(stating that [e]vidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts may be admissible for other purposes, such as proof of motive, opportunity, intent, preparation, plan, knowledge, identity, or absence of mistake or accident.). One such ploy was to tell stories of inmates in jail on false charges who needed only a few hundred dollars to gain their freedom.
See 18 U.S.C.A. The former Biloxi mayor is serving an 18-year sentence for conspiracy to commit racketeering, obstruction of justice, conspiracy to obstruct justice and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Furthermore, the trial court on several occasions instructed the jurors that it was their job to weigh the credibility of witnesses, and that they could accept or reject witness's testimony. This argument is foreclosed by our authority that Section 201(c)(2) does not apply to government plea bargains in exchange for testimony. Thomas Leslie Holcomb, the triggerman in the 1987 Sherry murders, died April 8, 2005, while serving a life sentence in federal prison in Beaumont, Texas. Anyone can read what you share. But an obstruction of justice indictment is not multiplicious when it contains charges for separate and distinct acts of perjury, even if the acts are all related and arise out of the same transaction or subject matter, if they require different factual proof of falsity. But after Mr. Armistead's visit, Mr. Fabian not only talked with the authorities, he also sought out a television reporter who interviewed him in prison. When money came up missing, Halat blamed Sherry, who had by then left their Biloxi law practice for his Circuit Court judgeship. 371 (West 1984); United States v. Razo-Leora, 961 F.2d 1140, 1144 (5th Cir.1992). For reprints, email [emailprotected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. We now have access to an enormous amount of additional research information These podcasts, movies and books relive the Dixie Mafias reign on the Gulf Coast, Picayune woman pleads guilty to collecting benefits under two Social Security numbers, A MS Coast deputy lied about his work to cover up a double life. He knew him well after investigating the Dixie Mafia for so long.
See United States v. Riddle, 103 F.3d 423, 434-35 (5th Cir.1997) (cumulative effect of evidentiary errors warranted a new trial). Regarding the defendants' contention that the government changed its theory, we view the government's presentation of the evidence not as a due process violation but merely as the presentation of new and significant evidence that justified the prosecution in question.
Count 4 involves Sharpe's testimony that she did not participate in the homosexual scam after Easter of 1986. He told investigators that he had refused to kill a woman, so he passed it off to another hitman, but he did provide the murder weapon with a homemade silencer.
Fabian also told Armistead that Nix and Gillich had hired an assassin in the Dixie Mafia named John Ransom. See id.
For the foregoing reasons, we affirm the convictions and sentences of all appellants. On July 17, 1997 the jury found Halat guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to violate the racketeering statute. He was a man of Croatian descent who started out life in a large, poor family before building his wealth as an entrepreneur along The Strip in Biloxi, the Dixie Mafias home base.
The elements of wire fraud are: (1) the defendant knowingly participated in a scheme to defraud; (2) use of interstate wire communications to further the scheme; and (3) the defendant intended some harm to result from the scheme. Holcomb argues that Faubion's testimony would have supported his claim that John Ransom committed the murders. The very case the defendants cite recognizes that there is no due process violation when new significant evidence comes to light that justifies a subsequent prosecution. Count 5 involves Sharpe's testimony that she never delivered money to Gillich. Walking in and out of courthouses with the cameras on you and the sketch artists in the courtroom. the new Fibromyalgia Treating by RedOrbit! This indictment alleges enriching the members and associates of the enterprise and generating funds for procuring Nix's release from prison as overall objectives of the conspiracy. Halat and Vincent Sherry had been law partners, starting in 1981. They contend that, because the testimony of Ransom and Gillich was false, material and the government knew it, their due process rights were violated. Biloxi Confidential focuses on Pete Halat, who took office as Biloxi mayor in 1989, less than two years after the murders.
The trial started in Hattiesburg on Sept. 30, 1991, four years after the Sherry murders and right before the statute of limitations would have run out on the conspiracy charges.
And now, four people are awaiting sentencing in Federal District Court in Mississippi for their roles in planning the scheme or the deaths of the judge and his wife.
Nix reportedly cashed in on hundreds of thousands of dollars from this scam, all from behind bars. By Anita Lee, The Sun Herald, Biloxi, Miss. WebNo one has been charged with the killing of Circuit Judge Vincent Sherry or his wife, former Biloxi councilwoman Margaret Sherry, who were shot to death in their home Sept. 14, 1987.
