The capital murder trial of Dallas rapper Yella Beezy, whose legal name is Markies Conway, is set to begin as he faces allegations of hiring Kewon White to kill fellow rapper and rival Mo3, whose legal name was Melvin Noble. Mo3 was shot and killed on November 11, 2020, after a gunman chased him on foot along Interstate 35E. Prosecutors allege Conway promised White payment to carry out the killing. White has already been convicted and sentenced to life without parole. Conway has pleaded not guilty, and the trial is expected to last two to three weeks.
Robert Kessler is set for trial on charges of second-degree murder and abuse of a body in the death of Stephanie Crone-Overholts, whose partial remains were found in Tampa’s McKay Bay in November 2021. Investigators say Crone-Overholts had been staying at Kessler’s home in Lutz before she disappeared. Police later found her blood inside her vehicle and at Kessler’s residence, while a witness reported seeing someone throw items into the bay around the time she went missing.
San Diego woman pleads guilty to killing best friend’s 6-week-old son
A woman who told police she killed her best friend’s 6-week-old son because she had a long-time compulsion to hurt children pleaded guilty Wednesday to third-degree murder.
In exchange for her plea to all counts — including aggravated assault and endangering the welfare of children — Nicole Virzi was ordered to serve 35 to 80 years in state prison.
She had been facing a potential death sentence had she been convicted of first-degree murder.
Deputy District Attorney Emma Schoedel told the court at the outset of Wednesday’s hearing that the plea was made in part to honor the wishes of Savannah Roberts and Ethan Katz, whose son was killed, because they did not wish to have to endure additional traumatization of a trial.
“This office has decided to invest in their healing,” Schoedel said.
Virzi was scheduled to go to trial in the capital case before Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Jill E. Rangos on Oct. 1. The proceedings were postponed while the parties worked out the plea agreement.
Virzi, 32, of San Diego, has been held at the Allegheny County Jail since her arrest on June 16, 2024.
When given the chance to speak during her hearing Wednesday, Virzi chose to say nothing.
“No words of apology would be sufficient,” said defense attorney Tina Miller.
Virzi, a Ph.D. student who was studying clinical psychology, was in Pittsburgh in June 2024 visiting her friends who had given birth to twin sons six weeks earlier.
On June 15, 2024, Virzi’s friend asked her to stay home to watch Leon Katz while the parents took his brother to the hospital.
At 11:17 p.m., Virzi called 911 to report that Leon was having difficulty breathing and had a lump on his head. An ambulance took the baby to the hospital where he died a few hours later.
He had multiple skull fractures.
Police picked Virzi up just after 6 a.m. at the Shadyside Airbnb where she’d been staying the next morning and took her to headquarters to be questioned.
She remained there for 13 hours before being charged and taken to the Allegheny County Jail.
After initially declining to talk to the police, Virzi eventually did. She told detectives that she had placed Leon in his bouncy chair that night, and she fell asleep.
Virzi claimed when she woke up, Leon was on the floor crying next to the chair.
However, as detectives continued to press her — noting that Leon could not have sustained the injuries he did from a fall from that height — Virzi eventually changed her story.
She told the lead detective that she shook Leon hard and dropped him.
She also flipped him upside down on the tile bathroom floor.
“Something just came over me I couldn’t control,” Virzi said in the video-recorded interview. “I’m telling you this because I can’t keep lying about it.
“I don’t want to hurt anyone any more. I know the best thing is for me to go away — or maybe worse.”
Virzi told the detectives that for years she had felt an urge to harm children.
She called it a compulsion.
Virzi also said that she had been excited to come to Pittsburgh to visit her friend, but that she was treated like a nanny.
“Something about that built up a lot of anger in me,” Virzi told investigators.
Virzi’s attorneys attempted to suppress her statement, arguing that she only made the statement after being coerced following a long day with little sleep or food.
However, following a hearing in November, Rangos denied the motion, saying that Virzi’s statement was “knowingly, intelligently and voluntarily made.”
Couple charged after 4 children removed from ‘deplorable conditions’, police say
MIDDLETOWN, Ohio (WXIX/Gray News) - A couple is facing multiple charges of child endangerment and animal cruelty following a welfare check at their home in September, authorities said.
Melanie and Christopher Todd were arrested after officers responded to their home on Cardinal Court to check on their children and animals, according to the criminal complaint.
Police described the living conditions as “deplorable and unlivable.”
Officers conducted the welfare check Sept. 29 after Middletown City Schools reported that two 10-year-old children appeared dirty and said they had no food to eat, police said.
The children also said two cats were dead inside their home, the complaint said.
During the check, officers found holes large enough to see outside in the walls and floors. One of the couple’s four children said the holes were caused by punching when Melanie and Christopher would get angry, the complaint said.
The home also had little to no edible food inside, officers said.
According to the complaint, the floors were covered in dirty clothes, trash, animal feces, and debris. The house was also infested with bedbugs and cockroaches.
Police removed all four children from the home and placed them with other family members. Officers also removed four cats, pet fish, mice, gerbils and pet tarantulas.
The couple is facing four counts of child endangerment and several counts of animal cruelty.
Both are in custody at the Butler County Jail. They will be arraigned Thursday.
Steven Radtke Gets Sixth DUI; License Suspended Until 2117
Steven C. Radtke, 63, of the 1800 block of Rhoda Avenue in West Donegal Township, could see his suspension stretch into the 2120s once PennDOT calculates the additional penalty for his latest conviction, prosecutors said.
Radtke was arrested during a June 2025 traffic stop in the 1100 block of River Road in East Donegal Township. His license was suspended because of a prior DUI conviction and subsequent offenses for driving with a suspended license, according to the release.
He refused a chemical test, prosecutors said.
