Newlywed wife charged with second-degree murder in death of husband in Montana
MISSOULA, Mont. – A newlywed wife was charged on Monday with second-degree murder by pushing her husband off a cliff in Glacier National Park during an argument just a week after they got married.
Jordan Linn Graham, 22, could face life in prison if convicted in the death of 25-year-old Cody Lee Johnson.
Graham made an initial court appearance on Monday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jeremiah C. Lynch. She is currently in custody. It was not immediately clear if she had a lawyer.
Charging documents suggest Graham was having second thoughts about getting married around the time her husband's body was discovered.
Graham has told an FBI agent that she and her husband had been arguing on July 7 as they walked in the Loop Trail area of the park.
At one point, she turned to walk away, but Johnson grabbed her arm, she said. She turned around, removed his hand from her arm and "due to her anger, she pushed Johnson with both hands in the back, and as a result, he fell face first off the cliff," an affidavit states.
Johnson was reported missing on July 8 when he failed to show up for work. Graham later reported that she had spotted his body.
Graham initially told investigators that Johnson left their house late on July 7 with unidentified friends in a dark-colored car with Washington state license plates.
That night she texted a friend and said she was about to talk to Johnson about her reservations about having gotten married the previous weekend.
The friend, identified only by the initials K.M., told the FBI about receiving the text from Graham just before 9 p.m. in which Graham said, "Oh well, I'm going to talk to him."
The friend responded, "I'll pray for you guys."
Graham replied, "But dead serious if u [sic] don't hear from me at alll again tonight, something happened."
Another friend said Graham reported receiving an email on July 10 saying Johnson had left with three friends, went hiking, had fallen and was dead.
The next day, Graham reported to park officials that she had spotted Johnson's body. A ranger thought that was unusual, but Graham explained, "'It was a place he wanted to see before he died," authorities said.
Graham was interviewed on July 16 and acknowledged lying about her husband's death, authorities said.
"She kept continuing to lie, she kept changing her story," Johnson family friend Tracy Maness told the Missoulian newspaper. "She showed no grief and she would not speak to Cody’s mother."
Maness added that Johnson was excited about his wedding and in love with Graham.
"He was very in love with Jordan," she said. "And he was really excited about starting the next chapter of his life."
Johnson's family and friends had long suspected that his death was the result of foul play. As Maness told the paper, "Nobody is shocked at all ... She’d been telling people she knew she never wanted to be married, she just wanted to have a wedding, and that’s apparently what they were arguing about."
Wheres the"there"in this???? Have i missed it?"3"?
ReplyDeleteHE left with three friends@ "we Bring freshness we are anti chimp"
ReplyDeleteRVP=TURD!
ReplyDeleteThanks.
ReplyDeleteSorry for the topic change, but just wondered if you were going to analyze the Charlie Rose PBS interview with Assad. If there was ever a classic example this would be it. Even with someone speaking English as a second language. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThis world... I dont even know what to think anymore.
ReplyDeleteParents killing kids, spouses killing each other, friends killing friends.
Something is wrong and it just seems to be getting worse.
And outside of the emotional connection to people, you would think that the idea of being in a small cell for the rest of your life would be enough to stop yourself.
Apparently not.
Thus appears our favorite number , the number three. yay
ReplyDeleteoff topic
ReplyDeleteCoronation Street actor Michael Le Vell has been found not guilty of child sex offences including rape at his trial in Manchester.
Mr Le Vell, 48, on trial under his real name Michael Turner, breathed out and said "thank you" as the jury's verdict was announced.
Sky's Nick Martin, who was in the courtroom, said the soap star was taken from the dock moments after the verdict, after one of his friends told security guards "get him out".
Mr Le Vell held his head up as the male foreman began giving the verdicts after around five hours of deliberations.
On the fourth count of not guilty he nodded his head in agreement with them.
His brother and sisters, who sat in the public gallery, were in tears as the verdicts were delivered.
