Latest news with #innocence
NHK
6 days ago
- NHK
Man acquitted of 1986 murder of teenage girl in Fukui Prefecture
A central Japan high court has acquitted a man convicted of murdering a teenage girl in 1986. Maekawa Shoshi completed his prison sentence, but maintained his innocence.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Daily Mail
Woman who beheaded boyfriend after he tried to force her into sex act makes shocking courtroom outburst
A Las Vegas woman who pleaded guilty to beheading her on-again off-again boyfriend stunned the courtroom on Thursday when she declared she is innocent of the crime and has proof. Devyn Michaels, now 47, entered into a plea deal in September in which she admitted to second-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon of Johnathan Willette, 46, in exchange for the chance to get parole after 15 years behind bars. She was due to be sentenced on Thursday, but the hearing went off course when Michaels decided to address District Court Judge Tierra Jones directly, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. 'I know right now no one in my family feels that I am innocent at any point and I understand that, but I can actually prove my innocence. I actually can,' Michaels, who also goes by the name of Tracee Tavarez, said through tears. 'And I am not going to sop fighting to prove my innocence.' She then went on to accuse her lawyers of misdirecting her. 'I don't know how to fix any of this anymore, I don't,' Michaels claimed. 'I keep listening to what everyone tells me is the best thing to do: "Just do this and it'll work out this way and follow this advice and we'll do this" and I keep listening to the people because they're saying, "This is the best advice" and it doesn't turn out the way they tell me it will.' Following her shocking outburst, Chief Deputy District Attorney John Giordani said he was 'not comfortable' with what Michaels was alleging and said he was 'willing to let her out of her plea deal.' The judge then warned Michaels that she could be convicted of first-degree murder if she chose to go to trial, but Michaels insisted she still wanted to withdraw her plea. She was first arrested in August 2023, after Willette's mother discovered his headless body in his bed. Cops found the body still 'smoking' and noted that it smelled of chemicals, believed to be bleach and ammonia, when they entered the room on August 7. An investigation was launched into the grisly death, and Michaels was promptly brought in for questioning. She initially denied the killing, and claimed that she left his home the night of his death. But she later admitted to striking Willette on the head with a wooden stick after she said he tried to force her into a sex act. Michaels insisted at the time she only wanted to hospitalize him. When a detective then asked if it was possible she killed him and just did not remember, Michaels reportedly said it was 'very possible,' according to KSNV. She then claimed that Willette was abuse towards her, and alleged that he would have his oldest child take showers in front of him, according to an arrest report originally obtained by 8News Now. Police claimed in the document that after Michaels decapitated the body, she took his head from Willette's Henderson home to her place in Las Vegas, where she disposed of it in a trash can. Officers never found Willette's head, and believe a trash service likely picked it up. They did, however, locate Willette's wallet, keys, social security card and blood-covered phone at Michaels' home. When she was then questioned again about his death, police said she was given a polygraph test that found she had a 'significant reaction' to a question about her participation in his murder. Assistant District Attorney Giordani called the circumstances of the case 'haunting' in the moment's before Michaels' outburst on Thursday. 'As you know, the defendant not only murdered her ex but then desecrated his body by decapitating him and putting chemicals on his body, causing him to burn,' he alleged. 'The defendant admitted to the fatal blow. She never admitted to the decapitation, but the evidence was overwhelming that it was obviously her who did it,' the prosecutor claimed. Willette's father, JC Willette agreed as he called Thursday's hearing 'disgraceful.' 'We were here for a sentencing and she continues to use the system to delay,' he said. His wife and Willette's stepmother, Valerie Willette, also claimed that Michaels 'has no remorse' and 'needs to pay.' It now remains unclear when Michaels may be due back in court, but Judge Jones indicated the case would move forward quickly. 'This is not going to stay stagnant and wait and wait and wait around for a trial,' she said. 'This case has been delayed extensively and this case is not going to be further delayed so that there is no justice for everybody.'
