"Cold Justice" Resembles Dateline's "Unsolved Case Squad"

Only one episode into TNT's new Cold Justice, I'm already a fan of the show. It's hard to say if I would be as enthusiastic if former Texas prosecutor Kelly Siegler was not part of this show - after all, Cold Justice looks a lot like Dateline's Unsolved Case Squad.  Dateline's Unsolved Case Squad featured a similar pairing of a former prosecutor (Los Angeles prosecutor Alan Jackson) with Yolanda McClary and retired homicide detective Dwayne Stanton and had them review cold case files in the hopes of uncovering new leads on old cases.

I watch Dateline regularly, and I watched a few episodes that featured the Unsolved Case Squad.  I believe that although Cold Justice has the same premise as the earlier Dateline series, what's different with this show is there is better chemistry between the former prosecutor (Siegler), the former CSI (Yolanda McClary) and former detective (Johnny Bonds). Siegler and McClary seem to have some early success in their ability to bring justice to these victims. Perhaps the success is in part due to the case selection, I'm not sure after watching one episode but this show seems different to me than the earlier Dateline format. I hope the series continues. 

I admire Kelly Siegler's story. She has a phenomenal record as a prosecutor. From 1986 to 2008, she had a perfect record prosecuting murder cases. She never lost one, making her one of the most feared prosecutors in the state of Texas. But Sieger's seemingly humble beginnings and what she made of herself is what I admire the most. She grew up in Blessing, TX - a small town in  Matagorda County in Texas with a population of 927 (as of 2010). Her father owns a barber shop in town, and her late mother managed several local restaurants. Siegler graduated from Tidehaven High School in 1981, received a degree in International Business from University of Texas in Austin in 1984, and received her law degree in 1987 from the South Texas College of Law. Siegler went on to prosecute high profile cases such as Texas v. Robert Fratta and Texas v. Susan Wright - both stories have been covered extensively in the media and on various crime shows.

Not bad for a woman who grew up in a county where the median household income is $17,181 (2011), (these figures were obtained on zillow.com). While I don't know anything else about Sieger's family other than her mother and father's occupations, it would seem Siegler has worked her way to where she is today. I always admire the self-made Kelly Siegers of the world. That's part of the reason I'm rooting for Cold Justice. Who doesn't like the idea of getting justice for victims of long forgotten murders? 

Whether TNT and Dick Wolf got the idea for Cold Justice from Dateline's less successful Unsolved Case Squad or not - if they can tweak the format and make it work, good for them.  Episode 2 airs tonight and features the 2006 murder of Mattie Williams, a 67 year old woman found stabbed and bludgeoned to death just 3 miles from her home.  Arrests have been made in that case. I know I'll be watching to see how Siegler, McClary and Bonds helped.

**UPDATE** Murder Trials Gone Wrong - AZ vs. Jeffrey Martinson

**UPDATED**

This story was originally posted in September of 2013. I was just following up on the progress of the case, and was shocked to see an article saying that Jeffrey Martinson was being set free November 26, 2013 after spending 9 years in prison! 

Because of double jeopardy, he will not be re-tried for the murder of his 5 year old son. The trial cost the taxpayers an estimated $2.97 million dollars, nearly half of the cost of the Jodi Arias defense. Judge Sally Duncan dropped all charges against Martinson citing a pattern of "misconduct by the prosecutor" - and ordered his release.

In a 28-page ruling, Judge Sally Duncan said that Deputy Maricopa County Attorney Frankie Grimsman charged Martinson with felony murder, on the grounds that 5 year old Joshua died by child abuse inflicted by Martinson.  But during his trial, Grimsman tried Martinson as if he were charged with premeditated, intentional murder.  Judge Duncan warned Grimsman many times throughout the trial not to treat the charge as premeditated.  This trial looks like it was a mess - Martinson was found guilty, but before he could be sentenced a juror came forward and accused the forewoman of "browbeating" them for a guilty verdict. The guilty verdict was thrown out in March of 2012. Now it appears that Martinson will not be re-tried or held accountable for his son's death!  See below for details on the case, and I'm posting a link to the article announcing his ordered release:

http://www.miaminewsday.com/national/32662-man-charged-with-murdering-son-to-walk-free-from-prison-after-9-years.html



