On Monday afternoon, a couple of Chattanooga television reporters watched video recordings starring none other than Sandra Lamb. In the videos, she assaults Tonya Craft's private investigator, Eric Echols, as he tries to serve a subpoena to her.
During her assault, Lamb called Mr. Echols a "black bastard," which obviously has some racial connotations, and because she was physically assaulting him while using racial slurs, that constitutes what is known as a "hate crime," which has severe penalties. To make matters worse, it is against federal law to attack someone who is in the process of delivering a lawful subpoena.
To put it another way, Sandra Lamb and others might have some legal problems, especially if organizations like the Georgia NAACP find that prosecutors Chris Arnt and Len Gregor tolerated a racially-motivated attack on Mr. Echols, but then arrested him because he was finding information that would undermine their case against Ms. Craft. At the present time, Arnt and Gregor insist that the trumped-up criminal case of "interfering with a witness" felony case against Mr. Echols will go to trial, but I cannot help but wonder if they are whistling past the graveyard.
If these videos are broadcast on the air, the response should be most interesting.
Speaking of videos, the appearance of Sandra Lamb on WRCB-TV to further accuse Ms. Craft of molesting her daughter caught the interest of someone who examines things like body language and eye movement in order to ascertain if that person is telling the truth. The person examined the video and reached a most interesting conclusion (which I won't share here, but will say that I doubt Lamb would like what she said) based upon the fact that Lamb's eyes moved in certain directions when she said certain things.
The same person also viewed the videotapes of Arnt and Gregor as they were given a very friendly interview on (Where else?) Channel 9 (whose reporters apparently are hoping that the jury will announce a guilty verdict a week after the acquittal). The analyst noted the lack of eye contact and eye movement as the two men answered the friendly questions, and also drew some conclusions that perhaps these prosecutors might not want to hear.
As I wrote during the trial, the people who brought this case, the people who tried it, and the judge who oversaw it all are going to be undergoing continuing scrutiny. Just because they were successful in running away from tiny Callie Starnes of Channel 3 as though she were Goliath carrying a spear does not mean they can hide forever.
I will go one step further: professionally speaking, Brian House, Chris Arnt, Buzz Franklin, and Len Gregor are dead men walking. If they continue to pursue the bogus charges against Mr. Echols, and especially if they continue to use the racially-charged rhetoric that Gregor and Lamb brought into this mix, they only will make things worse for themselves.
They will continue to lose what little credibility they had, as local people come to realize that they have been pushing fraudulent charges and teaming with local judges to bully innocent people into prison. The Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit has a 98 percent conviction rate, which is well above what is seen in most districts. I can assure readers that this rate is not due to the great skills of the prosecutors or the ability of judges to see through the criminality of those who are charged.
I will leave it to the readers to determine just why the conviction rate is so high.
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As always, Mr. Anderson, you are on the trail.
This is a repost, and I will repost until Mr. Anderson requests I stop. In order to achieve justice, citizen action is needed, and the only way to do it is by writing the appropriate authorities regularly and consistently.
Mr. Stephen D. Kelley Chair,and Barry E. Morgan, Vice-Chair of Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia
104 Marietta Street NW, Suite 400
Atlanta, Georgia 30303-2743
Sally Quillian Yates, United States Attorney
c/o Didi Nelson
LECC Manager
Richard B. Russell Federal Building
75 Spring Street, S.W.
Suite 600
Atlanta, GA 30303-3309
Thurbert Baker Esq.
Office of the Attorney General
40 Capitol Square, SW
Atlanta, Ga 30334
Dear Mr Baker, Ms. Yates, Ms. Nelson, Mr. Kelley, and Mr. Morgan,
As a citizen residing within the Lookout Mountain judicial Circuit, I am writing to see about the possibility of the Georgia State Attorney General's Office, and the U.S. DOJ Law Enforcement Coordinating Committee coordinating with the Prosecuting Attorneys' Council of Georgia for investigating and prosecuting the official misconduct of the officers of the Court in the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit, as being a pattern and practice to deprive the citizens of the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit of their constitutional rights to fair trial. This pattern and practice extends not only within the criminal prosecutions conducted within the circuit, but civil actions as well, as all four Judges, Judge Wood, Judge Graham, Judge Van Pelt, and Judge House have destroyed so many families by their behaviors and practices. When is the law going to be FOR the people, and not the officers of the Court?
For the purpose of Section 242, acts under "color of law" include acts not only done by federal, state, or local officials within the their lawful authority, but also acts done beyond the bounds of that official's lawful authority, if the acts are done while the official is purporting to or pretending to act in the performance of his/her official duties. Persons acting under color of law within the meaning of this statute include police officers, prisons guards and other law enforcement officials, as well as judges, care providers in public health facilities, and others who are acting as public officials. It is not necessary that the crime be motivated by animus toward the race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin of the victim.
Authorities:
18 U.S.C. SECTION 242
The Government must prove four elements to establish the offenses performed by the Defendants.
First: The person upon whom the alleged acts were
committed must have been an inhabitant of a state, district or territory of the United States.
Second: The defendant must have been acting under color of law.
Third: The conduct of the defendant must have deprived the victim of some right secured or protected by the Constitution of the United States.
Fourth: The defendant must have acted willfully, that is, with a specific intent to violate the protected constitutional right.
I urge all of you to act promptly and diligently to see justice is served for the citizens of the Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit.
Sincerely, ________________________
Include your name and address below your signature.
This can be used as a form letter. Feel free to copy, paste and mail 3 letters. For less than two dollars you can make in investment that will help your family guarantee that no one suffers incompetence and corruption in the name of justice, like Tonya Craft has had to go through.
Write today!
Hey Bill,
I can think of 88 friends we could write to in Durham, if we need help stirring up a narrative!!
I'd just have to pull the files with their emails off my old hard drive.
:)>
When I think of someone like Sandra Lamb calling Eric Echols a "black bastard," I think of how Alexandre Dumas (who wrote The Three Musketeers and The Count of Monte Cristo) responded to someone who made a racist comment to him:
"I am black. My father was a Creole; his father was an African and his father was a gorilla. My family, it seems, picked up where yours left off."
This is from WRCB Facebook and from the same person who commented in the affirmative on Arnt's FB page...
Vicki Scoggins:
I would like for the producers and directors of WRCBTV to know that I will no longer support their sponsors nor will I be watching their news casts. The only reason that I have ever watch was because I respect Tommy Eason and Amy Morrow.I will be sharinig my views with friends whose businesses advertise on this local station because I am convinced that the reporting of the Tonya Craft Trial was biased and I truly believe that this had an affect on the outcome of the trial. If you would like to hear comments by the prosecutors you can hear those on Channel 9 and Channel 12.
And again from Vicki Scoggins:
I find it very offensive that they have not sensored this blog for the vulgar language I have read here!
Since I don't comment on Facebook Vickie, here is my response.
It is people like you that use a perceived "social position" to an advantage.
At the crux of this, you are more like sheep, tended by others, who like to think they can poop something that stinks.
I don't know you, but I do know your kind. As if your "business" really means something to this community.
As someone who grew up with more close Black friends than White--of my four closest "white" friends, one is Italian, one is Jewish Ukrainian, one is Polish, one is gay (female). From before I could speak in complete sentences, my closest friend was Black. We did everything together and were so close that one lady, bless her soul, asked my mother if we were twins one time when we were wearing matching sweaters. Although I have never dated any African American women I have dated Latin and Asian women. It just burns me up, REALLY burns me up when I come across instances of blatant racism. That's one of the things I hate so much about living in Utah, I see incidents of out-and-out racism just about every time I go out--not just against Blacks, mostly against Latins. I once almost got in trouble because of this. One time I was going to a minor league baseball game and after parking in a parking garage I was coming down the stairwell, and at the bottom was this little black boy (probably 12-14) quite literally cowering in the corner while three white police officers were interrogating him about some firecrackers he had set off. They were in the "power position" and were obviously intimidating the kid. I told one of them, "Why don't you cut the kid some slack. Can't you see he's scared?" The police officer turned towards me and said, and I remember this clearly, "You need to mind your own business and let us handle this little n-gg-r our own way," while placing one hand on his batton and using the other to make a 'go away' motion. I'm still angry with myself for not having whipped out my cell phone and made a video of the scene, or at least reporting the jerk to his superiors. My point is, you don't have to be in the South to see racism these days.
