9-6-2006 South Carolina:
CHARLESTON, S.C. | A New York man who intentionally drove a sport utility vehicle into an 18-wheeler had been convicted of one sex charge, faced six other counts and may have passed himself off as a teen to keep the friendship of a 14-year-old boy who was injured in the crash, authorities said Friday. Adam Mauro, 27, of Pelham, N.Y., died Thursday along Interstate 95 in Colleton County after leading deputies on a chase at speeds of more than 110 mph. The SUV he was driving crossed the median and hit the tractor-trailer. "We believe this was intentional," said sheriff's Deputy Ted Stanfield, who said that after a six-mile pursuit in the southbound lane, the driver signaled before crossing the median.
"During the chase, most of the median had trees," Stanfield said. "You could see the gap where the trees ended and he actually put his left turn signal on and you could see him inching toward the left." The Lexus traveled 500 yards the wrong way in a northbound lane before it smashed into the semi-truck. The driver of the rig was not injured, but the 14-year-old in the SUV was ejected. The boy, whose name was not released, was in serious condition in a local hospital Friday. The youth had been reported missing Wednesday from the home he shares with his father in Stamford, Conn. Capt. Richard Conklin of the Stamford detective bureau said authorities were investigating where Mauro met the boy and how he may have coaxed him into the car.
"It seems like he (Mauro) knew the father and the son, and we're investigating some claims he passed himself off as a 17-year-old to the father and that he had been palling around with the 14-year-old," Conklin said. South Carolina Highway Patrol Lance Cpl. Paul Brouthers said the boy may have been a victim of Mauro, a former teacher's aide. Mauro was arrested in Pelham in August 2000 and charged with possession of child pornography after authorities found an explicit movie on his computer. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor obscenity charge and was given three years probation, authorities said. Mauro was charged in 2004 with violating an order of protection issued against him by driving past the house of an underage boy he was accused of molesting.
He was facing three counts of child endangerment and three counts of sexual abuse in two cases that were brought in Pelham and transferred to Mount Vernon, N.Y., a court official said Friday. A call to the Mauro home in Pelham was not immediately returned. The driver of the tractor-trailer, Timothy Marcam, 48, of Tony, Wis., swerved to avoid the oncoming car but the SUV plowed under the driver's side door. The 2004 Lexus was reported stolen from Mauro's father's home in Pelham, authorities said.
Stanfield said the Lexus was driving erratically and a deputy, thinking it was a drunken driver, signaled the car to stop. At first, the driver braked but then accelerated, Stanfield said. Traffic on the interstate was light, and the vehicle passed about 10 cars as it fled southbound from the deputy. Once it crossed the median, the Lexus drove south in the northbound passing lane before slamming into the semi. "It did not look like he tried to evade it at all," Stanfield said. ..more.. : by BRUCE SMITH, Associated Press
OK- Texan suspected in ex-wife's death kills self
Posted in Related Deaths9-10-2006 Oklahoma:
CHOUTEAU, Okla. -- A Texas man being sought in the death of his former wife killed himself after a police pursuit and standoff in Mayes County, authorities said Thursday. Officers found the body of Michael Dwayne Prock, 55, in a pickup truck about 4:30 a.m. in a field south of U.S. Highway 412, about a mile west of Chouteau. Prock admitted in a cell-phone conversation with a Hunt County, Texas, investigator that he had fatally shot ex-wife Delores Prock, 55, Hunt County Sheriff Don Anderson said. Her body was found Wednesday at a residence near Greenville, which is about 30 miles northeast of Dallas.
Michael Prock has relatives in the Inola area, authorities said. "He said he was going to drive until he ran out of gas and kill himself or get some officer to kill him," Anderson said. Authorities issued a bulletin about Prock, who was spotted by a Chouteau police officer in town about 1:20 a.m., officials said. After a low-speed pursuit, Prock's truck ran over police "stop sticks" and ended up in a field. Law enforcement officers tried to talk him out of the truck but were unsuccessful.