The public has gotten used to the annoying and sometimes seemingly senseless delays in the judicial system. Bringing a murder suspect to trial can be a daunting task and be years in the making before the case sees the inside of a courtroom.  Most recently the public has been frustrated by the delays in setting a date to begin jury selection in the sentencing retrial of Jodi Arias who was convicted in early May for the June 4, 2008 murder of her ex boyfriend Travis Alexander.  Believe it or not, I found a case that's taken even longer, had more attorneys involved and still is unresolved. I'm talking about AZ v Jeffrey Martinson. There's more to this story than I can get into right now, but the delay aspect is what I wanted to hit on in today's blog.

In August of 2004, Martinson's 5 year old son Joshua Eberle-Martinson was found dead in a bunk bed at Martinson's apartment.  Martinson himself was found unconscious with a plastic bag over his head and (self-inflicted) cuts on his wrists - believed to be a murder/suicide by police. Martinson was in the middle of a very contemptuous custody battle with ex-wife Kristin Eberle over visitation with 5 year old Joshua. Martinson was seeking more time with his son, over the objections of Eberle who had been granted several orders of protection against the allegedly abusive Martinson. Police responded to Martinson's apartment when Eberle called to report she had been trying to pick up Joshua from a weekend visitation at his father's home where nobody was answering the door. It was too late for Joshua, but Martinson was still alive and he was arrested on August 29th, 2004 - the day after Joshua's body was discovered.  

The state believes that Martinson drugged his young son, after medical examiner Dr. John Hu found toxic levels of the drug carisoprodol (Soma) in the 5 year old's system and the death was ruled a homicide. Over the years that the case made its way through the system, Martinson reportedly went through a total of 5 sets of court appointed defense teams (11 attorneys). Each change in representation caused further delays in bringing the case to trial. The trial finally began in August of 2011, 7 years after Joshua's death.  In November, the jury convicted Martinson of first degree murder and aggravated child abuse.  The jury deadlocked on sentencing, with 2 jurors voting for death, 8 voted for life imprisonment and 2 were undecided. 

Ordinarily the judge would then set a date for retrial on sentencing and choose a new jury panel.  We all know the Arizona process after watching the Arias trial!  However, this is where this case was turned upside down.  After the mistrial was announced, detailed notes from jurors were sent to Judge Duncan claiming the jury forewoman "bullied several jurors into submission", badly interpreted the judge's legal instructions on felony murder as it relates to child abuse.  "Laura", the juror who wrote the note claimed forewoman "Kathy" was an employee of the AZ Supreme Court and she alleged Kathy would not allow the jury to discuss anything other than the most serious counts of child abuse - several jurors wanted to discuss or at least consider the lesser charges. Judge Duncan spoke to each juror, one by one in January of 2012.  Martinson's attorney asked for a mistrial - wanting to start over from the beginning of the guilt/innocence phase.  Another juror named "James" told the judge he didn't feel the state proved murder, but he voted guilty anyway. 

Judge Sally Duncan overturned Martinson's guilty verdict and ordered he be given a new trial, citing "juror misconduct" and a recently filed Arizona Court of Appeals opinion regarding the "opinion" testimony of medical examiner in her 7 page ruling on the case. Dr. Hu had testified at trial that Joshua "absolutely died as the result of a murder - what he called of "acute Soma toxicity". Judge Duncan's ruling further said that Hu "did not rely on any specialized knowledge in making his findings. Instead, he based his findings on information that he was no more uniquely qualified to determine than the jurors". The judge also found that juror misconduct occurred, an independent basis to grant a new trial".

A September 20, 2012 article from the eastvaluetribune.com wrote that Martinson's new trial was supposed to begin in October of 2012 and he would not face the death penalty.  They estimated the trial would go "no longer than January of 2013".  As far as I can tell, this trial STILL has not started. According to the Maricopa County Superior Court websites "minute entries" shows the last minute entry referred to a 9/6/13 court date to hear oral arguments on the defendants "Request for Consolidation" and Ruling on Defendants "Motion to Dismiss Prosecutorial Misconduct/Double Jeopardy".