Radtke pleaded guilty without a sentencing agreement to driving under the influence of alcohol, two counts of driving with a suspended license, and one count of being a habitual offender.
Lancaster County Judge Dennis Reinaker sentenced him to one to two years in state prison on Sept. 4.
Assistant District Attorney Kyle Linardo sought an aggravated-range sentence, walking the court through Radtke’s 38-page driving record, which documented dozens of Vehicle Code violations dating back to 1979.
Although this was Radtke’s first DUI conviction in a decade, his five previous DUI convictions date back to the early 1990s, prosecutors said.
His record also included 15 prior convictions for driving with a suspended operating privilege, 29 for driving while suspended because of a DUI, and one for driving while suspended because of a DUI with a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.02% or greater.
Radtke sought to have his prison sentence modified within days of sentencing. Reinaker denied that motion on Oct. 1.
Susquehanna Regional Police Officer Joshua Rudy filed the charges.
Federal prosecutors allege that former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell groomed and sexually abused Sandra Birchmore after meeting her through the department’s youth Police Explorers program. They say the relationship began when Birchmore was 15 and continued for years, including while Farwell was on duty. Prosecutors further allege that he concealed the encounters by falsifying work-hour records and that, after Birchmore became pregnant and told him he was the father, he had a motive to silence her.
The prosecution’s central claim is that Farwell strangled Birchmore on February 1, 2021, to prevent her from reporting conduct that could have exposed him to federal charges and then staged her apartment to make the death appear to be a suicide. The Massachusetts state authorities did not charge Farwell criminally after the state-police investigation, relying on the medical examiner’s initial suicide ruling and concluding that there was insufficient evidence to prosecute him. Federal investigators later revisited the case, and prosecutors now point to evidence including Farwell’s presence at Birchmore’s apartment, their history of sexual choking, and the medical examiner’s later change of the death classification from suicide to undetermined. Farwell has pleaded not guilty and maintains that Birchmore died by suicide.
Andrew Isaac Griffin is charged in connection with the September 2021 murders of Thomas and Angela Strussion, a married couple who operated Salsa Joe's Smokehouse in Belmont County, Ohio. On September 21, 2021, emergency responders were dispatched to the couple's home on Trails End Drive after a neighbor reported smoke coming from the residence. Firefighters discovered both victims deceased inside the home. Investigators determined that their deaths were homicides and that the residence had been deliberately set on fire.
Griffin, a former business partner of Thomas Strussion, was accused of traveling from Oklahoma to Ohio, killing the couple, setting their home on fire, and returning to Oklahoma. Following a lengthy investigation, Griffin was arrested in Hilo, Hawaii, in February 2025 and extradited to Belmont County in March 2025. A grand jury returned a 14-count indictment containing aggravated murder, aggravated arson, and aggravated burglary charges, along with firearm and death-penalty specifications.
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Griffin has pleaded not guilty and is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Jury selection was scheduled for October 21–22, 2026, at Belmont College, with opening statements scheduled for October 26.
LIVE HEARING: Patrick Clancy Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Patrick Clancy v. Tufts, Jollotta, Aster Mental Health, South Shore Health
10/28/2026 @ 2:30 PM
A hearing is scheduled Thursday in Patrick Clancy’s wrongful death lawsuit against medical providers who treated his wife, Lindsay Clancy, before she allegedly killed their three children. Patrick filed the civil suit on behalf of Cora, 5, Dawson, 3, and 8-month-old Callan, alleging providers failed to properly respond to Lindsay’s psychiatric struggles and medication changes before the January 2023 deaths. The hearing is expected to address whether the civil case can move forward. It remains unclear whether Patrick will personally appear in court.
DNA connects serial killer Ted Bundy to the death of an Utah teenager, authorities announced Tuesday, more than 50 years after her body was discovered by a hunter.
Bundy has been dead since 1989, but the tally of his confirmed victims continues to grow due to advances in DNA testing. He killed at least 30 women and girls in multiple states in the 1970s, and many more escaped or survived with injuries.
The Summit County, Utah, prosecutor said investigators are satisfied that Bundy was responsible for killing 17-year-old Melissa Ann Smith in 1974, a death that had long been listed as a cold case.
“This case demonstrates the importance of preserving evidence,” said Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera.
Sergeant Reynolds with the Utah County Sheriff’s Office identified there were similarities between the Laura Aime and Melissa Smith cases. DNA that identified Bundy was from the Y-chromosome, which is only present in men. A highly similar DNA profile was found in evidence obtained from Smith’s autopsy. Officials have been in touch with Smith’s next of kin, none of whom still live in the area.
Officials confirm DNA evidence recovered from another victim matched Smith’s body. Utah County officials presented the DNA evidence to the Summit County Sheriff’s office on Oct. 7.
“With every case closure, may we stomp the memory of Ted Bundy out,” said Sergeant Mike Reynolds with the Utah County Sheriff’s Office, who participated in the investigation.
Bundy was executed in 1989 by electric chair in Florida for the 1978 murders of two women at the Chi Omega sorority house at Florida State University.
Bundy gave a series of confessions in his final days, including to some crimes that were previously unknown to police. Not all of those cases have been confirmed.
Judge sets rules on use of testimony, but no new trial date set in Aliza Sherman murder case
Cuyahoga Common Pleas Court Judge Kira Krivosh set rules on Oct. 27 for using confidential grand jury testimony in Gregory Moore’s murder case, but did not rule on pending defense motions or set a new trial date.
...
Oct. 27 marked Moore’s first in-person court appearance with his new defense team, Joseph and Megan Patituce, who took over the case. The brief on-the-record discussion produced no ruling on multiple major defense motions, including one to dismiss the charges. Krivosh acknowledged the numerous filings, but gave no timetable for deciding them.
