Georgia
Judge halts execution over inmate’s concerns about the clemency process
KENNESAW, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia judge on Monday ordered a temporary pause to a December execution that was already put on hold, saying questions about the state’s clemency process must be addressed before Stacey Humphreys ‘ death sentence could be carried out.
Humphreys, 52, was facing scheduled execution Dec. 17 but the procedure was paused just days before he was to have received a lethal injection.
He was convicted of malice murder and other crimes in the 2003 shooting deaths of Cyndi Williams, 33, and Lori Brown, 21, at the real estate office where they worked in Cobb County, northwest of Atlanta.
At issue: Humphreys’ lawyers contend that two members of Georgia’s parole board have conflicts of interest which would taint their participation in a clemency hearing.
Humphreys’ lawyers earlier this month filed a petition asking a judge to order the two members of the parole board to recuse themselves from considering his clemency petition.
The lawyers said one of those board members, Kimberly McCoy, was previously a victim advocate with the Cobb County district attorney’s office at the time of Humphreys’ trial and was assigned to work with victims in the case.
Another board member, Wayne Bennett, was the sheriff in Glynn County, where the trial was moved because of pretrial publicity. Humphreys’ lawyers say Bennett oversaw security for the jurors and Humphreys himself during the case.
In an order filed Monday, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney wrote that “pressing ‘pause’ on the execution machinery until we answer the non-frivolous question raised by Petitioner concerning the proper composition of the Board for his clemency hearing is the correct course of action.”
He ordered lawyers for both sides to file additional legal briefs on the issue by Jan. 19.
Additionally, the judge wrote in his order that Humphreys deserves to have the conflict of interest question researched and argued thoroughly so that a parole board free of conflicts of interest can decide his case at a clemency hearing.
Oklahoma
Man firing gun in yard fatally shoots neighbor sitting blocks away, authorities say
COMANCHE, Okla. (AP) — An Oklahoma man firing a gun he bought as a Christmas present has been charged with manslaughter after authorities say a stray bullet left his yard during target practice and fatally struck a neighbor who was sitting on a porch blocks away.
Cody Wayne Adams, 33, was charged Friday in Stephens County with first-degree manslaughter. He was booked into jail and later released on a $100,000 bond, court records show.
Stephens County deputies were called to a home north of Comanche on Christmas Day after Sandra Phelps was shot while sitting on the front porch of a home and holding a child, according to a sheriff’s affidavit. Witnesses said Phelps said “ouch,” and then collapsed.
Investigators determined Phelps suffered a gunshot wound, and she was pronounced dead about 20 minutes after deputies received the call about the shooting, the affidavit states.
Authorities contacted Adams, who told deputies he had recently bought himself a .45-caliber handgun and had been shooting at a can in his yard, located about a half-mile (0.8 kilometers) from where Phelps was shot. When deputies told Adams they suspected he shot Phelps, “Adams became visibly upset and began to cry,” Stephens County Sheriff’s Capt. Timothy Vann wrote in the affidavit.
A telephone message left Monday with Adams’ attorney, Carl Buckholts, was not immediately returned.
Court records show Adams is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 25 and was ordered to have no contact with the victim’s family.
Oklahoma law defines first-degree manslaughter as a homicide that occurs when perpetrated without a “design to effect death” while a person is engaged in the commission of a misdemeanor. It is punishable by up to life in prison.
Charging documents allege Adams engaged in conduct with a firearm that demonstrated a “conscious disregard for the safety of others,” a misdemeanor crime in Oklahoma.
Arizona
No motive revealed in killing of prominent farmer’s estranged wife
HOLBROOK, Ariz. (AP) — Investigators declined to reveal the suspected motive in the shooting death of a prominent California farmer’s estranged wife in eastern Arizona, but they said the couple’s prolonged divorce case arose in nearly all interviews with family and friends.
Michael Abatti, 63, was arrested last week in El Centro, California, in the shooting death of Kerri Ann Abatti, 59, at her family’s vacation home in Pinetop, Arizona, where she moved after splitting with her husband.
Investigators, who discussed the case at a news conference Monday, say Michael Abatti traveled from El Centro to Pinetop on Nov. 20, carried out the killing and returned to California early the next morning. They declined to say what occurred at the Pinetop house in the last days of Kerri Abatti’s life.