CNN
16-07-2025
- CNN
Texas judge sets new execution date for death row inmate Robert Roberson
A Texas judge on Wednesday set a new execution date for Robert Roberson, a death row inmate who says he is innocent of murder in the 2002 death of his 2-year-old daughter. Judge Austin Reeve Jackson set the date for October 16 – almost one year after Roberson was previously scheduled to be put to death. The execution was halted following a remarkable maneuver by state lawmakers who had championed the inmate's case, prompting the Texas Supreme Court to issue a stay. The new execution date sets the stage for another potentially high-stakes battle to spare Roberson's life. His attorneys have argued he was wrongfully convicted based on allegations his daughter, Nikki Curtis, died of shaken baby syndrome – a diagnosis they say has since been discredited. Roberson's attorneys and supporters say he deserves another trial in light of new evidence they believe will prove his innocence. Gretchen Sween, Roberson's attorney, said the judge's decision Wednesday should outrage Texans, calling her client 'a demonstrably innocent man.' 'Everyone who has taken the time to look at the evidence of Robert Roberson's innocence—including the lead detective, one of the jurors, a range of highly qualified experts, and a bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers—has reached the same conclusion: Nikki's death was a terrible tragedy,' Sween said. 'Robert did not kill her. There was no crime.' While child abuse pediatricians remain firm on the validity of the shaken baby syndrome diagnosis, Roberson's attorneys say the diagnosis is inaccurate. If put to death, they say Roberson would be the first person in the US executed for a conviction based on an allegation of shaken baby syndrome. Roberson's attorneys say there is ample evidence his daughter did not die of child abuse but myriad health issues, including pneumonia, sepsis and a combination of prescribed medications now seen as inappropriate for children. Roberson currently has a pleading pending for the state's Court of Criminal Appeals. Roberson was set to be executed last October, but at the eleventh hour, a state House committee issued a subpoena for the inmate's testimony as they considered the lawfulness of his conviction. The unprecedented tactic prompted a debate over the separation of powers and led the state Supreme Court to temporarily halt the execution so it could consider the request. In November, the state Supreme Court cleared the way for a new execution date to be set by a state judge. The judge in Anderson County, who had previously set Roberson's execution date, later recused herself from the case. The district attorney in the case requested Attorney General Ken Paxton's office to take over prosecutorial power, and Paxton's office last month requested a new execution date. Judge Jackson, who's from another county, was assigned to the case.
CNN
16-07-2025
- CNN
Texas judge sets new execution date for death row inmate Robert Roberson
Crime FacebookTweetLink A Texas judge on Wednesday set a new execution date for Robert Roberson, a death row inmate who says he is innocent of murder in the 2002 death of his 2-year-old daughter. Judge Austin Reeve Jackson set the date for October 16 – almost one year after Roberson was previously scheduled to be put to death. The execution was halted following a remarkable maneuver by state lawmakers who had championed the inmate's case, prompting the Texas Supreme Court to issue a stay. The new execution date sets the stage for another potentially high-stakes battle to spare Roberson's life. His attorneys have argued he was wrongfully convicted based on allegations his daughter, Nikki Curtis, died of shaken baby syndrome – a diagnosis they say has since been discredited. Roberson's attorneys and supporters say he deserves another trial in light of new evidence they believe will prove his innocence. Gretchen Sween, Roberson's attorney, said the judge's decision Wednesday should outrage Texans, calling her client 'a demonstrably innocent man.' 'Everyone who has taken the time to look at the evidence of Robert Roberson's innocence—including the lead detective, one of the jurors, a range of highly qualified experts, and a bipartisan group of Texas lawmakers—has reached the same conclusion: Nikki's death was a terrible tragedy,' Sween said. 'Robert did not kill her. There was no crime.' While child abuse pediatricians remain firm on the validity of the shaken baby syndrome diagnosis, Roberson's attorneys say the diagnosis is inaccurate. If put to death, they say Roberson would be the first person in the US executed for a conviction based on an allegation of shaken baby syndrome. Roberson's attorneys say there is ample evidence his daughter did not die of child abuse but myriad health issues, including pneumonia, sepsis and a combination of prescribed medications now seen as inappropriate for children. Roberson currently has a pleading pending for the state's Court of Criminal Appeals. Roberson was set to be executed last October, but at the eleventh hour, a state House committee issued a subpoena for the inmate's testimony as they considered the lawfulness of his conviction. The unprecedented tactic prompted a debate over the separation of powers and led the state Supreme Court to temporarily halt the execution so it could consider the request. In November, the state Supreme Court cleared the way for a new execution date to be set by a state judge. The judge in Anderson County, who had previously set Roberson's execution date, later recused herself from the case. The district attorney in the case requested Attorney General Ken Paxton's office to take over prosecutorial power, and Paxton's office last month requested a new execution date. Judge Jackson, who's from another county, was assigned to the case.