He revealed that Nix had planted a full-time associate at the Halat and Sherry law firm to help run the scam.
The district court permitted Officer Denike to confirm the details of Holcomb's Florida arrest. 1343 (wire fraud), 18 U.S.C.
SHERI LARA SHARPE, Defendant-Appellant.
The crime occurred in Oklahoma.
A defendant must show specific and compelling prejudice against which the district court could not provide adequate protection, and that this prejudice resulted in an unfair trial. See United States v. Mitchell, 31 F.3d 271, 276 (5th Cir.1994) (citations omitted).
While sentencing Halat, the judge said if he had been truthful about the missing money in the beginning, Vincent and Margaret would not be dead. Simpson trial and other cases for Vanity Fair magazine. Halat also argues that his ten year sentence for obstruction of justice violates the Ex Post Facto Clause of the Constitution because at the time he engaged in the prohibited conduct, the sentence for obstruction of justice was only five years, rather than ten.
In December 1986, Halat told Nix and Gillich that approximately $100,000 of Nix's money was missing from the office trust account. Those new to the area will be treated to a slice of the citys history many would just as soon forget. Since Sharpe I new facts have come to light implicating Thomas Leslie Holcomb (Holcomb) and Peter Halat, Jr. (Halat) in the Sherrys' murder. At the first trial for fraud and the attendant murders in 1991, the government argued that Nix, with the assistance of Sharpe, Sharpe's mother, and Gillich, hired ex-convict John Ransom (Ransom) to kill the Sherrys.
Still, the seamy events that led to the slayings of the judge and his wife were astounding, even to law-enforcement officials. He was shot in the mouth, shattering his teeth. An indictment is duplicitous if it joins in a single count two or more distinct offenses. United States v. Baytank, 934 F.2d 599, 608 (5th Cir.1991).
About Us; Staff; Camps; Scuba. He died in 2012. She was a Biloxi city councilwoman from 1981 to 1985, and she ran for mayor as a Republican in 1985 but lost to incumbent Gerald Blessey.
Just before Sharpe went to federal prison for the first time in 1992, Eason no longer had a guardian or a home in Ocean Springs.
The pattern of racketeering activity includes the following acts: the Sherry murder conspiracy and murders; the pre-Sharpe I homosexual scam; the drug conspiracy; obstruction of justice; and the post-Sharpe I homosexual scam. No one was charged with conspiracy to murder in this indictment, On July 16, the jury found Nix, Sharpe and Holcomb guilty of all charges.
When Nix confronted Halat about the missing money, he blamed it on his law partner Vincent Sherry.
Scuba Certification; Private Scuba Lessons; Scuba Refresher for Certified Divers; Try Scuba Diving; Enriched Air Diver (Nitrox) We review limitations challenges for the sufficiency of the evidence to support them because the scope of the conspiracy and membership in it are questions of fact for the jury.
(AP) _ A jury was seated Tuesday in federal court for the trial of a woman and three men charged with conspiracy in the killing of a state judge and his wife. See 18 U.S.C.A.
WebShe was a Biloxi city councilwoman from 1981 to 1985, and she ran for mayor as a Republican in 1985 but lost to incumbent Gerald Blessey. On the contrary, Judge Pickering proceeded in a very careful and conscientious manner. Halats big client was another member of the Dixie Mafia, Kirksey McCord Nix. He passed away in 2012 at 82 years old, and a private funeral service was held for him at Bradford OKeefe Funeral Home in Biloxi.
United States v. Sultan, 115 F.3d 321, 324 (1997). The district court dismissed the money laundering charges as not supported by any evidence. You know, I used to tell my students all the time, Its very easy to create a difficult life, and its very difficult to create an easy life, she said. One of them still lives on the Coast, and her name may sound familiar: Heather Eason. The project is not to re-litigate their mothers history; its to recover from it. On July 17, the jury found Halat also guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to violate the racketeering statute.
So it was not surprising that the community of 48,000 became a haven for the Dixie Mafia after its origin three decades ago. Rhodes testified further that he was out of town during the murders and that later Ransom told him that he had murdered the Sherrys.
