HomePHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
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Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by kiwimom Thu Jul 07, 2011 11:29 pm
July 7, 2011
Authorities searching for the killer of North Carolina teen Phylicia Barnes obtained search warrants for email and Facebook accounts belonging to her and at least three other people, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court.The documents, filed by an FBI
special agent assigned to the state's child exploitation task force,
say authorities are seeking access to the accounts as part of a child
pornography investigation and sexual exploitation of a minor, though the
affidavits that spell out that angle remain sealed and agencies
involved in the case refused to comment.Legal experts say the
move does not necessarily mean that the case has a sex crime element,
but that evidence of sexually explicit material discovered during the
investigation is being used as an entry into computer accounts that
could provide new insight into her death. Barnes was 16 years old at the
time of her disappearance.
"They're likely using that to hammer some people on the
[the potential of sexually explicit material] and will use that to
hammer back and find out how she died," said Harold Copus, a retired FBI
agent who is not involved in the case.The warrants seek access to two Yahoo email accounts and one AOL
email account that include Barnes' first name, along with her Facebook
page, records show. The court filings show for the first time some of
the secretive tactics being employed by investigators, who have been
tight-lipped about the case and publicly have said they have few leads.In
the May 10 federal court filing, unsealed on June 30, FBI Special Agent
Jacqueline Dougher, who works from the Baltimore field office with the
state's child exploitation task force, also requested access to three
other Facebook pages and four other email accounts that appear to be
associated with Baltimore men. At least one is linked to a man with the
same name as a man previously interviewed by police.Police have
interviewed and reinterviewed those who were among the last to see
Barnes alive, and the targets of the search warrant indicate that police
are not through with those people. Their identities could not be
confirmed, however, and emails sent by The Baltimore Sun to the accounts
listed in the search warrant were not returned.The documents say
that authorities "have reason to believe that" within the accounts
there is evidence related to a violation of "sexual exploitation of
children" and "distribution and possession of child pornography."The U.S. attorney's office for Maryland, the FBI, and state and city police declined to comment."It
would be inappropriate at this point to discuss the criminal
investigation or do anything that could jeopardize the case down the
road," said Greg Shipley, a state police spokesman.Russell
Barnes, the girl's father, said authorities contacted him Wednesday
night to inform him that the documents had been made public. But he said
officials did not offer any insight into how child pornography relates
to the case."They said some people weren't being truthful, and
they had to go get some search warrants," he said. "They've got it wide
open to see what happened."Barnes, who was from Monroe, N.C.,
went missing in late December while visiting her older sisters in
Northwest Baltimore. She planned to go to college here after graduating
early from high school, where she was an honors student and ran track.
Authorities said she vanished without a trace, until her nude body was
found floating in the Susquehanna River in April.Maryland State
Police and city police are jointly investigating, and the FBI has
provided assistance since the early stages. Authorities have not
disclosed how she died.Authorities must have probable cause to
obtain the search warrants based on the sexual exploitation and child
pornography statutes."It's ordinary practice for law enforcement
to get search warrants on everybody and anybody who's related to it to
see if there's other evidence of other crimes," said Andrew Alperstein, a
Baltimore defense attorney who is not involved in the case. But, he
said, "a tip is not enough for a judge to issue a search warrant — there
has to be reliability to it and probable cause that a crime occurred.""This is a
very high-profile case, and I'm sure law enforcement is using every tool available to them," Alperstein said.Copus,
the retired FBI agent, believes the new search warrants, along with the
fact that Barnes' body was found nude, suggests that there is a sex
crime element to her death."Her being nude will tie back to that eventually," Copus said.
But for now, he said, investigators are casting a "wide net.""They've
got three or four names there that may have communicated with that
girl, and they're casting a wide net, trying to find out if they have
something else," Copus said.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-barnes-investigation-20110707,0,3996374.story
Authorities searching for the killer of North Carolina teen Phylicia Barnes obtained search warrants for email and Facebook accounts belonging to her and at least three other people, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court.The documents, filed by an FBI
special agent assigned to the state's child exploitation task force,
say authorities are seeking access to the accounts as part of a child
pornography investigation and sexual exploitation of a minor, though the
affidavits that spell out that angle remain sealed and agencies
involved in the case refused to comment.Legal experts say the
move does not necessarily mean that the case has a sex crime element,
but that evidence of sexually explicit material discovered during the
investigation is being used as an entry into computer accounts that
could provide new insight into her death. Barnes was 16 years old at the
time of her disappearance.
"They're likely using that to hammer some people on the
[the potential of sexually explicit material] and will use that to
hammer back and find out how she died," said Harold Copus, a retired FBI
agent who is not involved in the case.The warrants seek access to two Yahoo email accounts and one AOL
email account that include Barnes' first name, along with her Facebook
page, records show. The court filings show for the first time some of
the secretive tactics being employed by investigators, who have been
tight-lipped about the case and publicly have said they have few leads.In
the May 10 federal court filing, unsealed on June 30, FBI Special Agent
Jacqueline Dougher, who works from the Baltimore field office with the
state's child exploitation task force, also requested access to three
other Facebook pages and four other email accounts that appear to be
associated with Baltimore men. At least one is linked to a man with the
same name as a man previously interviewed by police.Police have
interviewed and reinterviewed those who were among the last to see
Barnes alive, and the targets of the search warrant indicate that police
are not through with those people. Their identities could not be
confirmed, however, and emails sent by The Baltimore Sun to the accounts
listed in the search warrant were not returned.The documents say
that authorities "have reason to believe that" within the accounts
there is evidence related to a violation of "sexual exploitation of
children" and "distribution and possession of child pornography."The U.S. attorney's office for Maryland, the FBI, and state and city police declined to comment."It
would be inappropriate at this point to discuss the criminal
investigation or do anything that could jeopardize the case down the
road," said Greg Shipley, a state police spokesman.Russell
Barnes, the girl's father, said authorities contacted him Wednesday
night to inform him that the documents had been made public. But he said
officials did not offer any insight into how child pornography relates
to the case."They said some people weren't being truthful, and
they had to go get some search warrants," he said. "They've got it wide
open to see what happened."Barnes, who was from Monroe, N.C.,
went missing in late December while visiting her older sisters in
Northwest Baltimore. She planned to go to college here after graduating
early from high school, where she was an honors student and ran track.
Authorities said she vanished without a trace, until her nude body was
found floating in the Susquehanna River in April.Maryland State
Police and city police are jointly investigating, and the FBI has
provided assistance since the early stages. Authorities have not
disclosed how she died.Authorities must have probable cause to
obtain the search warrants based on the sexual exploitation and child
pornography statutes."It's ordinary practice for law enforcement
to get search warrants on everybody and anybody who's related to it to
see if there's other evidence of other crimes," said Andrew Alperstein, a
Baltimore defense attorney who is not involved in the case. But, he
said, "a tip is not enough for a judge to issue a search warrant — there
has to be reliability to it and probable cause that a crime occurred.""This is a
very high-profile case, and I'm sure law enforcement is using every tool available to them," Alperstein said.Copus,
the retired FBI agent, believes the new search warrants, along with the
fact that Barnes' body was found nude, suggests that there is a sex
crime element to her death."Her being nude will tie back to that eventually," Copus said.
But for now, he said, investigators are casting a "wide net.""They've
got three or four names there that may have communicated with that
girl, and they're casting a wide net, trying to find out if they have
something else," Copus said.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-barnes-investigation-20110707,0,3996374.story
kiwimom- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by kiwimom Wed Jul 13, 2011 5:28 am
Missing Teen Could Have Been Exploited
The FBI is using the Internet to further investigate the homicide of 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes.
