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News and Press Releases
: 2004 |
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2004 Press Releases:
2004 from The Paris News:
From The Dallas Morning News/Associated
Press:
October 22, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The number of pending and backlogged cases in the county prosecutor's
office has been significantly lessened in the first month of
interim Lamar County and District Attorney Gary Young's tenure.
An estimated 800 felony cases were pending one month ago.
One hundred cases have been disposed since September 17. Many
defendants had multiple cases against them.
"I don't want people to think I'm dismissing all of these
cases or going easy on the defendants," Young said before
noting that of 44 defendants sentenced in his first month, only
eight received probation. The remaining 36 - or 82% - received
prison or state jail time.
Thirteen defendants had their probation revoked because they
were not complying with terms which had been assessed in previous
cases. "Probation is a good system and we have excellent
folks in our probation department here in Lamar County. But if
you're put on probation there are conditions you have to meet.
These 13 people did not meet their conditions and they will now
spend time in prison," Young said.
One defendant failed to uphold his conditions as a registered
sex offender. William T. Smith, Jr. had his probation revoked
and was sentenced to the maximum of 10 years in the Texas Department
of Criminal Justice. "This defendant should have never received
probation for this sex crime. But he did under the previous administration
and then violated his terms," Young said.
"You can tell the DA's office is concentrating on the
jail population," Lamar County Sheriff B.J. McCoy said.
"We've transported 33 inmates this month to the state and
another 29 are ready to be delivered to TDCJ within the next
14 days."
McCoy said the jail population is remaining steady. "We
shipped out four this morning which freed up space for the six
new ones we got today."
Assistant prosecutors are Lloyd Whelchel, Sherry Whelchel,
and Phil Cline.
Young defeated previous County Attorney Mark Burtner in the
March Democratic primary and was appointed to the position earlier
this year by Lamar County Commissioners Court when Burtner accepted
a position in El Paso. Young is the only candidate for the office
on the November general election ballot and his official term
will begin January 1, 2004.
November 18, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Lamar County's Grand Jury handed down 46 indictments against
27 defendants Thursday, including one man who will face trial
in December on child pornography and child sexual performance
charges.
Orian Lee Scott, 67, faces up to 20 years in prison for each
of three cases of sexual performance by a child. Scott is currently
held in Lamar County Jail.
"It's unfortunate we have people like this in our community.
It's a tragedy to think that children were exposed to Mr. Scott,"
First Assistant County Attorney Lloyd Whelchel said.
"It's certainly our intent to see Mr. Scott prosecuted
to the fullest extent the law allows," said Gary Young,
Lamar County and District Attorney.
Another man was indicted for aggravated assault with a deadly
weapon against a public servant and aggravated robbery. Tramaine
Jarrod Kellum, 19, is charged with robbing a citizen and then
pointing a gun at a Paris Police Officer before running a car
into another victim.
"When someone tries to harm our citizens and certainly
our police officers, we take that very seriously," Whelchel
said. Kellum faces 15 years to life in prison if convicted. Trial
date is pending.
November 23, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A Lamar County jury sentenced a habitual burglar to the maximum
20 years in prison Tuesday and assessed him a $10,000 fine.
Michael Lynn Smith, 38, was found guilty Monday for the June
14 break-in of Scottie's convenience store on Farm-to-Market
79 in Paris. The same jury heard punishment phase testimony on
Smith's character before Smith himself took the stand in his
own defense Tuesday morning.
"Obviously the jury did not believe Mr. Smith's version
of the events," said Gary Young, Lamar County and District
Attorney, who prosecuted the case along with Assistant County
Attorney Sherry Whelchel. "It's a very rare event for a
defendant to take the stand. But he insisted and it cost him."
Young said Lamar County is fortunate that the Paris Police
Department responded within three minutes of the 911 call and
were able to find the suspects hiding in a nearby storage facility.
"This is a victory for business owners and citizens of
Lamar County. The jury's decision sends a message that crime
will not be tolerated in this community. We will work to see
burglars and common thieves put in prison who continually prey
upon our small business owners," Mrs. Whelchel said.
Smith has previous convictions for burglary dating back to
1984 and was sentenced in 1988 to 15 years in prison for robbery.
He was released from the Texas Department of Corrections in August
2003 before committing the Scottie's burglary in June of this
year. During the punishment phase of the trial, prosecutors showed
the jury evidence of Smith having broken into Scottie's two additional
times while out on bond for the first break-in.
December 22, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A woman who robbed two Paris convenience stores on consecutive
days in May 2003 was sentenced Tuesday to 5 years in prison on
each count in a plea bargain deal reached with Lamar County and
District Attorney Gary Young.
Tammy Marie Rose, 38, of Paris was also ordered to not less
than 90 days nor more than one year in a substance abuse prison
facility for another charge she faced of possession of a controlled
substance which begins once her prison sentences on the robbery
charges are completed. She will also spend 5 years on probation
once she's released from prison.
"This assures the community and local store owners that
she will be in custody for a significant period of time. And
at the same time, Ms. Rose will be given the opportunity to kick
her drug habit through the state's institutional rehab program,"
Young said.