This case has been going through the justice system for more than 9 years now. I can only imagine the outrage that Joshua's mother feels, as Martinson's conviction was overturned after waiting 7 years and 11 defense attorneys to get to trial. Does this seem just to you??  

Sign "Fallon's Petition" - In Honor Of Jennifer Martel, Murder Victim

I continue to be saddened and outraged at some of the things that are happening in our society with shocking frequency - senseless murders, and some of the laws or lack of laws protecting women from the men that abuse them. 

I received an e-mail from Change.org requesting my signature on "Fallon's Petition". The story is sad.  If you would like to be a part of enacting positive change to prevent this from happening to another young woman, I would encourage you to use the link at the bottom of this blog entry and sign the petition. They still need a lot of signatures.  Here's part of the e-mail I received, summarizing the victim and circumstances of the murder of 27 year old Jennifer Martel:

Jennifer Martel, from Change.org

"27 year old Jennifer Martel was a caring mom to a little girl.  Working her way through college, Jennifer hoped to become an elementary school teacher.  Jennifer's boyfriend had a long history of criminal activity, including domestic violence, yet he was released on his own recognizance after smashing Jennifer's head into a mirror Tuesday, August 13th.  Just two nights later, he was found covered in blood after stabbing Jennifer to death in the presence of their 4 year old daughter and neighbors".

"While Massachusetts law is at the forefront of the war against domestic violence, the recent murder of Jennifer Martel highlights a gaping hole in the current system. Under MGL 276 Sec. 58A, offenders can be released on their own recognizance, without any bail set, within 24 hours of an assault. 
An emergency restraining order was issued against Jennifer's assailant, but since Jennifer did not appear in court the day after she was attacked her assailant was released without bail on his own recognizance". 

Fallon's Petition "hopes to close the loophole that allows repeat, violent offenders to be released without immediate consequences, putting their female victims and the public at risk".  Here is the link to Change.org:

https://www.change.org/petitions/honor-jennifer-martel-protect-victims-of-abuse?utm_source=action_alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=33530&alert_id=myKSlswmic_ByINstaOPJ

Unfortunately, these stories are becoming far too commonplace and this will never be acceptable.  If they need to build more prisons to keep these violent predators locked away for longer, so be it.  Jennifer looks like a beautiful young woman, and now her daughter will grow up without her - who knows what she witnessed and how it will effect her in the future. Thank you "Fallon" for your petition.

"Pillowcase Rapist" Christopher Hubbart Being Released?

Thanks to Nancy B for bringing this unbelievable story to light in one of her recent comments. The women of California need to know this man's face - and be aware that he may soon be wandering the streets of their neighborhood. I'm still at a loss for words that Santa Clara Judge Gilbert Brown granted the " conditional release" of Christopher Hubbart - a man who admitted to violently raping nearly 40 women throughout the state of California.  Those are the rapes he admitted to, who knows the real number?  Why in God's name would any Judge, any court in the United States of America release an inmate with this type of predatory background?

Christopher Hubbart

Here's some background on Hubbart. Beginning in 1968, he began raping women in San Bernardino and Los Angeles Counties.  In the year 1972 alone, he reportedly raped 25 or 26 women.  Yet in 1983, he was paroled - and on the same day of his release, he raped another woman.  The SAME DAY of his release he found his next victim. He went on to rape 9 more woman in San Jose before being caught and returned to custody.  Do you think at that point he ever should have been released? Is there any question this man should have been locked up for life? He was released AGAIN in 1990, and shortly thereafter he attacked a woman who was jogging and was returned to custody. Hubbart spent time at Atascadero State Hospital as a "mentally disordered offender". That's a polite way to put it. He's in another state hospital now, Coalinga State Hospital.