Prock, a registered sex offender in Hunt County, was convicted in May 1993 of sexual battery of a person older than 16, records show. He was upset that Delores Prock had "found someone else," and went to her house and shot her in the back, Hunt County authorities said. The pair recently had divorced. A Pryor police tactical team removed his body from the truck about 4:30 a.m., Mayes County Sheriff's Capt. Joe Garrett said.
The Oklahoma Medical Examiner's Office ruled that Prock died of a gunshot wound to the head. ..more.. : by KRIS TV
OH- Local native kills self as law zeroes in on him
Article Tags
.Ohio,
2006,
Age 37-48,
by Gunshot,
Suicide/s US - of RSOs
Man tied to death of Virginia woman
9-2-2006 Ohio:
A former Bowling Green man convicted in Lucas County of kidnapping and gross sexual imposition of a female retail clerk at the Southwyck Shopping Center nearly 20 years ago was found dead in Virginia this week, hours after authorities found the body of a young woman whom they suspect he abducted and killed.
Police believe the man, John Michael Snyder, 37, shot himself in the head with a 45-caliber revolver Monday in his apartment in Henrico County near Richmond.
The apparent suicide occurred just hours after news stations broadcast that authorities had found the half-naked body of a 21-year-old woman, said Sheriff James Agnew, of Goochland County, Virginia.
The woman's body was found in the county about 15 miles away from Snyder's apartment, the sheriff said.
Snyder is a native of Whitehouse.
In 1988, when he was 18 and a senior at Anthony Wayne High School, Snyder was convicted of the kidnapping and sexual assault at the shopping center after he had the woman undress and get into his car, according to court records.
At the time of his arrest, Snyder told investigators about sexual urges "that he can not control," according to police reports.
Snyder ultimately pleaded guilty to the felony charges.
Then-Lucas County Common Pleas Court Judge William J. Skow ordered him to serve five years probation, pay a $1,151 fine, and undergo psychotherapy on an outpatient basis.
He served his sentence during the late 1980s and early 1990s while living in the Bowling Green area. He married, divorced, and remarried.
About three years ago, police believe, Snyder moved to Virginia and began living in the apartment where he killed himself.
Also living in the apartment were his current wife, Keren Snyder, 32, an Israeli native, and his ex-wife, 47-year-old Denise Ervin, originally from Ohio.
Virginia authorities believe they have a videotape of Emily "Kate" Robertson getting out of her white Jeep about 9 a.m. Aug. 25 and getting into Snyder's car outside a Nordstrom department store in Goochland County.
Miss Robertson's family reported her missing later that night. She did not report to work the following day.
Last Sunday, police traced the signal from her cell phone and found the phone nestled in grass alongside a highway, Sheriff Agnew said.
On Monday, police found Miss Robertson's body in a creek, several hundred feet away, he said.
Because of the body's decomposition, a preliminary autopsy failed to determine how she died or if she was raped, Sheriff Agnew said.
Snyder was not a suspect until investigators realized that his car matched that of the vehicle on the surveillance videotape.
"We feel very confident that this is our man," Sheriff Agnew said.
Police theorize that Snyder killed himself upon hearing news reports of the body's discovery, "and we've discovered some statements that support that theory from people who knew him."
Yet many mysteries remain.
Besides confirming how Miss Robertson died, the sheriff said investigators have yet to determine how Snyder and Miss Robertson knew one another.
Both Snyder's current and former wives claim to have no knowledge of what Snyder was doing at the time Miss Robertson was abducted.
"They have stated that he would often go on long walks," Sheriff Agnew said.
"And they assumed he was on one of his walks."
The investigation is continuing.
During the incident at Southwyck in April, 1987, Snyder armed himself with a handgun and a knife. He walked into the former Canary and Elephant Shop after closing, according to court records.
He ordered the store's lone female clerk into a back storage room, where he ordered her to remove her clothes. Snyder sexually assaulted her.
He then forced her to get into his car, which he drove to a stone quarry on Gunn Road. He tried to convince the girl to have sex with him, but she refused.
He drove her back to the mall and dropped her off, court records state.