Sixth District Judge Jim Lovett accepted the plea deal made
between prosecutors and Rose's defense attorney, Jeff Starnes.
Ms. Rose entered E-Z Mart convenience store at 3085 Clarksville
Street at 3:56 a.m. on May 2, 2003, asking to use the restroom.
She then told the clerk she had a gun and came behind the counter
emptying the cash register and stealing cigarettes.
The next day Ms. Rose entered Wag-a-Bag store at 1900 Clarksville,
again asking to the use the restroom. Witness statements show
she kept her right hand in her pocket and told the store clerk
victim she would shoot if she did not get all the money.
Five days later Ms. Rose attempted to rob an International
House of Pancakes in Tarrant County by putting her hand under
her shirt and pretending to have a gun. When the clerk refused
to comply, Ms. Rose picked up the cash register and attempted
to leave but was detained by witnesses. She still faces prosecution
for that charge.
Ms. Rose previously attended court-ordered drug rehabilitation
treatment and told Judge Lovett Tuesday that it was her addiction
to drugs that caused her to commit the crimes.
December 22, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A McKinney man held in Lamar County's jail pleaded guilty
Tuesday to violating his probation on driving while intoxicated
charges and was sentenced to the maximum of 10 years in prison.
Julio Ruiz Colon, 65, was jailed in September for a motion
to revoke his probation for repeat DWI charges. A court-hired
Spanish interpreter assisted in the proceedings Tuesday.
In 2001, Colon was given 10 years probation for his fourth
DWI. While on probation, he was convicted of a fifth DWI in Collin
County.
"I felt he was a danger and needed to be put in prison,"
Young said. "Mr. Colon acknowledged that he violated his
probation and sought mercy from the court. Fortunately for Lamar
County, his plea for mercy was ignored and the judge gave the
maximum."
Colon was represented by defense attorney Will Biard.
Repeat offender
sentenced
By Charles Richards
The Paris
News
Published November 24, 2004
Michael Lynn Smith, 38, of Paris has spent 16 of the past
20 years behind bars, and that trend won’t change soon.
A Lamar County jury convicted him Monday of burglary in connection
with the June 14 break-in of a grocery store on the Sumner Highway.
Smith’s insistence on taking the stand Tuesday morning
in his own defense during the punishment phase backfired on him,
and the jury sentenced him to the maximum 20 years in prison
plus a $10,000 fine.
“Obviously the jury did not believe Mr. Smith’s
version of the events,” said Gary Young, Lamar County and
District Attorney, who prosecuted the case along with Assistant
County Attorney Sherry Whelchel.
“It’s a very rare event for a defendant to take
the stand. But he insisted, and it cost him,” Young said.
Three times in 11 days last June, Smith broke into Scottie’s
convenience store — on Farm Road 79, about one mile northwest
of Loop 286 and Northwest 19th Street — Young told the jury.
Less than two weeks later, Smith broke into another convenience
store on Clarksville Street in Paris. In both stores, surveillance
cameras showed Smith inside at the time.
Smith has previous convictions for burglary dating back to
1984, when he was 18. He was sentenced in 1988 to 15 years in
prison for robbery and was released in August 2003.
“This is a victory for business owners and citizens of
Lamar County,” Whelchel said. “The jury’s decision
sends a message that crime will not be tolerated in this community.
We will work to see burglars and common thieves put in prison
who continually prey upon our small business owners.”
Smith’s first break-in of Scottie’s was on June
14. The store owner said she was in the store at 4:30 a.m. when
she heard a window break. She locked herself in her office and
called 9-1-1.
Officers from the Paris Police Department responded within
minutes and found Smith and Robert Dewayne Smith, 22, also of
Paris, hiding in a vacant storage building next to the store.
After a brief struggle, the two were arrested and taken to the
police station for booking.
They had cigarettes and lottery tickets that had been taken
from the store, police department spokesman Todd Varner said
afterward.
“They were just wasting their time,” Varner said,
noting that stolen lottery tickets are worthless.
After making bond and getting out of jail on the June 14 break-in,
Smith returned to the same store on June 23 and again on June
25, Young said.
The jury was shown surveillance video of the June 25 break-in
and also of the break-in over the July Fourth weekend of the
Mobil Food Mart at 2205 Clarksville St. in Paris.
Sgt. Jeff Springer of the Paris Police Department testified
that was Smith shown on the surveillance tape on each occasion.
The jury also was shown a videotaped confession Smith gave to
Springer.
Smith wanted to testify in his own defense during the punishment
phase in order to refute the testimony of State Trooper Johnny
Williams.
The trooper had told the jury that, as an aid to police and
sheriff’s officer, he responded to a disturbance last February
at an Exxon station near the DPS headquarters on North Main Street.
Smith was combative, even while handcuffed, and kicked out
a window after he was placed in a sheriff’s department vehicle,
Williams testified. At one point, Williams said, Smith turned
and spat in his face.
Smith wanted to testify that never happened. He took the stand
against the advice of defense attorney Ben Massar and against
the advice of Sixth State District Judge Jim D. Lovett. He was
warned that he was opening himself up to questioning that prosecutors
wouldn’t otherwise be entitled to pursue.