“Different theories will come up,” Navajo County Sheriff David Clouse said of the motive. “The only thing that’s glaring that I think everybody already knows is there’s a divorce in place and they weren’t able to come to a resolution. But I can’t speak exactly to what the motive would be.”
Owen Roth, one of Michael Abatti’s attorneys, said his client surrendered to law enforcement, agreed to be extradited to Arizona and remains innocent under the law. “Our client is in his mid-60s and has significant health issues, and we continue to worry about his well-being,” Roth said. “We ask the public to respect his privacy and constitutional rights and reiterate that this case will be decided based on the evidence by a jury.” An autopsy report released Monday said Kerri Abatti’s cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head.
The report said she was found unconscious on the floor near her kitchen by her nephew, who told investigators he heard a loud sound before finding her. When investigators searched the home they found a “circular defect” on a window and determined “a gunshot likely originated from the yard outside the home,” the autopsy report said.
The Associated Press left a message for the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office for further explanation. The medical examiner’s office in Coconino County, which conducted the autopsy, directed questions about the report to a Navajo County official, and the AP also left a message for the official. A descendant of early Latter-day Saints settlers who helped found Pinetop in the 1880s, Kerri had filed for divorce, with proceedings pending in California at the time of her death.
Authorities searched his home in far Southern California on Dec. 2 as part of the investigation into his wife’s death.
Michael Abatti comes from a long line of farmers in the crop-rich Imperial Valley, which is the biggest user of Colorado River water and known for growing leafy greens, melons and forage crops. His grandfather, an Italian immigrant, was among the region’s early settlers and his father helped start the Imperial Valley Vegetable Growers Association.
Michael Abatti served on the board of the powerful Imperial Irrigation District from 2006 to 2010.
The Abattis, who married in 1992 and had three children, were sparring over finances. Kerri told the court the couple had lived an affluent lifestyle during more than three decades of marriage. They owned property in three states,
vacationed internationally and sent their children to private school.
Kerri initially received $5,000 monthly temporary spousal support. She later sought an increase, citing struggles to maintain her standard of living as well as keep up the Arizona property. She also asked for an additional $100,000 in attorney’s fees, court filings showed.
Michael Abatti eventually agreed to raise support to $6,400 monthly, despite having countered in a court filing that poor farming years had reduced his income. He blamed market shifts favoring Ukrainian crops, rising shipping costs and harsh weather.
Texas
Man accused of trying to aid Islamic State group is charged with international terrorism
DALLAS (AP) — A 21-year-old Texas man who authorities say provided bomb materials and money to people he believed were affiliated with the Islamic State group has been federally charged with international terrorism, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday.
John Michael Garza Jr. of Midlothian, Texas, is accused of giving bomb-making materials to an undercover federal agent who he believed was an “ISIS brother,” the Justice Department said, using a different abbreviation for the Islamic State group.
No attorney was listed for Garza in court records and the federal public defender’s office in Dallas did not immediately respond to phone messages seeking comment. If convicted, Garza could face up to 20 years in federal prison.
The Dec. 22 sting operation came after an undercover New York City Police Department employee found a social media account belonging to Garza that followed several accounts supporting the Islamic State group, authorities said.
The New York employee began messaging with Garza in October, and the Justice Department said Garza soon shared that he “ascribed to the ISIS ideology.” Garza is accused of sending the undercover employee small amounts of cryptocurrency in November and December, allegedly believing his money was supporting the Islamic State group.
During the Dec. 22 meeting, investigators say Garza described to an undercover FBI agent how to mix explosives he provided and offered to share an instructional video on bomb-making. Garza was arrested shortly after he left the meeting.
“Today’s announcement underscores the FBI’s commitment to combatting terrorism and demonstrates our continuous work to disrupt and thwart terrorist plots against the American public,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement.
“Let this serve as a warning to those who plan to conduct attacks against the United States on behalf of terrorist organizations – you will be brought to justice.”
Garza made an initial court appearance on Dec. 23 in U.S. District Court for Northern Texas. Federal prosecutors are expected to lay out their evidence against him at a probable cause and detention hearing on Tuesday.