Dubbed "The Pillowcase Rapist", Hubbart terrorized women in their own homes by covering their heads with pillowcases in an attempt to drown out their screams for help.  A true predator, he would stalk neighborhoods, looking for telltale clues that the man of the house was gone - like looking into open garages for cars, and looking for signs of children. He believed women with children would be less likely to fight him in order to keep their children safe. What a monster. He would bind them, cover their faces and assault them. 

Los Angeles District Attorney Jacky Lacey says her office is doing everything they can to challenge the release of Hubbart. State law requires that inmates conditionally released must be placed back in the community they lived in prior to their incarceration, unless circumstances require placement elsewhere. His last known residence was in Claremont, CA. How can this happen? This man has offended, re offended and re offended again - yet the state thinks it's time to release him into a community?  Lacey petitioned the state Supreme Court in July to block the release, but was unsuccessful. The Huffington Post reported that Lacey said "we have aggressively pursued and exhausted all legal avenues to stop the release of sexually violent predator Christopher Hubbart to Los Angeles County". 

Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky said "releasing this individual into the county where many of the victims and their families live is unreasonable and unfair". I say releasing him ANYWHERE is unreasonable and unfair. He should be locked up for life. Efforts are reportedly under way to notify his victims. Hubbarts case prompted the passage of the Sexually Violent Predators Act, which allows authorities to keep offenders like Hubbart in custody until officials deem them safe. 

After hearing from mental health professionals in April, a Santa Clara County judge ruled 62 year old Hubbart eligible for release, and ordered him to be relocated back to Los Angeles County. A San Jose appeals court and state Supreme Court upheld the ruling, over the protests of DA Lacey. Is there anything that we, as concerned citizens do to block the release? If this man committed these sex crimes today, he would undoubtedly face life in prison. This is completely unacceptable, and seems to put an entire community in harms way.  If history tells us anything about Hubbart, he'll be stalking another neighborhood looking for another victim - ankle bracelet, GPS or whatever they will be using to monitor him will not be enough.

I'm outraged.  Nancy B, you were SO right about this story - truly outrageous and outright frightening. Thank you so much for bringing this to light.  I'm looking for some type of petition that we can all sign. If you know of one, please post the location. It's frightening to think of what this man is capable of and how many times he's been released only to commit more rapes. What makes these mental health officials believe he's reformed? Would they be comfortable with Hubbart being released into their neighborhoods?  How about Judge Gilbert Brown? How would he like to be Hubbarts' neighbor? 

"Cold Justice" Heats Up Unsolved Murder Cases

This is my third blog post on TNT's new reality show, "Cold Justice".  Cold Justice pairs former Texas prosecutor Kelly Siegler with former Las Vegas CSI Yolanda McClary, who travel to small rural towns across America to look at unsolved murder cases.  Their first episode which aired Tuesday has already delivered results - the arrest of Ronnie Hendricks (see yesterdays post for details) for the murder of Pam Shelley. TNT lists an episode guide online, and 
I couldn't resist taking a peek and looking for details on those cases.  I was astonished at what they have accomplished in their first season.  This is more than just another crime drama, these ladies are committed and determined to bringing justice to those who may have escaped it previously in small towns that may lack the resources to bring a suspect to trial.

You can see the episode guide on their website. They give a brief description of the victims and circumstances of their deaths. Here is a list of this seasons cases:

Episode 2) Victim:  67 year old Mattie Williams was found stabbed and bludgeoned to death in the woods outside of an abandoned house approximately 4 miles from her home on 8/28/06.  Williams lived in Morehouse Parish, LA and was said to be an active member of her church and a loving mother. Her daughter, LaShonda Williams told reporters how difficult life was without her mother during a 2008 interview with a local reporter. She also stressed how the family leaned on each other for strength after the killing. Williams was initially believed to be missing, after a friend went to her home and saw blood outside of her house and called the police.  Her body was found just 6 hours later.  This episode runs next Tuesday, and it appears Siegler and McClary may have breathed new life into this cold case.

On 7/2/13, know.com reported there were 3 people indicted for second degree murder in relation to this case.  All three face mandatory life sentences if convicted.  Sadly, one of the three is Mattie Williams' own son, John Williams. This episode airs next Tuesday on TNT.