Posted: 07/12/2011 03:03 PM EDT
The FBI is investigating whether Phylicia Barnes,
the 16-year-old who was missing for four months before her body was
found, was a victim of sexual exploitation or child pornography.
Just last month, federal investigators issued search warrants
requesting access to several e-mail accounts with Barnes’ name, or
variations of it, operated by Yahoo! and AOL. They also recently filed warrants seeking access to the teen’s Facebook account and accounts of three other people.
They suspect that Barnes was a victim of child exploitation, but won’t reveal the cause for their suspicion.
The 16-year-old disappeared on Dec. 28, 2010, during a visit from
Monroe, N.C., to Baltimore to visit her father’s family. She had
recently reconnected with them on Facebook. One afternoon she texted her
sister that she was going out for lunch, but she never came back.
The Baltimore police department called the search for Barnes its most
extensive in years. The family offered a $25,000 reward for information
helping to solve her disappearance, but to no avail—four months later,
Barnes’ naked body was found floating about 40 miles northeast of
Baltimore in the Susquehanna River.
The family tells the Charlotte Observer that the feds are “doing everything they can to find out who killed Phylicia and that's what we want them to do."
http://www.bet.com/news/national/2011/07/12/missing-teen-could-have-been-exploited.html
The FBI is using the Internet to further investigate the homicide of 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes.
Posted: 07/12/2011 03:03 PM EDT
The FBI is investigating whether Phylicia Barnes,
the 16-year-old who was missing for four months before her body was
found, was a victim of sexual exploitation or child pornography.
Just last month, federal investigators issued search warrants
requesting access to several e-mail accounts with Barnes’ name, or
variations of it, operated by Yahoo! and AOL. They also recently filed warrants seeking access to the teen’s Facebook account and accounts of three other people.
They suspect that Barnes was a victim of child exploitation, but won’t reveal the cause for their suspicion.
The 16-year-old disappeared on Dec. 28, 2010, during a visit from
Monroe, N.C., to Baltimore to visit her father’s family. She had
recently reconnected with them on Facebook. One afternoon she texted her
sister that she was going out for lunch, but she never came back.
The Baltimore police department called the search for Barnes its most
extensive in years. The family offered a $25,000 reward for information
helping to solve her disappearance, but to no avail—four months later,
Barnes’ naked body was found floating about 40 miles northeast of
Baltimore in the Susquehanna River.
The family tells the Charlotte Observer that the feds are “doing everything they can to find out who killed Phylicia and that's what we want them to do."
http://www.bet.com/news/national/2011/07/12/missing-teen-could-have-been-exploited.html
kiwimom- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by TomTerrific0420 Sun Dec 11, 2011 3:25 pm
http://www.wsoctv.com/news/29970216/detail.html
MONROE, N.C. -- A group from Baltimore traveled to Monroe Saturday to help remember a murdered teenager and raise awareness of other missing person’s cases.
The Guardian Angels helped search for Phylicia Barnes after she disappeared last December while visiting relatives in Baltimore. In late April, the Monroe teen’s body was pulled from a Maryland river about an hour north of Baltimore.
Investigators ruled her death a homicide but have not released a cause.
The Guardian Angels are a national organized citizen crime watch group that patrols neighborhoods and helps with missing persons cases. The volunteers have helped on countless cases but said that searching for the missing beloved 16-year-old student particularly affected them.
“It’s changed my life. I look at things a lot differently. There are a lot of people out there that need help,” said Marcus Dent, a member of the Guardian Angels.
Eyewitness News asked Maryland State police for an update on the case, they told Eyewitness News the case is progressing but no one has been charged with the teenager’s murder.
MONROE, N.C. -- A group from Baltimore traveled to Monroe Saturday to help remember a murdered teenager and raise awareness of other missing person’s cases.
The Guardian Angels helped search for Phylicia Barnes after she disappeared last December while visiting relatives in Baltimore. In late April, the Monroe teen’s body was pulled from a Maryland river about an hour north of Baltimore.
Investigators ruled her death a homicide but have not released a cause.
The Guardian Angels are a national organized citizen crime watch group that patrols neighborhoods and helps with missing persons cases. The volunteers have helped on countless cases but said that searching for the missing beloved 16-year-old student particularly affected them.
“It’s changed my life. I look at things a lot differently. There are a lot of people out there that need help,” said Marcus Dent, a member of the Guardian Angels.
Eyewitness News asked Maryland State police for an update on the case, they told Eyewitness News the case is progressing but no one has been charged with the teenager’s murder.
TomTerrific0420- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Searching for Truth and Justice
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by kiwimom Wed Dec 21, 2011 10:32 pm
Wednesday 21st December
The father of a 16 year old North Carolina teen who disappeared from an apartment near
Reisterstown Square, and was found murdered months later in
rural Harford County, expects an arrest in the case.
Phylicia Barnes' father, Russell Brnes, is hoping it is soon.
"We feel strongly they will be making an arrest, they tell me," Barnes
said. "It may be today, it may be tomorrow. But they assure me and my
family that they will be making an arrest in this case."
Maryland State Police spokesman Greg Shipley would not go so far as
to say that an arrest is about to happen, but that the investigation is
making progress.
"All of us in the Maryland State Police and the Baltimore Police
Department are hoping for a positive conclusion to this case to bring
the persons of persons responsible for the murder of Phylicia Barnes to
justice," he said. "That just has not happened yet. It is not something
that is imminent, but it is something that is being worked on everyday
and will continue to be worked on."
Phylicia Barnes was last heard from on Dec. 28, 2010.
She was visiting family in Baltimore over Christmas.
She had graduated from high school early and was planning to attend Towson University.
Barnes disappeared without a trace on that date as she was waiting at her sister's to be picked up to go to the hairdresser.
Her body was found in the Susquehanna River upstream from the Conowingo Dam last April.
No arrests have been made, and investigators in the Maryland State Police and Baltimore
City police department have declined to say what caused her death, due
to "the importance of the ongoing investigation."
Barnes said that reports earlier this year of human trafficking or a possible sex
crime were not credible. At least the family found that not to be the case, he said.
Mr. Barnes said the family is planning a memorial next Wednesday night at 7 p.m. at Brown's
Memorial Baptist Church, Belvedere Avenue.
State Police are asking anyone who might have potential information in the case to contact them at 1-888-223-0033.
http://wbal.com/article/84613/3/template-story/Murdered-Teens-Father-Expects-Arrest
The father of a 16 year old North Carolina teen who disappeared from an apartment near
Reisterstown Square, and was found murdered months later in
rural Harford County, expects an arrest in the case.
Phylicia Barnes' father, Russell Brnes, is hoping it is soon.
"We feel strongly they will be making an arrest, they tell me," Barnes
said. "It may be today, it may be tomorrow. But they assure me and my
family that they will be making an arrest in this case."
Maryland State Police spokesman Greg Shipley would not go so far as
to say that an arrest is about to happen, but that the investigation is
making progress.
"All of us in the Maryland State Police and the Baltimore Police
Department are hoping for a positive conclusion to this case to bring
the persons of persons responsible for the murder of Phylicia Barnes to
justice," he said. "That just has not happened yet. It is not something
that is imminent, but it is something that is being worked on everyday
and will continue to be worked on."
Phylicia Barnes was last heard from on Dec. 28, 2010.
She was visiting family in Baltimore over Christmas.
She had graduated from high school early and was planning to attend Towson University.
Barnes disappeared without a trace on that date as she was waiting at her sister's to be picked up to go to the hairdresser.
Her body was found in the Susquehanna River upstream from the Conowingo Dam last April.
