Alger man killed with ax for calling killer a 'pedophile,' police say

Posted in Related Deaths

2-11-2017 Michigan:

OGEMAW COUNTY, MI -- Police believe the Alger man found dead in his home earlier this month was killed with an ax because he called a man a "pedophile" for his conviction of raping a teen.

The suspect had been living in the Alger home of William Joseph Shanks for about a week before the two got into a dispute over the suspect's criminal history, Ogemaw County Sheriff Howie Hanft said.

"The guy called him a pedophile and he didn't like that, so he killed him," Hanft said.

Hanft said Shanks, 57, was hit in the head with an ax. The homicide occurred sometime between Feb. 1 and Feb. 4 in his home in the 4700 block of Rifle River Trail.

Police were tipped to the homicide by Robert Maxwell, 49, a parole absconder from Flint.

Cops: Slain teen was to testify against man found dead with her

Posted in Related Deaths

10-29-2010 Michigan:

He had been charged with sexual assault against her

Taylor Manley was found in a minivan with Raymond Bush, 38. The teen was supposed to testify against him Wednesday morning in trial for allegedly sexually assaulting her, but she disappeared before that happened, police and prosecutors say.

Bush died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, the Wayne County Medical Examiner’s Office said.

Taylor's father told the Free Press earlier he believes his daughter wouldn’t have committed suicide. She was afraid of Bush, he said.

Robert Manley said Bush had threatened her against testifying.

The bodies of the two were found in Bush’s minivan parked in St. Charles Cemetery, on North Dixie Highway in Newport, according to State Police.

Autopsies are scheduled for today by the Wayne County Medical Examiner’s Office.

The 15-year-old moved in with her father two weeks ago because of the ongoing sexual assault case, Robert Manley said. He said it was time for her to be a kid again and added he was “trying to take her away, trying to hide her, so this kind of thing wouldn’t happen.”

He said he doesn’t think his daughter left willingly with the 38-year-old and said she didn’t seem to have a problem with testifying against Bush, who police said had a tattoo on the back of his neck with Taylor’s name.

Robert Manley came home Wednesday around 7:30 a.m. after working an overnight shift and said he knew something was wrong because his daughter wasn’t there. She was scheduled to testify at 10:30 a.m and wasn’t supposed to go to school for that reason, he said.

Clare County Prosecutor Michelle Ambrozaitis said Bush never showed in 80th District Court in Harrison on Wednesday to face a charge of third-degree criminal sexual conduct charge from Aug. 22 for an alleged sexual relationship with Taylor.

Because of fears he might stop her from attending that hearing, an Amber Alert was issued Wednesday when she went missing, Michigan State Police Sgt. Joe Cairnduff said

Man found dead with former Harrison girl faced sex charge in Clare County

Posted in Related Deaths

10-28-2010 Michigan:

A 15-year-old Clare County girl was remembered Thursday as a kind, caring girl who was in Mid Michigan Community College’s Students of Promise program before moving to Osceola County a few weeks ago.

Meanwhile, the 38-year-old Newport man accused of killing Taylor E. Manley before killing himself Wednesday was out of jail on bond after being charged with having sex with the girl in July.

Christy McKinney of Clare said Manley was a friend of her son’s and often spent time at their home.

“She was a great kid,” McKinney said. “She was a very sweet girl.”

Tammy Alvaro, MMCC’s Students of Promise coordinator, said Manley was well known among students and that she was a sweet girl.

Alvaro saw Manley at MMCC’s Fall Festival and Barbecue recently and spoke to her about her plans for college in a few years, offering to help her in any way she could.

Detroit man accused of marching naked 15-year-old son into lot, killing him over dispute

11-18-2009 Michigan:

HIGHLAND PARK, Mich. (AP) — A 37-year-old father irate over hearing his 15-year-old son had sexual contact with a 3-year-old girl made the teen strip at gunpoint, marched him to a vacant lot and shot him to death despite pleas from the boy and his mother, a relative said.

Michigan authorities filed a first-degree murder charge Wednesday against Jamar Pinkney Sr. in the shooting death Monday of Jamar Pinkney Jr. in the Detroit enclave of Highland Park.