Young took full advantage, catching Smith in numerous inconsistencies.
Once, Smith denied being in Paris at the time of a crime, then
later admitted he was there, but said he only watched.
Smith testified that he helped the community during the brief
time he was out of prison.
“I changed tires for my brother,” who had a tire
disposal business, the defendant testified.
In the weeks and months leading up to his trial, Smith wrote
hand-written letters from jail to the judge, to prosecutors and
to The Paris News. He complained that his constitutional rights
to a speedy trial had been violated, that his bond was excessive,
that police officers had abused him and that his court-appointed
attorney was ineffective.
During the trial, several supporters of Smith were in the
courtroom. At one point, it appeared one or more of them were
trying to communicate with him, and Lovett warned them to stop.
Because of his resistance in the past and a history of escape
attempts, additional law enforcement officers were in the courtroom
to escort him in and out. At the end of the trial, no one was
allowed to leave the courtroom until after jurors were out of
the building.
Teen indicted
for pointing gun at police
By Charles Richards
The Paris
News
Published November 21, 2004
A Paris teenager, shot in the leg by police twice on Sept.
17 when he ignored repeated requests to drop his weapon, was
indicted Thursday by a Lamar County grand jury on charges of
aggravated robbery and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon
against a public servant.
Tramaine Jarrod Kellum, 19, is accused with robbing an individual,
then pointing a gun at Paris police officers who drove up as
he was about to flee the scene in a stolen vehicle.
Officers shot Kellum twice in the leg and shot out the tires
of the stolen vehicle when he attempted to leave the area. The
vehicle came to rest after striking another vehicle.
“When somebody tries to harm our citizens and certainly
our police officers, we take that very seriously,” said
Lloyd Whelchel, first assistant to Lamar County and District
Attorney Gary Young.
Kellum was among 46 indictments against 27 defendants that
were handed up on Thursday.
Also indicted was Orian Lee Scott, 67, who faces trial in
December on child pornography and child sexual performance charges.
Scott, now incarcerated in Lamar County Jail, faces up to
20 years in prison for each of three cases of sexual performance
by a child.
“It’s unfortunate we have people like this in our
community. It’s a tragedy to think that children were exposed
to Mr. Scott,” Whelchel said.
Young said: “It’s certainly our intent to see Mr.
Scott prosecuted to the fullest extent the law allows.”
Other indictments handed up by the grand jury on Thursday:
•Dennis Paul Arceneaux, unauthorized use of a vehicle
(deadly weapon finding).
•Kristy Bailey, unlawful possession of a firearm by a
felon; theft of a firearm.
•Phillip Scott Bennett, possession of a controlled substance,
penalty group one, more than 1 gram, less than 4 grams.
•Billy Dean Bryant, driving while intoxicated, third
or subsequent arrest.
•Chadwick Max Bush, theft of more than $1,500, but less
than $20,000.
•Timothy Dewayne Cuba, aggravated assault with a deadly
weapon; deadly conduct (habitation); deadly conduct (vehicle).
•Eleazar Gutierrez Jr., theft of more than $1,500, but
less than $20,000.
•Roger Lynn Haley Jr., theft of more than $1,500, but
less than $20,000.
• Charles Laron Hearne, unauthorized absence from a community
correction facility (three counts).
•William L. Hindman Jr., burglary of a habitation (repeat
offender).
•Cynthia Dea Horton, burglary of a habitation (repeat
offender).
•David Ray Humphrey, burglary of a building (five counts).
•Sammy Dean Jeffery, possession with the intent to distribute
a controlled substance, less than 1 gram.
•Trenton Wayne Joplin, forgery of a financial instrument.
•Carlos Enrique Juarez, burglary of a building.
•Kerry Ray King, aggravated robbery, repeat offender
(two counts); aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, repeat
offender.
•Brian Lee Alton McCann, credit card or debit card abuse.
•Jerry Lee McClour, burglary of habitation; unlawful
possession of a firearm by a theft; theft of a firearm.
•Jimmy Murlie Miller, possession of a prohibited weapon.
•Stanley Bernard Porter, robbery, repeat offender; unauthorized
use of a vehicle.
•Marty Kellum Saunders, stalking.
•Wathena Faye Sneed, driving while intoxicated, third
or subsequent arrest.
•Phillip David Strickland, evading arrest or detention
with a vehicle.
•Earnest Jackson Williams, burglary of a habitation (repeat
offender).
County attorney’s
case clean-up commendable
Editorial
The Paris
News
Published October 28, 2004
Lamar County Attorney Gary Young is doing what he said he
would do when he announced he would challenge incumbent Mark
Burtner for the Democratic nomination for county attorney: he
is clearing cases.
Just five weeks after taking office, Young has disposed of
100 of the 800 felony cases that were pending. There is still
a long way to go to clean up the mess left in that office, but
Young is doing an outstanding job. Aided by assistant prosecutors
Lloyd Whelchel, Sherry Whelchel and Phil Cline, Young is oiling
the wheels of justice.