You know, I think that in many ways it is the Southern part of this nation that has come the longest way in forging a society that judges according to character rather than race. I know there are certain areas and hold-out groups that are still biggoted idiots. Still, because there are more Blacks in the South, and we work with them and go to school with them and our kids play with them and go to school with them, that coexistance has helped Whites and Blacks come to accept each other as equals more than parts of the country where there either aren't many people of color or those who are there live in urban ghettos, in a defacto segregation situation created by 'white flight.' I think that most everyone in the South can rightly claim at least two good friends of another ethnic background. Now, the great exception to this are those people with lots and lots of money, because they don't have as much interaction with people of different backgrounds, because in that area minorities have less money. So people like the Lambs and others who have money don't interact with Blacks, and so they don't get that benefit of one-on-one exposure to the humanity of other races. Kudos to people who have money who are above the pettiness, and do go and interact with people.
Oops, at the beginning of my previous post I meant to say that I am myself White; although I REALLY hate to be identified as such. See, I'm the kind of person who identifies myself in as the following things, ordered from most important to least:
1) Christian
2) Turner (dad's side--and, yes I have Turner relatives all over North Georgia and South Georgia, especially Colquitt County--I'm very proud of my great-great granddaddy's service in the Confederate Army)
3) Harris (mom's side--from New England, mainly Massachusetts, and I'm very proud of my ancestors' participation in the American Revolution, including a great uncle who was president of Harvard who organized a militia unit to defend the college when the British invaded, who was captured and eventually died onboard the hell-on-earth prison ship the British had in New York harbor)
4) American
5) Floridian
6) Southern
7) German-American (only 1/8 German, but I'm very proud of it)
8) Historian (have a MA in history)
9) 'Nole (2005 FSU grad)
10) Golden Knight (2002 UCF grad)
11) former Civil Air Patrol cadet
aww, hell, I can come up with dozens of things I identify as that I consider more important than being white. I'm more proud of the elementary school I went to. Sure, I'm proud, VERY proud of my herritage, but that's my background, not my skin color. I could fall into a vat of hershey's chocolate and that wouldn't change a thing about all that. Who I am on the inside matters so much more to me than what I look like on the outside.
Vicki Scoggins, per her facebook page, is on the Board of Directors for the CAC.
I missed Ms. Scoggins rant on WRCB's FB page yesterday (or whenever it happened) but was deeply immersed in editing a manuscript due to go out soon. However, anon 2:16, seeing where she serves the less-than-public interests, her diatribe certainly makes sense. No one can fault the players involved in this mess for their defense coloration, everyone hates us but we're only doing our job. Yeah. Right. Didn't the defendants at Nuremburg find out that wasn't a valid defense? See, that's what happens when they stop teaching History as a single subject at school. Everyone forgets the lessons they should remember.
Great article, Bill. I really want to see that video but I'm sure SL is scurrying to her lawyer and pet cops now to take care of all us 'damned Yankees' trying to topple her Scarlett kingdom. Mustn't let all those impure folks ruin her little daydream, can we? And I really need to find my coffee. It helps me mellow a bit in the am. Otherwise, I tend to bite heads off and use them as bowling balls. Good thing no one on the other side of this issue is around.
Scoggins also made a comment on the infamous Facebook page of Chris Arnt when he made that remark regarding Tonya Craft's attorneys.
We are dealing with a tightly-knit group of people who have been pulling off a real scam.
Who is ms. scroggins husband?
Another good article Bill, when will this video be made public? As for all the CAC people, let them keep running their mouths, we all now know them for what they are and what they do. Too bad an agency meant to help children works so hard to destroy lives!
Sounds to me like little Callie has a person named Scoggins that she needs to interview next.
Surely she will not run away like the others.
Looking at the polls on all the TV stations it seems like the public opinion is about 97% to 3%.
I contacted Channel 9 about this earlier in the trial, and it seems to me that they have changed their approach a bit now. There response to me was "I can say this was one of the most difficult cases I have ever been involved with."
Yeah, for Channel 9, it is tough to go alone with framing someone who is innocent. Well, they made their commitment to the prosecutors and to the CAC, and now they have to answer for that choice.
This was what I call a willful blindness on the part of the news staff there. They believed that they were following a politically-feasible path, but they did not realize just how their position would crumble if there was a "not guilty" verdict.
Anon.7:21,
That is the way I have seen the polls. Most are about 93 to 7percent in Tonya's favor. However, one poll struck me as odd the other day. It was from the Chattanooga Times, and the question was whether Tonya should regain full custody of her children. It was odd that it was showing only 59 to 40 percent in favor. The next day it had flipped to over 60 percent against Tonya getting custody. Then I read where someone said you could vote more than once and they had noticed a 800 "No" vote swing in a matter of hours with no additional "Yes" votes. These people will rig the polls if they can. Chatt. Times needs to have a one vote limit like the rest of the local polls have!!
Ooltewah Teacher
Mr. Anderson, I am so glad you are writing about Eric Echols. Also, what can be done about bringing changes to the CAC?
Old Scoggins doesn't even realize that Tommy Eason retired a couple of years ago as a cameraman. Good gravy woman! He & Amy Morrow are one of the reasons I don't watch channel 3 as often, but at least they get stories out there & will use the word alleged & ask for other people's sides. Channel 9 has always chased stories which weren't stories & made up their own quotes. Many of you got a taste of that with the juror Butch's interview. They tried their hardest to make it look as if Butch was really thinking those questions. He wasn't. Channel 12 has always been soft. My brother used to say, "and today, gunshots rang out in East Chattanooga, but look....puppies!"
Scoggins, go get a clue. If you feel like you and your 3 "friends" can make a difference in boycotting their sponsors, go ahead. As in everything, including the 22 NOT GUILTY verdicts, majority rules. You are in a very, teeny, tiny, small minority with the Tonya Craft case & you are grasping at straws. Good luck!
I am 8:21 & I forgot to add how fervently I will help defend Eric Echols however I can. I will be in the courtroom that day and wear his favorite color, whatever it may be.
Please keep us updated on anything he may need. Also let him know that he has a lot of support in Catoosa County. I have spoken to many people who plan on supporting him as much as we did Tonya. We are not going to let this go. EVER!
As someone said yesterday, PEDAL TO THE METAL!!!!
Anon 8:37am
I couldn't agree more. I too will be in the courtroom as as much as I can. He also has support from Chattanooga. We would meet in East Ridge and carpool to Ringgold during the Tonya's trial. We will do it again!
I used to watch Channel 9 but not anymore. Since the trial I have stayed with 3 and will continue regardless of what Mrs Scoggins has to say. I also have a business to help them with more advertisement. You see silly Scoggins, you or any of your cronies will never win at this. The reason is clear, you are corrupt. It hurts when Daddy's money can't buy you a win here. We know you and the rest of the Lambs and others are struggling right now. You are not used to loosing. But you see, you never won before either when it is bought. I feel sorry for people like you. Fishman
this probably is the only time I think there is actually a REAL need for the NAACP to step in (in our area)!
I'll tell you why the conviction rate is high....LMJC pressures & threatens defendants. The PD office is in bed with the DAs & all they PD does is tell their clients to take a plea deal.
if there is some order banning him from releasing the videos, have him send them to me.... I am pretty sure I wont get the order stating they can't be released! I will post them on my wall and let the go wild on fb!!
The conviction rates that DA's claim in public are misleading because figures like "98%" include negotiated plea bargains which are counted as "convictions." The conviction rates on cases that go to trial will be less, sometimes much less.