No arrests have been made, and investigators in the Maryland State Police and Baltimore
City police department have declined to say what caused her death, due
to "the importance of the ongoing investigation."
Barnes said that reports earlier this year of human trafficking or a possible sex
crime were not credible. At least the family found that not to be the case, he said.
Mr. Barnes said the family is planning a memorial next Wednesday night at 7 p.m. at Brown's
Memorial Baptist Church, Belvedere Avenue.
State Police are asking anyone who might have potential information in the case to contact them at 1-888-223-0033.
http://wbal.com/article/84613/3/template-story/Murdered-Teens-Father-Expects-Arrest
kiwimom- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by TomTerrific0420 Wed Dec 28, 2011 12:08 pm
BALTIMORE - It's been exactly one year since Phylicia Barnes went missing in Baltimore and was later found dead in the Susquehanna River.
Her murder is still unsolved.
There will be a rally Wednesday night at 7 to remember Phylicia and all the other missing persons out there.
Family and friends hope it will keep the teen's murder in the spotlight and lead to an arrest in the case.
The 16-year-old went missing exactly a year ago while visiting her sister at her Northwest Baltimore apartment.
Police say she was murdered, but never said how and no suspects were ever named in the case.
Barnes was an honor role student and star athlete. She lived in North Carolina.
Today, her high school will be planting a tree in her honor.
The unsolved case has sparked a lot of attention, family, friends, even strangers have come out to rally for Phylicia over the last year.
Remembering Phylicia
Tonight's Call to Action to remember Phylicia starts at 7 PM at Brown's Memorial Baptist Church at 3215 West Belvedere Avenue in Baltimore.
Phylicia's dad is going to be there.
Read more: http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/region/baltimore_city/rally-planned-to-remember-murdered-teen-still-no-arrest#ixzz1hpXynkAa
Her murder is still unsolved.
There will be a rally Wednesday night at 7 to remember Phylicia and all the other missing persons out there.
Family and friends hope it will keep the teen's murder in the spotlight and lead to an arrest in the case.
The 16-year-old went missing exactly a year ago while visiting her sister at her Northwest Baltimore apartment.
Police say she was murdered, but never said how and no suspects were ever named in the case.
Barnes was an honor role student and star athlete. She lived in North Carolina.
Today, her high school will be planting a tree in her honor.
The unsolved case has sparked a lot of attention, family, friends, even strangers have come out to rally for Phylicia over the last year.
Remembering Phylicia
Tonight's Call to Action to remember Phylicia starts at 7 PM at Brown's Memorial Baptist Church at 3215 West Belvedere Avenue in Baltimore.
Phylicia's dad is going to be there.
Read more: http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/region/baltimore_city/rally-planned-to-remember-murdered-teen-still-no-arrest#ixzz1hpXynkAa
TomTerrific0420- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Searching for Truth and Justice
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by TomTerrific0420 Sat Dec 31, 2011 4:58 am
http://www.examiner.com/crime-in-national/phylicia-barnes-case-child-porn-link-girl-s-murder-linked-to-nude-party-pics
Baltimore, Md. - As police continue to work the case of murdered North Carolina teen, Phylicia Barnes, new information has emerged linking child pornography and nude party photos taken shortly before Phylicia vanished.
Phylicia, 16, lived in Charlotte, but was in Maryland visiting her college-age half-sister when she vanished on December 28, 2010. The last person to see her was her half-sister’s ex-boyfriend, Michael Johnson, who said she was sleeping on the couch when he left the apartment in the early afternoon. Phylicia was last heard from when she texted her half-sister around noon that same day. Her nude body was pulled from the Susquehanna River on Apr. 20, 2011.
To see more photos of Phylicia, click here.
Baltimore, Md. - As police continue to work the case of murdered North Carolina teen, Phylicia Barnes, new information has emerged linking child pornography and nude party photos taken shortly before Phylicia vanished.
Phylicia, 16, lived in Charlotte, but was in Maryland visiting her college-age half-sister when she vanished on December 28, 2010. The last person to see her was her half-sister’s ex-boyfriend, Michael Johnson, who said she was sleeping on the couch when he left the apartment in the early afternoon. Phylicia was last heard from when she texted her half-sister around noon that same day. Her nude body was pulled from the Susquehanna River on Apr. 20, 2011.
To see more photos of Phylicia, click here.
TomTerrific0420- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Searching for Truth and Justice
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by mom_in_il Thu Apr 26, 2012 6:01 pm
Phylicia Barnes Update: Michael Johnson arrested for the murder of the NC teen, police say
April 26, 2012 10:40 AM
By Crimesider Staff
(CBS/AP) BALTIMORE - Baltimore police said they have arrested a man in the death of North Carolina teenager Phylicia Barnes, whose body was found in a river after she vanished in 2010 while visiting relatives in the area.
Michael Johnson has been arrested in the teen's death, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi told The Associated Press early Thursday.
Authorities have said Johnson was the former boyfriend of Barnes' older sister and the last person to see her alive. Guglielmi said prosecutors would release more information later Thursday on the arrest.
Barnes, 16, disappeared Dec. 28, 2010 while visiting her sister in northwest Baltimore.
Workers at the Conowingo Dam on the Susquehanna River found her body the following April in northeast Maryland. Medical examiners later ruled the death a homicide.
Soon after the teen vanished, Baltimore police alerted local media saying her disappearance was unusual because she had no history of disputes with her family or trouble with the law. Police called it one of the strangest and most vexing missing persons cases they had investigated.
At one point, Guglielmi described it as "Baltimore's Natalee Holloway case," referring to the Alabama teen who disappeared during a trip to Aruba.
The case led to a bill in the Maryland legislature called "Phylicia's Law," to improve coordination between law enforcement and community groups when a child disappears. The bill requires state officials to publish a list of missing children and annual statistics. They may also keep a list of groups of volunteers to help with searches and local law enforcement must try to work with them.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57421864-504083/phylicia-barnes-update-michael-johnson-arrested-for-the-murder-of-the-nc-teen-police-say/
April 26, 2012 10:40 AM
By Crimesider Staff
(CBS/AP) BALTIMORE - Baltimore police said they have arrested a man in the death of North Carolina teenager Phylicia Barnes, whose body was found in a river after she vanished in 2010 while visiting relatives in the area.
Michael Johnson has been arrested in the teen's death, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi told The Associated Press early Thursday.
Authorities have said Johnson was the former boyfriend of Barnes' older sister and the last person to see her alive. Guglielmi said prosecutors would release more information later Thursday on the arrest.
Barnes, 16, disappeared Dec. 28, 2010 while visiting her sister in northwest Baltimore.
Workers at the Conowingo Dam on the Susquehanna River found her body the following April in northeast Maryland. Medical examiners later ruled the death a homicide.
Soon after the teen vanished, Baltimore police alerted local media saying her disappearance was unusual because she had no history of disputes with her family or trouble with the law. Police called it one of the strangest and most vexing missing persons cases they had investigated.
At one point, Guglielmi described it as "Baltimore's Natalee Holloway case," referring to the Alabama teen who disappeared during a trip to Aruba.
The case led to a bill in the Maryland legislature called "Phylicia's Law," to improve coordination between law enforcement and community groups when a child disappears. The bill requires state officials to publish a list of missing children and annual statistics. They may also keep a list of groups of volunteers to help with searches and local law enforcement must try to work with them.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57421864-504083/phylicia-barnes-update-michael-johnson-arrested-for-the-murder-of-the-nc-teen-police-say/
mom_in_il- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by mom_in_il Thu Apr 26, 2012 6:06 pm
Arrest Made In Phylicia Barnes’ Murder
Apr 26, 2012
Baltimore police have arrested Michael Johnson in the murder of Monroe, N.C., 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes, who was murdered as she visited her half-siblings in the area, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Barnes, an honors student and athlete, went missing on December 28, 2010, and her body wasn’t found until the following April at the Conowingo Dam, which is in the Susquehanna River. Her father identified the body. A month later, results from an autopsy proved Barnes’ demise was a homicide.