One man shouted "Get in" when the last verdict was read out.
The actor, who plays mechanic Kevin Webster in the ITV show, had denied 12 child sex abuse charges, including five of rape.
The eight female and four male jurors were told they must decide if the alleged victim was telling the truth or set out to "quite literally destroy the life" of the accused.
Surrounded by supporters outside court after the verdict, Mr Le Vell thanked his legal team and said: "I might go and have a drink now."
During the eight day trial the "demons" in Mr Le Vell's private life were laid bare - his alcoholism and womanising while his wife battled breast cancer.
The court heard of his "dark secret" that he had enjoyed a string of one-night stands behind the back of his wife of 25 years, Janette Beverley.
And he had abandoned the family home to get drunk in the pub each night.
But while Le Vell might be described as a "weak, stupid and drunk man" and a "bad husband", he was not a child rapist, the jury was told.
It was a "strange case of child rape" without any DNA evidence or injuries to the alleged victim, who claimed she had been raped and abused while a young girl, his legal team said.
Le Vell was initially arrested on September 30, 2011, but the Crown Prosecution Service decided not to proceed with the case.
But after a review of the evidence following fresh allegations by the girl, Le Vell was re-arrested and charged in February 2013.
He first joined Coronation Street in 1983 and quickly endeared himself to fans, who have followed the trials and tribulations of Kevin, from his days as Brian Tilsley's apprentice mechanic through to his stormy marriage to Sally, played by Sally Dynevor.
He did not appear in any episodes of the soap during the legal proceedings.
http://news.sky.com/story/1139830/le-vell-rape-trial-corrie-actor-not-guilty
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As in any case, you can show all the incriminating evidence, their statements, even confessions, you cannot legislate for a jury.
Fortunately we have an bolished double jeopardy here in the UK so it is entirely possible that should further compelling evidence come forward, or other complainants, he can be tried again
ReplyDeleteBy Mike McCarthy, North Of England Correspondent
Who is Michael Turner? For the jury it's a question that has dominated all others in his sex abuse trial where he has now been found not guilty.
The prosecution urged jurors to forget the soap star who goes by the stage name Le Vell.
The judge said they should discount the familiar face known to millions of Coronation Street followers.
It sounded straight forward but psychologist Cary Cooper said that in general we believe, initially at least, an actor's on-screen persona.
"I think when we meet celebrities we are first I think influenced by our kind of stereotype of them, by the role that they're playing, by the image they project, by the image the media project of them," he said.
"But ultimately when we actually meet them we are computing in our brain different bits of information that may disconfirm our stereotypes, our positive or even negative feelings about them.
"So, as human beings we're taking this information in. We won't be influenced by a stereotype."
The camera flashes and media scrum that accompanied the actor each day of his trial seemed to belong more to the world of Michael Le Vell.
But once inside Manchester Crown Court he was stripped of his celebrity status and stood in the dock as plain Michael Turner.
Michael Le Vell smokes a cigarette outside Manchester Crown Court Le Vell pictured outside court
Except he was not so plain. Even by his own admission the defendant struggled with a serious drink problem twice attending Alcoholics Anonymous.
His own barrister Alisdair Williamson QC accepted that his client was "a weak and stupid man".
The jury were told that Le Vell had cheated on his wife with a series of one-night stands and even had an affair as she was going through chemotherapy - but never a child abuser, the lawyer argued.
After being confronted by the alleged victim's mother in 2011, Michael Le Vell texted a message saying: "Make sure she knows the magnitude of her lies. This is like a life-changing thing. It could cost me my job. It's not just a schoolyard story."
The chilling allegations were outlined in detail as the girl gave evidence in the witness box.
She said: "He put one of my favourite teddies over my mouth so that I could still breathe but couldn't say anything. He said he was getting rid of all the evil and bad inside me."
The court heard that she came forward after attending a seminar by life coach Ali Campbell on how to move forward in life and shed past "baggage".