Defense attorney Corbett O'Meara said prosecutors should consider evidence of the father's state of mind over the sex abuse report.

"If something were to happen that would cause a reasonable person to lose control of himself, that is something the prosecution would have to take into account," O'Meara said outside Highland Park District Court.

Tensions were high in the courtroom Wednesday as the handcuffed suspect was led into the room for the arraignment, which lasted less than a minute.

"No, No, No," one female relative cried before a police officer escorted her out.

Judge Brigette Officer entered a not guilty plea for Pinkney, who's also charged with assault, and ordered him jailed without bond until a preliminary examination Dec. 1.

"This is something that's hard to deal with for all the parties concerned, including the police," police Chief Ted Caldwell said afterward. "Highland Park is a small city. These are people who have been members of the community for years."

Caldwell said the sexual misconduct allegation that led to the confrontation wasn't part of the police investigation.

The shooting happened Monday night in a vacant lot in the once-prosperous city of 16,000, where decay, abandonment, fires and demolition have eaten away at many of the sprawling homes. Highland Park recently exited years of state financial oversight.

Visitors built an impromptu memorial at the shooting site. Two votive candles sat amid 10 stuffed animals, including two white teddy bears with red hearts embroidered with, "I love you."

The boy's mother, Lazette Cherry, told the Detroit Free Press that her son told her he had improper sexual contact with the girl.

"I called and told his father. This isn't something you sweep under the rug," she said.

Cherry said the elder Pinkney arrived at the home with a gun, ordered his son to strip and marched him outside despite her protests.

"He got on his knees and begged, 'No, Daddy, No,' and he pulled the trigger," Cherry said.

Cherry did not immediately respond to a message Wednesday from The Associated Press seeking comment. ..Source.. David N. Goodman

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Dad arraigned in son's killing; mom says she sought help for teen

11-18-2009 Michigan:

Jamar Pinkney Sr. stood stoically in a Highland Park courtroom today, silent as a judge ordered him back to jail without bond, accused of shooting his 15-year-old son in the head execution-style.

With waist-long dreadlocks, the postal carrier didn't flinch as his son's great-aunt wailed and had to be led from 30th District Court.

"This is the most horrible thing that's ever happened to him," Pinkney Sr.'s lawyer, Corbett O'Meara, said after the hearing, not addressing whether Pinkney feels any remorse about Monday's shooting. Pinkney Sr.'s preliminary exam is scheduled for 9 a.m. Dec. 1 in 30th District Court in Highland Park.

"He's calm," O'Meara added. "He appears to understand what's going on."

Investigators say Pinkney was reacting with rage when he stripped his son naked, marched him outside the home of the boy's mother and executed him Monday afternoon.

Lazette Cherry, Jamar Jr.'s mother, said she wanted to get her 15-year-old son help when he came to her and said he had acted inappropriately with his 3-year-old half-sister.

There wasn’t a rape, Cherry said her son told her. But he confessed to his mother that he knew lying on top of the baby was wrong, she said.

So she called her son's father and told him what she believed happened in his home on Newport on Detroit’s east side.

“I called and told his father this isn’t something you sweep under the rug,” the devastated mother said today.

His father showed up at the house Monday afternoon with a gun, she said.

“He started beating him right here,” Cherry said from her living room. “I said, ‘No, please stop!’ ”

But the father marched Jamar Jr., a sophomore at Martin Luther King High School, outside.

“He got on his knees and begged, ‘No, Daddy! No!’ and he pulled the trigger,” she said. “There wasn’t nothing that my son wouldn’t do for his father. He loved his father so much."

The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office charged Pinkney Sr. with first-degree murder, punishable by up to life in prison. He's also been charged with three counts of felonious assault for pointing the gun at Cherry and two other people at her home before the shooting.

"No individual has the right to exact the death penalty on another no matter how reprehensible the behavior -- that is why we have laws," Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said today in a statement announcing the charges.