Watch details on her homicide here:
Johnson is actually a former boyfriend of Barnes’ half-sister, Deena. He is reportedly the last person to have seen Barnes and acted oddly after she went missing. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:
When Phylicia Barnes disappeared, Johnson had been breaking up with the teen’s older half-sister, Deena, after dating for about 10 years, Russell Barnes said. The family had trusted Johnson — the last person to see Phylicia Barnes alive — but he acted suspiciously after the girl disappeared, avoiding people and phone calls, Russell Barnes said.
Now that Johnson has been apprehended, Barnes’ dad, Russell, says he can breathe easier:
“It’s been a long day coming. It’s a bittersweet day. “I can rest better and maybe Phylicia can rest a whole lot better.”
In a press conference scheduled for Thursday afternoon, authorities plan to announce what the specific charges are in Barnes’ murder.
http://newsone.com/2004585/phylicia-barnes-arrest/
Apr 26, 2012
Baltimore police have arrested Michael Johnson in the murder of Monroe, N.C., 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes, who was murdered as she visited her half-siblings in the area, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Barnes, an honors student and athlete, went missing on December 28, 2010, and her body wasn’t found until the following April at the Conowingo Dam, which is in the Susquehanna River. Her father identified the body. A month later, results from an autopsy proved Barnes’ demise was a homicide.
Watch details on her homicide here:
Johnson is actually a former boyfriend of Barnes’ half-sister, Deena. He is reportedly the last person to have seen Barnes and acted oddly after she went missing. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports:
When Phylicia Barnes disappeared, Johnson had been breaking up with the teen’s older half-sister, Deena, after dating for about 10 years, Russell Barnes said. The family had trusted Johnson — the last person to see Phylicia Barnes alive — but he acted suspiciously after the girl disappeared, avoiding people and phone calls, Russell Barnes said.
Now that Johnson has been apprehended, Barnes’ dad, Russell, says he can breathe easier:
“It’s been a long day coming. It’s a bittersweet day. “I can rest better and maybe Phylicia can rest a whole lot better.”
In a press conference scheduled for Thursday afternoon, authorities plan to announce what the specific charges are in Barnes’ murder.
http://newsone.com/2004585/phylicia-barnes-arrest/
mom_in_il- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by mom_in_il Thu Apr 26, 2012 6:08 pm
DERRICK ROSE | TV @DRoseTV
Grand jury indicted Johnson 1st degree murder
12:07 PM - 26 Apr 12
Grand jury indicted Johnson 1st degree murder
12:07 PM - 26 Apr 12
mom_in_il- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by mom_in_il Thu Apr 26, 2012 6:09 pm
Md. man charged with murder in NC teen's death
Published April 26, 2012
Associated Press
BALTIMORE – A Baltimore grand jury has indicted a man on a first-degree murder charge for the death of a teenager whose body was found in a river months after her 2010 disappearance.
Baltimore City State's Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein announced the sole count against Michael Johnson on Thursday. Bernstein said the grand jury handed down the indictment on Wednesday.
Johnson was arrested in the death of 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes, of Monroe, N.C. Barnes' father told The Associated Press that when his daughter disappeared, Johnson had been breaking up with the teen's older half-sister after dating about 10 years.
An attorney for Johnson did not return calls for comment Thursday.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/04/26/md-man-charged-with-murder-in-nc-teen-death/#ixzz1tAg6nTvK
Published April 26, 2012
Associated Press
BALTIMORE – A Baltimore grand jury has indicted a man on a first-degree murder charge for the death of a teenager whose body was found in a river months after her 2010 disappearance.
Baltimore City State's Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein announced the sole count against Michael Johnson on Thursday. Bernstein said the grand jury handed down the indictment on Wednesday.
Johnson was arrested in the death of 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes, of Monroe, N.C. Barnes' father told The Associated Press that when his daughter disappeared, Johnson had been breaking up with the teen's older half-sister after dating about 10 years.
An attorney for Johnson did not return calls for comment Thursday.
Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/04/26/md-man-charged-with-murder-in-nc-teen-death/#ixzz1tAg6nTvK
mom_in_il- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by TomTerrific0420 Fri Apr 27, 2012 12:01 pm
BALTIMORE - A Baltimore man has been indicted on a murder charge in the
killing of a North Carolina teenager missing for months before her body
was found in a river, prosecutors said Thursday.Michael Johnson, 28, was indicted on a sole count of first-degree murder
in the death of Phylicia Barnes, 16, of Monroe, N.C., Baltimore City
State's Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein announced.
"It's been a long day coming. It's a bittersweet day," said Phylicia's
father, Russell Barnes. "I can rest better and maybe Phylicia can rest a
whole lot better."
When Phylicia Barnes disappeared, Johnson had been breaking up with the
teen's older half-sister, Deena, after dating for about 10 years,
Russell Barnes said. The family had trusted Johnson - the last person to
see Phylicia alive - but he acted suspiciously after the girl
disappeared, avoiding people and phone calls, Russell Barnes said.
Johnson maintained his innocence when he spoke to his attorney Russell
Neverdon at Baltimore's Central Booking and Intake Center on Thursday.
"He said he had absolutely nothing to do with anything inappropriate or
misgivings towards Phylicia that resulted in her disappearance and the
untimeliness of her death," Neverdon said. He believes investigators
have a circumstantial case against his client and said they even told
Johnson during one of several interviews that it was just a matter of
time before they got him.
Phylicia was visiting her older half-siblings in Baltimore over the
Christmas holidays when she disappeared from her sister's apartment in
northwest Baltimore on Dec. 28, 2010. Baltimore police soon alerted
local media, saying her disappearance was unusual because she had no
history of disputes with her family or trouble with the law.
She was an honor student at Union Academy, a public charter school in
Monroe, and she was on track to graduate early and had already been
accepted to several colleges. She had reconnected with her half-siblings
on Facebook, and she traveled to Baltimore several times to visit them.
Her father said the sisters even talked about living together while the
teen attended Towson University.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/149173655.html
killing of a North Carolina teenager missing for months before her body
was found in a river, prosecutors said Thursday.Michael Johnson, 28, was indicted on a sole count of first-degree murder
in the death of Phylicia Barnes, 16, of Monroe, N.C., Baltimore City
State's Attorney Gregg L. Bernstein announced.
"It's been a long day coming. It's a bittersweet day," said Phylicia's
father, Russell Barnes. "I can rest better and maybe Phylicia can rest a
whole lot better."
When Phylicia Barnes disappeared, Johnson had been breaking up with the
teen's older half-sister, Deena, after dating for about 10 years,
Russell Barnes said. The family had trusted Johnson - the last person to
see Phylicia alive - but he acted suspiciously after the girl
disappeared, avoiding people and phone calls, Russell Barnes said.
Johnson maintained his innocence when he spoke to his attorney Russell
Neverdon at Baltimore's Central Booking and Intake Center on Thursday.
"He said he had absolutely nothing to do with anything inappropriate or
misgivings towards Phylicia that resulted in her disappearance and the
untimeliness of her death," Neverdon said. He believes investigators
have a circumstantial case against his client and said they even told
Johnson during one of several interviews that it was just a matter of
time before they got him.