Judge halts execution over inmate’s concerns about the clemency process
KENNESAW, Ga. (AP) — A Georgia judge on Monday ordered a temporary pause to a December execution that was already put on hold, saying questions about the state’s clemency process must be addressed before Stacey Humphreys ‘ death sentence could be carried out.
Humphreys, 52, was facing scheduled execution Dec. 17 but the procedure was paused just days before he was to have received a lethal injection.
He was convicted of malice murder and other crimes in the 2003 shooting deaths of Cyndi Williams, 33, and Lori Brown, 21, at the real estate office where they worked in Cobb County, northwest of Atlanta.
At issue: Humphreys’ lawyers contend that two members of Georgia’s parole board have conflicts of interest which would taint their participation in a clemency hearing.
Humphreys’ lawyers earlier this month filed a petition asking a judge to order the two members of the parole board to recuse themselves from considering his clemency petition.
The lawyers said one of those board members, Kimberly McCoy, was previously a victim advocate with the Cobb County district attorney’s office at the time of Humphreys’ trial and was assigned to work with victims in the case.
Another board member, Wayne Bennett, was the sheriff in Glynn County, where the trial was moved because of pretrial publicity. Humphreys’ lawyers say Bennett oversaw security for the jurors and Humphreys himself during the case.
In an order filed Monday, Fulton County Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney wrote that “pressing ‘pause’ on the execution machinery until we answer the non-frivolous question raised by Petitioner concerning the proper composition of the Board for his clemency hearing is the correct course of action.”
He ordered lawyers for both sides to file additional legal briefs on the issue by Jan. 19.
Additionally, the judge wrote in his order that Humphreys deserves to have the conflict of interest question researched and argued thoroughly so that a parole board free of conflicts of interest can decide his case at a clemency hearing.
Oklahoma
Man firing gun in yard fatally shoots neighbor sitting blocks away, authorities say
COMANCHE, Okla. (AP) — An Oklahoma man firing a gun he bought as a Christmas present has been charged with manslaughter after authorities say a stray bullet left his yard during target practice and fatally struck a neighbor who was sitting on a porch blocks away.
Cody Wayne Adams, 33, was charged Friday in Stephens County with first-degree manslaughter. He was booked into jail and later released on a $100,000 bond, court records show.
Stephens County deputies were called to a home north of Comanche on Christmas Day after Sandra Phelps was shot while sitting on the front porch of a home and holding a child, according to a sheriff’s affidavit. Witnesses said Phelps said “ouch,” and then collapsed.
Investigators determined Phelps suffered a gunshot wound, and she was pronounced dead about 20 minutes after deputies received the call about the shooting, the affidavit states.
Authorities contacted Adams, who told deputies he had recently bought himself a .45-caliber handgun and had been shooting at a can in his yard, located about a half-mile (0.8 kilometers) from where Phelps was shot. When deputies told Adams they suspected he shot Phelps, “Adams became visibly upset and began to cry,” Stephens County Sheriff’s Capt. Timothy Vann wrote in the affidavit.
A telephone message left Monday with Adams’ attorney, Carl Buckholts, was not immediately returned.
Court records show Adams is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 25 and was ordered to have no contact with the victim’s family.
Oklahoma law defines first-degree manslaughter as a homicide that occurs when perpetrated without a “design to effect death” while a person is engaged in the commission of a misdemeanor. It is punishable by up to life in prison.
Charging documents allege Adams engaged in conduct with a firearm that demonstrated a “conscious disregard for the safety of others,” a misdemeanor crime in Oklahoma.
Arizona
No motive revealed in killing of prominent farmer’s estranged wife
HOLBROOK, Ariz. (AP) — Investigators declined to reveal the suspected motive in the shooting death of a prominent California farmer’s estranged wife in eastern Arizona, but they said the couple’s prolonged divorce case arose in nearly all interviews with family and friends.
Michael Abatti, 63, was arrested last week in El Centro, California, in the shooting death of Kerri Ann Abatti, 59, at her family’s vacation home in Pinetop, Arizona, where she moved after splitting with her husband.
Investigators, who discussed the case at a news conference Monday, say Michael Abatti traveled from El Centro to Pinetop on Nov. 20, carried out the killing and returned to California early the next morning. They declined to say what occurred at the Pinetop house in the last days of Kerri Abatti’s life.