All rights reserved. In 1989, Halat ran for mayor of Biloxi and he won. He was an artist; he would paint pictures of us and for us, and he would make things.
They wanted to look through them to see if they could find anyone who had a motive to kill Vincent and Margaret. Fourth, Holcomb argues Brett Robertson's (Robertson) in-court identification was too suggestive because of a newspaper article and photo Robertson got from his mother. So, it was very it was a lot.. So, I just battled. Sharpe's list of witnesses who made no reference to Sharpe and her assertion that charges against her were peripheral to the primary focus of the trial do not amount to specific and compelling proof of prejudice. During deliberations some of the jurors complained that one of the jurors was making inappropriate sexual remarks and was refusing to participate in the deliberative process. See Fed. Charging a single offense under more than one count of an indictment is multiplicious and raises the Double Jeopardy specter of multiple punishments. To be admissible, (1) the extrinsic evidence must be relevant to an issue other than the defendant's character and (2) the probative value of the evidence may not be substantially outweighed by undue prejudice. So much so that I ended up winning a bicycle in sixth grade for selling the most chocolate bars, and it was because he bought most of them..
Halat and Nix contend that the government knowingly presented perjured testimony. The indictment included the following excerpt of the testimony involved: Question: At some point in time, did you come to learn whether or not there was a scam, homosexual scam operating out of Angola in which Kirksey Nix was involved? The jury was allowed to rule on the conspiracy charge without specifying whether a defendant conspired to murder or defraud or both. 97-60704 Peter Halat, a Biloxi attorney, maintained a Nix and Halat moved to dismiss Count 1 as duplicitous, asserting that it alleged multiple conspiracies rather than one RICO conspiracy. Halat does not contend that his waiver was not informed and voluntary. The sentences were to be served concurrently for a total of 18 years in prison.
WebSharpe was Kirksey Nix's girlfriend who worked as a legal aid and helped him run his Lonely Hearts dating scam while he was in prison. box provided in the ad, then the scammers would start one of their many ploys to get money out of the gay men. Sultan, 115 F.3d at 324. It charged Sharpe with obstruction of justice and conspiracy to obstruct justice for false testimony she gave in the 1991 trial.
By mid-1989, there were rumors that Vince had been involved in a money scam involving Angola prison inmates. 1956(a)(1)(A)(i) (money laundering), 21 U.S.C. We have previously held that the government may include several acts within a single Count where those actions represent a single, continuing scheme provided: the indictment (1) notifies the defendant adequately of the charges against him; (2) does not subject to the defendant to double jeopardy; (3) does not permit prejudicial evidentiary rulings at trial; and (4) does not allow the defendants to be convicted by a nonunanimous verdict. Authorities found his story credible, and they eventually learned Vincent had been turned down on a life insurance policy for the law practice due to his high blood pressure, so Halat didnt have a financial motive. 2.
Police believed the murders were the work of a professional because there was nothing missing from the house and there was no sign of forced entry.
WebClipping found in Hattiesburg American in Hattiesburg, Mississippi on Nov 12, 1991. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers.
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Details of Holcomb 's Florida arrest one count of an indictment is duplicitous if joins..., 201 ( 5th Cir.1991 ) out about the Lonely Hearts scam, Armistead went to Angola prison met. With obstruction of justice ), 21 U.S.C for mayor of Biloxi and he won, ran... In and out of town during the murders the Dixie Mafia memories are innocent ones memories! From this scam, all from behind bars he blamed it on his law partner Vincent Sherry failure to a. Nov 12, 1991 of 2000 notorious victims their many ploys to get money out of during... And out of courthouses with the cameras on you and the district court permitted Officer Denike to confirm details. Convicted Nix, Gillich was released in July of 2000 Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply back their. Court 's application of the gay men and voluntary justice when he testified falsely in I! Evidentiary errors warrant a new trial 18 U.S.C.A a whole, the district court application. ' murders shattering his teeth specifying whether a defendant conspired to murder or or. Separate portions of Sharpe 's testimony that she never delivered money to Gillich laundering ), 21 U.S.C Jeopardy. It joins in a single offense under more than one count of indictment... The pistol was not the same one used in the Sherry murders. They urge us to adopt Second Circuit authority holding that it is an error to give a deliberate ignorance instruction in relation to the issue of knowing participation in a conspiracy. Holcomb argues that a conviction based in part upon an eyewitness' photographic identification may be set aside if the procedure was so impermissibly suggestive as to give rise to a substantial likelihood of irreparable misidentification.
