Argumentative Essay: Texas Death Row Inmate

Improved Essays
Texas Death Row Inmate Eric Lyle Williams On January 31, 2013, Chief Assistant District Attorney Hasse was walking from his car to the Kaufman County Courthouse when an unknown masked assailant shot him. Mr. Hasse died on scene. Kaufman County Sheriff's Department had few leads, but suspected the actor to be an individual previously prosecuted by the district attorney's office, and the shooting to be retaliatory. Two months later, on Easter weekend of that year, County Criminal District Attorney Michael McLelland and his wife, Cynthia was found dead within their residence. Around twenty rounds of ammunition had been fired at the McLellands ending their lives, with a single round killing Cynthia and the rest fired into Michael. …show more content…
Eric Williams had served Kaufman County in the past as Justice of the Peace Precinct 1. Eric Williams had been elected in November 2010. By 2012 however, Mr. Williams was removed from office after being convicted of Felony Theft, around April 2011. Mark Hasse and Michael McLelland tried that case. After the prosecution of Eric Williams, he was found guilty, placed on probation, his peace officer license and his law license revoked. Scott Gordon reported on April 2, 2013, that Eric Williams, "was questioned by agents just hours after the slain district attorney and his wife were found but insists he had nothing to do with it and doesn't even own a gun," (Gordon, 2015). On April 18, 2013, Eric Williams and his wife Kim were arrested for three counts of murder. During the trial, Kim Williams provided the most damaging testimony in which she detailed that the murders had been planned. Eiserer reported, "Cynthia McLelland wasn't on Williams' death list. He referred to her as collateral damage" (Eiserer, 2015). During his trial in Rockwall County on 4 December 2014, The jury of twelve found Williams guilty on all three counts of Capital murder. Sentencing commenced On 17 December 2014 by the presiding Judge Mike Snipes, of

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Racial issues in the United States faces center stage once again in national news, this time in Charlotte, North Carolina. Riots and violent conflict between blacks and whites have erupted within the city since Tuesday, when Keith Lamon Scott, an African American 43-year old man with seven children was killed Tuesday in his neighborhood after an incident between him and police. The full details of the shooting have been modified by both police officials and eyewitnesses and neighbors, and has raised controversy on what actually happened in the final moments of Scott’s life. Protests against the event have escalated into riots, where stores and buildings like the Spectrum Center, home of the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets have been victims of looting and vandalism.…

    • 509 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Couple Jodi Arias and Travis Alexander, a complicated, sex-crazed relationship, ended in a gruesome murder. After just a few months of dating, Arias became filled with jealousy and envy, which drove her to kill Travis Alexander. On June 4th, 2008, hours after having sex with Travis Alexander, Jodi Arias, stabbed him 27 times, slit his throat, and then shot him in the head with .25 caliber handgun while in the shower. The evidence that was collected were photos, DNA, and a palm print all leading to Jodi Arias. The evidence of this case pled Jodi Ann Arias guilty of the murder of Travis Alexander.…

    • 104 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Eric Harris Research Paper

    • 1376 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Eric Harris kept extensive documentation of his thoughts and plans on his website. Although it did not include his motives like his journal, the ‘blog’ included statements about his making of pipe bombs. The parents of Brooks Brown, Judy and Randy, notified the police of the website. Eric unintentionally gave law enforcement a written confession of his intent to kill, two years before the massacre (165). The actions of the police during this period seemed less urgent than it should have been.…

    • 1376 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In addition, it was also specified that the NYPD bans the use of chokeholds in an arrest. Like the Trayvon Martin’s case, federal prosecutors and investigators were in a disagreement over the strength of evidence in the death of Eric Garner, particularly that there was inconclusive evidence over the amount of force used and how long the chokehold was to kill Garner. The investigation is however still ongoing but recent changed may have sparked a hold. Attorney General Loretta Lynch stepped down without the Justice Department having charged or cleared police officers in the death of Eric Garner. The Chicago Tribune posted an article from the Washington Post concerning the attorney.…