“I hope he rots in jail,” Cherry said of the man she met while they worked at the post office. “He did not deserve that,” she said of her son.

As white teddy bears with red silk hearts bearing the words "I love you" sit on the grass next to her home where her son died, candle wrappers from a vigil held Tuesday night scattered around, Cherry still can't believe what happened.

"There's no justification for what he did, you know, downright shoot your child," she said, wondering aloud about her ex. "He didn't rape her or anything. So why did you have to come and take matters into your hands? We said we were going to get him help."

A fund has been set up to help the family with burial expenses for Jamar Jr. Donations can be made at the Charter One Bank branch in Highland Park. ..Source.. TAMMY STABLES BATTAGLIA, FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

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Father gets 35-80 year prison term for murdering 15-year-old son

4-15-2010 Michigan:

Jamar Pinkney Sr. was sentenced this morning serve a 35- to 80-year prison term for murdering his son because he believed the boy had molested his half sister.

Wayne County Circuit Court Judge Brian Sullivan also ordered Pinkney to serve an addition two years for using a firearm in a felony.

Pinkey, 38, was convicted last week for the fatal shooting of his son, Jamar Jr., in November.

The elder Pinkney beat and stripped the 15-year-old boy naked and forced outside his Highland Park home into a vacant lot where he shot his son in the face at point-blank range.

Pinkney was charged with first-degree murder, but the jury came back with the lesser verdict after about three hours of deliberation.

Testifying in his on behalf, Pinkney said he lost control and felt he was having an out-of-body experience. He said his son admitted trying to have sex with his 3-year-old sister.

However, his mother Lazette Cherry said the boy never admitted anything more than “humping on” the little girl.

Two doctors testified that they did not find sure evidence of penetration. ..Source.. JOE SWICKARD, Free Press Staff Writer

Accused killer says Roseville mom molested him

12-2-2010 Michigan:

Family members call claims ‘absurd,’ say he used her money for drugs

The brothers of a Roseville woman allegedly murdered by her adult son scoffed at claims by the son that he killed her because she molested and picked on him.

Art and John Bush, brothers of murder victim Mattie Foresi, countered Charles “Chuck” Foresi’s statement to police that she “needled him” about his “fatherhood” and molested him since age 12.

“It’s ridiculous, it’s absurd,” Art Foresi said. “He actually broke her of all the money she had, for drugs and getting him out of jail. It wasn’t because she molested him.”

Roseville police Detective Sgt. Steve Kostenko testified Wednesday about what Foresi told him during an interview at the Macomb County Jail.

“His explanation was that she had picked at him and was needling him about his fatherhood,” he said. “And he said from the time he was 12 years old, his mother had sexually molested him.”

The comment prompted a gasp in the courtroom from about 10 family members and relatives of the victim.

Living in the house in addition to the defendant and his mother were Charles Foresi’s girlfriend, Dawn Nixon, and their young son.

The Bushes said their nephew killed his mother because she wouldn’t give him money to buy crack cocaine. They said Foresi, 38, has had a drug problem since his early teens and has often stolen from people and for years has drained his mother’s finances to support his habit.

“He would guilt-trip her,” he said, referring to the fact that Foresi often used his late brother as a tool to gain sympathy from his mother. His brother was killed in a car crash in the 1980s, he said.

Foresi was ordered Wednesday to face a charge of first-degree, premeditated murder in Macomb County Circuit Court in Mount Clemens. Judge Marco Santia made the ruling in 39th District Court in Roseville following a preliminary examination. The ruling, however, was approved conditionally pending the outcome of a forensic psychiatric exam that has been completed, but which had not yet been received by the attorneys or judge. Dec. 15 was set for a potential final approval of the bind over.

A friend found Mattie Foresi, 62, dead in a pool of blood on the living room floor of her Loreto Street home the morning of Aug. 11, the victim of more than 43 stab wounds — 34 to the chest, nine to the head and more to her hands. Paul Shrum is a friend of the family who was asked to stop by the house due to suspicions. Police believe Charles Foresi killed his mother about 10:30 or 11:30 p.m. Aug. 10 and fled in car kept at the home to get drugs.