Snyder was arrested by mall security the following day when he returned to the store to see the woman.
Afterward, Snyder spent time in a hospital for mental issues, and a psychiatric evaluation described him as an intelligent yet "moderately depressed adolescent" who was very distrustful of others and borderline paranoid. Snyder was put on anti-depressants.
He enrolled at Bowling Green State University, but by 1990 had dropped out.
In 1988, he made two suicide attempts, according to court records.
In July, Snyder filed a motion in Lucas County Common Pleas Court to have his criminal record expunged.
The motion was scheduled for a hearing Sept. 12.
His effort likely would have proved fruitless because a felony kidnapping conviction is not eligible to be expunged under state law.
Sheldon Wittenberg, the attorney who handled Snyder's case in 1988, said yesterday that he was aware of the circumstances surrounding Snyder's apparent suicide, but hadn't spoken to Snyder in years.
Mr. Wittenberg defended Judge Skow's sentence from 18 years ago.
"At the time he was sentenced, it was an appropriate sentence," Mr. Wittenberg said, adding, "Hindsight is 20-20."
Judge Skow could not be reached for comment yesterday. ..more.. by JC Reindl
9-2-2006 Ohio:
A former Bowling Green man convicted in Lucas County of kidnapping and gross sexual imposition of a female retail clerk at the Southwyck Shopping Center nearly 20 years ago was found dead in Virginia this week, hours after authorities found the body of a young woman whom they suspect he abducted and killed.
Police believe the man, John Michael Snyder, 37, shot himself in the head with a 45-caliber revolver Monday in his apartment in Henrico County near Richmond.
The apparent suicide occurred just hours after news stations broadcast that authorities had found the half-naked body of a 21-year-old woman, said Sheriff James Agnew, of Goochland County, Virginia.
The woman's body was found in the county about 15 miles away from Snyder's apartment, the sheriff said.
Snyder is a native of Whitehouse.
In 1988, when he was 18 and a senior at Anthony Wayne High School, Snyder was convicted of the kidnapping and sexual assault at the shopping center after he had the woman undress and get into his car, according to court records.
At the time of his arrest, Snyder told investigators about sexual urges "that he can not control," according to police reports.
Snyder ultimately pleaded guilty to the felony charges.
Then-Lucas County Common Pleas Court Judge William J. Skow ordered him to serve five years probation, pay a $1,151 fine, and undergo psychotherapy on an outpatient basis.
He served his sentence during the late 1980s and early 1990s while living in the Bowling Green area. He married, divorced, and remarried.
About three years ago, police believe, Snyder moved to Virginia and began living in the apartment where he killed himself.
Also living in the apartment were his current wife, Keren Snyder, 32, an Israeli native, and his ex-wife, 47-year-old Denise Ervin, originally from Ohio.
Virginia authorities believe they have a videotape of Emily "Kate" Robertson getting out of her white Jeep about 9 a.m. Aug. 25 and getting into Snyder's car outside a Nordstrom department store in Goochland County.
Miss Robertson's family reported her missing later that night. She did not report to work the following day.
Last Sunday, police traced the signal from her cell phone and found the phone nestled in grass alongside a highway, Sheriff Agnew said.
On Monday, police found Miss Robertson's body in a creek, several hundred feet away, he said.
Because of the body's decomposition, a preliminary autopsy failed to determine how she died or if she was raped, Sheriff Agnew said.
Snyder was not a suspect until investigators realized that his car matched that of the vehicle on the surveillance videotape.
"We feel very confident that this is our man," Sheriff Agnew said.
Police theorize that Snyder killed himself upon hearing news reports of the body's discovery, "and we've discovered some statements that support that theory from people who knew him."
Yet many mysteries remain.
Besides confirming how Miss Robertson died, the sheriff said investigators have yet to determine how Snyder and Miss Robertson knew one another.
Both Snyder's current and former wives claim to have no knowledge of what Snyder was doing at the time Miss Robertson was abducted.
"They have stated that he would often go on long walks," Sheriff Agnew said.
"And they assumed he was on one of his walks."
The investigation is continuing.