For example, former LA District Attorney Gil Garcetti claimed a conviction rate of well over 90% in order to deflect criticism over losing the Simpson case. He didn't tell the voters that this included plea bargains. The overwhelming majority of criminal cases do not go to trial by jury, but are plea bargained. The conviction rate for Garcetti's office in cases that went to trial were about 68% with another 12% being hung juries.
Mr. Anderson in this instance is taking the same tack as Gil Garcetti by not separating cases that go to a jury from plea bargains.
Mr Anderson is "claiming" the number that the LMJC DAs claim.
Actually, I am not trying to hide anything. Since plea bargains are part of conviction, there is nothing wrong with including these numbers in the overall statistics.
I do not know the rate of conviction if the defendant goes to trial in the LMJC. However, one reason that we see such a high plea rate is that the prosecutors are not exactly ethical people, and their "win at all costs" mentality means they pile up barrier after barrier against people in the LMJC charged with crimes.
Because most people in this circuit are not well-off, the prosecutors can impose high costs upon them without having to worry about losing a penny (personally).
I just did a google search on Mr. Eric Echols. I must say I am very impressed with his company. Here is a link to the company website.
http://www.lpsgroup.net/site/
He is a well educated man with years of experience in his chosen field. LPS group offers a wide variety of services and training classes. I hope he reads the posts here and is aware of the overwhelming support he has with-in our community. I too would be happy to show up early on his court date to show that support. Anyone who knows me knows that is no easy feat as I am a long time insomniac and not a morning person.
Mr. Anderson,
I would like to thank you for inspiring me to think. I have never before read ANY blog and never had the courage to post. Your teaching reaches far beyond your classroom. I have learned so much from you. I will be a loyal reader and enjoy the intelligent group of people that gather here.
Hmmm? High costs imposed upon defendants so the prosecutors don't have to worry about losing a penny? Federal funds coming in without much oversight for drug and child molestation convictions? An increase in arrests for those particular crimes over the last five years (as posted by the local PD's and sheriff's departments)? And prosecutors who seem to have a lot more than the salary a public servant should have? Maybe someone should have a look at their finances. All that cash flow could make for a lot of temptation for some fingers whose mouths aren't used to keeping to the truth. Just saying.
I was told Mr Echols video was shown on one of the Atlanta news stations this weekend .I will look for it this afternoon.
I can vouch that the plea bargain process is extremely coercive in the LMJC. I don't agree the public defenders are "in bed" with the DA's office, however. If a defendant refuses to plea, they will argue your case. Problem is, witnesses, evidence, etc. The PD's office doesn't have the time or money for all that, and they will tell the defendants such. However, the coercive part then does come to play when they tell you it's better to plea than go to trial. We see how that works, because it take's the issue away from the judge, and lots of folks are scared of the judges in the LMJC, for good reason.
I forced myself to watch the NC9 interview with the goons last night. I was SO FURIOUS. The blatantly LIED so many times in each segment. Some of the things didn't matter, but some of them really upset me. For one, they said that we supporters were creating brochures to hand out around the courthouse an to sneak into the jury. I NEVER heard anything like that on here (I believe they implied it was here) or anywhere else. I was at the courthouse and there was no such thing. Gregor's "word of the week" calendar has shifted from "Narcissist" to "blogosphere" apparently. He is obsessed with reading about himself and said he would read our comments (right around the comments about us being stupid and idiotic - Arnt's favorite 2 words of the week). He lied about the fact that they researched D-Lo and that he is known for running heavy media campaigns - not true - the dream team didn't want Tonya on the media and SHE wanted to get her story out. They were afraid it was dangerous. My favorite was Chris Arnt positioning himself like Sarah Palin with his FB page being "hacked" - please I AM THE ONE WHO FOUND THAT and sent it to Tonya! His profile was public. I used the Snipping Tool to capture it. There was no hacking or to use Gregor's analogy - wouldn't I have posted worse comments on there to set him up? Either he is too stupid to know that it was public or he really thinks the world revolves around him and no outsiders can get in. He didn't have his privacy settings set. It was wide open to inflame any of his public who was interested. I did not get the picture of Gregor because he wasn't a player at the time I really thought Gregor came in when Arnt COULD have gotten thrown out for the FB thing. He lied about D-Lo being the first to introduce money spent when he asked Tonya how much her family had paid - please, he was asking "who bought who's lunch?" for days prior to Tonya taking the stand. He lied and said Dr. Hazzard said the medical exams were NOT normal - they fell in some gray area. I was there. She specifically said there was no gray area - it is either normal or abnormal and there is no such thing as suspicious. Gregor said there was no raid and that ONE officer went and asked for her files because they didn't trust her. They even said that they were polite enough to make copies for her. PLEASE. I could go on and on.
Also, they talked about the hours and hours and hours they worked on the case. The only reason I stopped looking after the famous FB page is because he had about 4 solid pages of Mafia Wars and I got sick of looking at it. I thought it was quite poetic that he was an imaginary mobster and at the time wondered if he didn't have enough to do. It was so evident they were lying. I can tell Ms. Scoggins that for the 20 or so of them that believe WRCB is biased and won't watch anymore...I'm pretty sure all 4,000 of Tonya's FB friends won't watch NC9. That is so childish. In my opinion, only those people being only NC9's channel just lowers its credibility even further.
I think that WRCB should be able to post the video of Sandra - the level of humiliation and shame Tonya was forced to feel during this ordeal is NOTHING compared to her crazy-haired, house-dress wearing racist rants. Besides, who in her circle of friends will find anything wrong with what she said? I hope she goes down.
Anon 11:09,
"...For one, they said that we supporters were creating brochures to hand out around the courthouse an to sneak into the jury. I NEVER heard anything like that on here (I believe they implied it was here) or anywhere else."
I had suggested that a certain post of Bill's be printed and handed out, though I never dreamed a juror would get one and there has not been any report that they did.
It is legal to protest and hand out information, as long as it does not violate an order from the court.
The "goons" just tossed that in to shift blame.
In the interest of being accurate (Not to be taking up for the cowardly scumbags), but they didn't state that pamphlets were actually handed out.
They stated something to the effect that there were bloggers exhorting for local folks to get jury nullification info to the jurors.
I did make an earlier post here requesting local folks to "consider" providing that info to the jurors and they could obtain valuable info regarding juror's rights from the Fully Informed Jury Association @ http://fija.org/.
Nothing wrong with people knowing their rights and it is Perfectly Legal to inform the ignorant, though the cowardly duo apparently disagree...
I will say it again, folks. I had no contact with the defense, and I would not have done so, anyway, as the idea of running a blog campaign while taking directions from an attorney, be he from the defense or prosecution, would not sit well with me.
Furthermore, no attorney as experienced as the ones representing Tonya would have been stupid enough to tell me to write the stuff I wrote. Do you really think that they would have told me to call the prosecutors "Facebook" and "The Man"? Yeah, only if they wanted to be disbarred.
So, what they are giving you is spin, and Channel 9 is in cahoots with them. By the way, if they really think I was plotting with Dr. Lorandos and company, then let them prove it. They can't because no such evidence exists. Look at my phone and email records and you will see what I mean.
Arnt and Gregor are from the Wendy Murphy School of Prosecution. Just say anything and see what sticks.
First, it's hard for me to understand how some people can exist day to day with so much hatred inside of them. Do they ever know peace in their life?
Second, it appears to me that it takes some kind of ego to try to tarnish the reputation of a man such as Mr. Echols. Is it just a game to the DA and the ADAs?
Mr. Anderson and the posters here might also consider that plea bargains work well for career criminals who plead guilty, get paroled after a short prison term and resume their lives of crime. An example (of many) is one Lemaricus Davidson.
In 2001, Davidson committed a carjacking in West Tennessee. Instead of a sentence of close to 20 years, Davidson pled to 10 years and was paroled in 2006 after serving only 5 years.
