The penalty phase for the man convicted of kidnapping, raping, beating, and killing a little girl in Jacksonville, Florida, starts on Tuesday. The same jury that found 61-year-old Donald Smith guilty of the brutal rape, kidnapping, assault, and murder of 8-year-old Cherish Perrywinkle returns to court on Tuesday morning to decide what the convicted murderer’s …
An Ohio woman who attempted to hire an undercover cop to kill the mother of her stepdaughters has a new trial after already receiving a seven-year prison sentence in 2016 for the same murder conspiracy crime. Last year, an appeals court overturned that ruling, admitting that the original indictment contained an error. The Columbus Dispatch …
A South Carolina court heard the confession made by a 14-year-old boy after he shot and killed his father before fatally shooting a 6-year-old at his former elementary school in September 2016. The Anderson Independent Mail reported that the 48-page transcript, which can be read in full below, was made public as an Anderson County court …
The parents of a Kansas girl who died after being injured at a traveling carnival are suing the carnival’s operator, KWCH-TV reports. Court records show that Shaun Bartonek and Rheannon Babcock filed the wrongful death lawsuit in Nov. against the operator, Missouri-based Evans United Shows. Bartonek and Babcock are the parents of Pressley Bartonek, who …
A California man pleaded not guilty Friday to murdering a beloved Ivy League student, NBC Los Angeles reports. Prosecutors have charged 20-year-old Samuel Woodward with killing his former high school classmate, Blaze Bernstein, while he was home from college during winter break. Investigators say Bernstein met up with Woodward on Jan. 2 at a park …
The Arkansas parents of a 2-week-old baby girl found with dozens of rat bites learned their fate this week. Erica Shryock and Charles Elliott were sentenced to five years in prison Thursday after pleading guilty to permitting the abuse of a minor. Eligible for parole in 304 days, their attorney told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that his …
A Canadian teen is hospitalized with serious injuries after he was shot in the head during an altercation he allegedly started with a constable at a courthouse in Quebec. According to the Canadian Press, authorities claim 18-year-old Steven Bertrand was able to obtain the constable’s baton, which they say he then used to batter the …
The trial is underway for the former yoga teacher accused of driving intentionally driving off a cliff in Hawaii, killing her identical twin sister. Maui Now reports that a court heard opening statements for Alexandria Duval, 39, the woman facing second-degree murder charges for the May 29, 2016, death of her sister, Anastasia. Alexandria suffered minor injuries when …
Tensions rose Monday morning inside a Kentucky courtroom as the mother of two slain teens met with her sons’ alleged killer. “I just flipped out. I couldn’t take it no more,” Elizabeth Marie Wren told WLKY. Wren had to be dragged out of court after lunging at Brice Rhodes, one of four men accused of fatally stabbing …
A Georgia man accused of concealing the death of a U.S. Army veteran appeared in court on Fri., in hopes of getting bond, but his defense attorneys asked for a continuance after the prosecution revealed that new information in the case had been obtained. Brad Clement stared straight ahead on Fri. morning inside a Marietta …
David and Louise Turpin remained silent on Weds. as a judge informed them they were barred from trying to contact their children for at least three years. As CrimeOnline previously reported, David Turpin, 56, and Louise Turpin, 49, appeared at the Riverside Hall of Justice where Judge Emma Smith informed them of a list of stipulations …
On Wednesday, a Riverside County Superior Court judge prohibited California parents David and Louise Turpin from contacting their 13 children, who were allegedly found starved and tortured last week. According to The Los Angeles Times, Judge Emma Smith approved a three-year protective order that will ban the parents from contacting their children in any way except …