But make no mistake, no one is slipping through this more
efficient process. Young is not dismissing cases or going easy
on defendants to clear the books. He is prosecuting to the fullest
in a timely and effective manner. Of 44 defendants sentenced
during Young’s first month, 36 received prison or state
jail time. Only eight received probation. We find that commendable.
These early accomplishments come despite the fact that Young
was placed in office earlier than expected. He was scheduled
to take office after the first of the year when other elected
officials take their oaths, but commissioners appointed him early
after Burtner, a lame duck prosecutor, resigned to take a job
in El Paso. Because Young is unopposed in the November general
election, it made sense for commissioners to put him in office
sooner.
Having seen what he has done in his first five weeks, we have
high expectations for the new county attorney. We are convinced
he will continue to move cases in a timely fashion while ensuring
that justice is done for those who reside in this community.
Prosecutor clears
100 felony cases
By Charles Richards
The Paris
News
Published October 25, 2004
In the five weeks since Gary Young assumed office as county
prosecutor, the number of pending and backlogged cases has been
reduced significantly.
About 800 felony cases were pending when Young succeeded Mark
Burtner as county attorney and district attorney Sept. 17, with
many defendants facing multiple charges.
Since he took office, 100 cases have been disposed, Young
said in a statement released by his office.
Young defeated Burtner in the March Democratic primary. He
has no opponent in the Nov. 2 General Election, and his term
was scheduled to begin Jan. 1. However, county commissioners
appointed him to take office early after Burtner resigned last
month to take a position in El Paso.
“I don’t want people to think I’m dismissing
all of these cases or going easy on the defendants,” Young
said. Of the 44 defendants sentenced during his first month,
Young said, 36 received prison or state jail time, and only eight
received probation.
Probation was revoked on 13 defendants for failure to comply
with the terms.
“Probation is a good system, and we have excellent folks
in our probation department here in Lamar County. But if you’re
put on probation, there are conditions you have to meet. These
13 people did not meet their conditions, and they will now spend
time in prison,” Young said.
One of the 13 was William Thompson Smith Jr., 34, of Paris,
who was arrested on June 8, 1990, on two counts of aggravated
sexual assault of a child, and on May 1, 1991, on a charge of
indecency with a child (fondling). According to his criminal
record, he began serving a prison term on March 9, 1993 on the
aggravated assault charges and was given probation on the charge
of indecency with a child.
Smith, who is listed on arrest records as 5-foot-5 and 270
pounds, was arrested again on July 18, 2002, for failing to register
as a sex offender.
Young said Smith's probation has been revoked and he has been
sentenced to the maximum of 10 years in the Texas Department
of Criminal Justice.
“This defendant should have never received probation
for this sex crime. But he did under the previous administration
and then violated his terms,” Young said.
“You can tell the DA's office is concentrating on the
jail population,” Lamar County Sheriff B.J. McCoy said.
“We've transported 33 inmates this month to the state and
another 29 are ready to be delivered to TDCJ within the next
14 days.”
The jail population is remaining steady, McCoy said.
“We shipped out four this morning, which freed up space
for the six new ones we got today,” the sheriff said Friday.
Young’s assistant prosecutors are Lloyd Whelchel, Sherry
Whelchel and Phil Cline.
Victim notification
system nixed
By Mary Madewell
The Paris
News
Published December 15, 2004
An automatic notification system for victims of violent crimes
was nixed by two commissioners and the county judge at Monday’s
Lamar County Commissioners meeting.
Promoted by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, the Texas
Victim Information and Notification Everyday (VINE) system, alerts
victims within 15 minutes of the release of a perpetrator.
The computer would be interfaced with technology at Lamar
County Jail and would automatically call anyone registered with
the system when a person who is connected with the crime against
the registered individual is released from custody.
Individuals can register with the system anonymously as long
as case numbers are known.
Lamar County victim’s coordinator Allen Hubbard supported
installation of the system proposed by Lyn V. Baker of Appriss,
Inc. of Houston.
The Texas attorney general contracts with the company to provide
the service to Texas counties at no charge to local governments.
“The system is a good source for law enforcement as well
as child support and homeland security,” Baker said. “Homeland
security could find it a good resource to locate people in our
county jails.”
Lamar County Judge Chuck Superville voiced concerns about
privacy, and commissioners Carl Steffey of Precinct 2 and Jackie
Wheeler of Precinct 4 spoke against the program arguing that
it duplicated services at the expense of taxpayers.
Steffey questioned maintenance costs estimated at about $14,000
yearly. Maintenance is covered through 2007 under the current
state contract, Baker said.
“We have people hired to notify victims and this just
costs taxpayers more,” Wheeler said.
About 150 Texas counties have signed on for the service, Baker
said, explaining counties with larger jails have been serviced
first. Other regional counties participating in the program include
Hopkins, Grayson, Collin, Wood, Red River and Franklin.
Started in Louisville, Ky., after a woman was murdered by
an offender released from jail without the victim’s knowledge,
the program is in about 40 states, Baker said.
“We are all for supporting crime victims, but I am concerned
with individual privacy,” Superville said, arguing that
people arrested for non-violent crimes also will be entered into
the system before guilt or innocence is established.