The Sun
07-07-2025
- The Sun
I married a convicted sex predator & we have hot phone sex – I want his baby, he treats my 3-year-old girl ‘as his own'
AUDREE Levesque's phone pings and she soaks up the steamy sexual messages from her husband - a man under lock and key in a nearby prison. Jeffrey, 30, stands convicted of an unthinkable crime yet he has somehow managed to convince Audree he is innocent - and she desperately wants to be intimate with him in real life. 6 6 Audree has never been able to consummate her marriage because Jeffrey is eight years into a 21-year jail sentence for predatory sexual assault which he began in 2017. While Jeffrey later tried to appeal his case, it was denied. It was three years ago when Audree first struck up an unlikely relationship with the prisoner - initially as his penpal - and the couple married last year. Now, they see each other every two weeks because although they could apply for conjugal visits where they'd get 48 hours together in a trailer located in the prison grounds, Jeffrey would have to admit guilt for his crime first - something he'd never do. But mum-of-one, Audree, 28, is adamant she loves Jeffrey regardless - he now treats her three-year-old daughter 'as his own' and she wants children with him too. She says: "I believe that everything he's ever told me is the truth. There's no way that he did it. "I've never felt unsafe and for me to bring my daughter to see him, I wouldn't if I had the slightest doubt." During prison visits Audree is allowed six hours with Jeffrey before he is taken back to his cell - but the pair are never allowed any alone time together. Branded desperate for her decision to even befriend Jeffrey, Audree hopes to someday have a baby with him. She admits there was no doubt in her mind that Jeffrey was 'The One' when they first met in October 2022, and she even moved closer to the prison to make visiting easier. Audree first made contact with Jeffrey earlier the same year because she wanted to 'be part of his support system', after working in a youth prison. She had come across his profile on a prison penpal website and followed the instructions by getting in contact with him using an app. He told me, 'A lot of people can and will say they're innocent but I don't want to just say it, I want to prove it to you' Audree Levesque In his messages, Jeffrey quickly set about trying to convince Audree he wasn't guilty of the crime he'd been convicted of and she began to believe him. She explains: "It was small talk at first. There were a bunch of things we could connect on like how our dads were both drag racers. I knew of the struggles prisoners faced. 'We really got to know each other as friends with no expectations.' Audree had been with her daughter's dad for two-and-a-half years before they split up just a couple of months before she began messaging Jeffrey. 'It quickly escalated because we both had a lot of questions such as about our childhoods, our dream jobs, and after things escalated, what they were looking for in a partner. We'd send each other super long text messages throughout the day everyday,' she explains. "We did a lot of talking about what had happened and had led up to his arrest. He told me, 'A lot of people can and will say they're innocent but I don't want to just say it, I want to prove it to you'. "He printed 2,000 pages of his case and evidence and so many things and sent them all to me. It was little details like that that made me start to fall for him.' After just two weeks of messaging back and forth, Jeffrey sent her phone number in for approval and the pair were able to start calling and texting a week later. In October 2022 Audree gained access to the prison which she says cemented her feelings. 'When I met my husband in person that's when I knew,' Audree adds. Jeffrey's mum accompanied her to the first visit as she didn't know her way around the prison. Despite feeling nervous, after his mum left they spent most of the time kissing and taking photos together. Audree recalls: "We didn't do a whole bunch of talking but a lot of kissing and dirty talk. There's a lot of build up to that visit. It got a little bit heated.' Audree struggled to see Jeffrey regularly in the beginning and would have to wait up to a month because she could only go during weekends when her daughter was with her dad. However, once she started bringing her daughter along she was able