Phylicia was visiting her older half-siblings in Baltimore over the
Christmas holidays when she disappeared from her sister's apartment in
northwest Baltimore on Dec. 28, 2010. Baltimore police soon alerted
local media, saying her disappearance was unusual because she had no
history of disputes with her family or trouble with the law.
She was an honor student at Union Academy, a public charter school in
Monroe, and she was on track to graduate early and had already been
accepted to several colleges. She had reconnected with her half-siblings
on Facebook, and she traveled to Baltimore several times to visit them.
Her father said the sisters even talked about living together while the
teen attended Towson University.
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/nation_world/149173655.html
TomTerrific0420- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Searching for Truth and Justice
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by mom_in_il Fri Apr 27, 2012 7:31 pm
Man arrested for murder of Phylicia Barnes
by Associated Press, NewsChannel 36 Staff
Posted on April 26, 2012 at 1:43 AM
Updated yesterday at 9:32 PM
Excerpt:
Johnson was arrested at his home about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday. He is charged with first-degree murder. According to WBAL radio in Baltimore, the cause of death is asphyxiation.
http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/Arrest-made-in-Phylicia-Barnes-murder-149006855.html
by Associated Press, NewsChannel 36 Staff
Posted on April 26, 2012 at 1:43 AM
Updated yesterday at 9:32 PM
Excerpt:
Johnson was arrested at his home about 11:30 p.m. Wednesday. He is charged with first-degree murder. According to WBAL radio in Baltimore, the cause of death is asphyxiation.
http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/Arrest-made-in-Phylicia-Barnes-murder-149006855.html
mom_in_il- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by ladibug Sat Apr 28, 2012 1:29 am
Prosecutors Reveal Evidence Against Man Charged For Phylicia Barnes’ Murder
April 27, 2012 7:03 PM......
Major developments in the case after the indictment against Michael Johnson was unsealed. Prosecutors believe Johnson likely strangled Phylicia Barnes and dumped her body into a plastic tub. And it all happened at her sister’s apartment in Northwest Baltimore.
For the first time, prosecutors reveal the evidence against Michael Johnson for the murder of Phylicia Barnes. He is the ex-boyfriend of Barnes’ sister accused of killing the 16-year-old while she was visiting her sister in December 2010.
WJZ has learned Johnson texted and called Barnes 500 times during a three-month period before the visit. And she confided in her sister, “she didn’t like the way he looked at her” and that “he made her feel uncomfortable”.
And that Johnson, the last person to see Barnes alive was seen struggling to carry a 35-gallon container from the apartment moments after she disappeared.
Prosecutors say that’s large enough to fit her body.
“And what was really surprising was the number of times he mentioned he had contact with my little cousin. I mean, it was hard, hard for me to accept and to even think that a man of his age would be in contact with my little cousin, the way she was,” Harry Watson, Barnes’ cousin, said.
Another big development– Johnson’s intercepted phone calls where he spoke of fleeing to another country he could not be extradited.
“I feel like everything is going to hit the fan” Johnson said in one of those phone calls. “I feel like I should pack up some stuff and leave. Maybe leave the country. I should go to Brazil. If I started a new life, would they be able to arrest me?”
“I don’t blame him for it,” Brendon Meade, Johnson’s defense attorney, said. “He’s scared. “He’s never dealt with the criminal justice system a day in his life. And being arrested and charged with this is a travesty.”
Johnson dated Barnes’ sister for 10 years and was in the process of moving out of the apartment when Phylicia disappeared. Barnes’ body was found months later, floating in the Susquehanna River. The cause of death: asphyxiation.
And prosecutors said they have video of Johnson buying that plastic tub at a Walmart. One question was not answered on Friday involving motive: If Johnson did indeed kill Phylicia Barnes, why did he do it?
His bail was denied.
The judge called Johnson a potential threat to society, especially to people he is close.
http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2012/04/27/man-charged-with-murder-in-phylicia-barnes-case-cause-of-death-still-unknown/
April 27, 2012 7:03 PM......
Major developments in the case after the indictment against Michael Johnson was unsealed. Prosecutors believe Johnson likely strangled Phylicia Barnes and dumped her body into a plastic tub. And it all happened at her sister’s apartment in Northwest Baltimore.
For the first time, prosecutors reveal the evidence against Michael Johnson for the murder of Phylicia Barnes. He is the ex-boyfriend of Barnes’ sister accused of killing the 16-year-old while she was visiting her sister in December 2010.
WJZ has learned Johnson texted and called Barnes 500 times during a three-month period before the visit. And she confided in her sister, “she didn’t like the way he looked at her” and that “he made her feel uncomfortable”.
And that Johnson, the last person to see Barnes alive was seen struggling to carry a 35-gallon container from the apartment moments after she disappeared.
Prosecutors say that’s large enough to fit her body.
“And what was really surprising was the number of times he mentioned he had contact with my little cousin. I mean, it was hard, hard for me to accept and to even think that a man of his age would be in contact with my little cousin, the way she was,” Harry Watson, Barnes’ cousin, said.
Another big development– Johnson’s intercepted phone calls where he spoke of fleeing to another country he could not be extradited.
“I feel like everything is going to hit the fan” Johnson said in one of those phone calls. “I feel like I should pack up some stuff and leave. Maybe leave the country. I should go to Brazil. If I started a new life, would they be able to arrest me?”
“I don’t blame him for it,” Brendon Meade, Johnson’s defense attorney, said. “He’s scared. “He’s never dealt with the criminal justice system a day in his life. And being arrested and charged with this is a travesty.”
Johnson dated Barnes’ sister for 10 years and was in the process of moving out of the apartment when Phylicia disappeared. Barnes’ body was found months later, floating in the Susquehanna River. The cause of death: asphyxiation.
And prosecutors said they have video of Johnson buying that plastic tub at a Walmart. One question was not answered on Friday involving motive: If Johnson did indeed kill Phylicia Barnes, why did he do it?
His bail was denied.
The judge called Johnson a potential threat to society, especially to people he is close.
http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2012/04/27/man-charged-with-murder-in-phylicia-barnes-case-cause-of-death-still-unknown/
ladibug- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Collecting feral cats
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by TomTerrific0420 Sun Apr 29, 2012 3:12 am
A Baltimore judge has denied bail for a man accused of killing a
North Carolina teenager who was missing for months before her body was
found in a Maryland river.
Prosecutors said Friday that Michael Johnson mentioned in
emails and texts that he would flee the country if charged. As a result,
Judge John Addison Howard ordered Johnson held without bail.
Johnson has been charged with first-degree murder in the
death of 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes. He is the ex-boyfriend of Barnes'
half-sister.
He has denied the charges and his attorney calls the case circumstantial.
Prosecutors say Johnson killed Barnes in her half-sister's
apartment, then used a 35-gallon tub to move the body. They say he was
videotaped buying the tub and a neighbor saw him carrying it.
http://www.witn.com/home/headlines/Bail_Denied_For_Md_Man_Charged_In_NC_Teens_Death_149390135.html
North Carolina teenager who was missing for months before her body was
found in a Maryland river.
Prosecutors said Friday that Michael Johnson mentioned in
emails and texts that he would flee the country if charged. As a result,
Judge John Addison Howard ordered Johnson held without bail.
Johnson has been charged with first-degree murder in the
death of 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes. He is the ex-boyfriend of Barnes'
half-sister.
He has denied the charges and his attorney calls the case circumstantial.