“It’s more big brother watching over us,” Superville
said, adding that he understands anyone who wants information
can sign up for the program.
“The program doesn’t seem to do anything more than
we are doing now,” Superville said.
Hubbard, who is responsible for notifying victims when perpetrators
are about to be released from confinement, said the system serves
as a safety net.
“My concern is this could become a mandate later on,
and right now the money is there for it,” Hubbard said,
adding that the state notification system is antiquated and that
VINE encompass the state system as well.
After the three commissioners present at Monday’s meeting
voted against the program, Superville suggested Hubbard might
want to put the item on the agenda again for the full court’s
consideration.
Sentence shows
compassionate justice
Editorial
The Paris
News
Published December 13, 2004
Residents of Paris were appalled that in March of 2003 a Paris
couple left their 3-month-old daughter in a locked car while
they were at the city’s only sexually-oriented business,
an adult cabaret near the city airport.
Earlier this month, the couple came before State District
Judge Jim D. Lovett, charged with child abandonment and endangerment
for the incident 21 months ago.
The knee-jerk reaction probably was to throw the book at them.
Lock them up and throw away the key. Never let them see their
child again.
County Attorney Gary Young argued for jail time. Defense attorney
Jeff Starnes pleaded for mercy.
Give them another chance, Starnes asked the judge. This was
a good couple who made a really dumb mistake, Starnes argued.
He acknowledged they embarrassed themselves, their family, their
friends and their church. Child Protective Services took away
their daughter, and they both lost their jobs. They basically
had to start all over.
Since then, they’ve done everything that CPS officials
said they’d have to do if they wanted to get their child
back, Starnes said. They went to parenting classes, and they
had alcohol counseling at the Northeast Texas Council of Alcohol
and Drug Abuse, Starnes said.
“It was tough, but they were able to survive and live
through it all, and they are better people for it,” Starnes
argued.
After three months, the couple got their daughter back, then
opened their home to unannounced visits from CPS officials for
several months thereafter. The agency was pleased with their
efforts and had no qualms about returning the child.
Taking all that into consideration, Judge Lovett made a charitable
decision. He accepted the couple’s guilty pleas, but withheld
a finding of guilt, instead sentencing them to five years adjudicated
probation.
That means they’re free to keep their daughter and resume
their life. If their record is clear for five years, the crime
won’t go on their record.
At the same time, we can’t fault the county attorney’s
recommendation for some jail time. He doesn’t want his office
viewed as soft on crime, particularly of such a nature as this
one,which shocked the community’s sensibilities when it
occurred.
Grand jury considers
double-homicide case
By Charles Richards
The Paris
News
Published December 08, 2004
A Lamar County grand jury considered a number of cases on
Tuesday, but handed up only three cases — an indictment
and two re-indictments.
The grand jury still has more work to do before finishing
its term, and “quite a number” of additional indictments
are expected at that time, said Alan Hubbard, a spokesman for
County Attorney Gary Young.
Hubbard said the grand jury looked Tuesday at evidence against
Christopher Lee Cobb, 22, in the Aug. 29 double-homicide of his
grandparents, Charles Smith, 89, and Ruth Smith, 88, of Reno.
Cobb, who lived next door, faces capital murder charges in the
case.
The re-indictments of Tuesday were technical in nature, Hubbard
said.
The only new indictment names Christine Sutton, 52, of Blossom,
alleging unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. She was
convicted on March 16, 2000, of possession of amphetamines (more
than 4 grams, less than 200 grams).
Among the two re-indictments on Tuesday was that of Michael
Dewayne Davis, 38, on capital murder charges.
Davis was originally indicted last summer on charges of capital
murder and aggravated robbery in the death of Marvin Davis, whose
body was found Jan. 8, 2004, at his trailer at Gene’s Flea
Market. The suspect and victim are not related.
The re-indictment, citing two counts of capital murder, alleges
that Michael Davis killed Marvin Davis by beating or strangling
him during the commission of a robbery and during commission
of a burglary.
Also re-indicted was Marcus Clay Morrison, 29, of Paris. The
indictment alleges one count of aggravated kidnapping, three
counts of aggravated sexual assault and one count of aggravated
assault on Sept. 2, 2001.
Hubbard said the re-indictment occurred despite statements
by the victim that she no longer desires that Morrison be prosecuted.
Couple pleads
guilty to child endangerment
By Charles Richards
The Paris
News
Published December 05, 2004
It wasn’t the kind of story you like to read, this front
page story in The Paris News on Wednesday, March 5, 2003:
“Couple arrested after baby left in car outside bar.”
A 39-year-old man and his 33-year-old wife, both of Paris,
left their 3-month-old daughter in a parked car while they partied
inside a nude cabaret off U.S. 271 south of the airport.
They were arrested, jailed and indicted on charges of child
abandonment and endangerment, and their child was taken away
from them, placed in the care of Child Protective Services.
• • •
“If this case had been tried 21 months ago, the knee
jerk reaction would be to send ’em to the pen, and never
let them see that child again,” defense attorney Jeff Starnes
told The Paris News.
But over the past year and nine months, the couple turned
their life around, Starnes said.