Santia dismissed a second charge, auto theft, which prosecutors attempted to secure based on Foresi driving away a Saturn car that was at the home.

Santia rejected the argument by Foresi’s court-named attorney, R. Timothy Kohler, to reduce the charge to second-degree murder, claiming that if Foresi did commit the murder, he didn’t plan it but acted out of emotion.

But assistant Macomb prosecutor William Cataldo noted that premeditation can occur in “seconds,” and Santia noted Mattie Foresi’s defensive wounds.

“The defendant would’ve had a chance at some point to say, ‘I’m not going to do this,’” Santia said from the bench. “He made a conscious decision to say, ‘I’m going to stab her until she is dead.’”

The night of Aug. 10, Foresi first went next door to Corinne Schutz’s house to ask her to give him a ride to the area of Gratiot Avenue and Six Mile Road in Detroit — an area known for drug proliferation — and to borrow her vehicle to drive there. But she said no.

Schutz described Foresi as “kind of anxious … like something was wrong.”

He immediately went to his next-door neighbor on the other side, Sherman Mace, and asked for a ride. Mace said yes, but Foresi quickly jumped off Mace’s porch and returned to his home. Mace was discussing the matter with his wife, who along with his daughter over the telephone begged him to change his mind, when Mace saw through his front window the burgundy Saturn speed away.

Police believe Foresi killed his mother during the approximately 10 minutes from when he left the Mace house to driving away in the car.

Mace said after he saw the car drive away, he went to the Foresi house to tell Charles he couldn’t drive him, but there was no answer.

Police also found a palm print on one of two knives found in the living room near Mattie Foresi’s body, Cataldo said, reading from a police report. ..Source.. by Jameson Cook, Daily Tribune Staff Writer

Stepmother of 38-year-old man accused of shooting teen girl in murder-suicide says he snapped, 'was just a lost soul looking for someone to love him'

Posted in Related Deaths

11-4-2010 Michigan:

MONROE -- Family of 38-year-old Raymond Bush, who police say abducted and fatally shot a 15-year-old Evart girl before taking his own life, defended him today as a good person who simply snapped.

Bush and the girl, Taylor Manley, had been in a relationship for about a year, said Bush's stepmother, Maryann Bush.

"I think he was just a lost soul looking for someone to love him," she said.

Bush was the father of a 17-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son from previous relationships. He bought and fixed-up a van for his daughter, who recently gave birth.

Maryann Bush said her stepson was afraid of going to jail after he was charged with sexually assaulting Taylor.

She is upset that others are portraying Bush as a pedophile.

"We all know that two families are suffering, but people are portraying him like he's a real bad person. But that's not like it was," Maryann Bush said.

She claimed Bush, who was not working, did not have a criminal record.

Oseceola County prosecutors say Taylor planned to testify against Bush at a probable cause hearing Wednesday, but Bush believed she would not.

Bush and Taylor got to know each other because she once lived next door to the grandparents of his son, in the Monroe area.

On Wednesday, Bush talked to his ex-girlfriend on the phone and later stopped at her home. Bush allegedly told the ex-girlfriend he killed Taylor and planned to kill himself because "that was the only way they could be together."

Maryann Bush believes the stress of the criminal charges and being under order not to contact Taylor made him snap. ..Source.. by John Tunison | The Grand Rapids Press

Stevensville Teen arraigned on murder charge

10-21-2010 Michigan:

Motive said to be alleged molestation

Today brought new information as to why a Stevensville teen allegedly killed his mother’s boyfriend last September.

15 year old Josh Wayne Smith was arraigned in a Berrien County courtroom on Wednesday.

Smith is charged with the September 23rd beating death of 44 year old David Loveland.

Smith and Loveland lived in the same home at the time.

According to today’s testimony Smith had been told that Loveland may have molested a niece of Smith’s.

Smith then confronted Loveland inside the home, according to Lincoln Township Police Officer Todd Hopke. “He told me he confronted David Loveland as he was sitting on the couch, over an allegation that David Loveland may have molested a niece of his. “He told me he walked up to him and he called him a sick mother ------ and at that time David got up off the couch and shoved him, and then sat back down. “From there, Josh said that he just started punching David.”

