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Tag: Convictions

  • Alice Uden Found Guilty of 1970s Murder

    Alice Uden Found Guilty of 1970s Murder

    A jury in Cheyenne, Wyoming this week found Alice Uden guilty of second-degree murder. Uden was found to have shot and killed her husband during the mid 1970s. Uden is 75 years old and most recently lived in Missouri.

    According to a Wyoming Tribune Eagle report, Uden was arrested last fall nearly 40 years after the disappearance of her third husband, Ronald Holtz. Uden and Holtz had met as psychiatric patients at a VA Medical Center in Sheridan, Wyoming. Holtz then disappeared in late 1974 or early 1975. Uden’s arrest came after a long investigation into Holtz’s disappearance, which included interviews with Uden’s two children.

    Holtz’s remains were discovered last August. The man’s body had been placed in a cardboard barrel and tossed down an abandoned mine shaft outside of Cheyenne.

    Uden had testified during the trial that the shooting was in self-defense. She stated that Holtz had been threatening her one year-old daughter. Uden had previously told police that she shot Holtz in the head while he was sleeping.

    The jury this week found that there was premeditated malice in the shooting, though the second-degree murder conviction is a step down from the first-degree murder that Uden had originally been charged with. An anonymous juror who spoke with the Eagle Tribune said that 11 of the jurors had been willing to convict Uden on the first-degree murder charge.

    Sentencing has not yet been scheduled, pending a pre-sentencing investigation. Uden faces a minimum of 20 years in prison and possibly a life sentence.

    In a bizarre twist to the case, Uden’s current husband has also been convicted of murder. Gerald Uden pleaded guilty late last year to the 1980 murders of his ex-wife and his two adopted sons, ages 12 and 10. The 71 year-old man is currently serving a life sentence.

    Image via the Christian County, Missouri Sheriff’s Office

  • Mary-Louise Parker Fights for Troubled Son in “Jamesy Boy”

    In a sneak-peek clip of Mary-Louise Parker’s upcoming-featured film,” Jamesy Boy,” it shows a mother who fights to keep her gang-related son in school.  

    Based on a true story about James Burns, portrayed by Spencer Lofranco, the film illustrates the let downs a young 14-year-old teen experienced by the school system.

    The clip, however, shows a prelude to the administration’s admission rejection.

    “Miss Burns, let me be frank with you. We have some concerns. We’ve read your son’s record and we’re not convinced that our school is the right place for a student with his particular history,” said the admissions officer to Parker’s character in reference to her son. (image)

    The officer then goes on to elaborate on her son’s unstable violent behavior and list of convictions. She unashamedly admits that the school is afraid that Burns would be a danger to other students.

    Burns ends up joining a street gang, which eventually leads to his incarceration in a maximum-security prison. However, his relationship with a convicted murderer mentors him in changing his life around. (image)

    Throughout the movie, you can expect to see “…an education system resisting the wayward, failing a mother, and pushing a young person further into despair.” Other costars include James Woods, Taissa Farmiga, Taboo of Black Eyed Peas and Ving Rhames.

    Directed by Trevor White, “Jamesy Boy” is set to release on Demand January 3 and premier in theaters January 17.

    Image via Youtube, JoBlo.com

  • Buju Banton’s Gun Conviction Struck Down

    Buju Banton’s Gun Conviction Struck Down

    In 2011, Reggae singer Buju Banton was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison for cocaine charges.

    Banton was convicted by a Tampa, Florida jury of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute 5 kg (around 11 pounds) of cocaine and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking offense. Banton’s lawyers had argued that the singer was entrapped by a federal informant. The 10-year sentence Banton received is the federal minimum for his drug crime, and an additional five years were added for the gun charge.

    Last week, a federal judge threw out Banton’s gun conviction. According to the Associated Press, the turnaround was due to a finding that a juror in the 2011 trial had done independent research during the trial. The jury foreman in the trial had reportedly researched the federal Pinkerton rule, which was used to convict Benton on the gun charge. The judge who struck down the charge stated that the juror should face contempt charges for his actions.

    Banton, whose real name is Mark Myrie, came to prominence in the 90s for albums such as Mr. Mention and Voice of Jamaica. Banton’s Before the Dawn album won the Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album in 2011.

    (via Associated Press)

  • Joss Stone Murder Plot Suspects Convicted

    Joss Stone Murder Plot Suspects Convicted

    In 2011 two men were arrested in England for plotting to rob and murder pop star Joss Stone.

    According to a report in The Telegraph, the men, Junior Bradshaw and Kevin Liverpool, have been convicted on conspiracy to to cause grievous bodily harm and conspiracy to rob. Liverpool has been sentenced to life in prison, and will serve a minimum of 10 years and eight months. Bradshaw’s sentencing was postponed.

    According to the Telegraph report, the pair were found near the singer’s home with a “samurai sword” and knives. At one point the criminals asked a mailman for directions to Stone’s house. The amateur criminals were reported to have had notes outlining a plot to behead Stone and dump her body in a river.

    The motive for the men’s plot isn’t entirely clear, though notes written by the men contained references to the British Royal family. The writings referred to the fact that Stone had been invited to the Prince William’s wedding in 2011. The men also mentioned Eminem, Beyonce, R. Kelly and Chris Brown.

    Stone’s mother addressed the media after the convictions, thanking supporters on her daughter’s behalf and expressing relief that the men are behind bars.

  • Lindsey Lowe Found Guilty of Newborn Twin Deaths

    Lindsey Lowe, the woman on trial for the murder of her twin newborns, has been found guilty.

    Nashville-area CBS affiliate News Channel 5 is reporting that Lowe was found guilty of two counts of first degree murder, two counts of first degree premeditated murder, and two counts of aggravated child abuse. She was sentenced to life in prison, with 51 years before she will be eligible for parole. Lowe is 26 years old.

    Lowe is alleged to have smothered her newborn twins in a bathroom after giving birth at her parents’ house, where she lived. Her parents found the body of one of the infants in a laundry basket two days later.

    Lowe reportedly did not tell anyone that she was pregnant, and her friends, family, and fiance did not catch on, even when she was nine months pregnant. The prosecution presented internet searches on pregnancy topics to indicate that Lowe knew she was pregnant. Lowe’s defense tried to convince the jury that she was mentally ill and in denial about her pregnancy.

    NewsChannel5.com | Nashville News, Weather

  • ‘Cannibal Cop’ Convicted of Kidnapping Conspiracy

    Back in October 2012, the NYPD made headlines as a New York police officer was arrested for allegedly plotting to kill and eat dozens of women. Gilberto Valle III was caught by his colleagues having online conversations about his fantasies, which involved cannibalism.

    This week, Valle was convicted on one count of kidnapping. The New York Times is reporting that a jury found Valle’s detailed plans to kidnap women proof enough of his intentions.

    The case has shined a llght on some of the internet’s more deviant niches. In addition, it has raised questions about the line between online fantasy and reality, especially in regards to people with positions of authority in society.

    One of Valle’s lawyers told the Times that Valle was prosecuted for thought crime, saying, “These are thoughts, very ugly thoughts, but we don’t prosecute people for their thoughts.” Valle’s lawyers have vowed to appeal the verdict.

    The prosecution in the case, however, was able to demonstrate that Valle had used his access to police databases and resources as a police officer to track and research the women in his fantasies. Regardless of Valle’s real-life intentions toward the women, his misuse of police resources was a factor in the case, and the Times states that he has also been convicted of illegal access to a law enforcement database.