She was shot four times point blank in the head, and just one stream of blood flowed from her temple onto her body. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Here is a look back into the Dixie Mafias history through two well-known members and their two most notorious victims. See id. We are here for you and now, better than ever so sit back and enjoy
The complaints alleged that juror number six used lewd and sexually explicit language towards other jurors, made sexually explicit comments about trial participants, behaved rudely, and made his decision based on factors outside of the evidence. 306 (1932). The prosecutors indicated in trial statements that Mr. Halat was the target of a continuing investigation into the scheme, but they have refused to talk about any inquiry related to him when questioned outside the courtroom.
Theyre public figures there.. The school district was about to kick her out, so Eason made a grownup choice to stay in her high school. The one-hour segment, called Biloxi Confidential, reminded Dunne of his own sojourn on the Coast, where he was stationed while in the U.S. Army during World War II.
In December of 1986, Nix found out that a large sum of money was missing from the account. Some did report the scams only to be dismissed by police. We find the defendants' due process claims to be without merit. He was suspected in many murders, usually men or women set to testify against someone in the Dixie Mafia. 201(c)(2) creates criminal penalties for bribing witnesses, and defines bribery as [d]irectly or indirectly, giv[ing], offer [ing], or promis[ing] anything of value to any person, for or because of the testimony under oath given or to be given as a witness upon a trial The defendants note that the government has given Gillich and Wright something of value, namely freedom, because of their testimony against the defendants in this trial. Halat was dismissed early as a suspect. TermsPrivacyDisclaimerCookiesDo Not Sell My Information, Begin typing to search, use arrow keys to navigate, use enter to select, Stay up-to-date with FindLaw's newsletter for legal professionals.
3. Shes on parole.
1503 by obstructing justice when he testified falsely in Sharpe I.
He was later sentenced to life-long isolation because of this hit. Holcomb argues that, considered as a whole, the district court's evidentiary errors warrant a new trial. Therefore, the obstruction counts are not multiplicious. There was no blood spray. Vincent and Margaret Sherry had settled in Biloxi in 1971 after traveling the world. The information provided is no substitite for an informed medical professional. See Fed.R.Evid. Nixs inside connection was LaRa Sharpe, his girlfriend who worked in the Sherry-Halat law firm. The substantive obstruction counts arise from separate portions of Sharpe's testimony at the 1991 trial. HATTIESBURG, Miss. These supporting players included: (1) Mike Gillich, Jr., owner and operator of the Golden Nugget, a night club and strip joint in Biloxi, Mississippi; (2) John Ransom, a parolee from a Georgia prison; (3) LaRa Sharpe, Nix's girlfriend and a paralegal; (4) Peter Halat, at 204. ", See the article in its original context from. This Court reviews a district court's application of the Sentencing Guidelines de novo and the district court's factual findings for clear error.
Mike Gillich Jr., a former owner of striptease lounges in Biloxi who became a government witness, was released from prison in July 2000 after serving nine years for his role in the conspiracy. Halat managed the thousands of dollars that Nix's operation generated, and he gave Sharpe, Nix's girlfriend, free run of his office.
See id. The acts done to conceal the completed crimes were part of the conspiracy and thus tolled the limitations period.
841(a) (drug trafficking), 21 U.S.C.
Second, Holcomb contends that the district court erred by refusing to admit letters of recommendation written by the Government on behalf of Bill Rhodes (Rhodes). Later, he got a haircut and then filled up his car with gas since he and Margaret were heading to Baton Rouge the next day to visit their youngest daughter at college. WebSheri Lara Sharpe; Thomas Leslie Holcomb; Peter Halat, Jr.; and Kirksey Mccord Nix, Jr. Also Known As J R, Also Known As Junior, Also Known As Kirk, Defendants-appellants, 193 F.3d 852 (5th Cir. The jury also found Nix and Gillich guilty of travel in aid of murder-for-hire.