Krivosh outlined an order directing Cuyahoga County’s chief court reporter to provide electronic copies of grand jury transcripts and an organizing index to defense counsel, prosecutors and the court on password-protected thumb drives. Attorneys referencing the testimony later must identify the transcript by letter and cite the relevant page and line numbers, rather than share its contents. Neither side objected to the procedure.
The records concern grand jury proceedings related to Moore’s indictment for July 10, 2012, bomb threats to the county’s domestic relations court and Sherman’s 2013 death.
The records are central to the defense’s Oct. 20 motion to dismiss, which alleges issues in the indictment and false or misleading information presented to the grand jury. Prosecutors have asked Krivosh to strike that motion as untimely. The defense has opposed that request and asked, alternatively, for permission to file after the deadline.
Prosecutors have requested a January 2027 trial. The defense opposes that timetable, arguing that new counsel needs more time to review more than 235,000 pages of discovery and extensive electronic evidence. A new trial date was [not] announced as of Oct. 27.
Krivosh acknowledged on Oct. 27 that an appellate proceeding also remained pending. On Oct. 9, the 8th District Court of Appeals dismissed Moore’s appeal concerning his double jeopardy motion because the trial court had struck the motion as untimely rather than denied it. The appellate court did not decide the substance of the double jeopardy claim.
Moore’s attorneys asked on Oct. 20 for reconsideration or, alternatively, consideration by the full appellate court, seeking to reinstate the appeal.
The judge also scheduled a Nov. 17 Zoom conference involving attorneys and Drew Wood of the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
Wood is a court appointed member of the team screening a cellphone extraction for potentially privileged material. The defense this month has challenged prosecutors’ efforts to obtain the phone’s electronic serial number directly from Wood, arguing that disclosure must follow the court’s screening protocol. Prosecutors maintain that the identifier is not privileged.
Krivosh did not specify the agenda for the November conference during the public discussion.
It is *much* easier to understand what has happened in today’s news, by revisiting the prior news. So I am copying in just the headline info for both articles and then the LINKS to read all of it.
From November 2025
Woman Who Gave Birth to Her 13th Kid at Age 62 Now in Custody Battle for 14th and 15th Children
MaryBeth Lewis, 68, is at the center of an unusual surrogacy case that prosecutors claim involves fraud — as she insists she is a big-hearted mom being kept from her son and daughter
By Adam Carlson Updated on November 18, 2025 06:14PM EST
NEED TO KNOW
MaryBeth Lewis, a nurse, has a large and growing family that has put her at the center of a legal case in New York
She had 13 kids when she used a donor embryo and a surrogate to have twins in 2023, but authorities allege fraud was involved and have charged her and sought to prevent her from getting custody over the foster parents
"It’s just terrible," Lewis said in a new interview
Mom’s Custody Battle for 14th and 15th Kids Ends in Heartbreak for Foster Parents Who Spent Nearly 3 Years Raising Them (Exclusive)
“We continue to choose them every day,” the twins’ foster father tells PEOPLE
By Sam Gillette Published on October 26, 2026 05:53PM EDT
NEED TO KNOW
Foster parents in Steuben County, N.Y., felt an immediate connection to a pair of twins they raised since meeting them in the hospital in Nov. 2023
MaryBeth Lewis was indicted on a range of counts shortly after their birth and declined multiple plea deals while fighting for custody — although she accepted one after she and her husband were declared the twins’ legal parents
Now, the twins are with the Lewis’, but the foster family isn’t giving up hope that they’ll be reunited
MUCH more at the current article and loss of the children’s home to the “legal” parents:
All I can say is WTF is with this 68 year old (sorry now 69) woman and her husband deciding she needed children so late in life???? Much less so many children?
These poor kids, totally uprooted from the only (dare I say responsible) parents they’ve ever known.
Sometimes judges make wrong calls, not in the children’s best interest……no matter who “financed” (and committed fraud/forgery) their existence into the world.
I hope somehow the foster parents can regain custody.
This blogpost has more info…..kind of aligns with my thoughts above.
Alexander Brothers Get Decades in Prison for Sex Trafficking After One Bizarrely Tries to Blame Howard Stern
Tal, Oren and Alon Alexander were each sentenced to 30 years in federal prison following their sex trafficking convictions in March
By Liam Quinn Published on October 27, 2026 04:51PM EDT
NEED TO KNOW
The Alexander brothers were sentenced to 30 years in prison each
Tal, Oren and Alon Alexander were previously convicted of sex trafficking at the conclusion of a high-profile federal trial
Tal and Oren were well-known luxury real estate brokers before their convictions, while Alon was a security executive
The Alexander brothers were each sentenced to 30 years in prison months after they were convicted of sex trafficking.
Oren, Alon and Tal Alexander were found guilty of sex trafficking following a high-profile federal trial in New York City, which concluded in March.
Judge Valerie E. Caproni handed down the sentence on Tuesday, Oct. 27.
“Alon, Oren, and Tal Alexander are convicted sex traffickers and serial rapists,” U.S. Attorney Jamie McDonald said in a statement. “The defendants preyed on women and young girls, using drugs and violence to incapacitate them so they could rape them. The defendants did this for years—inflicting unspeakable harm on so many young women.
“And, for years, the defendants used their careers and social status to conceal the danger they posed,” the statement continued. “Today’s sentence makes clear that this craven, sinister conduct is extraordinarily serious and will be met with serious punishment.”
Prior to their arrests, Oren, 39, and Tal, 40, were two successful real estate brokers, while Alon, 39, worked as a security executive.
The brothers have also been named in several lawsuits alleging that they sexually assaulted multiple women. They have denied the allegations.