Upon release, Davidson moved to Knoxville, Tennessee and began to sell dope. He also staged armed robberies and home invasions.
On the night of January 6, 2007, Davidson was the ringleader in the carjacking of a young couple out on a date. What followed was the most horrific crime in East Tennessee history.
If anyone is interested in the details, they can Google "Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom."
Volfan69 (Go Big Orange), It IS just a game to these people. It is destruction to their victims, but they don't care. They are so used to having their way that they think anyone who might oppose them is evil.
Volfan69, honey, you have to realize. These men believe they are doing GOD's work (notice all caps here). They will do whatever necessary to accomplish their goal of getting rid of the small minded, foolish poor folks, without the realization that as soon as they cleanse the county of anyone disagreeing with them they won't have anyone to prosecute but themselves and their buddies. They'll also have to pay a lot more in taxes to maintain the lifestyle to which they've become accustomed. But us little folks aren't going away. Mah goodness, we've even learned to use the internet with ease, making their job so much harder because we keep telling the world what they call lies about their MISSION FROM GOD. Now, the last full weekends before Tonya's acquittal, there were fierce thunderstorms in this area on Sunday night. Fierce enough to knock out the power and flood my basement. (Again, may FEMA rot in hell forever) Then on the day the jury started deliberating, there was a rain I call angel tears. Silent, heavy, sad, so like a host of angels crying no one could call it anything else. That's when the prayers for Tonya's deliverance were the strongest, and the jury saw and understood those signs. Too bad the people persecuting her didn't.
And I'm Southern to the core now even though I grew up in fruit and nut land. Or like all my kids love to say, American by birth, Southern by the grace of God!
Well, Mr. A. and KC, I sure wouldn't want to be in their shoes come judgement day! Bobb
Oh, I meant to add that my husband and I were born and raised in Hamilton County TN. As my husband loves to say, we're as country as cornbread. Bobb
I meant to post this tweet here instead of the previous blog entry Wonder what this is about? :
billie567 RT @calliestarnes: Good Morning tweeps. I just got a peek at the next story @Nosie_Rosie is cooking. You ain't seen nothing yet. #TonyaCraft
First of all, the anon poster who said Mr. Anderson "claiming" those numbers, well those are the #'s posted by the LMJC. We have had numerous discussions regarding how many were actually plea deals. I would dare to guess their true conviction rate for jury trials is probably around 30-40%. Just as in Tonya's case, the evidence is not there. In my case (I was the victim), the evidence was there & even today if they used the DNA evidence, the guy would be convicted ten-fold. Basically, we are all getting the same information & it's all we have to go on. They don't list the actual crime statistics versus true conviction rate. Don't blame Dr. Anderson, blame the LMJC.
The other anon poster is also correct. The plea system actually works against the people (as the people, I refer to the good citizens). Sadly, it also works against the people who are falsely accused, but have no way out. They plea to lesser charges, even though they are innocent, for two reasons. 1) The "players" in this system work against you. The defense attorneys are involved with the judges & DA's. Your chance of finding someone locally to strongly defend you is like finding a needle in a haystack. 2) They can't afford to go out of the "players" network. It's lose-lose. I wish people who actually committed violent crimes would be locked up for life, but anymore, it seems as if the more violent offenders are released while other, not-so-significant crimes or people who can be reformed, are still sitting in prison or their lives are ruined because of a smaller crime or no crime at all. It's all very sad.
KC, not only the things you were talking about, but Monday, May 3rd, there was a huge power outage in the Ringgold area. It had been a sunny, quite hot day & a great deal of us were without power for almost 2 hours. It was the first time in 3 years that we lost power at our house. We survived all the storms from the prior weekend, and the snows & floods from the last year. I immediately pulled out my crackberry & posted on FB. I said, "I think God is trying to tell Catoosa County something, will they listen?" It was interesting to pay attention to everything going on during that trial. I am one of the few who believed she would be (not should be) completely acquitted. I had a peace in my heart that only God could give. It was very nice & gave back a hope that had been lost for a while. I had also awoken the morning of the verdict with the song "How Great Thou Art" playing over & over in my head.
I saw the interview with Sandra Lamb. It's too bad she didn't take the time for self reflection. I felt most troubled by the statement that Tonya is the last person she would have expected. Not necessarily because Tonya is good and righteous but more because she had no one to suspect in the first place. Her daughter engaged in activities which while, not necessarily socially acceptable, perfectly normal for a girl her age, ie., playing doctor with a girl her age or masturbating I'm not sure which and scribbling on the sidewalk the word sex. This led to the relentless questioning of the child, some say over the course of three days to finally have the child give in and give a name. Of course as a private citizens Mrs. Lamb is perfectly entitled to her delusions, though her children are affected as well. Fortunately, Mrs. Craft is safe from those delusions as well.
The prosecution team as public entities are not entitled. 30 plus years of research should have taught them better. Now the taxpayers, and equally importantly, the voters are entitled to some answers. I'm sure Mrs. Lamb would have made a nice feather in the cap in furthering their careers but they didn't take the time to stop and think, what if we are wrong. They richly deserve all the humiliation the public can heap on them.
Alinusara10
I cannot wait for the media to release the attack againt Mr.Echols.Then I pray charges are filed against Sandra Lamb.
More tweets from Nosie_Rosie:
nosie_rosie Off record w/TN judge about #tonyacraft trial... "As a DA u have 2 remember that facts are good but having TRUST is better."
24 minutes ago from TweetDeck
nosie_rosie Off record w/former TN judge about #tonyacraft: "I am embarrassed by the Judiciary & the DA's office; I'm hoping GA will take care of them."
18 minutes ago from TweetDeck
Anon 1:28. Funnily enough, I drove my youngest and husband nuts the last week of the trial singing 'I am Woman' over and over - just the first verse and chorus. Came to mind as I watched Tonya walk into that vipers pit of men. She held up her head and made them see her as a good woman, hence their attacks on her character. They had nothing else. But she continued to hold her head high and made them feel small.
11:09, you covered almost to a "T" the things I took away from that "interview". It's sad because these idiots (since they like to call us & the jurors that) don't even know how to spin. I've seen better spin from a child. I too had to force myself to watch it, but I did so I could form my own opinion, which is something else they do not believe any of us can do. If you have a chance, go back to the blog comments from I think the Buzzare Franklin one. You will see how much mine & yours are alike. So obviously you are very intelligent!!!! LOL Couldn't help it, we all need to find a smile right now. (I really do think that though :-))
Everyone, keep on researching everything you can. I'm still trying to find out about a few things. Right now, the sissy-la-las are not only running away from little Callie, but they are also trying to hide the actual statistics. Trying to find someone from the DA's office who thinks they are true DAs (dumb arses) & is willing to help us out. Did you see that Buzz, Arnt & Gregor? Not everyone likes you, in fact, I don't know but a handful that do. Look around you, you really don't know who your "friends" are. :-)
AMEN KC!!! And we are women, so hear us roar! LOL
K.C. Sprayberry,
If I were a movie producer, and I were making a movie of this tragedy, I would take the words from your post and have a southern, silver-haired, gentle-lady recite those lines. They are classic!!! (You have a gift!)
K.C.
I was referring to your 12:26 post as the movie lines :)
To WRCB,
I want you to know that the loss of Ms Scoggins and her socialite friends, if they really exist) is no loss for you. As I and my family had been exclusive Channel 9 watchers for many years. This case and your "NO SPIN" approach has won us and many more over from the dark side. I really only watched Nine because my childhood friend David Glenn was their weatherman. I assure you, you gained many more viewers than you lost. They money people out there like to think their money buys them friends, allies, and happiness, when all it really buys them is contempt, and people that are of no substance. If you don't think so, let the money dry up and see how many people rush to their side to help out. The viewers that you gained are the salt of the earth. The kind of people that stand up to injustice, and really get a kick out of watching two grown men run from a little Callie Starnes... That was priceless, and shows their cowardice beyond measure... What a bunch of wimps!!!