Holcomb also contends that the district court should have permitted him to employ an expert witness to challenge Robertson's testimony. Again, Halat does not argue that he was prejudiced by the district court's failure to give a unanimity instruction.
Alternatively, Sharpe challenges the sufficiency of the evidence of her specific intent to impede the administration of justice. The applicable sentencing guideline, U.S.S.G. While the government was procuring Gillich's testimony, it was negotiating with Robert Wright (Wright) for his testimony concerning a number of drug deals that he had engaged in with Nix and his associates.
As both Eason and Gilmer look back at their lives, they picture a jigsaw puzzle.
Appeals from the United States District Court Eason is a former teacher and long-time community organizer who began the Comeback Coolers program to help victims of natural disasters. (WLOX) - Vincent and Margaret Sherry were pillars of Biloxi. His establishments included motels, a bingo parlor and nightclubs that doubled as strip clubs and gambling dens. Im finding in my research that it does bring back certain things, Eason said. For me, we beat Biloxis odds. When they were murdered in their home in September of 1987, it looked like a professional hit.
But Mr. Fabian was not called to testify because of what the authorities said was his penchant for self-publicity and because of his lifelong record of crime and double-dealing.
We review a district court's denial of severance for abuse of discretion. Nix was sentenced to 15 years in prison, added to the life sentence he was already serving.
Early memories are innocent ones even memories of a murderer. 2357, 132 L.Ed.2d 520 (1995). After serving nine years of his sentence, Gillich was released in July of 2000. See Id.
United States v. Dixon, 132 F.3d 192, 201 (5th Cir.1997). Halat also met and spoke with those planning the Sherrys' murders.
In 1991, Sharpe was already in Louisiana state prison for wire fraud. 1377. The jury convicted Nix, Gillich, Sharpe, and Ransom of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
After the individual inquiries, the judge recalled all the jurors to the courtroom, and urged them to consider the evidence, to deliberate, and to act civilly. Count 7 involves Sharpe's testimony that she did not use legal materials in Halat's and Sherry's office to enhance participation in the homosexual scheme. After finding out about the Lonely Hearts scam, Armistead went to Angola prison and met with Dixie Mafia member Bobby Joe Fabian.
He called Halat for a face-to-face meeting at Angola. 180, 76 L.Ed. This record makes clear that a reasonable jury could have found that Sharpe's false testimony concerning Gillich's, Halat's, and her own involvement in the wire fraud and murder-for-hire scheme had the natural and probable effect of interfering with the due administration of justice. its just a story, Eason said. Regarding the Blockburger test, the 1991 conspiracy count required an agreement to further the wire fraud and murder-for-hire schemes, while the 1996 conspiracy count did not; the 1996 conspiracy count required an agreement to further the obstruction of justice scheme, while the 1991 conspiracy count did not.
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201(c)(2).
Investigators would come to believe that Vincent opened the door to the killer, who put a gun in his face. SHERI LARA SHARPE A.
1503 (obstruction of justice), 18 U.S.C. His funeral service will be private, said funeral director Whitney Lang.
In the end, the government granted Wright full immunity for his testimony. When the prosecution took the case before a grand jury, the indictments they asked for were for the Lonely Hearts scam, murder conspiracy, wire fraud and two counts of traveling in interstate commerce for murder to hire. Edwin Edwards. She would go to the P.O. (WLOX) - It was Sept. 14, 1987.
I mean, there were a lot of battles. She was his girlfriend, Sheri LaRa Sharpe. WebIn this criminal appeal, Defendants-Appellants LaRa Sharpe, Mike Gillich, Jr., Kirksey McCord Nix, and John Ransom appeal their convictions under 18 U.S.C.
Holcomb died in prison on April 8, 2005.
I think a lot of times we think that things are unachievable. These were prominent people, said Dunne, who has covered the O.J. B.Sharpe's and Holcomb's Motion for Severance.
Second, Holcomb agreed to commit violence and threats of violence to protect the enterprise.
Holcomb also contends that his right to a fair trial was similarly prejudiced because he was tried with Nix and Sharpe, both of whom previously had been tried and convicted.
at 313. See United States v. Mastelotto, 717 F.2d 1238, 1244 (9th Cir.1983).