Courthouse News and The New York Post reported that while addressing the court during the sentencing hearing, Oren denied raping anyone but said that he “came of age ... at the time of the Howard Stern Show and the glorification of Playboy.”
Per the AP, Tal Alexander asked the judge to sentence him to the same prison as his brothers.
Prosecutors had asked that the brothers be sentenced to life in prison, while defense attorneys requested 15 years for their clients.
“This verdict cannot undo the effects of heinous abuse the Alexanders’ many victims endured, but it does send a message: New Yorkers want to bring an end to sex trafficking in all our communities,” then-U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said in a statement following the verdict.
Authorities claimed that the brothers’ illegal conduct went all the way back to their time in high school.
“These three brothers masqueraded as party boys when really they were predators,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Madison Smyser said during the trial, per ABC News. “The brothers used whatever means necessary — sometimes drugs, sometimes alcohol, sometimes brute force — to carry out their rapes.”
“I didn’t even know what to call what they did to me,” one woman said in a preview for the series.
Despite their convictions, the Alexanders have maintained their innocence.
In September, The New York Times reported that the brothers hired Alan Dershowitz and were pursuing a potential presidential pardon. Dershowitz confirmed to PEOPLE that he was working on their legal case but said he had not sought a pardon or discussed the case with President Donald Trump.
An appeals court has denied Danny Masterson‘s appeal of his 2023 conviction on rape charges, upholding the verdict and his 30-year prison sentence.
In an 89-page ruling, a three-judge panel rejected each of Masterson’s arguments in turn, including the claim that the trial judge was biased against Scientology.
Masterson, a star of “That 70s Show,” was found guilty of raping two women at his Hollywood Hills home in 2003. The jurors were unable to reach a verdict on a third count involving a former girlfriend who alleged she, too, was raped in 2001.
On appeal, his attorneys argued that Judge Charlaine Olmedo made a series of remarks and adverse rulings about Scientology that together infringed on his First Amendment rights. But the panel found that the judge’s statements showed “no animus or departure from neutrality regarding Scientology.”
Olmedo allowed a former Scientologist to testify at the trial as an expert about the faith’s beliefs and practices. The prosecution argued that the victims — who all belonged to the church and had since left — delayed reporting the incidents or classifying them as rape due to fear of retaliation for violating a Scientology rule against going to the police.
Masterson’s lawyers objected and argued on appeal that the court had improperly intruded into interpretation of church doctrine.
“The jury in this case was not asked to determine the truth or falsity of Scientology doctrine or beliefs,” the appeals court concluded, citing the specific reasons for which the religious evidence was introduced. “Admission of Scientology evidence for those purposes did not contravene the First Amendment.”
The panel also rejected separate arguments about the statute of limitations and evidentiary rulings. The panel also summarily denied a separate habeas corpus petition that argued that Masterson did not get an adequate defense.
Masterson’s appellate attorneys, Cliff Gardner and Eric Multhaup, said in a statement that they will appeal to the California Supreme Court, while also pursuing a separate habeas petition.
“Danny is serving a life sentence for crimes he did not commit,” Gardner said. “No one in California – not defendants and not victims who have actually been the victim of a sex crime – is safer by virtue of today’s unfortunate decision.”
SA case: Depositions scheduled for Nov 30 and Dec 1.
Murder case: Discussion on dates for sentencing and hearing for motion for new trial. Want to do both at the same time. State wants to do it on week of Veterans day, but judge has 7 trials that week. She needs to work some things out to accommodate. We will need to keep an eye on the docket to see what date is agreed to.
Mom who pleaded guilty to starving her 6-year-old daughter to death tried to take it back
HINESVILLE, Ga. (Court TV) — The mother of a 6-year-old with special needs who pleaded guilty to nine felonies in connection with the little girl’s death filed a motion to take back her plea.
Shelly Perry, 29, returned to court after being sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole in 30 years, months after she pleaded guilty to felony murder, two counts of cruelty to children in the first degree, two counts of false statements and writings, one count of cruelty to children in the second degree, tampering with evidence and concealing the death of another. Perry avoided a trial when she entered her plea on March 11, almost three years after her daughter, A’Niyah Perry, was found unresponsive.
A’Niyah, who had cerebral palsy and used a wheelchair, died of starvation on May 1, 2023. Perry’s boyfriend, 40-year-old Brandon Robinson, also pleaded guilty in connection with the girl’s death.
Before Robinson was sentenced to 30 years — 20 of which were to be spent in prison, with the remaining 10 years spent on probation — Perry filed a handwritten request to withdraw her plea, claiming she was “abandoned” by her attorney.
During a hearing Monday, Perry appeared with her current attorney, Johnny Vines, who questioned her former attorney, Jason Nix, who appeared remotely. Vines asked Nix about their communications leading up to the guilty plea. Nix told the court that he and Perry communicated often, including on the day of the plea. He said Perry did not want to go to trial, and he believed she understood the terms of the plea.
Vines asked Nix if he ever considered whether Perry was suffering from a mental illness. Nix said that while Perry would react emotionally to discussions about her daughter, he believed her displays of emotions were “natural.” He stated that he did not question her competency.
Prosecutors read documents in which Perry stated that she understood the terms of the plea agreement and did not have any questions at the time.
Judge D. Jay Stewart denied Perry’s request to withdraw her plea and gave her 30 days to appeal the decision.
Mom who allegedly killed her 2-year-old son after becoming ‘invested’ in Lindsay Clancy case has full support of family: Attorney
FRANKFORT, Ill. (Court TV) — A mother accused of killing her son after becoming interested in the Lindsay Clancy trial is not without her own supporters.