2:37, Preach it!!! :-)
I have a nice story about Callie. Last year, my daughter's best friend's house burned down. Channel 3 was the first on the scene. Callie brought a container of cookies to them. Even though she didn't know that these people were wonderful, down-home folks, she did something that the daughter & my daughter (both 15) will always remember. So to watch the weiner heads run away from her & to also say the things they have, makes me laugh. I personally do not know Callie, but was there when she made the kind gesture & spoke to the family. If you will notice, she even very kindly asked the questions. If it were me, I would have yelled them. LOL
Keep up the good work Channel 3!
These people need to leave Tonya alone. They ruined her life for 4 years and took away her children for no reason other than to be spiteful. She wins the trial and has huge support from her community and they still keep smearing her name and those associated with her defense. They must have some type of mental illness.
The Lambs,Wilsons,Mcdonalds,Henkes & Boyds all have mental illness.
Miriam Boyd is back walking the block,but what a shock,no one is walking with her.
I heard a rumor Tim Deal was fired. Can anyone confirm.
2010 3:43 PM
tim deal fired, that would be great!
I doubt he was fired. I am sure he has enough dirt on the rest of the place to stay where he is.
In reference to the 'hate-racist' remark Sandra Lamb made to Eric Echols, I must speak about the Chickamauga school system for a bit. My three children went to Chickamauga City schools for 1 year. My oldest was at Gordon Lee High, my 2nd at the middle, & my youngest at the elementary. Didn't really have problems at the high school, except for the fact that after my oldest transferred the following year, he didn't have the credits needed and fell slightly behind. He then played catch up and they had to juggle classes to meet his needs. The middle school enforced this rediculous dress code. My daughter wore a pair of rolled up jeans made into capri pants. NO holes & NO strings were hanging. They weren't even faded. She walks into class & the teacher literally shouted at her saying "Get into dress code! Go to the office until you get into dress code!" numerous times. This embarrassed her & she called my husband (I couldn't be reached at the time) crying hysterically. We went to the school and had a discussion with the teacher in a classroom. I pointed out the fact there was nothing in the dress code policy that said her capris were out of the code. During the meeting, the principal walked in and helped himself to our meeting. He stood next to us with his arms crossed as if he was a referee or something. I was basically told it was the 'teacher's rule' about the dress code. We had problems several times after that also. After dropping my youngest off at the elementary one morning, a lady who was the 'dress code warden' pulled my daughter aside and literally turned her around two times touching her clothes and feeling buttons, etc...She had on a pair of over-all denim shorts & a t-shirt. My daughter looked at me as if she was scared to death, wondering why this woman was doing this to her. Another issue was an awards day that her teacher failed to inform me about. This was very important to me since I never missed anything my children were involved in, especially awards presentations. I literally cried because I wasn't there for her when she went on stage to receive an award. I discussed it with her teacher and it became a big issue. The principal didn't think it was a big deal. I felt like I was in the middle of a school surrounded by people who thought they were above me & my children. Almost like we weren't good enough. We had numerous other issues throughout the year. Needless to say we left the following year. The main thing I wanted to point out here is the fact I never saw one black person in the entire school system. That made me feel very uncomfortable. I grew up in S. California around much diversity. I had friends of all races. Some of my closest were black, hispanic and indian. Although I am white, I consider myself to be rainbow. I also love rainbows...people of ALL races and colors. So when I see a person like Sandra Lamb verbally, and let's not forget physically, attack a black man like Eric Echols, I have to wonder. Is Chickamauga a 'racist' community? Or do black people just not want to go there? Maybe it's both?
Just when I thought I could rest after Tonya was found innocent, I have to take a stand for Eric Echols also. Bring it on Catoosa & LMJC! You don't scare me!!
Anon 2:21. Thank you muchly. Your praise reinforces my rather limp feelings at the moment. I am a writer, have been most of my life but really got into it after our youngest (we call him the caboose) came along. A little over a dozen of my short stories are/have been in print and a couple of novel length stories are in serious consideration. But the publishing industry is still reeling from the recession. Hmmm? Started developing a story years back on a subject such as the one Tonya's gone through. Shelved it after I heard someone say an editor would never believe it. Maybe I should dust it off?
Tim Deal fired, that sure would make my day!!!!
At Chickamauga school unless you are in Kristen Bradleys group you will never be treated right.Unless your name is Wilson, Boyd ,Lamb Mcdonald or Beagles.In middle school it is some better,but in high school Mr.Barker & the teachers do not put up with the bull shit at all.It all goes back to how Kristen Bradley makes a difference,& she always will.Mrs Day please wake up & see how Kristen is.
Dicktective Dirty Deal might have been give a promotion, but I doubt the Fuhrer Summers would fire him.
Of course Bradley will make sure the five fine families will never have to leave Chickamauga.You have to be so far up Kristen's ass to be in the group.What parent would want to kiss that much ass.Really get a life & a clue.The Wilsons,Lambs Boyds, Mcdonalds& Beagles you must be up to your neck in SHIT.
There are more places to get good bbq besides Choo Choo,The Smoke House across from Shop Rite has great food.
KC Sprayberry,
A writer KNOWS a writer. I don't write stories, I write songs. I have had several sung by Martina McBride and Reba's background vocalist, Jennifer Wrinkle. She said that if she ever wanted to start a solo career, one of my songs could launch her career....I go to ASCAP from time to time, and they say my songs could be on albums now, I just need to move to Nashville to network, b/c the buddy system is at work in Nashville too..lol.. Sooo I am putting my house up for sale and making the move.
I kid you not about those lines... I can write a song and visualize the music video... When I read your words, I could totally see the movie scene....Yes, dust off that story...add in those lines... b/c your time just may have come...
I guess I need a name, so just call me... "Hope" :)
...I missed a very important ('s) at the end of McBride...
-Hope
My husband and I received an email from Tonya today.
I will quote a small bit of it, I think some need to hear her words...
~~~~~~
"I know God will bring my children home to me where they belong. I will never allow bitterness or hate to have one ounce of my heart. I pray for healing and restoration for all of the families that have been affected by this trial. I will fight for truth and justice in Catoosa County and in our nation. I will not approach anything with malice or anger - a nation has come beside me and cried tears for me, my children, and all those involved. And with every change I can make in the system, with every life that can be helped in their darkest days, and with every step I take in Jesus' name I have twelve angels with me fighting with me - and they are the twelve jurors!
As I was praying I was led to read Psalm 22 - I think because there were 22 counts. I want to share it with you from the Message"
~~~~~~~~~~
I am not going to put all of Psalm 22 here, but I think we all need to see it. Her faith in the emails we have received over the past 2 years has never wavered, and I feel blessed to be her friend
What a strong woman Tonya truly is
Donna
Does anyone know where you can see the Echols/Lamb video?
Also - I would be shocked if Deal gets fired... more likely he will recieve an award for bravely testifying in the face of so much scorn or something similar... dirty cops don't generally get fired, they get promoted.
Donna, thank you for sharing that with us.
Just heard on Channel 3 that formal papers have been filed with, I think, the Justice Dept. or the Attorney Generals office. The feds have been officially called in.
Donna, thank you very much for reminding us that we need to remember to go without malice through this time. Tonya's right. We need to hold ourselves above the same petty actions the DA and his minions used but still make sure they're held to account for what they've done not only to her but to so many others. It boggles the mind when those of us in this area think of all the people arrested for child molestation and drug related crimes over the last 5-10 years. I checked with my husband tonight and was right in my assumption part of our property taxes support the DA's office. Which does make them accountable to the taxpayers. Simply put, although it's far more complicated than that, as taxpayers we can demand a better explanation than Mr. Franklin gave and his arrogance in assuming we wouldn't understand just shows how much he holds us in contempt. Mr. Franklin, you are a politician but you've forgotten those who put you there. Your out of town supporters can't vote locally. And those who can are angry you've dismissed our concerns to cover the backsides of two employees who so blatantly ignored not only rules of common decency but the law on several occasions.