According to Hopke, Smith also said he had Loveland in a headlock when Smith used his knee to strike Loveland in the head.

Loveland died from a blunt force trauma head injury.

Hopke described the physical confrontation as being one sided: that Loveland raised his arms to cover his head and curled his body up into a fetal position.

During cross examination Smith’s defense attorney emphasized that there was no evidence that any weapon had been used in the beating.

Officer Hopke was the first officer called to the scene on the night in question.

Hopke said the initial complaint had to do with a group of teens walking down the street.

When Hopke arrived on scene, he saw Smith run away.

Officer Hopke pursued the suspect and found Smith hiding in the back seat of a friend’s parked car at the Pizza Hut.

According to Hopke, Smith explained that he ran away because he “just beat the ---- out of David Loveland and didn’t want to get in trouble.”

That led Officer Hopke back to Smith’s home, where the body of Loveland was first discovered.

Judge John Donahue today determined that there was sufficient evidence to support the charge that Smith was behind the beating death of Loveland.

While Smith today came to court to face a serious legal situation—he didn’t have to face it alone. About a dozen Smith supporters sat in the gallery, six of them had customized t-shirts with Smith’s photograph on the front, while the back of the shirt carried the phrase “Support Josh Wayne.”

For his part, Smith today spent much of the 22 minute hearing staring straight down into his lap. At one point Smith appeared to be crying as he was handed a tissue by a court worker.

The judge set November 17th as the date for Smith’s next hearing. That’s when prosecutors will ask to have the case moved to adult court. In the meantime, Smith will undergo a psychiatric evaluation. ..Source.. by Mark Peterson

MI- Accused child molester kills stepdaughter, commits suicide

Posted in Related Deaths

9-18-2001 Michigan:

MONITOR TOWNSHIP (AP) A man apparently killed the stepdaughter he was accused of molesting before turning the gun on himself, just hours before he was due in a Bay County courtroom on a sex charge, police said.

The bodies of Herbert O. Sweebe and Christine Pickelmann, 21, were found early yesterday in the mobile home where the stepfather had lived with his wife and Pickelmann.

Pickelmann was killed by a rifle blast, and arriving police officers heard a second shot before finding the bodies, The Bay City Times said. Lt. John Parker, commander of the Bay City Post of the Michigan State Police, said troopers found the bodies of Pickelmann and Sweebe at opposite ends of the home.

Gail Sweebe, Pickelmann"s mother and Herbert Sweebe"s wife, was treated for a hand wound. It wasn"t clear how she was injured.

Sweebe was to be arraigned Monday by Bay County District Judge Timothy J. Kelly on a charge of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct. Pickelmann had accused Sweebe of groping her and offering to buy her a car if she would have sex with him, according to a Michigan State Police report.

But Pickelmann also had told police about sexual assaults she said were made by Sweebe when she was 15, shortly after he married her mother, police said. Bay County Sheriff"s Sgt. James Chlebowski said his department was about to charge Sweebe with first-degree criminal sexual conduct. A conviction on that charge carries a maximum sentence of up to life in prison.

Police went to the home Pickelmann shared with her mother and stepfather on Aug. 26 to handle a domestic dispute.

Pickelmann told police Sweebe had been sexually grabbing her and that she had evidence on tape Sweebe agreed to leave the home, the newspaper said.

The following day, Pickelmann obtained a personal protection order against Sweebe, preventing him from approaching or harassing her. The order did not prevent Sweebe from being at the mobile home.

Sweebe was arrested Aug. 31, and freed on a $10,000 bond on Sept. 3.

Early yesterday, neighbors gathered outside the home.

Linwood Krueger, 53, said he heard someone running through his back yard yelling, "Why are you doing this?" ..more.. by The Michigan Daily

MI- Background on Scott Woodring

Posted in Related Deaths

7-8-2003 Michigan:

Scott Alan Woodring, the man who kept police at bay in Fremont, is 40 years old. He is perhaps best known to many in the Fremont area for his stringent anti-government views.