to go every other week. Audree decided to move to be closer to Jeffrey so she was just thirty minutes away from the US prison in Buffalo. Just five months later, they were engaged. "We were sitting at the visit table and we were close in proximity and having a heart-to-heart conversation and he proposed. He didn't have a ring or anything,' Audree reveals. "It was kind of perfect. I went to his mum's after the visit and he had his grandmother's ring which was the one she picked out for me." The next day Audree visited Jeffrey and made him get down on one knee. After getting engaged Audree remained confident in her decision. "I knew in my heart nothing would change my mind. To me, he's my soulmate and that's that. I'm so sure about it, whether I marry him now or later, it's going to happen anyway. I never had any second thoughts about it,' she explains. We would love to try for one child together but that depends on when he gets out Audree "The first person I told was my sister. Obviously, she was sceptical and wasn't fully for it at first. The more that she saw us interacting together when I called him in front of her and at our wedding and pictures of us she started to come round pretty quickly. "My dad's main concern was that he can't provide for us financially but it brought him a lot of relief to see us interacting at the wedding. He could tell Jeffrey was sincere.' Locked up The pair married in the prison in April 2024 with Audree's dad and sister present as she was only allowed to have two guests. She recalls: "It wasn't like a regular wedding and it was very different from what I ever dreamed of as a child and a young woman. "I love horses so I'd imagined a barn type of wedding all lit up and nicely decorated and I'd come in on a horse and a nice, long dress. Not a prison wedding where I'm wearing a tracksuit." The pair were given just over six hours together before Jeffrey was locked back up. "At the same time it was everything for me just to be standing there with him and holding his hand and exchanging our rings. 6 "I could have worn a dress if I wanted to but I just went in there in white sweatpants and a sweatshirt. I put our initials on the sleeve." Despite initially being nervous about introducing Jeffrey to her young daughter, they met for the first time in June 2023. "I had spoken to my mum about it and she had reservations about me bringing her [to prison],' Audree says. 'As much as I knew that my daughter would love him, we're still in an environment that's unpredictable. 'He wouldn't hurt my daughter' 'It did take a while before bringing her to see him. We were engaged and I knew him like the back of my hand and I know there's not one bone in his body that would hurt her; he really does treat and love her as his own.' Audree, a publisher, who lives in Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada, says Jeffrey still maintains his innocence. And while her family now supports the relationship, Audree says it's strangers who judge. 'They say how I'm desperate to be with someone in prison,' she says. "People who know and love me know the truth and know that I'm the happiest I've ever been. 'I just think you have to follow your gut, you know your relationship better than anyone.' Having a child with Jeffrey is also part of Audree's future plan. The couple still see each other fortnightly at the weekends but she could visit every weekend if she wanted to. Audree doesn't tell people the full story and has to deal with work colleagues questioning why she doesn't take her partner to events. She says: "When we have work events they always ask if we want to bring a plus one. I always show up by myself and they always ask, 'When are we going to meet Jeffrey'. I don't go into details, especially not with work." The mum admitted she and Jeffrey are careful with what they say around her daughter too but that she has no idea what she will tell her once she gets older. "She doesn't know what prison is. I honestly don't know what I'm going to tell her,' Audree adds. 6 6 "She does just call him 'Jeffrey'. I think it would be so different if he was home because she'd see him way more often. It's not something either of us want to push on her." She adds: "We definitely would love to try for at least one child together but that depends on when he gets out. "My clock is ticking and I don't want to be 40 and be pregnant. The earlier the better."
