Recently in Local-Waterloo/CF Category

I haven't been paying much attention to the Mark Becker trial, but I was talking with my secretary and this trial is very important to her because her son knew Mark Becker and was coached by Ed Thomas. I've started paying a little bit more attention towards the end of the trial and I really wanted to have a report on the verdict but it doesn't look as if the jury will have reached a conclusion by 3:15.
Mark Becker has been accused of killing teacher and coach Ed Thomas in a weight room last year.

The prosecution has explained a timeline of events in their opening statements saying Becker broke into his parents' gun cabinet and practiced shooting a 22-caliber gun at a bird house.

The prosecution says Becker then went to the school and asked the junior high assistant principal where Coach Thomas was so they could talk about the Tornado Relief Fund. According to the prosecution, Becker went into the weight room, shot Thomas multiple times, then began kicking Thomas and swearing at him.

The prosecution says even if Becker suffered from a mental illness, it does not mean he was insane at the time of the crime.

The defense argued during their opening statement that Becker suffered from mental illness that kept him from distinguishing right from wrong. The defense says Becker had delusions the night before the murder and believed Thomas was Satan and was turning people into fish.

The defense has brought in four medical experts that all diagnosed Becker as having paranoid schizophrenia. In light of this, I believe that Becker was insane at the time of the murder, and while he should be held fully responsible for his actions, he should not be sent to prison.

I say this because I believe that he will only get worse in prison. He needs to be sent to a place where he can receive proper care and support. He should be sent to an asylum where he can receive proper medical care and rehabilitation. If he is sent to a prison, he will degenerate and likely cause more harm to himself and others, and he will not be rehabilitated, and if he is eventually paroled or released, he will be much worse off than he is now.

I know that many people disagree with my thoughts on this trial, and I would love to have people politely explain their views in the comments to this post.

To learn more about the trial and to learn what the jury decides, visit www.kwwl.com

http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/84641587.html

This is a link to the trial of Mark Becker, the man who murdered Ed Thomas, former high school football coach at Aplington Parkersburg. Besides that this case is relatively local, it is interesting because of the psychological problems which Becker is suffering from. The Defense is going to try to use this to reduce his sentence, it will be interesting to see how this plays out with a local Iowa jury.

I found a website that talks about how to prevent juveniles from becoming delinquents. This website has many different things to click on to tell you about what the consequences are for doing each crime and how to prevent someone, especailly juveniles, from doing these crimes.

http://www.lawyershop.com/practice-areas/criminal-law/juvenile-law/prevention/

One of the things I found really interesting was the education classes that kids can take to become aware of their surroundings. These classes can teach children about the effects of drugs, alcohol and crime. They also teach children that their actions have consequences, because that is usually the last thing on a child's mind when it comes to doing something they shouldn't. There are also a lot of things that kids can do after school that keeps them off the streets and out of trouble, like going to a karate class or playing sports with friends. One of the places that is there for boys and girls to go to is the Boys and Girls Clubs of America. There is a club in downtown Waterloo that a lot of kids go to so they can stay away from trouble. The club does a lot of fun things like doing art projects, playing sports and taking trips to the community pool during the summer. Within the club, there are also more activities that are called Specialized Programs. These consist of Club Tech, which teaches children to become familiar with computers and other forms of technology, Teen Initiative, which has different options for older children, and many other programs for children. Here is the website for the Boys and Girls Club:

http://www.bgca.org/

Most of you probably heard about the woman who was assaulted Wednesday on campus between the Presidents house and Maucker Union.  She reported that she used pepper spray to get away from her attacker.  This report made the local news and newspapers.  What some of you might not have heard about is that this woman lied about being attacked.  She went into the police station and told police that she had made up the whole story about being attacked.  UNI police said that they were suspicious about her report.  She reported that she was leaving the library heading to her car parked on Wisconsin Street.  She said that no one else was around when she was attacked.  The police found this strange that no one would be around, because the library had just closed and a lot of students park their cars on Wisconsin Street.  Also a police dog was not able to pick up any scent of pepper spray at the scene.  Even though the police thought that the story could be false they investigated it like they would any other report or case.  The UNI police said that most people make false reports because they want the attention or they have some type of metal disorder.  They do not know the reason why this woman lied about her attack.  This woman was arrested and charged with making a false report. 

I am glad that she admitted that she lied about the attack.  If she had kept quite the UNI and Cedar Falls police would have put time and effort into finding her attacker.  If they had found a guy that matched her description, it could have possibly have lead to him being charged with a crime he didn't commit.

Below is the website to the Courier's website that talks about the case:

http://www.wcfcourier.com/news/local/article_955e5b94-17e2-11df-a929-001cc4c03286.html

 

 

  In October 2008, Michelle Kehoe drove herself and her two boys, Seth (age 2) and Sean (age 7) to Hook-n-Liner Pond near Littleton, IA. She then tied both of her boys up, duct taped their eyes, nose, and mouths, and slashed their throats leaving little Seth dead and seriously injuring Sean. She then proceeded to the edge of the pond and attempted suicide by slashing her own throat. When she did not succeed with her suicide attempt, Kehoe went to a nearby house and claimed that a man kidnapped them and killed her children. Unbeknown to Kehoe, her son Sean had survived the attack and was able to tell authorities in the hospital later that day what truly happened.
 In November 2009, Kehoe stood trial for the murder of her son Seth and plead insanity. She was later found guilty of 1st Degree Murder, Attempted Murder, and Child Endangerment. In December 2009, she was sentence to life without the possibility of parole for the murder, 25 years for attempted murder, and 10 years for the child endangerment charged.
 
 Click here for the article about the trial. This also has short video clips of the trial including testimony from both psychologists, the recorded statement from Kehoe's surviving son, and the Kwik Star surveillance video of the family shortly before the horrific crime.
 Click here for the article about the sentencing hearing and how Kehoe's husband asked for leniency but the judge denied it. (Please note that the dates written in the article are wrong. Kehoe committed the crime in 2008 and the trial was held in 2009)

 For me, this case hit extremely close to home, in more ways than one. First off, there is the physical aspects of the crime. Kehoe stopped with her boys at the Kwik Star in Jesup, Iowa (which is where I live) and the store clerk who testified is a person that I know.
 After leaving Kwik Star, Kehoe drove down the road and stopped to let her boys play at the playground in front of St. Athanasius School. This playground is located directly behind my house (all that separates my yard from the playground is a single row of trees) and my oldest son plays there often. At this point in the time line, Kehoe purposely left her cell phone so that nobody could call for help.
 From the park, Kehoe drove a few miles further to Hook-n-Liner Pond. This happens to be my husband's and my fishing spot (since this happened though, we have decided to find a new spot). It is located in an extremely secluded location so a person would have to be familiar with the area to find it. Kehoe was originally from this area. In fact, the house down the road from it used to be owned by one of her relatives.