Corie Walsh, 40, appeared in court on Monday for a pretrial hearing, weeks after she was arrested and charged with the murder of her 2-year-old son, Barrett. Walsh is charged with three counts of first-degree murder after her other two children came home from school and found her fully clothed in a bathtub that had blood in the water. Their little brother was found hanging from a rafter in the basement, and their 8-month-old sibling was in another room on the floor, unsupervised.
After the children ran to their neighbor’s house for help, the neighbor came over and got Barrett down from the rafter. The little boy was brought to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Walsh’s lawyers, including Andrea Lyon, who previously defended Casey Anthony, have maintained that Walsh was suffering from a psychotic episode at the time and was not criminally responsible for Barrett’s death. Lyon spoke to the media, including local NBC affiliate WMAQ, outside the courthouse following Walsh’s appearance on Monday, saying, “We are continuing to investigate and thoroughly represent our client by learning everything that we can about her and about her psychosis.”
Lyon said, “Psychosis is not a choice, and the death of Little Bear — that was his nickname — is an unimaginable tragedy.” She added, “We are getting prepared to defend her, and that requires us to know everything. The only way to do that is to get all the discovery.” Lyon also said Walsh’s family was “fully supporting her.”
Walsh is also being represented by attorney Robert Kerr, who told WMAQ, “We’re working closely with the jail to make sure Corie is treated fairly.”
WMAQ reported that prosecutors did not provide any public statements. They previously said in court that Walsh allegedly said she killed Barrett because “he was the ‘devil’ and the ‘anti-Christ.'” Prosecutors also alleged that Walsh was planning to “poison” her husband “with a drink.”
According to court documents obtained by WMAQ, Walsh had “recently become very invested” in the murder trial of Lindsay Clancy — who was accused of strangling her three young children before trying to take her own life, allegedly while experiencing psychosis — shortly before her son’s death.
Walsh is scheduled to appear in court again on Nov. 23.
Two former luxury real estate brokers and their brother are scheduled to be sentenced in a New York City courtroom Tuesday, seven months after they were convicted of drugging and raping women in a sex trafficking ring.
Federal prosecutors are seeking life sentences for Oren and Alon Alexander, a pair of former powerful real estate brokers, and their brother, Tal.
Attorneys for the brothers, who have asserted their innocence, are seeking 15-year sentences for each defendant.
The men were found guilty in March of 10 counts, including conspiracy to commit sex trafficking and sex trafficking by force, after a trial that included testimony from 11 women who described being lured, drugged and sexually assaulted over a period of years. Six of the women were part of the indictment.
In a sentencing memo, prosecutors in New York’s Southern District said more than 70 women came forward with allegations of abuse and accused the brothers of exploiting their wealth, influence and connections to target victims.
Victim statements from 11 women, some using court-assigned pseudonyms, were read at the hearing prior to the judge’s decision. The women asked the judge to impose a sentence that was appropriate for the profound impact the men had on their lives.
One victim, Maya Miller, described the trauma of her rape by Tal Alexander as having settled into her nervous system.
“I carry a quiet funeral inside me,” Miller said.
Another victim, Olivia Lane, told the judge that she was “profoundly incapacitated” and after having a fraction of one drink while meeting Oren Alexander. She described being raped at least a dozen times while being terrified and in pain.
She then directly addressed the men. “You are weak, you are inhumane,” Lane said. “You never had power and look at you now.”
Two women described the men as having almost inhuman eyes during their assaults. Isa Brooks said, “Their eyes went black during the attack like I was being mauled by animals.” Lane said, “I remember looking at him and seeing a monster, black eyes.”
The women also emphasized the Alexander brothers’ lack of remorse or acknowledgment of their victims throughout the trial. Victim Katie Moore noted in her statement that after five weeks of trial and being found guilty, the men “cannot even look us in the eye as we speak today.”
“These men spent years treating women and girls like their humanity meant nothing,” Moore said.
The brothers honed their methods together, attacking women in a way that was designed to humiliate and degrade them, prosecutor Elizabeth Espinosa said at the sentencing.
“When they were done, they bragged to each other and their friends ... the defendants knew exactly what they were doing and they did it anyway and they did it over and over and over again,” Espinosa said.
At trial, prosecutors said the brothers raped the women after having promised them parties and trips. One woman testified that she lost control of her body after she had a drink with Alon Alexander at a New York City club. When she awoke, she testified, they were naked on a bed. She kept trying to get up, and he kept pushing her back down, she said.
When she told him that she didn’t want to have sex with him, she testified, he responded, “‘You already did.’”
In a sentencing submission, attorneys for the brothers acknowledged that they sometimes behaved insensitively toward women but categorically denied that any of them had raped or sexually assaulted anyone.
At trial, the attorneys described the sex as consensual and said the women were motivated in part by financial gain.
“All the stories were rehearsed,” Tal Alexander’s attorney, Deanna Paul, said in her closing argument. “They’re looking for money.”
ORLANDO, Fla, – The arrest affidavit for the man charged with second-degree murder in the disappearance of missing Orlando woman Michelle Parker has been unsealed.
News 6 fought to unseal the 46-page document, and we are going through it now. But you can read it below.
Parker, an Orlando mother, has been missing since November 2011. Her body has never been found. Her ex-fiancé, with second-degree murder in connection with her disappearance. Her ex-fiancé, Dale Smith Jr., is charged with second-degree murder in Parker’s disappearance.
Orlando police said advancements in digital forensics helped them reexamine data from 2011, revealing new location information and communications between devices. That technology played a key role in building the case against Smith.
[RELATED:Timeline of the disappearance of Michelle Parker]
Smith has maintained his innocence. His bond will not be addressed at Monday’s hearing, according to court records.
You can read the arrest affidavit in the media player below.