Prosecutors say Johnson killed Barnes in her half-sister's
apartment, then used a 35-gallon tub to move the body. They say he was
videotaped buying the tub and a neighbor saw him carrying it.
http://www.witn.com/home/headlines/Bail_Denied_For_Md_Man_Charged_In_NC_Teens_Death_149390135.html
TomTerrific0420- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Searching for Truth and Justice
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by mom_in_il Tue Aug 14, 2012 1:29 pm
Trial against man charged in death of Phylicia Barnes postponed until Jan
Posted: 08/13/2012
Last Updated: 16 hours and 39 minutes ago
BALTIMORE, Md. (WMAR) - Michael Johnson shuffled into court Monday with his ankles and wrists chained, only to learn both the state and his attorneys need more time to review the case before arguing his fate.
Many expected the 28-year-old to plead Monday with a trial date to follow. Instead, proceedings were postponed until January 21, 2013.
Investigators say Johnson killed 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes, whose nude body was found months later in the Susquehanna River near the Conowingo Dam. Barnes, from Monroe, North Carolina, was visiting her sister in Baltimore when she was reported missing.
The coroner's office revealed Barnes died of asphyxiation. During a bail review for Johnson in April, it was learned a witness told investigators he saw Johnson sweating, struggling to carry a large plastic tub out of the apartment of Barnes' sister.
Johnson reportedly dated Barnes' sister for several years.
Johnson's attorneys say there are 17,000 pages of evidence to review in the case. They argue none of what they've seen so far establishes a clear case against their client.
"Will January be enough time? It's our hope that it will be," said defense attorney Russell Neverdon.
Check back with ABC2 News as we continue to develop this story.
Read more: http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/crime_checker/baltimore_city_crime/phylicia-barnes-case-to-move-forward#ixzz23WjZsBjw
Posted: 08/13/2012
Last Updated: 16 hours and 39 minutes ago
BALTIMORE, Md. (WMAR) - Michael Johnson shuffled into court Monday with his ankles and wrists chained, only to learn both the state and his attorneys need more time to review the case before arguing his fate.
Many expected the 28-year-old to plead Monday with a trial date to follow. Instead, proceedings were postponed until January 21, 2013.
Investigators say Johnson killed 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes, whose nude body was found months later in the Susquehanna River near the Conowingo Dam. Barnes, from Monroe, North Carolina, was visiting her sister in Baltimore when she was reported missing.
The coroner's office revealed Barnes died of asphyxiation. During a bail review for Johnson in April, it was learned a witness told investigators he saw Johnson sweating, struggling to carry a large plastic tub out of the apartment of Barnes' sister.
Johnson reportedly dated Barnes' sister for several years.
Johnson's attorneys say there are 17,000 pages of evidence to review in the case. They argue none of what they've seen so far establishes a clear case against their client.
"Will January be enough time? It's our hope that it will be," said defense attorney Russell Neverdon.
Check back with ABC2 News as we continue to develop this story.
Read more: http://www.abc2news.com/dpp/news/crime_checker/baltimore_city_crime/phylicia-barnes-case-to-move-forward#ixzz23WjZsBjw
mom_in_il- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by Gingernlw Tue Aug 14, 2012 5:55 pm
Well, according to reports he was moving, so of course his defense will be that the tub held his belongings. Unfortunately, unless they have more, I have to agree their case is circumstantial. Unless I missed something else.
Gingernlw- Local Celebrity (no autographs, please)
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by ladibug Fri Dec 28, 2012 10:33 pm
4:41 p.m. EST, December 28, 2012
City prosecutors have filed notice that they intend to play at trial a video that depicts teenage slaying victim Phylicia Barnes "intoxicated and engaging in sexual relations" with her alleged murderer, his younger brother, and her older half-sister, court records show.
The court filing in the high-profile case — a motion to close the courtroom when the video is played — appears to show for the first time why federal authorities had last year filed search warrant applications in court describing a "child pornography" investigation. They sought access to the Facebook pages and e-mail addresses of Phylicia Barnes, 16, and the three others who allegedly appear in the video.
It is not clear how the video relates to the murder charge against Michael Maurice Johnson, the 28-year-old ex-boyfriend of Phylicia Barnes' 29-year-old sister, Deena Barnes. Prosecutors do not comment on pending cases, but wrote in the motion that it will be played during Deena Barnes' testimony.
The video was "recorded and stored" on Deena Barnes' phone and is more than 16 minutes long, prosecutors wrote in the motion. Prosecutors asked to close the courtroom because two of the people who appear in the video are minors.
"The state does not wish to maintain the closure of the courtroom for questions asked to Deena Barnes subsequent to the video," prosecutors wrote.
Contacted Friday, the husband of Phylicia Barnes' mother, Janice Mustafa, declined to comment. Her father, Russell Barnes, said he was not aware of the video and also declined to comment, except to say, "We're just staying focused," he said.
One of Johnson's defense attorneys, Ivan Bates, said they will challenge the prosecutors' motion to close the courtroom, adding that the "community has the right to able to see any and all evidence." Though the state will introduce the video, Bates said it also is relevant to Johnson's defense because it will "show the relationships between all of the individuals in that moment in time."
Russell Neverdon, another attorney for Johnson, noted that prosecutors have said Phylicia Barnes told others she felt "uncomfortable" around him. "This is to the contrary," he said.
The motion is the latest in the leadup to Johnson's trial, scheduled for late January. Both sides are expected to argue over the motions in a Jan. 8 hearing.
Johnson is accused of asphyxiating Phylicia Barnes, then moving her body by placing it in a 35-gallon plastic tub. A neighbor, prosecutors said in court this summer, saw Johnson sweating and struggling to move a tub out of Deena Barnes' Northwest Baltimore apartment.
Phylicia Barnes, who was from Monroe, N.C., went missing in late December 2010 while visiting her older sisters. She planned to go to college here after graduating early from high school, where she was an honors student and ran track. Authorities said she vanished without a trace; after a widely publicized search that drew national media attention, her nude body was found floating in the Susquehanna River in April 2011.
In May of that year, federal authorities filed documents — apparently in error and later sealed — that showed they were seeking access to two Yahoo email accounts and one AOL email account that include Phylicia Barnes' first name, along with her Facebook page, records show. FBI Special Agent Jacqueline Dougher, who works from the Baltimore field office with the state's child exploitation task force, also requested access to three other Facebook pages and four other email accounts.
Earlier this month, defense attorneys signaled that they wanted to see internal police records related to the lead Baltimore Police detective in the case, Daniel Nicholson IV. Nicholson was suspended by the department the day before Johnson was indicted, amid questions about a search he conducted for his own missing teenage daughter.
Defense attorneys argued the records may "clarify the possible connection between the detective's suspension and Mr. Johnson's hasty indictment." They added that the search for his daughter and the tactics used to investigate Phylicia Barnes' disappearance could "show the pattern of misconduct Detective Nicholson uses in cases such as these."
City prosecutors have not filed charges or cleared Nicholson in regard to that investigation. Through an attorney, Nicholson has denied wrongdoing, and the city police union has supported him, saying he did what any concerned father would have done. His attorney, Matthew Fraling, said Nicholson did nothing inappropriate and called the accusations contained in the defense motion "absolutely ludicrous."
The defense also filed notice that it intends to call as a witness a man named Robert Hickman Fields, who reported to police during the investigation that he had seen Phylicia Barnes alive in Cecil County after she went missing.
In a response filed last week, prosecutors argue that Fields should not be allowed to testify, accusing the defense of a "purposeful delay in order to obtain an advantage by not providing sufficient time for the state to investigate this witness and the information he provided."
"One month is not sufficient time to adequately investigate this witness as well as review the dozens of phone records, thousands of documents, and numerous witnesses to determine what, if any connection this witness has to the defendant," prosecutors wrote. "That is particularly true in light of the fact that this witness called in to the 'tip line' and gave different information to the police than he appears to be giving in the transcript provided to the state."