Sixth District Court Judge Jim D. Lovett agreed Friday, accepting
their guilty plea but withheld a finding of guilt, placing them
instead on five years of deferred adjudication probation.
That means they can go on with their lives — they and
their daughter, now 2 — and if they live good lives over
the next five years, no conviction will appear on their record.
“I’m sure there will be some folks who just look
at the black and white version on the surface, and they’ll
say, ‘My goodness, how could this happen?’ But I think
in this case, things worked out like they were supposed to,”
Starnes said.
“This couple loves that child, they love each other,
they’re a strong family unit. There was evidence at the
trial that there had been some pretty significant changes in
their life. They were able to show that they fixed whatever was
wrong in the past.”
• • •
It was shortly before 8 p.m. on March 4, 2003, that a security
guard at Baby Dolls, south of Cox Field on the southeast edge
of town, summoned Paris police. He told police that someone had
left an infant in a parked vehicle.
The doors were locked, and the engine was turned off. The
security guard told police the child had been in the car for
at least 30 minutes without anyone coming out to check on her.
A police officer arrived at the scene, and another 14 minutes
went by before a man came out of the club, went to the car, looked
inside, then headed back toward the club.
The officer stopped the man, who he reported to have a strong
odor of alcohol on his breath.
The officer then asked the security guard to have the woman
step outside. She, too, had a strong odor of alcohol and was
unsteady, the officer reported.
They were arrested, and booked on charges of child abandonment
and endangerment, and also for public intoxication. They were
transferred to the Lamar County Jail, and Child Protective Services
took custody of their infant daughter, their only child.
• • •
“They disgraced their family, their friends and their
church. The overriding reaction from everyone I talked to, they
just could not believe that this happened,” Starnes said.
“From all accounts, these were good people who made a
really dumb mistake. They soon realized the gravity of the mistake
they made,” their attorney said.
“They both lost their jobs, I think as a result of what
happened, and they basically had to start over. But in spite
of all that, they’ve done remarkably well,” Starnes
said.
“They were remorseful, they went to parenting classes,
they had alcohol counseling at the Northeast Texas Council of
Alcohol and Drug Abuse, and they did everything required of them
by CPS to get their child back. It was tough, but they were able
to survive and live through it all, and they are better people
for it.”
Because of the couple’s progress, the CPS returned their
daughter after three months. Over the next six months, CPS officials
monitored the situation, dropping in unannounced as often as
three times a week.
“CPS officials were certainly pleased with their progress
and pleased with the steps that had been taken, and didn’t
have any problems a year ago with letting them have their daughter
back,” Starnes said.
• • •
The sentence of five years’ adjudicated probation was
a compromise.
“It wasn’t what the district attorney wanted in
this case, and it wasn’t quite what we wanted. The judge
came up with the decision,” Starnes said.
County and District Attorney Gary Young was not necessarily
opposed to probation, but wanted some jail time for the couple,
Starnes said.
The defense attorney wanted a lesser sentence because of improvements
the couple had made.
“CPS set the requirements, and they were stiff. They
had to go to these classes so many times a week, so many hours,
and they lost their daughter for three months. But they were
able to survive and live through it,” Starnes said.
• • •
The couple, whom The Paris News opted not to identify, “is
glad now that it’s over,” Starnes said.
“Obviously, anyone charged with a criminal offense who
has a trial coming up has some sleepless nights. And so does
their lawyer,” he said.
“This was a case you agonize over and hope that justice
prevails and has the right outcome. And I think that in this
case, it did. I think in this case, the system worked like it’s
supposed to.”
Robberies net
woman five years
By Charles Richards
The Paris
News
Published December 23, 2004
A woman who said she robbed two Paris convenience stores last
year because she was addicted to drugs has been sentenced to
five years in prison.
Tammy Marie Rose, 38, of Paris was sentenced Tuesday by 6th
District Judge Jim D. Lovett to five years in prison on each
count in a plea bargain deal reached with Lamar County and District
Attorney Gary Young. The sentences are to run concurrently.
Lovett accepted the plea deal made between prosecutors and
Rose’s defense attorney, Jeff Starnes.
Rose was also ordered to not less than 90 days or more than
a year in a substance abuse prison facility for another charge
— possession of a controlled substance. That sentence won’t
start until she’s released from prison on the two robbery
convictions.
“This assures the community and local store owners that
she will be in custody for a significant period of time. And
at the same time, Ms. Rose will be given the opportunity to kick
her drug habit through the state’s institutional rehab program,”
Young said.
Rose entered E-Z Mart convenience store at 3085 Clarksville
St. at 3:56 a.m. on May 2, 2003, asking to use the restroom.
She then told the clerk she had a gun and came behind the counter,
emptying the cash register and stealing cigarettes, prosecutors
said.
The next day, Rose entered Wag-a-Bag at 1900 Clarksville,
again asking to use the restroom. Witnesses said she kept her
right hand in her pocket and told the store clerk she would shoot
if she did not get all the money.