The capital murder trial of Dallas rapper Yella Beezy, whose legal name is Markies Conway, is set to begin as he faces allegations of hiring Kewon White to kill fellow rapper and rival Mo3, whose legal name was Melvin Noble. Mo3 was shot and killed on November 11, 2020, after a gunman chased him on foot along Interstate 35E. Prosecutors allege Conway promised White payment to carry out the killing. White has already been convicted and sentenced to life without parole. Conway has pleaded not guilty, and the trial is expected to last two to three weeks.
PA Mom Faked Son’s Death For GoFundMe, Then Her Own To Avoid Court: Affidavit
Jennifer Marie Lamer, 39, of Carrolltown, Cambria County, Pennsylvania, faces 29 charges stemming from fabricated medical documents and an obituary submitted to Blair County officials, according to court records.
Lamer waived her preliminary hearing on Tuesday, Oct. 20, sending all 29 charges to county court, as shown in court documents Daily Voice obtained on Sunday, Oct. 25.
The investigation uncovered claims of cancer, brain surgery, and hospice care, along with messages from someone identifying herself as Lamer’s sister who repeatedly pushed officials to close her earlier criminal case, detectives wrote.
That earlier case stemmed from a 2023 Pennsylvania State Police investigation into fraudulent GoFundMe campaigns.
Lamer created a fundraiser claiming her son had been injured during a baseball game and needed help with medical expenses, then created another claiming he had died from those injuries and needed funeral funds, according to the affidavit.
Investigators determined her son was alive. Lamer was charged with theft by deception involving $2,400, detectives wrote.
GoFundMe confirmed to Daily Voice that it removed a fundraiser, banned the organizer, and honored refund requests.
“GoFundMe has zero tolerance for the misuse of our platform. Fraud whether online or off is against the law and we cooperate with law enforcement investigations of those accused of wrongdoing,” a GoFundMe spokesperson told Daily Voice.
“Our team acted quickly to remove the fundraiser and ban the organizer account from using our platform for any future fundraisers. Additionally, refund requests were honored under GoFundMe’s Giving Guarantee, which guarantees a full refund in the rare case when something isn’t right.”
The investigation into Lamer’s purported death began July 13, when Blair County Detective Kimberly Bem learned that the public defender’s office had received an obituary claiming Lamer died June 1, according to the criminal complaint.
The obituary bore the Askew-Houser funeral home logo and arrived with an email purportedly sent by a funeral home employee on behalf of Lamer’s family. The sender claimed hospice staff had forgotten to sign the death certificate, so one could not yet be provided, detectives wrote.
But the funeral home’s name was misspelled in the sender’s Gmail address, and Bem could not find a matching obituary on its website.
The employee whose identity was used told investigators she had not sent the email, had no record of the funeral home handling Lamer’s arrangements, and was not waiting for a death certificate, according to the affidavit.
Detectives then examined medical documents submitted to support repeated postponements in Lamer’s theft case, with continuances dating back to November 2023.
The paperwork included four letters purportedly from Conemaugh Health System doctors and three purportedly from UPMC Hillman Cancer Center doctors, investigators wrote.
The letters were undated and electronically signed, with detailed descriptions of illnesses and several spelling or grammatical errors — including “IUC” instead of “ICU,” according to the affidavit.
One letter claimed Lamer was scheduled for surgery for a herniated lumbar disc on Feb. 13, 2024. The neurosurgery office told investigators it had last seen her in February 2023, and records did not support the claimed surgery, detectives wrote.
Another letter claimed a UPMC Hillman Cancer Center physician would perform brain surgery on her. His office told investigators Lamer had never been his patient and that he was a lung cancer oncologist who would not perform that surgery, according to the affidavit.
UPMC later provided documentation stating Lamer had never been a patient of that cancer center, detectives wrote.
Meanwhile, messages from someone calling herself “Amanda” and claiming to be Lamer’s sister described her supposed brain and laryngeal cancer. Those messages came through Lamer’s own email account and phone, according to investigators.
On July 21, “Amanda” contacted Lamer’s bail supervisor to question why the criminal case had not been closed and provided the fabricated obituary, detectives wrote.
The obituary was forwarded to the prothonotary’s office, resulting in the case being closed. It was reopened because of the investigation, according to the affidavit.
Evidence of Lamer’s activity after her supposed death emerged when detectives visited her former employer, Hugill’s Sanitation in Clearfield County, on July 23.
Employees told investigators Lamer had ordered a dumpster for her Carrolltown home that month. One employee spoke with her July 21 about payment, and another reported seeing a Snapchat post showing a camper she had purchased, detectives wrote.
Employees also provided recent messages from Lamer seeking documentation of her last day of work.
The business confirmed she had access to its computers and fax machine while employed there. Timecards showed that medical letters sent from the company’s fax machine to the public defender’s office were transmitted while Lamer was clocked in, according to the affidavit.
Google records showed the account impersonating the funeral home employee was created June 4 — three days after Lamer supposedly died — and accessed using the same Samsung cellphone as her personal account, detectives wrote.
Investigators also found photographs in her Google account timestamped after her purported death.
Throughout the investigation, “Amanda” contacted the public defender’s office, court administration, sheriff’s office, and probation officials in an effort to have Lamer’s case dismissed, according to the complaint.
Lamer is charged with seven felony counts each of forgery and identity theft, seven misdemeanor counts of tampering with records or identification, and eight misdemeanor counts of obstructing administration of law or another governmental function.
The charges were filed Aug. 3. She was arraigned before Magisterial District Judge Wendy R. Mellott on Oct. 13 and committed to Blair County Prison after being unable to post $100,000 monetary bail, according to her docket.
She waived her preliminary hearing Oct. 20, and formal arraignment is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 25.
