[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----N.C., FLA., COLO.

[Rick Halperin]

Aug. 3



NORTH CAROLINA:

Leicester double-murder suspect could face death penalty


A man charged with murdering a Leicester couple and dismembering their bodies 
will face the possibility of a death sentence if convicted.

In a hearing Monday afternoon in Buncombe County Superior Court, Buncombe 
district attorney Todd Williams gave notice to the court of his intent to seek 
the death penalty against Robert Jason Owens. Judge Alan Thornburg presided 
over brief hearing, which lasted only about 15 minutes.

Owens, 36, is charged with killing Leicester couple Joseph "J.T." Codd, 45, and 
Cristie Schoen Codd, 38, in March. In addition to 2 counts of 1st-degree 
murder, Owens is charged with 2 counts of robbery with a dangerous weapon and 2 
counts of dismembering human remains. He's also charged with murder of an 
unborn child. Cristie Codd was pregnant with the couple's child when she died.

Owens appeared subdued when he entered court in shackles, keeping his head down 
through most of the hearing. No family members of Owens or the victims were 
present. Owens sat with his attorneys, Sean Devereux and Victoria Jayne.

The last capital case to go to trial in Buncombe County involved Brandon Lee 
Gross in 2011. Jurors wound up finding Gross guilty of 2nd-degree murder in the 
beating death of a 64-year-old man.

The decision about whether to seek the death penalty rests solely with the 
district attorney. Williams declined to comment afterward on why he's seeking 
death. During the hearing, he listed 2 aggravating factors in the Codds' 
murders - the alleged armed robbery of both victims and Owens' conduct in the 
commission of the crimes.

Jayne said Williams' decision wasn't surprising.

"I wouldn't say it's a surprise, but it is a very serious development," she 
said.

Asked about Owens' reaction to the death penalty notice, Jayne said, "He is 
taking everything in stride and is cooperating with us."

The Codds, who had worked in the film industry in California, moved to Buncombe 
County seeking a quiet place to raise a family, friends said. J.T. Codd worked 
as a grip, handling cameras and other equipment, and his wife was a celebrity 
chef and caterer, according to friends.

The robbery indictments allege Owens robbed the Codds "by means of an assault 
consisting of having in possession and threatening the use of a dangerous 
weapon, to wit: a kitchen knife approximately 10 inches in length with a 6-inch 
blade and a 4-inch black handle, and/or a motor vehicle, and/or a firearm ..."

The warrants allege Owens, a contractor who had done some work at the Codds' 
home, robbed J.T. Codd of "a tan and black backpack and its contents" and 
Cristie Codd of "a laptop computer, jewelry and a Glock handgun."

The robberies were made "from the person and presence" of the victims, 
according to the indictments.

The dismembering indictments allege Owens attempted to conceal evidence of the 
Codds' deaths "by knowingly and willfully dismembering or destroying human 
remains."

Search warrants reveal Owens admitted to investigators that he "stored and 
destroyed" the bodies of the victims.

The warrants also show the remains were at Owens' home on Owens Cove Road, part 
of them inside a woodstove.

Warrants state that Owens admitted hitting and killing J.T. Codd with a pickup 
truck at the Codds' home at 87 Hookers Gap Road, but there was no indication of 
how his pregnant wife was killed. Sheriff Van Duncan has declined to elaborate 
on her death.

Investigators believe the Codds died on March 12. Owens was charged with their 
murders on March 16, and 4 days later, on March 20, a fire destroyed a mobile 
home on Owens' property. Investigators believe the fire was deliberately set, 
but no one has been charged.

Owens was the prime suspect in the well-known Zebb Quinn missing person case in 
Asheville, but authorities never gained enough evidence to charge him in the 
15-year-old case. Officers, including Asheville police, searched Owens' 
property March 31, using shovels to digs at selected spots. But investigators 
have declined to comment about what, if anything, was found.

The next court hearing for Owens will be an administrative hearing Nov. 2 in 
Buncombe County Superior Court.

(source: Ashville Citizen-Times)






FLORIDA:

Family wants death penalty for Lakeland woman accused of killing daughter, 
father


A judge has denied bond for a Lakeland woman charged with killing her father 
and 6-year-old daughter.

A Polk County judge said Monday that Cheyanne Jessie, 25, will remain in jail 
on charges that include 2 counts of 1st-degree murder and 1 count of tampering 
with evidence.

Detectives said Jessie killed her daughter, Meredith Jessie, and her father, 
Mark Weekly, 50, on July 18. Officials said she hid the bodies in a shed owned 
by Weekly's landlord.