Five days later, prosecutors said, she attempted to rob an
International House of Pancakes restaurant in Tarrant County
by putting her hand under her shirt and pretending to have a
gun. When the clerk refused to comply, she picked up the cash
register and attempted to leave, but was denied by witnesses,
officials said. She still awaits prosecution on that charge.
In another case before Lovett on Tuesday, Julio Ruiz Colon,
65, of McKinney was sentenced to the maximum of 10 years in prison
for violating probation of driving while intoxication charges.
Colon was given 10 years probation in 2001 in Lamar County
for his fourth DWI conviction. While on probation, the county
attorney said, Colon was convicted in Collin County of a fifth
DWI, and he was jailed in September on a motion to revoke the
probation.
“I felt he was a danger and needed to be put in prison,”
Young said. “Mr. Colon acknowledged that he violated his
probation, and sought mercy from the court. Fortunately for Lamar
County, his plea for mercy was ignored and the judge gave the
maximum.”
Man found guilty
of child porn charges
By Charles Richards
The Paris
News
Published December 29, 2004
As his victims looked on from a back bench in the courtroom,
Orian Lee Scott, 67, of Maxey was pronounced guilty Tuesday on
all counts of child pornography and inducing sexual performance
by three teenage boys whom he encouraged to take showers at his
residence so he could secretly videotape them during a period
of months.
“I just hope he’s punished to the full extent of
the law,” the mother of two of the boys said minutes after
the verdict, reached by a six-man, six-woman jury at 4:40 p.m.
Tuesday after deliberating for an hour and 10 minutes.
“We’d just love to thank the jury for the verdict
it reached. I hope this case will prevent other things like this
from happening, if at all possible,” she said.
The jury was to return at 9 a.m. today to begin the punishment
phase.
“We’re pleased with the guilty verdict, but the
sentence is equally important,” Lamar County and District
Attorney Gary Young said.
Scott faces sentences of two to 20 years on each of three
counts of inducing a child under 18 to engage in sexual conduct,
a second-degree felony; two to 10 years on each of three counts
of producing or promoting a videotape involving sexual conduct,
a third-degree felony; and two to 10 years on each of three counts
of possession of child pornography, a third-degree felony.
Should he receive the maximum sentences, with a decision that
the sentences be served consecutively rather than concurrently,
the assessed prison time could amount to 100 years. Only one
of the third-degree felony cases can be stacked.
“Since Mr. Scott has no prior convictions, he also is
eligible for probation,” Young said.
But in today’s punishment phase of the trial, which began
Monday in the court of 6th state District Judge Jim D. Lovett,
Young hoped to show a long pattern of similar behavior.
Deputies from the Lamar County Sheriff’s Department removed
more than 1,000 videos and more than 1,000 computer discs during
a March 19 search of Scott’s residence in the Maxey community.
Some of them appeared to have been taken by Scott more than 20
years ago, the prosecution will contend.
In this trial, no sexual conduct was alleged between Scott
and his teenage employees, or among the boys themselves, and
no such activity was shown on any of the hours of videotape —
filmed by a camera concealed inside a clock radio in Scott’s
bathroom.
All of the boys live in Oklahoma and came into Lamar County
on Saturdays from August 2003 through mid-March 2004 to work
for six to eight hours for Scott.
He paid them $10 an hour for light duty, including helping
move boxes out of storage, bathing his dogs, spraying his yard
with insecticide and painting a barn. They also were allowed
to play video games, watch TV, all the time on the clock, and
Scott occasionally gave them various gifts — usually electronic
gadgets.
For about 45 minutes Tuesday afternoon, Sgt. Travis Rhodes,
a detective with the sheriff’s office, took the jury through
excerpts from the graphic videotapes, which showed the teenagers’
naked while in the shower, which had no curtain.
Under the law, masturbation and “exhibition of the genitals”
are included in the legal definition of sexual conduct or performance,
and both occurred on virtually all of the video excerpts..
“There is no doubt what’s taking place here, is
there?” Assistant County Attorney Lloyd Whelchel asked Rhodes.
Whelchel said Scott — confident what the hidden camera
would capture — encouraged the boys every day they were
working for him to “go get cleaned up” and he’d
take them into Paris for movies and dinner. When the boys took
their showers, the video from the hidden camera was transmitting
an image to a television set and video cassette recorder in Scott’s
bedroom.
Defense attorney John Houston Nix of Sherman sparred with
the prosecution over definitions of the word “induce.”
Nix said Scott never threatened the boys or offered them money
to masturbate on camera.
In his closing argument to the jury, Young said Scott’s
overtures to the boys amounted to a courtship. Scott was overpaying
the boys and winning them over with gifts, dinner and movies,
all at his expense. That was the inducement for the boys to keep
coming back, week after week, allowing him to watch them naked
in his shower, Young said.
Scott furnished the boys with swimsuits in which to do their
work and suggested that “the dogs won’t mind”
if they got naked while giving the dogs their baths, Young said.
Maxey man gets
100 years in porn trial
By Charles Richards
The Paris
News
Published December 30, 2004
A retired teacher who moved into Lamar County in 2003 from
Arizona was sentenced Wednesday to 100 years in prison and $90,000
in fines for videotaping teenage boys in the nude at his residence
from August 2003 to mid-March 2004.