Woodring's family describe him as a "non-violent" member of the Michigan militia and said that he does not trust the government. His family says he prepared heavily for Y2K and has stock piles of food and supplies in the house.

Reports indicate his only income was from a paper route. In 1996 he ran for Dayton Township Supervisor on an anti-government campaign. His family says he is religious and would spend hours studying the bible. His past criminal record includes receiving several tickets for not registering his car.

Late Sunday night authorities tried to serve an arrest warrant for soliciting sex from a minor.

His father was quoted as saying he didn't think his son would come out alive.

State police had said all along they wanted to end the standoff peacefully but were unaware of what Woodring had inside his home as far as weapons or explosives. Police had been engaging in so-called "scare tactics" such as using armored personnel carriers to circle the house, as well as detonation devices to keep their suspect on edge. Helicopters hovered day and night for surveillance and intimidation. Police never ruled out the use of force.

Woodring's family had wanted to negotiate directly with him. They said that's the only way to prevent further bloodshed. ..more.. by WOOD TV

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Medical Examiner: Woodring shot as many as four times
7-14-2003 Michigan:

New information on the autopsy of Scott Woodring shows he was shot as many as four times. The alleged killer of a Michigan State trooper was shot and killed by police Sunday morning.

According to the Kent County Medical Examiner, the autopsy reveals that Scott Woodring died within seconds after being shot.

Woodring was hit as many as four times, in Dr. Stephen Kohl's early estimate. Twice by a shotgun and once or twice with a rifle. The shot-gun blasts were fatal. One hitting Woodring in the head, the other in the throat. Dr. Cohle says Woodring does have a wound on his arm that is consistent with police reports that say he was turning and raising his rifle towards the officers.

Other information revealed in the autopsy shows that Woodring had apparently been eating. He wasn't emaciated, but there was no food in his stomach at the time of his death.

Monday police revealed more information about the week long search for Woodring. They believe he left the house around 8:30 p.m. on Monday, July 7th. They know that because an officer saw him, but no immediate action was taken.

"At that time we had the original team, that included Kevin Marshall, and were in the process of withdrawing them and inserting a fresh team. And during that confusion is when the call was made that someone was out on the north side," said Inspector Barry Getzen with the Michigan State Police.

Police say Woodring was finally located in Brunswick Sunday morning after he spoke to someone who knew him. That person quickly called police.

Police are now focusing their attention on anyone that may have helped Woodring in his attempt to escape police. If you have any information, you're asked to call 1-800-991-8477. ..more.. by WOOD TV See Also: Target 8 Investigation uncovers new information about deadly standoff in Fremont

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Police Shoot, Kill Michigan Fugitive
7-14-2003 Michigan

FREMONT, Mich. (AP) - A fugitive who slipped away from his home during a deadly police standoff early last week was shot and killed by police Sunday morning, officials said.

Scott Allen Woodring, 40, had been charged with killing Trooper Kevin Marshall during the 40-hour standoff. He had barricaded himself in his rural home July 6 as police attempted to serve a felony arrest warrant.

On Sunday, police received a tip that Woodring was in a vehicle behind a house, about four miles southwest of his Dayton Township home.

When officers arrived and ordered Woodring to remain inside the vehicle, he emerged with an assault rifle and turned toward them, state police inspector Barry Getzen said.

Police would not say how many times officers fired at Woodring, how many times he was hit or who owned the property where he was found.

Woodring was pronounced dead at the scene.

During the earlier standoff at Woodring's home, State Trooper Kevin Marshall was shot four times as he and other officers tried to storm the house July 7. Marshall, a 33-year-old married father of two, died in surgery later that day. Police don't believe Marshall was hit by another officer's fire, Getzen said.

Woodring escaped from the home sometime between July 7, when the team tried to stormed the house, and the afternoon of July 8, when fire swept through the home shortly after police shot a percussion device into the home in an attempt to stun Woodring.

Family members have said Woodring held strong anti-government and anti-authority views. ..more.. by AP