Denise,
Was this on tv or on line as I could not find it on the web site?
Denise, do you have a link to a news story on this information. Would love to read it.
No other school in Walker County has racial demographics on their website.
Does it frighten anyone besides me that Jerry McDonald is a LifeForce flight paramedic? One of the conspiring perjurers in this whole debacle has the lives of the community in his hands at their time of greatest need. Scary. Also, "OutHouse, Facebook & The Man" are most assuredly making haste to cover up the shady business they have been conducting for years. That's why they aren't doing anymore interviews. And for the record, Walker & Dade counties have the most racist citizens in the area. For instance, Sand Mountain which includes Dade County, GA & several Alabama counties, is notoriously off limits to African-Americans. It doesn't matter who they are (i.e.-delivery people, salespeople, etc.) They are not welcome there and are told regularly to not be caught there at sundown. It is ludicrous.
The truth is horrific enough. No need to exaggerate without documentation.
I am so happy that Tonya is keeping her faith and even building it through her ordeal. I may not be a christian but when I meet a truly faithful person it is astounding and makes hypocrisy that much uglier.
Anon 7:31. I live in Walker County. Most of us around here, in LaFayette, are too busy trying to scrape by on paychecks that are eaten up by politicians determined to treat us like dirt under their feet so they can fund feel good social programs. Honestly, most of the people I am around don't care about the color of a person's skin, only what's inside. However, and I will never argue the fact, there are a lot of people who have closed minds and live in a past that wasn't exactly like they want to remember it. That these people also have big mouths and claim to represent the masses is our burden to bear. Speaking up only seems to spur on the troublemakers, however they can never fight against the quiet kind of opposition we've given them for years - ignoring their ranting while we concentrate on the positive aspects of our lives.
I agree with KC. It is time as not only citizens of Catoosa County but citizens of the United States of America that we stop being treated as blithering idiots who have no idea or interest in what is going on with our ELECTED officials. We ARE NOT idiots and we can see what is going on. Mr. Anderson and other bloggers have awakened a spirit in me to stand up and demand my opinion and my vote count for something. I vow to research and question the ideas and philosophies of the people we elect to some of the most important jobs in my county and my country. I for one thank the people that help me think outside the box and cause me to reach for a higher standard.
Anon 7:31 PM
Let me tell you something. As far as Jerry McDonald and his position on LifeForce goes, you will not find a better Paramedic out here. As I have said many times throughout all of this, he is the kind of medic you want to be looking up at when your life is hanging in the balance. I know Jerry very well, and I have worked with him and his brother. They are some of the best when it comes to pre-hospital care providers. Like him or not, He is a top medic. I don't believe for a minute that he is one of the "conspiring perjurers." I believe with all of my heart that he believes his daughter. He is not one that would get up there and blatantly lie to vengefully try to take someone's freedom away. HE BELIEVES HIS DAUGHTER!!!! It is not Jerry who is to blame for all of this... I truly think that Joal Henke, Sandra Lamb, the Catoosa County Sheriff's Department, and the CAC are the cause of this whole thing.
6:24 and KC.... It was on the television. The report was by Melydia. When she said that there was now going to be an official federal investigation, the corners of her mouth curled up just a little bit. Channel 3 usually takes a little longer to post things to the website.
Narcissist07.... I felt so bad for Mr. McDonald. I feel bad that he has been manipulated by all those people. It really is sad.
Donna @ 5;23
That speaks volumes to me Tonya's children will live the understanding and even Tonya's grandchildren will hear of this and know who delivered her thru this great torment. What a wonderfully blessed person she is. If one looks at the day that time when Tonya was under cross by Chris Arnt it appears that he could not speak without asking the wrong questions or he was busy rambling to himself. I seen it as his tongue was being held by a much higher power.
Lamar
Thanks, Denise C. I'll keep watching the website for the link. Sure will enjoy watching Melydia smile. Those fools even tried to drag her into the mess. Well, they're about to learn.
I don't know any of the families involved in this. I believe that this thing started with some pretty vicious gossip, and other motivations, that snowballed when it was mis-handled (possibly criminally so) by these investigators, interviewers and therapists.
If I had been wearing Mr. McDonald's shoes when people (I had every reason at that time to believe) a "detective" and "professionally trained forensics experts", told me that something bad had happened to my daughter, and then my daughter confirmed when I asked. I would believe her and act accordingly.
@Anon 7:31 is right to defend Mr. McDonald as there are other victims here besides the children and Tonya Craft.
With all that was presented at trial, and what will be coming soon, Mr. McDonald and others have some deep soul-searching to do. I would not want to be in his shoes.
Denise C, just to clarify, Melydia stated that D-Lo has formally filed WRITTEN complaints to the Dept of Justice, the FBI, and the Attorney General. These written complaints followed up his verbal statement the day of the acquittal. There has NOT been an announcement that there is a federal investigation, only that D-Lo has made the formal written complaints. We, of course, would hope there to be an investigation, but that was not the announcement as far as I could tell.
Kaye, thank you for clarifying. I sometimes jumble stuff up. But at least it is a step closer.
I am one who is not all that optimistic about federal investigations. First, the FBI and DEA tend to work with prosecutors and local police in the drug war. The notion of the squeaky-clean, honest federal investigators is a myth; a lot of these people are as dirty as the local crooks.
Furthermore, politics often determines the routes of federal criminal investigations. As one who has written a lot of work on federal crimes, I can say that it would be pretty easy to go after the LMJC bunch, but whether or not POLITICALLY it is feasible is another matter, one I cannot answer.
One reason I want to see disbarment of the Dishonest Duo is that even though these men might have engaged in criminal acts, the fact that they are prosecutors gives them huge walls of legal protections. However, if they are disbarred, then they might have to find honest work.
Just found this humorous and thought I'd share:
Judy O'Neal, the owner of the local station, UCTV, lamented last night on her show that she had scheduled Holly Nave Kittle (CAC)to appear on an upcoming show named "Girlfriendz" which I assume the subject matter that night to be along the line of child molestation. Seems that Ms. Kittle's boss has pulled the plug on her appearance. Could it be that they are closing ranks in anticipation of a lawsuit? One could only hope.
Bill, I believe I remember you mentioning the time Chris Arnt got punched in the nose by Bobby Lee Cook. I have found an article by Teresa Watson who discusses this episode in some detail. It mentions how Bobby Lee Cook's bodyguard, a black man, ended up in jail during the fiasco and how the judge at the time orders his release. Surely the corruption in the LMJC runs far and wide. Good read, nontheless. Enjoy.
http://www.romenewsbywatson.com/?p=1538
YES! I noticed Sandra Lamb's eyes when she was talking too. I know that when a person looks towards their left when talking it means that they are lying and on two of the most important things she said, she indeed looked to her left!!
Honest Work?:
Brian House: Petsmart...the aisle with the parrots, "awk, he's on cross!"
Christ Arnt: Best Buy Computer consultant..."Wanna see my Facebook page?"
Herbert "Buzz" Franklin: Media Consultant..."We can get Channel 9 to cover this our way!"
Len Gregor (too easy): Mall Cop who always seems to linger too long at the Victoria's Secret window!
You guys are good.
Narc 07...Do you believe 3 Job Jerry when he said he never talked to the PI? His wife said he talked to the PI and Echols has the recording. He perjured himself.