Her original felony theft-by-deception case remains active, with a trial list review scheduled for Monday, Nov. 2, according to her court summary.
That summary also lists prior guilty pleas, including forgery in Dauphin County and an insurance-fraud charge in Indiana County in 2016, as well as two felony theft counts in Cambria County in 2022.
Andrew Isaac Griffin is charged in connection with the September 2021 murders of Thomas and Angela Strussion, a married couple who operated Salsa Joe's Smokehouse in Belmont County, Ohio. On September 21, 2021, emergency responders were dispatched to the couple's home on Trails End Drive after a neighbor reported smoke coming from the residence. Firefighters discovered both victims deceased inside the home. Investigators determined that their deaths were homicides and that the residence had been deliberately set on fire.
Griffin, a former business partner of Thomas Strussion, was accused of traveling from Oklahoma to Ohio, killing the couple, setting their home on fire, and returning to Oklahoma. Following a lengthy investigation, Griffin was arrested in Hilo, Hawaii, in February 2025 and extradited to Belmont County in March 2025. A grand jury returned a 14-count indictment containing aggravated murder, aggravated arson, and aggravated burglary charges, along with firearm and death-penalty specifications.
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Griffin has pleaded not guilty and is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Jury selection was scheduled for October 21–22, 2026, at Belmont College, with opening statements scheduled for October 26.
Case called: State of Ohio v. Andrew Griffin, Case No. 25‑CR‑46.
Defendant present with counsel.
State present.
Proceedings begin outside jury presence.
Both parties report no preliminary issues.
Jury brought in.
2. OUT‑OF‑JURY PRESENCE (OJP)
None in provided portion.
3. JURY INSTRUCTIONS / READINESS (15:23–15:53)
Jury confirms compliance with court orders:
No discussions
No research
No posting
State announces readiness to proceed.
4. WITNESSES
WITNESS 1 — LISA DANIELLE BALOG
Start: (15:53)
End: (2:04:53)
Called by: State
Filming: Witness objects to being filmed.
Direct Examination
Residence: Bel‑Air.
Employment: Manages two bakery/restaurant locations; previously involved in Salsa Joe’s and My Way Café.
Family:
Brother: Tom Stresher (deceased).
Brother: Chris Stresher (deceased).
Sister‑in‑law: Angela Stresher.
Provides history of Tom and Angela’s marriage, move from Texas to Ohio, residence on Trails End Drive, and household pets.
Details Tom’s restaurant background: hot dog stand → Tennessee → Texas (“Tommy Boy Sausage”) → first Salsa Joe’s in Arlington → Ohio location on Route 40.
Describes her own involvement in Salsa Joe’s Belmont and Elm Grove locations.
Robert Kessler is set for trial on charges of second-degree murder and abuse of a body in the death of Stephanie Crone-Overholts, whose partial remains were found in Tampa’s McKay Bay in November 2021. Investigators say Crone-Overholts had been staying at Kessler’s home in Lutz before she disappeared. Police later found her blood inside her vehicle and at Kessler’s residence, while a witness reported seeing someone throw items into the bay around the time she went missing.
Federal prosecutors allege that former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell groomed and sexually abused Sandra Birchmore after meeting her through the department’s youth Police Explorers program. They say the relationship began when Birchmore was 15 and continued for years, including while Farwell was on duty. Prosecutors further allege that he concealed the encounters by falsifying work-hour records and that, after Birchmore became pregnant and told him he was the father, he had a motive to silence her.
The prosecution’s central claim is that Farwell strangled Birchmore on February 1, 2021, to prevent her from reporting conduct that could have exposed him to federal charges and then staged her apartment to make the death appear to be a suicide. The Massachusetts state authorities did not charge Farwell criminally after the state-police investigation, relying on the medical examiner’s initial suicide ruling and concluding that there was insufficient evidence to prosecute him. Federal investigators later revisited the case, and prosecutors now point to evidence including Farwell’s presence at Birchmore’s apartment, their history of sexual choking, and the medical examiner’s later change of the death classification from suicide to undetermined. Farwell has pleaded not guilty and maintains that Birchmore died by suicide.
⚠️\*Please be aware that some of these exhibits are) ***graphic in nature***. We have identified that the following photos show Sandra's body. Please proceed with caution:
Day 2, Exhibit 9: Notverygraphic, but shows body from behind, good for seeing angle of body position if you are unclear from testimony
Day 2, Exhibit 11: Shows body from front
Day 2, Exhibit 14: Shows body from front
Day 2, Exhibit 16: Shows body from front
Day 2, Exhibit 20: Close up from front
Day 2, Exhibit 21: Close up from top
Day 2, Exhibit 23: Close up from behind, good for seeing angle of body position
Tuesday, October 27, 2026 United States District Court — Boston, Massachusetts Sandra Birchmore Murder Trial
Grant Smith Ellis — Chronological Courtroom Reporting
1. Evidentiary Arguments — Dr. William Smock's Demonstration and PowerPoint
The court addressed objections concerning visual materials intended for use during forensic testimony.
The defense argued that a proposed demonstration was an experiment rather than an illustrative aid.
Defense counsel raised objections under Federal Rules of Evidence 403 and 702.
Judge Denise Casper indicated that she was inclined to consider the material an illustrative aid rather than an experiment.
The judge explained that the materials would be used to illustrate testimony and would not be admitted as substantive evidence.
The defense also objected to Dr. Smock's PowerPoint presentation, citing potentially prejudicial material, including:
A police insignia.
Professional logos associated with the witness.
References to the Training Institute on Strangulation Prevention.
A website address.
References to the Office on Violence Against Women.
Defense counsel argued that these elements could unfairly influence jurors.