“Different theories will come up,” Navajo County Sheriff David Clouse said of the motive. “The only thing that’s glaring that I think everybody already knows is there’s a divorce in place and they weren’t able to come to a resolution. But I can’t speak exactly to what the motive would be.”
Owen Roth, one of Michael Abatti’s attorneys, said his client surrendered to law enforcement, agreed to be extradited to Arizona and remains innocent under the law. “Our client is in his mid-60s and has significant health issues, and we continue to worry about his well-being,” Roth said. “We ask the public to respect his privacy and constitutional rights and reiterate that this case will be decided based on the evidence by a jury.” An autopsy report released Monday said Kerri Abatti’s cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head.
The report said she was found unconscious on the floor near her kitchen by her nephew, who told investigators he heard a loud sound before finding her. When investigators searched the home they found a “circular defect” on a window and determined “a gunshot likely originated from the yard outside the home,” the autopsy report said.
The Associated Press left a message for the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office for further explanation. The medical examiner’s office in Coconino County, which conducted the autopsy, directed questions about the report to a Navajo County official, and the AP also left a message for the official. A descendant of early Latter-day Saints settlers who helped found Pinetop in the 1880s, Kerri had filed for divorce, with proceedings pending in California at the time of her death.
Authorities searched his home in far Southern California on Dec. 2 as part of the investigation into his wife’s death.
Michael Abatti comes from a long line of farmers in the crop-rich Imperial Valley, which is the biggest user of Colorado River water and known for growing leafy greens, melons and forage crops. His grandfather, an Italian immigrant, was among the region’s early settlers and his father helped start the Imperial Valley Vegetable Growers Association.
Michael Abatti served on the board of the powerful Imperial Irrigation District from 2006 to 2010.
The Abattis, who married in 1992 and had three children, were sparring over finances. Kerri told the court the couple had lived an affluent lifestyle during more than three decades of marriage. They owned property in three states,
vacationed internationally and sent their children to private school.
Kerri initially received $5,000 monthly temporary spousal support. She later sought an increase, citing struggles to maintain her standard of living as well as keep up the Arizona property. She also asked for an additional $100,000 in attorney’s fees, court filings showed.
Michael Abatti eventually agreed to raise support to $6,400 monthly, despite having countered in a court filing that poor farming years had reduced his income. He blamed market shifts favoring Ukrainian crops, rising shipping costs and harsh weather.
Texas
Man accused of trying to aid Islamic State group is charged with international terrorism
DALLAS (AP) — A 21-year-old Texas man who authorities say provided bomb materials and money to people he believed were affiliated with the Islamic State group has been federally charged with international terrorism, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Monday.
John Michael Garza Jr. of Midlothian, Texas, is accused of giving bomb-making materials to an undercover federal agent who he believed was an “ISIS brother,” the Justice Department said, using a different abbreviation for the Islamic State group.
No attorney was listed for Garza in court records and the federal public defender’s office in Dallas did not immediately respond to phone messages seeking comment. If convicted, Garza could face up to 20 years in federal prison.
The Dec. 22 sting operation came after an undercover New York City Police Department employee found a social media account belonging to Garza that followed several accounts supporting the Islamic State group, authorities said.
The New York employee began messaging with Garza in October, and the Justice Department said Garza soon shared that he “ascribed to the ISIS ideology.” Garza is accused of sending the undercover employee small amounts of cryptocurrency in November and December, allegedly believing his money was supporting the Islamic State group.
During the Dec. 22 meeting, investigators say Garza described to an undercover FBI agent how to mix explosives he provided and offered to share an instructional video on bomb-making. Garza was arrested shortly after he left the meeting.
“Today’s announcement underscores the FBI’s commitment to combatting terrorism and demonstrates our continuous work to disrupt and thwart terrorist plots against the American public,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement.
“Let this serve as a warning to those who plan to conduct attacks against the United States on behalf of terrorist organizations – you will be brought to justice.”
Garza made an initial court appearance on Dec. 23 in U.S. District Court for Northern Texas. Federal prosecutors are expected to lay out their evidence against him at a probable cause and detention hearing on Tuesday.