Episode 3) Victim:  32 year old Eric Baxter, who was found shot to death in his home in Dickson, Tennessee on 8/20/98.  This is said to be the only unsolved homicide in the small community where it occurred. I haven't been able to find any additional information on the circumstances around his death, possible suspects or the outcome of Siegler and McClary's investigation.

Episode 4)  Victim: 17 year old Rachelle Escalante was believed to have been killed by a hit and run driver on 7/6/88 in Globe, Arizona.  Escalante was said to have been walking home from a party when she was struck.  Escalante had just completed her junior year in high school when she attended a party with friends where a fight broke out.  Escalante left the party on foot, and patrol officers came across her crawling across the middle of the road - they initially believed it was an injured animal but as the got closer they realized it was a young girl. They stopped their patrol car and attempted to help her, but it was too late. I was unable to find any additional information on this investigation online. Guess I'll have to wait until the episode airs!

Episode 5)  Victim: 48 year old Charlene Corporon was found shot to death in her home in Palacios, Texas on 6/6/82. Corporon owned the most successful agricultural business in town and worked with her son Gary. It was widely known that Gary had been physically and verbally abusive towards his mother in recent years, and when a friend of Charlene's knocked on the door looking for her, Gary answered reportedly said "Charlene doesn't look too good". She had been shot in the head with a .22 caliber gun.  This is by far the most perplexing of the cases/episodes so far. The episode guide gives little information on this case, but what I found online makes this a mystery. In a May 4, 2012 article in the houstonchronicle.com it says that Charlene's son Gary was charged with murder but may never be tried. The issue at hand seems to be this:  was he ever indicted for this murder, and if he was indicted and charged, why hasn't there been a trial? Gary Corporon is said to be working offshore near LA and remains free on $100,000 bail.  OK, if he's free after posting bail, that would indicate that he WAS arrested wouldn't it? It's confusing. Some law enforcement officials say he had been arrested, some aren't so sure. District Clerk Becky Denn said there was no record of Corporon's indictment. What gives here? District Attorney Steven Reiss told the Houston Chronicle reporter that he planned to ask a new grand jury to "re-indict" Corporon, he further stated that "the delay does not appear to have been created by any law enforcement agency". He has requested additional investigation into the improprieties which appear to have caused a 31 year delay in prosecuting this case. South Texas College of Law professor Geoffrey Corn believes Corporon has a great case for a "speedy trial dismissal".  There is no statute of limitation on murder, but what happens if Corporon was arrested 30 years ago, and never brought to trial - and the charges were never dropped? What if the ball was dropped entirely? If there is no record of the indictment, what could the bail bondsman tell us about this issue? 

The circumstances around Gary Corporon's freedom were brought to light after Kelly Siegler began investigating the case for a Cold Justice episode. Nubbin Chambbe, a former Sheriff's Detective who worked this case back in 1982 said he was told that Corporon was not indicted, and that the grand jury "passed" on the case, wanting additional information. So is that where the ball was dropped?  Matagorda County Sheriff Douglas "Skipper" Osborne declined to answer questions on the case because it is a pending case. Sam Hurta, who was Sheriff in the early 80's and former DA Jack Sayler were unavailable for comment on the case. This will be another episode I'll have to watch to see what they uncover. Was Gary Corporon ever arrested back in 1982? Has he been living free of consequences for 31 years, after being a strong suspect in his mother's murder? 