By this time the girl was a teenager but she said that the actor had been abusing her since she was six years old.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decided in 2011 not to proceed with the case but changed its mind just over a year later after a review.
In the intervening period a national debate promoted by the Jimmy Savile case, which was entirely unconnected to Michael Le Vell's proceedings, led to fundamental changes in the way prosecuting authorities dealt with alleged victims of child abuse.
Criminologist and child abuse expert Mark Williams-Thomas said: "Police have had a big involvement (in the general change of procedure) looking back at some of the past cases, reconsidering whether or not they took the right evidence in the first place.
"We have seen a complete shift in the approach to victims as well - giving victims more power."
After the CPS decision not to go ahead with Michael Le Vell's case his alleged victim came forward with more evidence.
It might have been enough for the CPS to overturn its original ruling but it was not enough to convince the jury.
Michael Le Vell is now free - and wants to return to the role for which he is best known - the flawed, the imperfect but ultimately innocent Kevin Webster.
Not so far removed it seems from Michael Turner - the man who plays the part.
http://news.sky.com/story/1139838/le-vell-stripped-of-celebrity-status-in-court
Hi Hobs,its the bit about the Teddy Bear that rang alarm bells with me..Why would she connect her Teddy Bear to such an alleged horrific event..I still do believe there was deception and distancing language,not only in his words but his Brief also..
ReplyDeleteIf this girl is not telling the truth,(and a jury have found her not to be) then she deserves everything the law can throw at her,and major Psychological counselling ,however,IF she is telling the truth this outcome may have far more reaching implications for her personally..
Ps..Not once did he ever give a reliable denial that we know of..
Coprolalia - can it happen to a Brit while writing?
ReplyDeleteI think hes Guilty aswell.The "no physical"evidence the"defence"used is a nasty "Ace/get Out of jail card".
ReplyDeleteOff topic-
ReplyDeleteThe bodies of both Levon Wameling and Elaina Steinfurth were both found recently and on the same day. :( Levon in a river and Elaina in a box in the rafters of the garage at the house from which she was reportedly last seen alive.
Prosecutors in the murder trial of a disgraced Michigan businessman have said that the 55-year-old wanted his wife dead in part because she would not take part in his BDSM lifestyle, where he acted as a sex slave master dubbed ‘Master Bob.’
ReplyDeleteRobert Bashara, who is already is serving up to 20 years in prison in a separate but related murder-for-hire plot, was charged in April with first-degree murder in connection to his wife's slaying.
Jane Bashara's body was found Jan 24, 2012, in her Mercedes-Benz in a Detroit alley, a few miles from the couple's home in the affluent suburb of Grosse Pointe Park.
Handyman Joseph Gentz has pleaded guilty to strangling her, saying Robert Bashara commissioned him.
Mr Bashara was later convicted of trying to hire someone to kill Gentz in jail. He has denied involvement in his wife's death.
During the first day of Bashara's preliminary examination Monday, witnesses testified about the couple's marital problems and Bashara's BDSM lifestyle, which his wife had wanted no part in, The Detroit Free Press reported.
The defendant’s former business associate Robert Godard Jr told the court that the married father of two had operated a sex dungeon under a bar he owned called the Hard Luck Lounge, where he would bring different women for kinky sex parties.
But according to Godard, of all Bashara's sexual partners, one woman had stood out.
The witness testified that Bashara started a relationship with Rachel Gillett, and the two were planning to buy a house and start a life together.
According to police sources, the couple planned to set up a sex ‘playhouse’ on their new property just blocks away from his family home, where Bashara wanted to house a ‘harem’ of women to serve him.
Godard told the court that his friend's relationship with his wife was on the rocks because Jane Bashara refused to participate in her husband's unconventional sex life.
He also recalled one conversation with Mr Bashara in which the 55-year-old property owner mentioned that he was looking to hire someone to 'put a hurt' on a tenant with whom he had a problem.