During the incident at Southwyck in April, 1987, Snyder armed himself with a handgun and a knife. He walked into the former Canary and Elephant Shop after closing, according to court records.
He ordered the store's lone female clerk into a back storage room, where he ordered her to remove her clothes. Snyder sexually assaulted her.
He then forced her to get into his car, which he drove to a stone quarry on Gunn Road. He tried to convince the girl to have sex with him, but she refused.
He drove her back to the mall and dropped her off, court records state.
Snyder was arrested by mall security the following day when he returned to the store to see the woman.
Afterward, Snyder spent time in a hospital for mental issues, and a psychiatric evaluation described him as an intelligent yet "moderately depressed adolescent" who was very distrustful of others and borderline paranoid. Snyder was put on anti-depressants.
He enrolled at Bowling Green State University, but by 1990 had dropped out.
In 1988, he made two suicide attempts, according to court records.
In July, Snyder filed a motion in Lucas County Common Pleas Court to have his criminal record expunged.
The motion was scheduled for a hearing Sept. 12.
His effort likely would have proved fruitless because a felony kidnapping conviction is not eligible to be expunged under state law.
Sheldon Wittenberg, the attorney who handled Snyder's case in 1988, said yesterday that he was aware of the circumstances surrounding Snyder's apparent suicide, but hadn't spoken to Snyder in years.
Mr. Wittenberg defended Judge Skow's sentence from 18 years ago.
"At the time he was sentenced, it was an appropriate sentence," Mr. Wittenberg said, adding, "Hindsight is 20-20."
Judge Skow could not be reached for comment yesterday. ..more.. by JC Reindl
IA- Shooting victim was brother of well-known Sioux Cityan
Article Tags
.Iowa,
2006,
Age 24-36,
by Gunshot,
by Public Servant/s,
Suicide/s US - of RSOs
10-6-2006 Iowa:
It was an older brother of a well-known East Middle School outreach worker who was shot by police officers Wednesday afternoon, and many questions surrounding his death remain unanswered.
The man, identified Thursday by Sioux City Police Chief Joe Frisbie as 30-year-old Ellis Parker, was shot several times after officers on scene said he charged at them while holding a bloody, 10-inch knife.
But Frisbie was silent on many aspects of the shooting, including which police officers were involved, because he said investigation into exactly how things happened is still under way.
"I have personally seen evidence, very definitive evidence, where Mr. Parker was advancing on the officers with a knife. That much I can say," he said. "We've talked to a lot of individuals in the trailer court and most of the information that we've received right now has been substantiating what we know."
Parker recently moved into the Regency Mobile Home Park, 4101 Gordon Drive, where the shooting took place, Frisbie said. He had lived much of his life in Des Moines, where he grew up with three younger brothers, including Tito Parker, outreach specialist at East Middle School through the Sanford Center's Gang Outreach Program. Tito Parker was selected by the Siouxland Red Cross as one of this year's Siouxland Hero Award winners.
Police and firefighters were called to Parker's mobile home, Lot 221, at 1:14 p.m. responding to a neighbor's report of flames shooting out of the residence, Frisbie said. Police officers arrived first on scene and saw a man, later identified as Parker, inside the trailer at the front window, he said. As officers attempted to come to Parker's aid, Frisbie said Parker broke through and came out the front window, brandishing the knife. Repeated commands to put down the knife were ignored, he said.
Frisbie said Parker advanced twice at officers, who fired at him both times. Frisbie would not say how many rounds were fired, but more than 10 markers were laid out Wednesday indicating shell casings or other evidence that needed to be processed. He refused to release the names of the officers involved, nor would he say how many responded to the fire call.
"We're still investigating who shot what," he said. "While we're trying to get these officers back to work, I don't want them getting hundreds of phone calls and letters."
Officers were 10 feet or less away from Parker when he was shot, Frisbie said. Emergency medical personnel who were on the scene gave him immediate medical treatment, but he was pronounced dead at the scene, he said.