Bill, I agree with your last comment. I just read a post on apublicdefender.com "Tonya Craft teaches us all". At the end of his article,he talks about what I hope and pray does not happen here. That after all the Hipe dies down, that it fades into the night. Low income folks' will continue to be Falsely accused and sent off for years. I'm of a firm belief that we have to start in our local communaties and root out these lawless charges. If we as a people would hold our local leaders accountable for their actions, it would filter its way to STATE, and FEDERAL offices. As in the protacol I sent you, all counties in Georgia are to have in place a Child Abuse Protacol. Although, its kept from the public (which I think is what makes this mess continue) all other cases are to come to a pause. Even though the ADA is charged by the state to prosacute theses cases...when evidence comes to lite that would show the defendant is "beyond a reasonable doubt" not guilty. Then that evidence is hidden souly for a conviction show these Men not fit for the offices they serve. Not only should they be disbarred, but a swift kick in the rear on their way out the door would be suitable.
Kaye,
Regarding Kittle dropping off the Judy O'Neal show, think about what has happened since late last week:
Buzz put out an embarrassing fax that made him look like a leader of the problems;
Gregor & Arnt did a 40+ minute interview which is full of inaccuracies;
None of those 3 must respond and any response just keeps their problem in the headlines (stupid);
All 3 could make themselves personally liable doing such PR work (double stupid);
Sells told all she won't change how she runs the CAC, though all see great need for reforms there; and
Kittle was a complete flop in her media appearance.
Surely they can see what they're doing to themselves by now, so i can understand Kittle being directed to drop scheduled media attention.
Yet as of last night, Sheriff Summers was still suppose to be Judy O'Neal's cohost for her morning program on Thursday. Last time I saw him on her evening show, he was claiming that Det. Deal is qualified to do interviews and that all of his officers, including Deal, are very well-trained. LOL Perhaps he will be cancelling on her before then, too, but I doubt it.
On Buzz's press statement, Judy O'Neal said that it was "good" and she's always liked him. Ha!
The cover up is often what incriminates the perpetrators.
The sheriff is a little more of an onlooker full of opinion. Deal was getting his orders from the DA's office.
Well, I understand what you're saying, kbp, but somebody turned the table on Eric Echols when he went to Catoosa County Sheriff's office to file a complaint on Sandra Lamb and instead found himself in trouble.
I laugh in the general direction of the people who talk about a certain principal being such a good person. If you are someone that she needs to further her or her children's career, she is good to you. If you ever, and I mean ever, do anything to cross her though, you are through. Why she has so much power in that town is amazing to me. She is aligned with the "right" people in town though, so she isn't going away. My suggestion is to do what Anon 3:57 did and leave if you aren't happy.
One more thing, one of the biggest hoaxes in northwest Georgia is how good the Chickamauga City School system is. It is extremely overrated.
I can understand someone strongly defending someone they know, ie Jerry McDonald. One thing I hope we all have learned from this is, you never know someone as well as you think you do. I don't know Jerry, but have friends who work with him & think highly of his work. Their problem & mine is that he did perjure himself. No matter "who started it", he had the opportunity to stand up & defend the honor of an innocent woman. I'm not even going to use the word perjury with what he did, he lied on the stand, not once, but twice, which both can be proven as lies. Like I said, he may be a fine paramedic, but he let himself, his children, his community & most of all, his God, down. I will not argue with his credentials, I will only argue the fact that he lied. I know we all tell little fibs here & there, but his was concerning whether a woman spent the rest of her life in prison or not. His was one that he knowingly addressed a court to tell the truth, the whole truth & nothing but the truth. Then he lied. Period. There is no, "he really believes his daughter", because he doesn't & hasn't. That is why he told Eric Echols that he didn't believe it happened. So his 2 lies on the stand were that he believes his daughter, and that he never spoke to Eric Echols. Now, my friends who have been friends with him for many years have expressed concerns for his mental well-being. From what they have observed, they see a very controlling wife & a meek man who simply followed what he was told to say. For this, we all feel sorry for him because there is a deep-seeded reason why he "follows the orders". These people actually know the reasons, but they still do not find his actions acceptable. They have not confronted him or made him aware of their feelings towards his perjured statements, but they have seen his change. I do feel sorry for him, but I believe he needs to look to the Lord to find the strength to make his part of the wrongs, right and of all the people who did wrong in this, I believe he will be the one to make it right. I pray for him daily.
Another thing that bothers me is the fact that we just had a special election in our district last Tuesday aka verdict day. We obviously didn't learn anything after 4 weeks of the trial. As I was not a staunch supporter of any of the candidates, somehow our people voted to have 2, already known, do-nothings to end up in a run off election. If everyone would have researched all of the people running, they would have found the 2 who have already served in our state & absolutely accomplished nothing. My husband & I voted for the "non-politician". The way we look at it is this, you get one chance, on term & if you have done nothing for the betterment of your constituents, then you don't get our vote. Nonetheless, now we are faced with a run-off of two people who have already had their chance and blown it. If there is not the opportunity to write in, I will fill out my info, take my card, put it in the machine & make a poll worker come take it out as I will be abstaining from voting, but making that known. I have done this in 3 different elections. It confuses the poor poll workers, but it means I exercised my right to vote & simply chose not to choose the "lesser of 2 evils". Evil is evil & there is no lesser form.
All I ask is that people pay attention. We have all said, "that come election time, we will do this & we will do that, but once again, we failed last Tuesday. Luckily, Tonya won her battle that day, but I do believe her promise to help make changes. Will we actually do it or will we simply say it? It's our choice.
@ Narc 07:
So, the McDonalds believed their daughter & were soooo concerned for her well being that after she was whipped with at belt they took her to their pediatrician. Wow. Nothing says "I care" like hitting a child with a leather strap for doing something that comes naturally (self-discovery or even discovery with a friend of a close age-it's called curiosity). So, of course when the child was asked where she "learned" this behavior it had to be from somewhere other than it being her own idea (for fear of another belt whipping). So, when some heroic policeman/detective/investigator asks if Ms. Tonya touched her-yep that's it! That's where she learned it. Whatever-these people are so transparent and pathetic!!
Where is Al Sharpton when we need him?? Can't someone "slip" a copy of that tape to him and the NAACP along with Sandra Lamb's address?? A little dose of reality would do that woman a WORLD of good. She better learn how to live on her own because her kingdom is crumbling around her and I think/hope she finds herself not welcome in N. Ga very soon.
Anon 1135
It's not always easy to be parent.
I agree there was an overreaction to curiosity. I believe the perjury by Mr McDonald speaks more to his character than whipping his child. It is human to overreact. Maybe the McDonald's are a missionary only kind of a couple and didn't know how to their child's experimentation. Remember, wearing thongs or sport bras are deviant sexual behavior in the LMJC.
I was a sexually charged little girl when I was six or seven. Behind closed doors, I used to become completely naked, made my friend (female) also naked, and danced to some music.
My friend and I also stripped our Barbie dolls naked and made our dolls touch each other down there. When we were doing that, we talked about "feeling funny down there". We were sexually aroused!
I swear no adult person had taught us to behave this way, and both my friend and I grew up to be heterosexual women.
The doctor/nurse game or boyfriend/girlfriend game has been around for ages. My 88yr old grandmother said she even did it as a small child.
Total Tonya supporter here..but when did whipping your child become a crime? Granted I don't feel the child should have been whipped under those circumstances. BUT - We are no better here for critizes them for whipping their child than the prosecution was for saying wearing a thong is a child molester.
I pray for Tonya and these children. And now Mr. Echols.
Thank you Mr. Anderson for a great blog.
I agree with previous posters that this man lying on the stand is the more important topic.
Mr. Anderson will be pleased with the job I predict Gregor and Arndt will end up with. They will probably resign without being disbarred and like many prosecutors, become criminal defense attorneys. I have seen defense attorneys act (yelling at witnesses while cross examining) as Gregor and Arndt did in the Tonya Craft trial many times. The difference is that defense lawyers (Cochran, Bailey, Bruce Cutler, and one Theodore Lavitt whom I saw in person two weeks ago) are allowed to conduct themselves this way.