Also on Monday, Jane Bashara's best friend, Patricia Matthews, testified that the woman had complained numerous times about her husband, whom she had accused of lying to her and stealing money from her.
‘Bob always lies. Bob always lies,’ Matthews said Jane Bashara told her. ‘She couldn’t count on what he said.’
On one occasion, Jane's friend told the court, Robert Bashara told his wife he was going on a golf trip to Florida with a friend. But when she called her husband's supposed travel companion, the man informed her that he had not seen Mr Bashara in three years.
As another example of her husband’s dishonesty, Jane Bashara cited the fact that Bob took $10,000 from her 401(k) account without her permission, prompting her to change her passwords, Miss Matthews said Monday.
Matthews further told the court her friend confided in her that even though her spouse was a 'flirt,' he suffered from erectile dysfunction and the couple had a mostly sexless marriage.
The mother of also had mentioned to Matthews that their children once caught Mr Bashara watching ‘weird porn’ at home, and that he offered to divorce Jane when the kids finished high school.
'She said Bob has no boundaries,' Miss Matthews said, according to The Daily Tribune.
ReplyDeleteBashara’s mother, Nancy Bashara, and his cousin, Stephanie Samuel, testified about discovering a .32 caliber pistol in a bank safe deposit box they shared. The gun was later found in possession of Bashara’s attorney.
On Tuesday, the court heard from Dr. Francisco Diaz, assistant medical examiner in Wayne County, who testified that Jane Bashara died from a combination of injuries, which included repeated blunt force trauma and strangulation resulting in her windpipe being crushed, The Detroit News reported.
During the coroner’s testimony, Robert Bashara, who previously appeared impassive, was seen dabbing his eyes with a tissue and lowering his head.
Bashara is currently serving a minimum prison sentence of 6 1/2 years for trying to have Gentz killed in the county jail last year. He faces life in prison without parole if convicted of the new charges against him.
Last December, Gentz pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and agreed to cooperate with authorities.
'Bob Bashara offered me money to kill his wife,' he told a judge. 'He threatened he would kill me if I didn't kill his wife
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2416797/Robert-Bashara-plotted-kill-wife-refused-participate-BDSM-lifestyle-live-mistress-new-sex-playhouse.html
Hi John, exactly, if he couldn't give a strong reliable denial, we couldn't do it for him.
ReplyDeleteIt caught my eye as well that she introduced sensory descriptions as well as the teddy bear.
Given the passage of time providing physical evidence was going to be a proble, it always is in historical cases.
There was scarring present, the doctor though couldn't blame it on abuse or an ongoing medical problem (nor if the problem was a result of abuse)
In such cases where celebs are involved, i often wonder how much of what is seen in court by the jury is the real defendant and how much of it is the actor playing a role, something they are trained to do.
Luckily in the UK should new and compelling evidence be brought forth he can face retrial, ie if he gets ratarsed and confesses, or he confides in someone, there are other victims who come forward etc.
he indicated deception, this much is clear, how much of the deception relates to the case and how much to his alcoholism, he infidelity and whatever else in his closets, i cannot say.
Even his own defence had nothing complimentary to say about him.
Yes a TURDY WEBSTER TURDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD!!!!
ReplyDeleteRVP=TURD!
Delete3=egg.
DeleteInnopiggy innopiggy innopiggy THREE 3 TFRRFFFREEE
ReplyDeleteJohn mccaine is up Mrs Clinton's smelly triangle.I'm in Texas till tuesday from friday 13th oh dang.
ReplyDeleteFFS^^^^^^^ ANALYSE DAT.
ReplyDeletePeter would you fucking post an email link on here already so people will stop posting about unrelated cases on your blog
ReplyDeleteDONT be nasty SHITE TURD!!!
DeleteDONT be nasty SHITE TURD!!!
DeleteWow! Anon @September 12, 2013 at 4:33 AM
ReplyDeleteI'm sure Peter will absolutely comply with your most gracious request!
I'll never understand the arrogance and sense of entitlement that some people have....