Frisbie said he is still unsure where the blood on Parker's knife came from, as no person or animal was found inside the man's charred mobile home. The fire, which fire marshals have determined was intentionally set, consumed much of the home's contents. Firefighters couldn't fight the fire until they knew there was no longer a threat.
"As fast as a trailer fire moves, it's unlikely anyone else would have been responsible for it (than Parker)," Frisbie said.
The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation was put in charge of the investigation into Parker's death because of the officers' involvement, Frisbie said. The officers involved in the shooting have been put on administrative leave, in keeping with department policy, he said.
"I have a lot of empathy for the officers and their families because nobody, nobody wants to take the life of another individual," he said. "These officers are truly victims in this situation."
Autopsy results on Parker won't be available from the Iowa State Medical Examiner's Office until at least Monday, Frisbie said.
"My understanding from the preliminary investigation and information I'm getting back from the DCI ... is that it looks like there was an appropriate use of force in this situation, but they won't make any final determination on this until later," Frisbie said. "They want to be very thorough, and you can understand why they don't want to make statements without knowing everything they could honestly know about this situation before they make that conclusion."
Toxicology results that would show whether Parker was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the shooting will also take some time to come back, he said.
"It would be total conjecture on our part at this point to say anything," Frisbie said.
'He was an honorable man'
When it came to the issue of Ellis Allen Parker's history, Frisbie clearly held back on his response.
"There's a lot of things I know about Ellis Parker," he said. "I don't think it would be in the best interest of the investigation at this point to talk abut historical things. We need to focus on the crime at hand right now."
However, a look into Parker's criminal record shows five serious convictions, including one for escape from custody in 2002 and one for third-degree sexual abuse in 1998. He was released from the Newton (Iowa) Correctional Facility, a medium-security facility, in July of this year after serving time on two 2005 charges of assault causing injury to a peace officer and others.
Frisbie did not say whether officers knew Parker's background when they responded to the fire call.
But Tito Parker said Thursday that his brother's history doesn't matter to him. Ellis was "an honorable man," he said, and his life will be mourned.
"Everything I did and accomplished is because of this man," Tito Parker said. "He taught me what I know and who I am. If people want to say bad things about him, then they can say them about me too, because you don't get me without him." ..more.. by Alicia Ebaugh, Journal staff writer
It was an older brother of a well-known East Middle School outreach worker who was shot by police officers Wednesday afternoon, and many questions surrounding his death remain unanswered.
The man, identified Thursday by Sioux City Police Chief Joe Frisbie as 30-year-old Ellis Parker, was shot several times after officers on scene said he charged at them while holding a bloody, 10-inch knife.
But Frisbie was silent on many aspects of the shooting, including which police officers were involved, because he said investigation into exactly how things happened is still under way.
"I have personally seen evidence, very definitive evidence, where Mr. Parker was advancing on the officers with a knife. That much I can say," he said. "We've talked to a lot of individuals in the trailer court and most of the information that we've received right now has been substantiating what we know."
Parker recently moved into the Regency Mobile Home Park, 4101 Gordon Drive, where the shooting took place, Frisbie said. He had lived much of his life in Des Moines, where he grew up with three younger brothers, including Tito Parker, outreach specialist at East Middle School through the Sanford Center's Gang Outreach Program. Tito Parker was selected by the Siouxland Red Cross as one of this year's Siouxland Hero Award winners.
Police and firefighters were called to Parker's mobile home, Lot 221, at 1:14 p.m. responding to a neighbor's report of flames shooting out of the residence, Frisbie said. Police officers arrived first on scene and saw a man, later identified as Parker, inside the trailer at the front window, he said. As officers attempted to come to Parker's aid, Frisbie said Parker broke through and came out the front window, brandishing the knife. Repeated commands to put down the knife were ignored, he said.
Frisbie said Parker advanced twice at officers, who fired at him both times. Frisbie would not say how many rounds were fired, but more than 10 markers were laid out Wednesday indicating shell casings or other evidence that needed to be processed. He refused to release the names of the officers involved, nor would he say how many responded to the fire call.
"We're still investigating who shot what," he said. "While we're trying to get these officers back to work, I don't want them getting hundreds of phone calls and letters."