Episode 6) Victim: 29 year old Mary Ann Holmes was a single mother living in the small mostly Mormon community of Thatcher, Arizona when she was found handcuffed, tortured, raped and sexually mutilated in her own home. Her two small girls witnessed the murder, and the 3 and 5 year old girls were also tied up and naked. The oldest girl managed to free herself and ran across the street to a neighbor/friend's house for help. It was too late, Mary Ann Holmes was dead, and it appeared her 3 year old was covered in her mother's blood. It was reported that one of the girls said "mommy was hurt by a lion-man". Holmes had a yard sale in the morning, and the money she made from the yard sale was missing. Police believe someone at the yard sale may have come back later that evening. Police initially interviewed more than 75 people about this case, but no suspect emerged. Holmes' ex boyfriend was an early suspect after police noticed Holmes had filed a report, believing he was en route to Arizona from Florida. Although Holmes feared him, the ex-boyfriend's alibi checked out according to investigators. Little evidence has been disclosed, but there was a bloody shoe print, said to be size 11 1/2 found at the scene. There may have also been a single finger print on the handcuffs used on Holmes. What an awful murder, and for some animal to do that in front of two innocent children is just unfathomable. I really hope they find this guy.

Episode 7)  Victim:  49 year old Isabel Corale was found dead on the couch in her Fremont, Ohio home on 1/24/88.  It appeared that the mother of six fell asleep on the couch and in the early morning hours, somebody hit her in the head with an object. She never woke up.  She was discovered the following morning by her husband, who called police. When police arrived, Corale's husband and three of her children were upstairs, frightened and covered in blood. A hatchet was found propped against a wall in the home - was it the murder weapon? I was unable to find any additional information on this case, or the outcome of Siegler and McClary's investigation.

Episode 8)  Victim: 54 year old Robert Bryant was found beaten to death on the floor of the Agriliance Fertilizer Warehouse in Seagrave, Texas where he worked for 26 years. His body was discovered by a fellow employee. Bryant was known as a reliable employee who always arrived early and started the coffee. He was well liked and the community was shocked at this crime. Bryant's wallet was found with money inside, still in his pocket.  Little else is known about this case. Was he killed by another employee, or did he interrupt a robbery?  I can't find anything else on this case online.  I'll have to watch the episode!

Those are the episodes listed thus far.  Very interesting to see what can happen when new eyes look over these cold cases. Even though there has only been one episode so far, I really like this show.  This seems much different from "The First 48", "Dateline" and "48 Hours".  I think the chemistry between Siegler and McClary is great - they are both well respected in their fields - and I like the detective they are using, named Johnny Bonds. He's known to be a master interrogator. Looks like at least 3 of the 8 cases now have arrests to go with them.  Not bad!

"Cold Justice" Delivers In First Episode - Ronnie Hendricks Murder Trial Begins Sept. 9th

I've been waiting for months for this show to begin, and last night's premiere did not disappoint.  Pairing former Texas prosecutor Kelly Siegler with former Vegas CSI Yolanda McClary was brilliant.  They are both credible, no-nonsense professionals who seem to compliment each other's strengths well.  In their first televised case, they traveled to a small town called Cuero - where a detective there long suspected a shooting death that was ruled a suicide was likely a murder.  Siegler and McClary hit the road and toured the small rural community, met with the Sgt. who held on to this case since January of 2001 in the hopes of getting justice for victim Pam Shelley, her children and her family.

Ronnie Hendricks (Cuerorecord.com)

The small town police force had long believed that Shelley's live-in boyfriend, Ronnie Hendricks was responsible for shooting Pam and staging the scene to make it appear to have been a suicide.  Shelley was shot in the head, the case was quickly ruled to be a suicide after Hendricks' family members told police Shelley had a prior suicide attempt when she lived in Arkansas. Hendricks family members statements to police were conflicting, to say the least. Hendricks told police he had been on the porch with Pam's two children when he heard a gunshot from inside the house. He claims he ran in and found her in the bathroom, bleeding from a gunshot wound. He insists that he began CPR in an attempt to save her life, but "blood was coming out from everywhere".  Hendricks isn't the only family member to claim they performed CPR before the paramedics arrived.  Yet none of them had blood anywhere on their clothing?