Vicki Scoggins, you are an idiot. The media was not seen by the jurors. There was a gag order in place. Bring charges if you know they watched Channel 3. If not, then shut up. But then there is Mr. Wonderful Buzz Franklin. He admitted in his fax to Channel 9 that he only watched some of the news coverage. My question is, if there was a gag order in place, then why did the District Attorney get to watch the news coverage and it not be legal. I mean he admitted he watched some of it. Oh, I forgot, the "good ole boy" standard applies here. He can watch but not the defense. My bad. But Vicki Scoggins, really, do you think your few pennies will be putting some of these businesses out of business. Or do you think the Lamb's, Wilson's, McDonald's, Kittle's, Deal's, Boyd's and Evan's will join you in your penny revolution. Get real sister, your bravado is smelling up my computer screen.
I still am interested in the "you know better than that" comment by the mother who beat her child. While what she did may or may not constitute abuse--need verification she hit the child elsewhere other than on her bottom--her statement that the girl "knows better than that" means, at least to me, that the mother had caught the girl doing something similar prior to that incident. This leads me to wonder whether THAT girl was the instigator. Ms Craft's daughter told her that the other girl instigated, which backs up this assumption. So, I am thinking that the McDonalds began their involvement in the case against Ms Craft in an attempt to prove their little daughter isn't a lesbian. Can someone provide insight into this line of reasoning?
^ Don't quote me on this, but I believe if you use an object, in hand, when you "punish" a child, it is considered simple assault in Georgia.
I'll get back on casemaker and have a look around.
Well, I didn't live in Georgia, but growing up, with family all over the state of Georgia, and considering how often I did something stupid enough to merit a spanking, and considering that my dad frequently used a belt, I suppose he committed simple assault on me, as did my mom when she used that wooden spoon that mysteriously disappeared one day only to be found years later by my mother whilst digging in the garden.
It's child abuse if you hit them hard enough to leave a bruise that does not disappear within 48 hours on thir bottom or hit them anywhere other than their bottom--head, arms, legs, torso. Spankings are supposed to be on the tushy, not all over, which is what seems to have been the case here. This part may have been exaggerated during testimony. I don't know, I wasn't there, and no video exists. The way Ms Craft described it during her testimony, it was as though she was horsewhipping her daughter, which brings up the question, where did she get the belt? Not many women wear leather belts. Most female belts are made of cloth, unless they're gothy or some kind of fashion-oriented belt.
Hey ANON 5:11 I too actually know Jenifer Wrinkle and her name is spelled with one "n" not 2. Someone who actually knows her would know this. I will tell her what you said and tell her you said hi ;)
The Wilson lady spent most of the day at Chickamauga Elementary School yesterday bringing in drinks from Sonic for her favorites. And of course Joni Kythas was one of the ones kissing her butt!
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/event.php?eid=120282658002398
Here is the facebook page for the carwash.
6:29, what were you trying to say to 5:11? Just curious.
I am truly glad that Tonya is a free woman. I hate some of the things that go on in our school system. With that said, Sherri Wilson didn't spend all day at the school yesterday. I was at the school yesterday and only saw her in her car. I don't care for her at all but I believe in being honest about things. This whole ordeal started with lies, lets not continue them.
Bill, an impressive group of Bloggers gave gathered here!
Although Tonye resolves to approach nothing with Malice, her victimizers’ Malice will never stop. They are relentless in their evil.
John Newton was born in the shadow of St. Paul’s Cathedral, but became evil, as the words of his hymn - Amazing Grace - confess.
Then he did a St. Paul.
I am afraid that is too much to expect of the LMJC evil-doers.
Tonye, and this Group can hope, but must never relent.
Correcting "Q.A. said..."above
Bill, an impressive group of Bloggers have gathered here!
Although Tonye resolves to approach nothing with Malice, her victimizers’ Malice will never stop. They are relentless in their evil.
John Newton was born in the shadow of St. Paul’s Cathedral, but became evil, as the words of his hymn - Amazing Grace - confess.
Then he "did a St. Paul".
I am afraid that is too much to expect of the LMJC evil-doers.
Tonye, and this Group can hope, but must never relent.
May 19, 2010 11:20 AM
Mrs. Wilson was inside the school, in fact she was visiting with Joni and the secretary in her newly located office. And I do agree...there a lot of things wrong with the system at CES and playing favorites has always been one of them. She may not have been there "all" day but was there for hours.
I have known Jerry McDonald my whole life, and I'm fairly worried about his mental state as well. I agree is he probably great at his job, but I'm INCREDIBLY disappointed in him. He did lie more than once on the stand and further, there is videotape to prove it. I can only imagine the fear and worry he has at night when he lays his head down and cannot sleep. I used to go to the cult (Shiloh) many years ago and I knew Jerry was struggling with something then. I know that his wife told me about his supposed molestation, but frankly I don't buy it. I think he experimented. I know the person she told me it as with and he was OLDER (old enough to whip the guy's butt anyway)when it allegedly happened In addition, he took a job later in life sitting at the desk next to the guy - not something a person who had been molested would seek out or do. I am not even sure this poor guy knows what he's been accused of honestly. I've tried to contact him because I worry since he is a church official in another state. If it comes out in court etc., that could ruin his career, and I simply do not believe it. Kelli actually told me that he and his wife prey on young males and she helps lure them into their home. I don't believe that for one second. They are both really good people. They were also friends with Julie Leonard Watson. I can remember a period where Jerry was drinking heavily, involved in really bad things and struggling with some vicious inner demons. Frankly, he seemed nearly suicidal then and that was nothing compared to the MANY affairs he later admitted to having or lying on the stand when you work in such a noble profession. Jerry isn't cut out for this type of deception and as Eric Echols case nears and the tapes come to light...I wouldn't be surprised if I got a phone call telling me about Jerry one day. Jerry is deeply spiritual but deeply disturbed. He has been since BEFORE Kelli and I kind of feel like a part of their initial attraction was her being that guiding force. She is incredibly unstable and overbearing and I can absolutely see her manipulating him for "payment" of his past indiscretions.
As for Al Sharpton, while the trial was underway, Jessie Jackson spoke at Olivet Baptist Church. I sent the Rainbow Coalition a letter as well as forwarded it to the church. I was hoping maybe while he was in town he would stop by. This was during the days when the "lesbian" remarks and all were flying in the courtroom. I also contacted Gloria Alred because I figured the civil rights violations would be right up her ally but I was told that she does not practice outside the state of California. Maybe now that national media is picking up, it will catch some of their attention. I know Channel 3 all the way to the top is on her side. Maybe if more and more people contact these people they'll take interest. Tonya cannot and should not have to take on fighting all these battles alone - she can't financially and eventually she's going to have A LOT of studying to do! Maybe some of these organizations can really pack a punch. I'd love nothing more than to see the million man march go right through the center of Ringgold, GA.
Anon 2:27. I also contacted GLAAD and Lambda Legal, but never heard back from either. I did talk with two of my gay friends about this and urged them to broach the subject with their local organizations to which they belong. I think I may do the same with some of my Black friends. I know two of them to be involved in their local NAACP chapters. I like the NAACP, and despite some things I don't like that the national organization has done in the past 10 or so years, their local chapters are still doing good work.
Thanks Lame. I will contact them as well. I too have a few friends who are gay, and I will see if they have any contacts.
2:27, you apparently do know Jerry. I'm the one who posted previously & our mutual friends have said the same things. They are genuinely concerned about him & afraid he is going to do something. Even though he lied, & I mean flat out lied, they believe there is an underlying mental issue & some of it having to do with that past indiscretion & some to do with Kelli. I don't know them personally, but these are people who know him on a much deeper level than the "hey, I went to school with this guy" or "I've known him all my life". It's the things that he has told them & it was way, way, way before all of this started 2 years ago. Sooooo, I am going to encourage my friends to talk to him & maybe they can get him some help.
To anon. 7:55 Since you don't know him why try to slander him on a public blog. Maybe you should mind your own business since you don't personally know him. Nosy people spreading rumors ruin lives..remember what has happened to Tonya...just sayin.
Nearly 8 years later. It is finally true. lol
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