Officers were 10 feet or less away from Parker when he was shot, Frisbie said. Emergency medical personnel who were on the scene gave him immediate medical treatment, but he was pronounced dead at the scene, he said.
Frisbie said he is still unsure where the blood on Parker's knife came from, as no person or animal was found inside the man's charred mobile home. The fire, which fire marshals have determined was intentionally set, consumed much of the home's contents. Firefighters couldn't fight the fire until they knew there was no longer a threat.
"As fast as a trailer fire moves, it's unlikely anyone else would have been responsible for it (than Parker)," Frisbie said.
The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation was put in charge of the investigation into Parker's death because of the officers' involvement, Frisbie said. The officers involved in the shooting have been put on administrative leave, in keeping with department policy, he said.
"I have a lot of empathy for the officers and their families because nobody, nobody wants to take the life of another individual," he said. "These officers are truly victims in this situation."
Autopsy results on Parker won't be available from the Iowa State Medical Examiner's Office until at least Monday, Frisbie said.
"My understanding from the preliminary investigation and information I'm getting back from the DCI ... is that it looks like there was an appropriate use of force in this situation, but they won't make any final determination on this until later," Frisbie said. "They want to be very thorough, and you can understand why they don't want to make statements without knowing everything they could honestly know about this situation before they make that conclusion."
Toxicology results that would show whether Parker was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the shooting will also take some time to come back, he said.
"It would be total conjecture on our part at this point to say anything," Frisbie said.
'He was an honorable man'
When it came to the issue of Ellis Allen Parker's history, Frisbie clearly held back on his response.
"There's a lot of things I know about Ellis Parker," he said. "I don't think it would be in the best interest of the investigation at this point to talk abut historical things. We need to focus on the crime at hand right now."
However, a look into Parker's criminal record shows five serious convictions, including one for escape from custody in 2002 and one for third-degree sexual abuse in 1998. He was released from the Newton (Iowa) Correctional Facility, a medium-security facility, in July of this year after serving time on two 2005 charges of assault causing injury to a peace officer and others.
Frisbie did not say whether officers knew Parker's background when they responded to the fire call.
But Tito Parker said Thursday that his brother's history doesn't matter to him. Ellis was "an honorable man," he said, and his life will be mourned.
"Everything I did and accomplished is because of this man," Tito Parker said. "He taught me what I know and who I am. If people want to say bad things about him, then they can say them about me too, because you don't get me without him." ..more.. by Alicia Ebaugh, Journal staff writer
GA- Man charged with child molestation commits suicide
Article Tags
.Georgia,
2006,
Age 60-69,
by Gunshot,
Suicide/s US - of SOs Accused
10-18-2006 Georgia:
A man whom the Sheriff’s Office charged with child molestation on Friday shot himself on Saturday, causing fatal injuries, according to an incident report.
Shortly before 10 a.m. on the morning of Saturday, Oct. 14, Sheriff’s deputies were called to 3172 N. Eldorendo Road and found a man identified as Donald Raymond Crane, 67, lying on a bed in a camper trailer with a gun shot wound to his head. Deputy Coroner Kenny Hollis pronounced Crane deceased a short time later.
Capt. Gale Bowyer of the Sheriff’s office said Crane had been charged with child molestation on Oct. 13 and said his death would probably close the investigation. ..more.. by The Post Searchlight
A man whom the Sheriff’s Office charged with child molestation on Friday shot himself on Saturday, causing fatal injuries, according to an incident report.
Shortly before 10 a.m. on the morning of Saturday, Oct. 14, Sheriff’s deputies were called to 3172 N. Eldorendo Road and found a man identified as Donald Raymond Crane, 67, lying on a bed in a camper trailer with a gun shot wound to his head. Deputy Coroner Kenny Hollis pronounced Crane deceased a short time later.
Capt. Gale Bowyer of the Sheriff’s office said Crane had been charged with child molestation on Oct. 13 and said his death would probably close the investigation. ..more.. by The Post Searchlight
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)