Weekly's brothers cried and hugged one another after the judge denied bond for 
Cheyanne Jessie.

Family members who spoke with Channel 9 on Wednesday said they hope Jessie gets 
the death penalty.

Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said Jessie got into an argument with Weekly 
about her new boyfriend at Weekly's home, on Drane Field Road in Lakeland.

"She was frustrated with the child and as a result, she didn't want the child 
to mess up the relationship she had with the boyfriend," Judd said.

Family members said Meredith was diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar 
disorder and was recently put on medication.

"She was your friend one minute, and the next minute she could snap. But 
bipolarism is no excuse for murder," said Weekly's sister-in-law, Janice 
Weekly.

Investigators said Jessie's story changed several times after she reported the 
2 missing. She first told authorities that the 2 were in Georgia, then claimed 
that she killed them in self-defense, deputies said.

"She supposedly gets the knife from her father after the father is fighting and 
slashing at her with the knife and accidentally stabs the 6-year-old. None of 
the evidence supports this," Judd said.

Detectives said Jessie had no injuries to suggest that she had struggled with 
her father.

"He really cared for his granddaughter," said Mark Weekly's brother, Mike 
Weekly. "I don't believe he would ever hurt her. It's terrible that this had to 
happen."

"I have no idea why anyone would do anything like that, even their 6-year old 
daughter," said Mark Weekly's niece, Crystal Stahl. "I mean, it's just a 
disgusting thing anyone could do to any child or even their father."

"She had planned this. She had the furniture covered, is what we heard," said 
Mark Weekly's sister-in-law, Gaye Weekly. "I want her to have to pay for it. I 
mean, I don't want her getting off with a lawyer putting her in a mental 
institution, because this is premeditated. Mental illness you don't plan out 
something, you just act. She planned this out."

Deputies serving a search warrant said they found bloodstained floors and 
furniture with slash marks.

Judd said the house reeked of a foul odor, and Jessie claimed that there had 
been a dead raccoon under her porch.

"Nothing is more horrific than the murder of a child, except when it's done by 
a parent," Judd said.

Judd said a gun and a knife were used in the killings, but they are waiting for 
the results of autopsies to determine how Mark Weekly and Meredith died.

"This is the face and (these are) the eyes of a cold-blooded murderer that not 
only murdered them on the 18th of July, but left them in the residence for many 
days," Judd said.

A friend of Mark Weekly's said Weekly helped take care of Jessie's daughter.

"He would rather you take his life than mess with that baby," Fred Poore Jr. 
said.

(source: WFTV news)






COLORADO:

Jury keeps death-penalty option for theater shooter


A jury that already convicted James Holmes of 1st-degree murder and attempted 
murder marched closer to imposing the death penalty with a pivotal verdict 
Monday for his role in killing 12 and injuring 70 in a crowded suburban Denver 
movie theater 3 years ago.

The 27-year-old former University of Colorado neuroscience researcher faces 
either life in prison or the death penalty in the final phase of the trial that 
began in April. Victims now have a chance in coming days to detail how the 
shooting affected them.

The jury took less than 3 hours Monday to weigh mitigating factors that Holmes' 
defense put forward. Holmes' parents, friends, neighbors and a psychiatrist 
argued his character and history of mental illness in Holmes' childhood, 
college years and graduate school should spare his life.

"Does the jury unanimously find that the mitigating factors that exist do not 
outweigh the aggravating factors proven by the prosecution? The answer is 
'Yes,'" Judge Carlos Samour Jr., read Monday afternoon.

Holmes stood for the reading of the Phase 2 verdict with hands shoved in 
pockets wearing khakis and a blue shirt - much changed from his 1st appearances 
in 2012 where he looked dazed with scruffy orange hair.

Defense lawyer Tamara Brady argued last week that Holmes never would had 
carefully planned the attack and built an arsenal of weapons if not for his 
mental illness.

"Had he not been inflicted with the disease that attacked his brain, he never 
would have died his hair orange and never would have purchased all of those 
guns and all that ammunition and this heartbreaking tragedy never would have 
occurred," she said.

George Brauchler, Arapaho County district attorney, successfully pushed back, 
saying Holmes could have stopped his onslaught before killing 12 people.

"He has longstanding hatred in his heart, and at the end of his relationship 
and career he made a decision to massacre. And he did," Brauchler said. "Can 
anything outweigh that?"

Next, emotional testimony is expected from victims and families who will argue 
in favor of the death penalty.

The 3rd and final phase of the sentencing trial will conclude when the jury 
makes an ultimate sentencing decision. If a single juror decides against the 
death penalty, the shooter will be sentenced to life in prison.

(source: USA Today)