Siegler and McClary's first stop in town was to meet with police Sgt. Carl Bowen.  Bowen remembers the scene well.  He pulled out the case file and walked them through the case.  There was little in the way of evidence, because the scene wasn't initially treated as a crime scene - instead, it was quickly ruled a suicide.  No gunshot residue tests were performed on Shelley or Hendricks.  They did have the gun used in the shooting. Ronnie Hendricks gun. Siegler made a list with two sides, one listing the things pointing towards suicide and the other with things that pointed to murder.  They began to methodically go down the list on each side.  They talked to Pam's family and friends about the alleged suicide attempt in Arkansas.  They quickly ruled this out.  Pam and Ronnie were known to fight constantly, and Ronnie had a record of abuse.  It was also known that Ronnie didn't particularly like Pam's two children from a previous relationship.  He did not get along with 11 year old Kayla, who is now 23 years old and appeared on the program last night.

Kayla told Siegler and McClary what she remembers from that day 11 years ago.  Hendricks came home in a foul mood.  He had words with both Pam and Kayla, and he slapped Kayla which was the last straw for Pam.  Pam asked Ronnie's stepfather if he would help load their belongings on his trailer and drive them back to Arkansas. He agreed to help.  Pam Shelley was leaving Ronnie Hendricks. Her things were packed, on the trailer - why in the world would she shoot herself in the head 15 minutes before she was planning to leave this situation?  Ronnie's account of the situation changed greatly from his first police interview after the shooting, where he said he wasn't in the house when the shot was fired.  Now, he claims he was in the house.

His family's accounts just don't add up.  First responders clearly recall that nobody was performing CPR on Shelley, and nobody had blood on them - and they most certainly would have if they had done CPR.  McClary and Siegler were joined by a seasoned detective to help with the case.  He's known to be a master at interviewing suspects.  They sent the one piece of evidence they had to the lab - the gun.  They wanted to see if any touch DNA existed on the handle or the trigger.  The results confirmed their belief - Pam Shelley's DNA was not on the gun, not on the trigger.  No fingerprints, no DNA - and she supposedly shot herself with this gun?  Even more telling, Ronnie Hendricks DNA was not on the gun. No fingerprints either.  This was HIS gun!  One would expect his prints and/or DNA to be present.  This gun was wiped down, that seems clear.

The saddest part of the show was now 23 year old Kayla going back to the house where the killing occurred 11 years ago.  This was her first time back, and she barely held herself together.  But she did, and she walked the team through what she remembers from that awful day.  They re interviewed all family members and noted the inconsistencies in their statements.  After the gun testing results came back, Siegler wrote up her report on their findings and presented it to the county district attorney's office.  Sgt.Bowen had reopened this case back in 2008, but at that time they did not feel they had enough evidence to successfully prosecute Hendricks.  This time, the outcome would be different.

Siegler, McClary and the production crew arrived in the summer of 2012 and began investigating this case.  By the end of 2012, Ronnie Hendricks was arrested and charged with the murder of Pam Shelley. His trial is slated to begin on September 9th of this year. Now that's pretty impressive!  It would be selfish to expect such positive outcomes each time these two set out to catch a killer - but one can dream.  I think TNT has hit the crime/reality TV jackpot in pairing these two.  Kudos!

Juan Martinez Prosecuting Former Cop Richard Chrisman

Maricopa County prosecutor Juan Martinez is a busy man.  One would imagine that the time he has spent preparing for and prosecuting Jodi Arias has taken years of his life, and it’s not over.  He still has a retrial of the penalty phase off somewhere in the future – but the fact of the matter is he has other cases on his desk.  He is currently prosecuting former Phoenix Police Officer Richard Chrisman for second degree murder, aggravated assault and animal cruelty stemming from a domestic violence call the officer responded to in October of 2010 in which Chrisman fatally shot 29 year old Daniel Rodriquez and his dog “Junior”.

On October 5, 2010 Rodriquez’s mother called police from a neighbors trailer after her son began destroying her property inside of the trailer and became angry and aggressive towards her.  Officer Chrisman and partner Officer Sergio Virgillo responded to the trailer and began knocking on the door.  When Daniel Rodriquez would not open the door, his mother reportedly gave officers permission to enter.  Within minutes, Daniel Rodriquez and his dog were both shot and killed by Chrisman.  This much is known, but the accounts of what happened in between differ.  The prosecution claims Chrismas abused his powers as an officer, manipulated the crime scene and lied about what happened prior to the shooting.  Chrisman claims he only shot after he was unable to diffuse a confrontational Rodriquez who tried to grab his gun and he feared for his life.