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-ci-barnes-tape-court-20121228,0,2220119.story
It saddens me, for the parents sake, when information comes out like this about their murdered child.
City prosecutors have filed notice that they intend to play at trial a video that depicts teenage slaying victim Phylicia Barnes "intoxicated and engaging in sexual relations" with her alleged murderer, his younger brother, and her older half-sister, court records show.
The court filing in the high-profile case — a motion to close the courtroom when the video is played — appears to show for the first time why federal authorities had last year filed search warrant applications in court describing a "child pornography" investigation. They sought access to the Facebook pages and e-mail addresses of Phylicia Barnes, 16, and the three others who allegedly appear in the video.
It is not clear how the video relates to the murder charge against Michael Maurice Johnson, the 28-year-old ex-boyfriend of Phylicia Barnes' 29-year-old sister, Deena Barnes. Prosecutors do not comment on pending cases, but wrote in the motion that it will be played during Deena Barnes' testimony.
The video was "recorded and stored" on Deena Barnes' phone and is more than 16 minutes long, prosecutors wrote in the motion. Prosecutors asked to close the courtroom because two of the people who appear in the video are minors.
"The state does not wish to maintain the closure of the courtroom for questions asked to Deena Barnes subsequent to the video," prosecutors wrote.
Contacted Friday, the husband of Phylicia Barnes' mother, Janice Mustafa, declined to comment. Her father, Russell Barnes, said he was not aware of the video and also declined to comment, except to say, "We're just staying focused," he said.
One of Johnson's defense attorneys, Ivan Bates, said they will challenge the prosecutors' motion to close the courtroom, adding that the "community has the right to able to see any and all evidence." Though the state will introduce the video, Bates said it also is relevant to Johnson's defense because it will "show the relationships between all of the individuals in that moment in time."
Russell Neverdon, another attorney for Johnson, noted that prosecutors have said Phylicia Barnes told others she felt "uncomfortable" around him. "This is to the contrary," he said.
The motion is the latest in the leadup to Johnson's trial, scheduled for late January. Both sides are expected to argue over the motions in a Jan. 8 hearing.
Johnson is accused of asphyxiating Phylicia Barnes, then moving her body by placing it in a 35-gallon plastic tub. A neighbor, prosecutors said in court this summer, saw Johnson sweating and struggling to move a tub out of Deena Barnes' Northwest Baltimore apartment.
Phylicia Barnes, who was from Monroe, N.C., went missing in late December 2010 while visiting her older sisters. She planned to go to college here after graduating early from high school, where she was an honors student and ran track. Authorities said she vanished without a trace; after a widely publicized search that drew national media attention, her nude body was found floating in the Susquehanna River in April 2011.
In May of that year, federal authorities filed documents — apparently in error and later sealed — that showed they were seeking access to two Yahoo email accounts and one AOL email account that include Phylicia Barnes' first name, along with her Facebook page, records show. FBI Special Agent Jacqueline Dougher, who works from the Baltimore field office with the state's child exploitation task force, also requested access to three other Facebook pages and four other email accounts.
Earlier this month, defense attorneys signaled that they wanted to see internal police records related to the lead Baltimore Police detective in the case, Daniel Nicholson IV. Nicholson was suspended by the department the day before Johnson was indicted, amid questions about a search he conducted for his own missing teenage daughter.
Defense attorneys argued the records may "clarify the possible connection between the detective's suspension and Mr. Johnson's hasty indictment." They added that the search for his daughter and the tactics used to investigate Phylicia Barnes' disappearance could "show the pattern of misconduct Detective Nicholson uses in cases such as these."
City prosecutors have not filed charges or cleared Nicholson in regard to that investigation. Through an attorney, Nicholson has denied wrongdoing, and the city police union has supported him, saying he did what any concerned father would have done. His attorney, Matthew Fraling, said Nicholson did nothing inappropriate and called the accusations contained in the defense motion "absolutely ludicrous."
The defense also filed notice that it intends to call as a witness a man named Robert Hickman Fields, who reported to police during the investigation that he had seen Phylicia Barnes alive in Cecil County after she went missing.
In a response filed last week, prosecutors argue that Fields should not be allowed to testify, accusing the defense of a "purposeful delay in order to obtain an advantage by not providing sufficient time for the state to investigate this witness and the information he provided."
"One month is not sufficient time to adequately investigate this witness as well as review the dozens of phone records, thousands of documents, and numerous witnesses to determine what, if any connection this witness has to the defendant," prosecutors wrote. "That is particularly true in light of the fact that this witness called in to the 'tip line' and gave different information to the police than he appears to be giving in the transcript provided to the state."
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-ci-barnes-tape-court-20121228,0,2220119.story
It saddens me, for the parents sake, when information comes out like this about their murdered child.
ladibug- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Collecting feral cats
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by mom_in_il Sat Jan 12, 2013 4:35 pm
Prosecutors accused of withholding info in Phylicia Barnes case
Detective suspended for leading rogue investigation
UPDATED 6:46 AM EST Jan 09, 2013
BALTIMORE —Lawyers for the man accused of killing 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes have accused prosecutors of withholding what they believe is damning information about the lead detective in the case, I-Team lead investigative reporter Jayne Miller reports.
Barnes disappeared in December 2010 from the northwest Baltimore apartment where she was visiting her sister. Her body was found in the Susquehanna River four months later.
The day before Michael Johnson was charged with the Barnes murder, Detective Daniel Nicholson was suspended for leading a rogue investigation into his own daughter's disappearance.
The suspension came after Nicholson allegedly used his police powers to force his way into a northeast Baltimore apartment during that rogue investigation, sources said. His daughter was later found unharmed.
Johnson's lawyers claim what Nicholson did in his own daughter's case is similar to what he did in the Barnes case and each time, they argue, his conduct was over the top and wrong. In court papers filed Monday,they accused prosecutors of dragging their feet and protecting Nicholson's credibility to save their case.
In papers filed last week, defense lawyers argued, "the file may show the ... state's attorney's office has a conflict in ... this case if they intentionally did not charge Detective Nicholson in hopes of protecting his credibility as a main witness."
Nicholson has been under investigation since April. No charges have been filed against him, and he remains suspended with pay.
The debate over the file on him led to a closed-door meeting in court Friday. Court records show defense lawyers are being allowed to see part of it.
Lawyers and prosecutors also met behind closed doors in the courthouse Tuesday to resolve what information will be turned over.
The murder case is to go to trial Jan. 22.
Read more: http://www.wbaltv.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/Prosecutors-accused-of-withholding-info-in-Phylicia-Barnes-case/-/10131532/18050330/-/ohqf1xz/-/index.html#ixzz2HmPmpHgU
Detective suspended for leading rogue investigation
UPDATED 6:46 AM EST Jan 09, 2013
BALTIMORE —Lawyers for the man accused of killing 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes have accused prosecutors of withholding what they believe is damning information about the lead detective in the case, I-Team lead investigative reporter Jayne Miller reports.
Barnes disappeared in December 2010 from the northwest Baltimore apartment where she was visiting her sister. Her body was found in the Susquehanna River four months later.
The day before Michael Johnson was charged with the Barnes murder, Detective Daniel Nicholson was suspended for leading a rogue investigation into his own daughter's disappearance.
The suspension came after Nicholson allegedly used his police powers to force his way into a northeast Baltimore apartment during that rogue investigation, sources said. His daughter was later found unharmed.
Johnson's lawyers claim what Nicholson did in his own daughter's case is similar to what he did in the Barnes case and each time, they argue, his conduct was over the top and wrong. In court papers filed Monday,they accused prosecutors of dragging their feet and protecting Nicholson's credibility to save their case.