    • 313 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “I’m going to put wings on pigs today. They take 1 of ours…Let’s take 2 of theirs #ShootThePolice #RIPEricGarner #RIPMikeBrown This may be my final post”(Mueller, Baker) posted Ismaaiyl Abdullah Brinsley on Instagram hours before brutally killing two NYPD officers. On December 20, 2014, NYPD officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu were brutally executed by Ismaaiyl Abdullah Brinsley who committed the acts under the motive of revenge for the deaths of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and others who died due to police brutality. Prior to the shootings, Brinsley shot his ex-girlfriend, who reported the incident to the Baltimore Police.…

    • 1630 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    (Photo: Courtesy Monmouth County Prosecutor's…

    • 489 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Police Brutality In Jason

    • 924 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Recently, in Chicago, a worldwide scene has shocked the nation. The question is determined if police brutality was used. Several police officers shot and killed the seventeen year old, Laquan McDonald. One of the police officers, Jason Van Dyke, is accused of shooting the seventeen-year-old about sixteen times to bring the suspect down. Officer Jason Van Dyke was accused and charged with first-degree murder in the month of November no longer than a month after the incident occurred.…

    • 924 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Final Exam Paper

    • 788 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Final Exam Question 1. Analyze a landmark court rulings explain how this case changed police practices to stay compliant with the law. In 1974, two members of the Memphis Police Department were responding to burglary in progress call; the neighbor reported that she heard glass breaking as someone broke into the home next door (Blume, 1984). Upon investigation, one of the officers witnessed someone fleeing from the back of the house, he spotted the suspect crouching beside a fence thirty to forty meters away (Blume, 1984).…

    • 788 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The case I have decided to write about is the controversial case regarding the officers who shot and killed Sean Bell. There has recently been a lot of controversy over law enforcement misconduct. In today’s world, almost everything is videotaped, which often causes a lot of conflict because it doesn’t display all the facts. Most times, the video is just a short portion of what really occured. In Sean Bell’s case, it shows that there is still ongoing corruption and police brutality that occurs.…

    • 1391 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    A Utilitarian Case For Capital Punishment On November 21, 1973, a man named Troy Leon Gregg murdered two men while hitchhiking in an attempted robbery in the mountains of Georgia. In the case Gregg v. Georgia, Gregg was sentenced to the electric chair by a Georgia Grand Jury and this decision was upheld by the US Supreme Court after many appeals. It was deemed that the death penalty does not violate the eighth amendment of the constitution that prohibits cruel and unusual punishment. Although Gregg escaped custody and was found dead one day prior to his execution, the decision reaffirmed the use of capital punishment in the United States.…

    • 2649 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    People may no longer be safe when walking down the streets not because of the gangs, but of the men and women in the blue uniform who swore to serve and protect. “Nothing is more despicable than respect based on fear” (Albert Campus) that is what the police have done in today's society. They have been able to get away with murder and beating citizens for a very long time. They do not only attack people of certain ethnicity but also people who were peacefully protesting or not doing, anything at all just going about their normal day. In some cases the police spin a tale about how the person supposedly had a gun on them.…

    • 999 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Coroner In America

    • 1903 Words
    • 8 Pages

    The coroner determines who the corpse was, how, when, and where they died. An inquest report is a judicial inquiry in order to prove the manner and cause of one’s death. A coroner uses medical examinations in order to investigate deaths and bodily injuries. Sometimes, these are under suspicious circumstances.…

    • 1903 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Pessimistic problems have recently surfaced in the United States causing many issues between the American Population. To imagine if one of the founding fathers were to see how America is today would be hideous. Thomas Jefferson would probably view America as a country that is spiraling out of control, which wouldn’t be completely out of proportion. The United States face many problems today including racial equivalency, poor political candidates, too many people on welfare, immigration laws, and the education system.…

    • 1417 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    It happened June, 2014, when Shirley Marshall Harrison called 911 asking for assistance to take her son to the hospital. She told the operator her son had bipolar schizophrenia and that he was off his medications. Shirley wanted to make sure they sent trained police officers to properly deal with the situation. Two Dallas police officers responded to the call and the body cam video of one of them recorded what happened at the scene. When the officers knock on the door, Shirley answered and walked outside followed by her 38 years old son, Jason Harrison who had a screwdriver in his hand.…

    • 743 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    1. What news story did you read about? Give a summary. Answer:…

    • 781 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Great Essays