Who is telling the truth?  Richard Chrisman took the witness stand yesterday and tearfully recounted the events on October 5, 2010. He told the jury that after getting permission to enter the trailer from Rodriquez’s mother, he was confronted by an angry and aggressive Daniel Rodriquez, who was yelling profanities at the officers – and his pit bull “Junior” was acting aggressively.  When Rodriquez refused to come outside with Chrisman, the two “tussled”.  Chrisman and his partner tried to gain control over the situation by using pepper spray and then deploying a Taser, hitting Rodriquez in the chest. 

Rodriquez removed the Taser probes from his chest.  His dog was continuing to bark, as dogs tend to do when they witness confrontations and yelling – Chrisman shot the dog twice. Rodriquez appeared to try to deflect the bullets from hitting his dog, and he became even more enraged. “His anger elevates, he reaches out and tries to grab my gun”.  Chrisman claims Rodriquez then picked up a bicycle from the living room floor, “he was going to smash my brains in” – the former officer claimed.  “I fired two rounds, center mass”.  Prosecutors believe Rodriquez did not intend to use the bicycle as a weapon, he was simply trying to get away.

Defense attorney Patrick Gunn asked Chrisman if the actions he took to diffuse the situation before shooting Rodriquez complied with the training he received as an officer.  “Yes”, Chrisman said.  During cross examination, prosecutor Juan Martinez accused Chrisman of not following police protocol, manipulating the scene and lying about the events of October 5, 2010.  The state alleges that Chrisman put the muzzle of his gun to Rodriquez’s temple, telling him that he didn’t need a warrant to be inside of the trailer, a claim that Chrisman flatly disputes.  Officer Virgillo told officials that he never saw any weapon(s) in the hands of Daniel Rodriquez, and there was no threat requiring deadly force during that call.   Virgillo has also testified that the victim’s dog was not attacking either officer.  Chrisman has argued that the dog was aggressive and he considered him a threat to his safety. 

Richard Chrisman was fired from the Phoenix police department five months after the shooting.  He was a 9 year veteran of the police force.  The trial continues Wednesday when Chrismas is expected to return to the witness stand to square off against prosecutor Juan Martinez.  I’m not sure if this trial is being covered online – I haven’t checked “Wild About Trials” site yet, but if anybody knows where it can be viewed, could you please leave a comment?  I’d love to see Juan Martinez back in action. 

Isn’t it amazing how Juan Martinez is able to multi-task, handling numerous complex cases that have overlapped.  Interestingly enough, in reading about the Chrisman case and the numerous delays and continuances granted in getting this case to trial – I noticed the trial judge is none other than Judge Sherry Stephens.  She granted a total of 6 continuances since Chrisman was arraigned on October 21, 2010.  Apparently this is just part of the process?  It seems reasonable that from time to time, continuances will need to be granted in circumstances where witnesses are  not available or one side has a legitimate need for more time – but SIX continuances seems excessive.  I’d be interested to know what the average number of continuances for a murder trial is, and how Judge Stephens ranks in those statistics. 

The people of Maricopa County seemed disgruntled over the time it took to bring this former officer to trial – and the fact that he remained free after posting $150,000 bond.  He even reportedly got married while free and awaiting trial.  I know, he’s innocent until proven guilty. He was a police officer.  In their line of work, shootings happen.  Thank God there are people out there who are brave enough to be police officers who knowingly put themselves in dangerous situations to ensure the safety of others.  I have the utmost respect for police officers.  But not all officers are heroes, there will always be a few bad apples who abuse their power and use their knowledge of law enforcement to get away with criminal activity, including murder.  I can think of 4 police officers who were convicted of murdering their wives off the top of my head.  Is Chrisman a good cop who made a bad decision, or over reacted to what he perceived to be grave danger?  Or is he a cop who abused his authority and shot and killed an unarmed man and his dog?  He’d better have a damned good attorney because he’s going up against a very thorough and relentless prosecutor!