, but TBI officials said Eaves was threatening the safety of everyone in the home.

One of the children managed to call their mother, who called 911, authorities said. Cleveland police showed up in just minutes.

When the two officers, identified as 25-year-old Jacob Varnell and 45-year-old Jody Musselwhite, arrived at the Phillips Street address, Eaves pulled a knife and attempted to assault them, TBI officials said.

The officers drew their weapons and "one or both of the officers" fired on Eaves, killing him, the TBI said.

Dog brings home sex offender's skull, U.S. marshals say

11-17-2014 Texas:

AUSTIN, Texas — The case of a former Army specialist who escaped from federal supervision was closed Monday after officials said the sex offender's skull was found in a field two months ago.

The skull of Kevin Patrick Stoeser, 41, was discovered Sept. 8 when a woman's dog, who had escaped from the backyard overnight, returned with a pile of animal bones and a human skull. The skull appeared "weathered" and likely was there for some time, officials said.

Although police dogs searched areas nearby after the find, they did not recover additional human remains.

Stoeser was added to the U.S. Marshals Service 15 Most Wanted fugitives list in May after running Oct. 24, 2013, from a halfway house in Del Valle, Texas, about 7 miles from Austin. At the time, staffers had confiscated a smartphone that he was not authorized to have and found more than two dozen images of scantily clad young girls.

Convicted MH child rapist found dead at state park

11-9-2014 Arkansas:

The Baxter Bulletin has confirmed that the man's body found near Pinnacle Mountain State Park in Roland on Saturday was that of 44-year-old Mountain Home native Thomas James Lovelady.

Lovelady — who was a member of the Class of 1989 at Mountain Home High School — was the subject of a highly publicized child rape case in the 1990s, during which he was convicted in Baxter County Circuit Court of raping his 7-year-old stepdaughter.

A registered Level 3 sex offender, Lovelady was living in Little Rock at the time of his death, according to an address listed on the Arkansas Crime Information Center sex offender database.

Little Rock television station KLRT first reported that two women walking along a highway in the area of the state park discovered the body around 7 a.m. Saturday and contacted authorities. State police investigators spent most of the morning at the scene in western Pulaski County collecting evidence.

Coroner identifies man killed in Loris shooting Wednesday night

11-6-2014 South Carolina:

LORIS — The body of a man found shot in Loris was identified Thursday as Dashadre Jacorey Sampson, according to Horry County Deputy Coroner Tony Hendrick.

Horry County Police found the body of the 21-year-old Myrtle Beach man Wednesday night at an abandoned area off Bennett Loop in Loris.

Horry County Police spokesman Lt. Robert Kegler confirmed the death is being investigated as a homicide. Horry County has had 25 homicides this year, according to the Coroner’s Office. Homicides in 2013 totaled 17.

Police were called to the 1000 block of Bennett Loop, where the body was found, around 5 p.m. Wednesday. Bennett Loop is off Airport Road in Loris.

Grandpa Shoots & Kills Man, 20, For Attempting To Rape Granddaughter

10-21-2014 North Carolina:

Kenneth Byrd, 67, found himself in a scary situation when three men invaded his home and kept him and his wife, Judy, 65, hostage at gunpoint. When the three men attempted to force themselves on his 19-year-old granddaughter, Kenneth snapped and somehow managed to retrieve his own gun and defend his family.

This is truly a heroic story.

When a young man knocked on Kenneth’s door looking for help with his car, the grandfather became alarmed when two more men appeared out of nowhere and forced their way into his home.

The three home invaders then forced Kenneth and his wife, Judy, towards the back of the home at gunpoint while demanding the couple open a private safe and give them their money, reports The Inquistr.

However, it was when the three men attempted to “gang rape” Kenneth’s teenage granddaughter that he decided to fight back. Although it’s not known where the the gun came from, Kenneth retrieved his own personal gun and used it to shoot all 3 of the intruders.

Cleveland woman charged with murder in death of longtime abuser

10-27-2014 Ohio:

Teisha Frederick suffered at the hands of Deshawn Creer for years, and now she's charged in his killing.

Frederick, 24, was charged with one count of aggravated murder Sunday after police found the 27-year-old man stabbed in the chest in her West 174th Street apartment early Friday morning.

Frederick's older brother said that Creer came back to the apartment sometime late Thursday or early Friday morning, saying he wanted to see the couple's 8-year-old boy and 6-year-old girl. At some point overnight, the two began fighting.

The fight turned physical, and Creer began to rip out Frederick's hair. Frederick picked up a knife and stabbed Creer in the chest, police said.

Man shot, killed when Cumberland County deputies try to serve warrants

10-24-2014 North Carolina:

A man was shot and killed by a Cumberland County sheriff's deputy Friday when the deputy tried to serve a warrant.

Deputies stopped a vehicle at 11:53a.m. near the Sonic Drive-In at 5938 Cliffdale Road, according to a news release from the Sheriff's Office. When deputies approached the vehicle in the parking lot of the restaurant, they saw that the driver had a knife or some type of straight-edged weapon.

The man, who has not been identified by authorities, became confrontational and did not obey the deputies' commands, the Sheriff's Office said. When he started cutting his arms and neck, deputies stunned him with a Taser gun.

The Taser reportedly had no effect. While deputies struggled with the man, one of them shot him.

One of the deputies suffered a minor injury to his hand.

South Euclid officer fatally shoots man involved in domestic incident

10-18-2014 Ohio:

SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio -- A South Euclid officer shot and killed a man who was involved in a domestic incident at an Avondale Road home early Saturday, according to police.

Ronnie D. McNary, 44, of Cleveland, died at Hillcrest Hospital after being shot at the home, a Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's spokesman confirmed Saturday.

The officer's name has not been released.

Officers went to the home at 4:13 a.m. to investigate a domestic dispute. When they arrived, the heard a woman yelling for help, South Euclid Chief Kevin Nietert said in a statement.