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Tag: not guilty plea

  • War Machine in Vegas Court: “Not Guilty” of Christy Mack Beating

    War Machine — AKA Jon Koppenhaver — has entered a plea of “not guilty” in a Vegas court on charges related to the alleged beating of his ex-girlfriend Christy Mack and her friend Corey Thomas back in August. He faces 34 counts in the case.

    Christy Mack was certainly beaten by someone, if not War Machine. She had a lacerated liver, broken eye socket, broken teeth, minor stab wounds to her scalp, and injuries to her leg. Corey Thomas had a broken nose and a dislocated shoulder.

    War Machine has said that he showed up at Mack’s house in Las Vegas, planning to reconcile and ask her to marry him. He says he caught her in bed with another man and that this man attacked him. He says he was ambushed and forced to defend himself.

    Mack and Thomas say that Koppenhaver flew into a jealous rage upon finding Thomas at Mack’s house and beat on him first. Mack says Thomas was “fully clothed” when War Machine arrived.

    Mack has stated that War Machine punched and kicked her repeatedly, poked her with a knife, cut her hair off with that knife, forced her to shower, and threatened to rape her. She says that she escaped when Koppenhaver went to her kitchen to get a new knife because the handle of the one he was using broke.

    War Machine was arraigned today, entered his plea, and has a trial date set for February 2015. That means that a grand jury saw enough evidence to warrant sending the case to trial. War Machine has said before that the charges against him are excessive, and that some were not even related to the August incident.

    Earlier this week, as Christy Mack tearfully testified before the grand jury, War Machine was caught laughing by the judge.

    Mack has been recovering from her injuries, donating money and support to causes for battered women and domestic abuse.

    War Machine managed to get a tweet posted.It’s extended form reads, in part:

    “When she testifies against me, helping the state to take away my LIFE, I curse her inwardly. When I see her cry, when I see the one I loved in pain…I fight my shackles in my mind, I fight everyone and everything barring me from comforting her with an embrace.”

    He talks about the night of the “incident”.

    “I hate the black-and-white of it all, it leaves no room for the truth. One side lies to make their “truth” perfect and then the other side follows. When is ANYTHING ever so cut-and-dry? Truth is somewhere in the middle, always is. I came over 12 hours or so early, as a SURPRISE, so, since she was in bed with another man, “I did not have permission” to enter the house, but, had she been alone, then it’d have been a nice surprise, and me coming home early would have been ok? Why does THAT one lie have to be told, that one little lie? On the stand she admitted that she loved me and wanted to get married…but, I wasn’t allowed to come over as I pleased? That makes no sense.”

    Somewhere in all this, he still wants to hear an apology from Mack.

    “I hate the court’s involvement, I wish that we could talk as humans, I wish that I could give apologies where they’re due. I wish that I could hear her apologize as well, I need it, we both need it.”


  • Michael Jace: ‘The Shield’ Star Pleads Not Guilty to Murdering Wife

    Michael Jace, known for his role on the FX police drama The Shield, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to killing his wife April Jace. The actor is charged with her shooting death. Bond was set at $2 million following the hearing and Jace was told he couldn’t have contact with his two children. A preliminary hearing was set for August 1st.

    April Jace died from “multiple gunshot wounds” according to the results of her autopsy. The Los Angeles County coroner ruled her death a homicide.

    Michael Jace reportedly called 911 following his wife’s death and told an operator that he had shot her. His father-in-law also called 911 as he raced to his daughter’s home following a message from Michael Jace.

    “My son-in-law called me and texted me and said come get the kids because he shot April, our daughter,” he said in a recording that was recently released by the Los Angeles Fire Department.

    A police statement issued the day following April Jace’s death said the expected motive behind her murder was domestic violence. A woman who is a close friend of Michael Jace’s first wife Jennifer Bitterman said he abused his wife back in 1997.

    Jace “choked and hit” Bitterman and “slammed her against the wall while (their infant son) screamed in his crib next to her,” Maria De Le Vegas said in a sworn statement.

    Michael Jace apparently suffered from serious financial issues and had recently even defaulted on the couple’s mortgage. The Shield provided the biggest role in Jace’s 22-year career as an actor. He appeared in 89 episodes as Julien Lowe, who started as a rookie officer in an inner-city Los Angeles police precinct in 2002 and worked his way up to detective before the series ended in 2008.

    In addition to The Shield Jace appeared in several episodes of the TV series Southland and had small roles on episodes of The Mentalist, NYPD Blue, Burn Notice, and Private Practice.

    April Jace worked at Biola University as a financial aid counselor.

    “We are obviously shocked and saddened by this terrible news, to lose a wonderful colleague, mother and friend,” Biola President Barry Corey said in a written statement.

    “April’s radiant personality brought great energy to the financial aid office,” financial aid director Geoff Marsh said. “Her love for helping students and families and her great work ethic earned the respect and love of her coworkers. Her smiling face and helpful spirit will be missed by all.”

    Almost as sad as the loss of April Jace is the fact that the couple had children together. They will not only suffer the loss of their mother, but will one day likely learn that their father was responsible for her death, and that’s something not easily handled–no matter how old one is.

    Image via YouTube

  • Stradivarius Theft Defendant Pleads Not Guilty

    A second suspect in the high-profile theft of a rare $5 million Stradivarius violin pleaded not guilty to a charge of felony robbery, according to ABC News, which cited online court records as its source.

    Universal K. Allah, 36 years old, entered in the plea Wednesday morning, approximately two months after he and Salah Salahadyn allegedly forcibly stole the violin from concertmaster Frank Almond, who was playing at the performance hall at Wisconsin Lutheran College.

    According to a criminal complaint filed by Detective Billy Ball, Frank Almond was attacked with a Taser on January 27, 2014, at approximately 10:20 pm. The Taser struck his wrists and chest, momentarily incapacitating him. By the time he was able to stand, the violin was gone.

    A witness, Todd R. Levy who plays the clarinet, was walking ahead of Almond when he heard the scream. Turning around, Levy saw a 1990s burgundy-colored minivan traveling northbound in the parking lot, then turning Westbound on Wisconsin Avenue.

    Using small pieces of paper produced by the Taser at the crime scene, police tracked the weapon to one Universal K. Allah, who told an informant that if the police asked about the Taser, he would tell them it had been stolen.

    The informant, named W.D. in the complaint, met with an off-duty officer on Sunday, February 2, and told the officer, “I know where that violin is at.” W.D. had been getting his haircut by Allah at a barbershop when Allah began to tell him information about the crime, including the first name of the man who wanted to use the Taser to steal an “instrument” that was rare and one of a kind. That name was “Salah.”

    Salah Salahadyn viewed stealing a Stradivarius as a “dream theft” because of its high value and the easy in which he could steal it from musicians walking down the street.

    After search warrants were issued for both defendants residences and questioning both men, Salah Salahadyn led Detectives Billy Ball and Gus Petropoulus to the location of the stolen $5 million violin.

    It was recovered in good condition and has been played since by none other than Frank Almond.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons (Note: Not violin mentioned in article)