STORY: "Mistrial declared in retrial of woman accused in killing of 6 children in 1992 fire," by reporter Jessica Anderson, published by The Baltimore Sun, on August 1, 2017.
GIST: "A judge declared a mistrial Tuesday in the case of a Baltimore
woman accused of killing her six children in a house fire in 1992. Tonya
Lucas, 54, was convicted by a jury in 1993 of six counts of
first-degree felony murder and was serving six consecutive life terms.
But on Tuesday, nine jurors voted to acquit Lucas, said her attorney,
Michele Nethercott. “The result could have obviously been far
worse. The majority of the jurors understand the weakness of the state’s
evidence,” she said. Nethercott said her client is relieved. “She was prepared for the worst,” Nethercott said.A spokeswoman for the state’s attorney’s office would not say Tuesday whether the state plans to retry the case. During
closing arguments last week, prosecutors sought to show jurors that
Lucas intentionally set fire to her home in the 2400 block of E. Eager
St. to receive rental assistance from the Red Cross. They also allege she set the fire to cover up her abuse of her 2-year-old son, Gregory Cook, who weighed just 10 pounds. But
Nethercott said Tuesday that the state’s case was weak. She said in
closing arguments that Lucas was receiving other government assistance
to support her family, and did not need help from the Red Cross. She
also reminded jurors that Lucas was not on trial for child abuse, even
though prosecutors showed graphic pictures of Gregory’s body several
times. Deliberations stretched on for more than a week, during
which jurors occasionally asked questions of the court and wanted to see
the transcripts of testimony from the state’s key witness, Eugene
Weddington, who said he saw Lucas start the blaze. Nethercott said Weddington initially lied about how he got into Lucas’ house. Weddington
testified that his explanation for being inside the house changed
because he did not want his fiancee to know that he had been in the
house seeking sex. He said Lucas had offered him oral sex for $10 worth
of cocaine before she started the fire. But Weddington was adamant about his recollection of the events. “I know who I was with, I know what I seen,” he testified. The University of Baltimore's Innocence Project took up the
case in 2015, questioning the credibility of the fire investigation, and
Lucas’ conviction was overturned in December 2015. Since the first
trial, questions about fire science have raised doubt in numerous cases
and led to dozens of arson exonerations across the country. “The
state’s own arson expert concluded that the cause of this fire should
have been declared undetermined,” Nethercott said Tuesday."
The entire story can be found at:
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http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/bs-md-ci-tonya-lucas-mistrial-20170801-story.html
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/c
The entire story can be found at:
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at: http://www.thestar.com/topic/c