The prosecution offered to redact portions of the presentation.
Judge Casper indicated that the logo on the opening slide and material appearing in the upper-right corner of slide four should be removed.
Court's position: The judge indicated that the presentation could be used as an illustrative aid, subject to the discussed modifications. The excerpt does not establish whether a final ruling was made on every objection.
3. Text Messages with Sandra Birchmore — Witness Claims Alcohol Blackout
A witness was questioned about text messages exchanged with Sandra Birchmore.
The questioning concerned an apparent arrangement to meet.
The witness acknowledged messages indicating that he had asked about coming over.
Birchmore subsequently asked how far away he was and whether he was coming inside.
The witness acknowledged responding that he had just parked.
Approximately one hour later, Birchmore sent a message asking him to remain silent about something.
When questioned about whether he remembered meeting Birchmore that night, the witness stated that he did not.
Question: “Do you have a recollection of meeting Ms. Birchmore that night?”
Answer: “No I do not.”
Question: “Why?”
Answer: “Because I drank to the point of intoxication where I blacked out.”
Question: “Did you ever see her again?”
Answer: “No.”
Significance: The testimony established that the witness acknowledged messages suggesting he had arrived at or near Birchmore's location, but claimed he could not remember meeting her because of intoxication.
The messages alone do not establish what occurred during the intervening hour.
Witness identification: The excerpt does not identify the witness. Although the testimony occurred during the portion of the day associated with William Farwell, attribution to him requires confirmation.
4. Exhibit 160 — Certificate Admitted into Evidence
The prosecution moved to admit Exhibit 160.
The judge asked whether this was the certificate previously discussed.
The prosecution confirmed that it was.
Defense counsel stated that the defense was preserving its previous objection.
Judge Casper admitted Exhibit 160 into evidence.
Item
Information
Exhibit
160
Description
Certificate
Offered by
Prosecution
Defense position
Previous objection preserved
Court ruling
Admitted
Specific contents
Not identified in excerpt
Significance: Exhibit 160 became part of the admitted trial evidence. Defense counsel preserved an earlier objection without repeating the underlying argument.
The certificate's contents and purpose remain unverified.
Grant Smith Ellis reported that William Farwell exited the courthouse through the front entrance.
Ellis had expected him to leave through the rear entrance and consequently missed his departure.
Ellis indicated that he would return inside shortly.
Significance: The report documents Farwell's departure from the courthouse. It does not establish precisely when his testimony concluded or whether he had been formally excused as a witness.
7. Dr. William Smock — Hyoid Fracture and Ligature Pressure
Dr. Smock discussed injuries associated with Sandra Birchmore's head position and the pressure exerted by the ligature.
Jurors were shown an image depicting Birchmore suspended from a door.
Her head appeared to lean toward the left side of her chest.
Smock explained that the position of the head was relevant to determining where ligature pressure would be greatest.
Question: “Did that lean have significance to you?”
Answer: “Yes, when you look a ligature, it is where the pressure is being applied. So with a left leaning individual the most pressure is going to be on the left.”
Question: “Where was the fracture to Ms. Birchmore's hyoid bone?”
Answer: “The right side.”
Forensic observation
Testimony
Head position
Leaning left
Expected greatest ligature pressure
Left side
Hyoid fracture
Right side
Issue raised
Whether the fracture location was consistent with the proposed hanging mechanism
Significance: The testimony highlighted an apparent discrepancy between the expected distribution of ligature pressure and the location of Birchmore's hyoid fracture.
The excerpt does not establish that this discrepancy independently proves homicide or that a right-sided hyoid fracture is impossible in a hanging.
8. Dr. William Smock — Chest Injury and Lobster-Claw Clasp
Dr. Smock presented a comparison involving an injury on Birchmore's chest and the hardware associated with the ligature.
Jurors were shown a slide displaying the clasp and rivet beside the injury.
According to Ellis's courtroom reporting, the dimensions and shape of the hardware appeared to correspond closely with the injury.
A small indentation on Birchmore's chest appeared to align with the rivet.
Question: “What is your opinion of what caused this injury on Ms. Birchmore's chest?”
Answer: “That rivet was pushed into Ms. Birchmore's chest and the whole lobster claw clasp was pushed into her right chest, creating that imprint.”
Finding
Reported testimony
Injury location
Right side of chest
Object examined
Lobster-claw clasp and rivet
Comparison
Dimensions and positioning appeared to correspond
Rivet
Aligned with a small indentation
Smock's opinion
The hardware was pressed into Birchmore's chest, leaving the imprint
Significance: Dr. Smock connected a specific component of the ligature hardware with a physical injury observed on Birchmore's body.
The testimony may be relevant to reconstructing the circumstances of Birchmore's death.
However, this excerpt does not establish who applied the pressure, when the injury occurred, or whether the finding independently proves homicide.
Ellis characterized the comparison as particularly damaging. That characterization represents the reporter's assessment rather than a judicial finding.
Defense challenges Dr. Smock's proposed demonstration and PowerPoint
2
Jury enters or returns to courtroom
3
Witness questioned about Birchmore text messages and claimed alcohol blackout
4
Exhibit 160 admitted over preserved defense objection
5
William Farwell leaves courthouse
6
Sidebar conference reported
7
Smock discusses head position, ligature pressure, and hyoid fracture
8
Smock compares chest injury with ligature clasp and rivet
Reporting status: Seven Grant Smith Ellis posts were previously incorporated, and the eighth section reflects the separately supplied chest-injury post. All eight supplied posts are included here.
The sequence follows the original post IDs, not verified courtroom clock times. Additional posts, testimony, and cross-examination may be missing.
Source: Grant Smith Ellis — October 27, 2026, courtroom reporting.