“I think you were 100 percent correct in the verdict
you reached,” State District Judge Jim D. Lovett told the
six-man, six-woman jury after the panel doled out the maximum
punishment allowed by law against Orian Lee Scott, 67, of Maxey.
The jury deliberated 90 minutes Tuesday before returning with
its guilty verdict on all counts against Scott. Wednesday, the
jury began deliberating at noon and announced 35 minutes later
that it had agreed on punishment.
The jury recommended the maximum sentence that Lamar County
and District Attorney Gary Young asked them to deliver:
•20 years in prison on each of three counts of inducing
a child under 18 to engage in sexual conduct,
•10 years on each of three counts of producing or promoting
a videotape involving sexual conduct, and
•10 years on each of three counts of possession of child
pornography.
By law, the charges of possession of pornography must be served
concurrently. All the rest, Lovett ordered to run consecutively.
The combined 100 years in prison time assessed Scott is a
sharp contrast to the five-year prison term that County Attorney
Mark Burtner offered Scott earlier this year in a plea bargain.
Burtner lost to Young in the Democratic Primary and resigned
in late August, four months before the end of his term, to take
a job in El Paso. County commissioners appointed Young to take
office immediately.
When Young learned of the offer and saw that it had not yet
been responded to, he took it off the table and proceeded with
plans for trial, spokesman Allan Hubbard said.
Wednesday, Scott learned he faces a century in prison rather
than the five years he was offered by Young’s predecessor.
Scott, who said he taught in Texas, Missouri and Alaska before
retiring, must serve at least one-fourth of the sentences before
becoming eligible for parole, which means he would be at least
92 before he could be free again.
“You sent a very loud and clear message, and on behalf
of everyone, I thank you,” Lovett told the jury.
Minutes later, jury foreman, Charles Hodgkiss of Paris, said:
“I think justice was served. Both sides did an excellent
job. The state had the evidence and proved its case. The defense
attorney did the best he could, but didn’t have much to
work with.”
Scott got around fine in some of the videotapes that jurors
were shown from his homemade pornography collection, but during
the trial he sat hunched over in a wheelchair, keeping his head
bowed most of the time and seldom following the proceedings.
Defense attorney John Houston Nix of Sherman had argued in
pretrial motions that Scott’s health had deteriorated and
he was too sick to stand trial. During jury selection Monday
morning, as Nix discussed Scott’s condition, he toppled
out of the wheelchair, hitting his head on the courtroom floor.
Prosecutors argued it was all a ruse designed to garner the
jury’s sympathy.
Wednesday morning, Scott’s head was bruised and bloodied.
He arrived in court for the 9 a.m. start of the proceedings only
after being taken by ambulance from the Lamar County Jail to
the emergency room of Paris Regional Medical Center.
Lamar County Sheriff B.J. McCoy said Scott, while in his cell
Wednesday morning, got out of his wheelchair “and ran head
first into the cell block doors. We took him to the emergency
room for stitches.”
Scott has been on 24-hour suicide watch in his months of incarceration
in the county jail. He went on a hunger strike when he first
arrived, losing about 20 pounds before he resumed eating. On
the first day of the trial, the sheriff said, Scott tied plastic
wrap around his neck in an ineffective suicide attempt, but jail
officials rushed in and took it away.
Since Scott had no prior convictions, he was eligible for
probation. The jury did not recommend it, and Lovett did not
grant it.
The prosecution attempted to show Scott’s obsession with
child pornography was nothing new, that he had been involved
in it for 20 years or more.
Rather than show more videotape from the thousands of videotape
and disks seized from Scott’s home after his arrest in March
2003, the prosecution and defense agreed on a single page with
five or six nude photographs of several boys who appeared to
be 10 or 12 years old.
Texas teacher gets 100-year sentence
06:12 PM CST on Friday, December 31, 2004
Associated Press
PARIS, Texas – A retired teacher received a 100-year
prison term in a sexual misconduct case after a new prosecutor
scrapped a proposed five-year plea deal and asked a jury for
the maximum penalty.
"I think justice was served," said Charles Hodgkiss,
the foreman of a jury that convicted Orian Lee Scott, 67.
Scott was charged with inducing a child under 18 to engage
in sexual conduct, producing a videotape involving sexual conduct,
and possession of child pornography.
He won't be eligible for parole until he is at least 92.
The jury recommended the maximum sentence Wednesday –
just as County Attorney Gary Young requested.
Young, appointed when the prosecutor he beat in the Democratic
primary abruptly resigned in August, took the proposed plea bargain
involving Scott off the table as soon as he learned of it, spokesman
Allan Hubbard said.
Defense attorney John Houston Nix had argued in pretrial motions
that Scott's health had deteriorated and he was too ill to stand
trial. During jury selection Monday, Scott toppled out of his
wheelchair and injured his head; prosecutors claimed it was a
ruse.
Police seized hundreds of videotapes and discs with child
pornography from Scott's residence after his arrest in March
2003. Months earlier, he hired two teenage boys to help him with
household chores and taped them taking showers without their
knowledge, prosecutors said.
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