Hi,
After the trial was over, we
had to write a persuasive essay saying that if we were one of the jury then
what would our decision have had been. Read this essay please and comment if
you were persuaded or not.
-----------------------------X---------------------------------------X---------------------
Vishnu Bansal
27
Mar 2015
State
of Oregonian vs Willy Freeman
To my fellow jurors,
I am very sorry that I cannot be
there during the final verdict and deliberation but my son suddenly got very
sick and I had to leave as soon as the trial was over. I am sending my vote and
opinion/belief via this letter.
In this case the defendant, Willy Freeman has been charged of murdering
her co-partner, Devin Frost. Devin had been stealing from the business because
she had some gambling problems and owed a loan shark, Lou Contralto nearly
$500,000. She owed Lou over $200,000 even after she had bled the business dry.
Contralto had already given Devin several violently physical
"messages" saying that the debt was to be paid - "or else."
Meanwhile Willy had hired an accountant to find why the business was in the red.
She was told by the accountant, Leslie Moore that Devin was stealing money.
Willy was enraged and threatened to kill Devin. A few days later Devin was
found dead in the restaurant's freezer and then Willy stood up to receive the
$500,000 that she would receive through the buy-sell agreements that Willy and
Frost had signed. This insured that if one co-owner dies the other would get
half a million dollars. Note: Willy Freeman has been charged for first
degree murder.
In my opinion Willy is not guilty of Devin's murder. Reasons -
•
This is a skill of
organised crime that a mob/mafia uses (Pat Ives)
•
Frost had bled
Contralto's business dry and she was useless for him. She didn't pay the
interest. She had threatened him to stop asking for the money or she would hand
Lou to the prosecutors. (Joel Byrd) This looks like a pretty clear motive
for Lou to murder Frost.
•
Lou told Byrd that
he had Frost iced.
•
Chris Riggs has
been accused of tampering with evidence
I am sure that Willy Freeman is not guilty of Devin Frost's murder.
Pat Ives, criminologist expert, this is a skill of organised crime.
Richard Kuklinski froze his victims in industrial coolers and was given the
nickname 'Iceman'. This methodology gained popularity among those who were
involved in organised crime. Devin had not recently paid back money and was
punished in a typically mob fashion with cigarette burns and strangulation.
This is inconsistent with the method and mode of a person committing a crime in
the heat of passion.
In Joel Byrd's witness statement he has said that Frost had bled
Contralto's business dry and she was useless for him. She didn't pay the
interest. She had threatened him to stop asking for the money or she would hand
Lou to the prosecutors. Lou told Byrd how he had done a good job of
"cleaning" by wearing gloves so that it didn't come back on him. Lou
said without any emotions or nothing that he had frost iced. This is a very
clear motive of murder for someone in the mob.
Why would Lou tell anything like this to Byrd?
Lou wanted to get word out on street that if anyone didn't pay the loans
in time you will end up dead. Lou also trusted Byrd because Byrd never turned
Lou in and stayed out of Lou's way.
Pat Ives has also said in her affidavit that Chris Riggs had been
accused of tampering with evidence and taking a bribe from Lou Contralto. I
think he is unreliable and might have taken a bribe from Lou again to say
something in his affidavit that is not in the report and to let him go out from
jail. Lou might have also bribed Chris to not answer to J. Byrd's cell.
Some points that would be possible to prove that Willy is guilty are:
Willy's fingerprints were found on the padlock to the cooler, kitchen
knife even after it had been washed and sanitised and the door to the cooler.
Besides, how would the fingerprints have been found on the knife after it had
been washed. Lou Contralto has also seen Willy use the knife to force Devin
into the freezer.
If Lou had done it then his fingerprints should have been found but
nothing was found.
If Lou had done it then how would he have been able to open the door and
the lock?
I believe that I can prove all of these reasons wrong.
•
Willy's
fingerprints were found on the padlock to the cooler, kitchen knife even after
it had been washed and sanitised and the door to the cooler. Besides, how would
the fingerprints have been found on the knife after it had been washed. Lou
Contralto has also seen Willy use the knife to force Devin into the freezer.
How this is wrong: - Willy's fingerprints of course will be on the
padlock to the cooler, kitchen knife and the door to the cooler. She worked in
the kitchen touched these things various times a day. Even though the knife had
been washed and sanitised, it might not have eliminated the fingerprints or she
might have picked it up after it was washed to see if it needed to sharpen to
be used the next day.
•
If Lou had done it
then his fingerprints should have been found but nothing was found.
How this is wrong: - Lou had already told J. Byrd that he had done a
very good job of "cleaning" by wearing gloves so that his
fingerprints would not be there and so that it didn't come back on him.
•
If Lou had done it
then how would he have been able to open the door and the lock?
How this is wrong: - That day Willy had left the lock to the cooler open
because Devin was going to be writing the menu and wanted to check on the
ingredients.
Think about Lou. Does that not cast some reasonable doubt that he might
have done it? He is from the mob and is kind of a gangster. I believe that
since he was also stalking Devin, he might have seen his chance and killed
Devin. In my opinion/belief, Willy Freeman is not guilty of first degree murder
but Lou Contralto is guilty of second degree murder.
Once again, I am very sorry that I could not be there for the final
verdict and deliberation. I would have loved to be there but as I said, my son
got very sick suddenly and I had to go as soon as the trial was over. Please
regard this.
Signed,
Your
friend,
Vishnu
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