In papers filed last week, defense lawyers argued, "the file may show the ... state's attorney's office has a conflict in ... this case if they intentionally did not charge Detective Nicholson in hopes of protecting his credibility as a main witness."
Nicholson has been under investigation since April. No charges have been filed against him, and he remains suspended with pay.
The debate over the file on him led to a closed-door meeting in court Friday. Court records show defense lawyers are being allowed to see part of it.
Lawyers and prosecutors also met behind closed doors in the courthouse Tuesday to resolve what information will be turned over.
The murder case is to go to trial Jan. 22.
Read more: http://www.wbaltv.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/Prosecutors-accused-of-withholding-info-in-Phylicia-Barnes-case/-/10131532/18050330/-/ohqf1xz/-/index.html#ixzz2HmPmpHgU
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Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by ladibug Wed Feb 06, 2013 11:24 pm
Michael Johnson found guilty in killing of Phylicia Barnes
2:23 p.m. EST, February 6, 2013
A Baltimore jury found Michael Maurice Johnson guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Phylicia Barnes, a 16-year-old from North Carolina whose disappearance without a trace from her sister's Northwest Baltimore apartment in 2010 touched off a search that garnered national attention.
Johnson stood with his eyes closed as jurors read the verdict and did not appear to react. Jurors acquitted him on the initial charge of first-degree murder, but after almost two days of deliberating reached a unanimous verdict on second-degree murder, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
"Justice is served," her father, Russell Barnes, said outside the courthouse. "Phylicia can sleep now."
Lawyers on both sides had acknowledged in closing arguments that the evidence against Johnson was circumstantial. But while defense attorneys described flaws and inconsistencies, prosecutors said the facts pointed to Johnson as the only reasonable suspect.
State's Attorney Gregg Bernstein cheered the verdict and said that the trial demonstrated that his office will take on tough cases. Police had considered Johnson, the longtime boyfriend of Phylicia's older half-sister and the last known person to see her alive, to be a suspect from the beginning of the investigation after her disappearance on Dec. 28, 2010.
He was charged in April 2012, a year after her body was found floating in the Susquehanna River.
"This was a challenging case; this was a difficult case," Bernstein said. "This is why I ran for state's attorney — to bring these types of cases, and let the jury make its decision."
On Friday, the judge overseeing the case, Alfred Nance, expressed "great concern" about the evidence in the case, and defense attorneys said they were stunned by the verdict. Russell Neverdon said the state's key witness lost all credibility on the stand, and that the other evidence "just didn't add up." But Ivan Bates, another attorney, noted that the state had offered a plea deal that would've sent Johnson to prison for 50 years.
"In our mind, we've already won something," Bates said.
Phylicia, a pretty girl with a big smile, was an honors student and athlete at her private school in Monroe, N.C., where she was set to graduate a year early. But as police officials searched for her, they expressed frustration that her case wasn't garnering more national media coverage, saying it underscored a racial bias in missing persons cases.
Last year legislators passed "Phylicia's Law," aimed at improving coordination between law enforcement and community groups when a child disappears — believed to be the first such bill named after a minority child.
At trial, prosecutors Lisa Goldberg and Tonya LaPolla focused attention on lax supervision that allowed the precocious teen, whose trips to Baltimore came after she connected with older half-siblings over Facebook, to indulge in drugs and alcohol. During one night of partying, she went streaking with Johnson and took part in a sexually explicit video.
That video became a centerpiece of the prosecutors' theory, positing that it marked a turning point in the relationship between Johnson and Phylicia, who he called "little sis." Over the next months, they exchanged more than 1,300 text messages, Goldberg said.
A neighbor testified that he saw Johnson struggling to carry a plastic storage container from the apartment where Barnes was staying on the day she disappeared. While he was in the process of moving out of the apartment, prosecutors argue he killed her there and removed the body inside the container.
None of the phone records presented by prosecutors could place Johnson anywhere near the Susquehanna River, and though Phylicia's death was ruled a homicide by asphyxiation, a medical examiner testified that the finding was based on a lack of other injuries and the suspicious circumstances of her disappearance.
Judge Nance, in denying a motion for acquittal on Friday, called the state's case a "circumstantial theory" that it had to prove "not by speculation or assumption, but by evidence," and questioned the medical examiner's finding of homicide.
Defense lawyers focused criticism on the testimony of a man named James McCray, who said that he advised Johnson about what to do with Barnes' body.
McCray, who is also known as James Lee and was brought to court from his jail cell in the Charles County courthouse where he is being held on unrelated charges, said Johnson told him he raped Barnes and strangled her after she wouldn't stop crying. But Johnson's lawyers attacked McCray for incorrectly testifying what floor the apartment was on and what day the crime occurred.
McCray's testimony, they said, was the only new piece of evidence introduced in the case since a Harford County grand jury that convened in late 2011 disbanded without charging Johnson. He came forward after Johnson was charged in Baltimore.
Johnson's attorneys also cast doubt on the time span during which Johnson would have had to kill Barnes, consult with McCray and move the body — a window of about 38 minutes.
"It doesn't make sense because it's not possible," defense attorney Tony Garcia said during closing arguments.
But prosecutors countered that McCray had information — about the neighborhood where the alleged crime took place and about Johnson's relationship with Barnes — that he would not have been able to provide if he was making up the story.
"There is only one person in this investigation that all of the facts and circumstances point to," LaPolla said during closing arguments. "There's only one logical conclusion."
Barnes' mother, Janice Mustafa, quivered with emotion as she spoke after the verdict was read. She did not spend much time in the courtroom during the trial, she said, because "it wasn't going to bring [Barnes] back."
Though she said she could not find peace after losing her daughter, Mustafa said she was relieved by the verdict.
"Now Simone can move on," she said, referring to Barnes by her middle name. "This is a great day. I can breathe now."
Pauline Mandel, a lawyer with the Maryland Crime Victim's Resource Center representing Sallis-Mustafa, thanked the prosecutors, jury and police, particularly city police Det. Daniel T. Nicholson IV. Nicholson was the lead detective in the murder investigation until he was suspended in April, accused of going on a rogue hunt for his own missing daughter.
Defense attorneys sought to raise questions about Nicholson's tactics, and won the ability to question him on the stand about whether he was truthful about the investigation into the search for his missing daughter.
Capt. Stanley Brandford, who recently became commander of the homicide unit, said Nicholson and the other detectives on the case "did an excellent job. I'm proud of them."
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-phylicia-barnes-verdict-20130206,0,1628770,full.story
2:23 p.m. EST, February 6, 2013
A Baltimore jury found Michael Maurice Johnson guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Phylicia Barnes, a 16-year-old from North Carolina whose disappearance without a trace from her sister's Northwest Baltimore apartment in 2010 touched off a search that garnered national attention.
Johnson stood with his eyes closed as jurors read the verdict and did not appear to react. Jurors acquitted him on the initial charge of first-degree murder, but after almost two days of deliberating reached a unanimous verdict on second-degree murder, which carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
"Justice is served," her father, Russell Barnes, said outside the courthouse. "Phylicia can sleep now."
Lawyers on both sides had acknowledged in closing arguments that the evidence against Johnson was circumstantial. But while defense attorneys described flaws and inconsistencies, prosecutors said the facts pointed to Johnson as the only reasonable suspect.
State's Attorney Gregg Bernstein cheered the verdict and said that the trial demonstrated that his office will take on tough cases. Police had considered Johnson, the longtime boyfriend of Phylicia's older half-sister and the last known person to see her alive, to be a suspect from the beginning of the investigation after her disappearance on Dec. 28, 2010.
He was charged in April 2012, a year after her body was found floating in the Susquehanna River.
"This was a challenging case; this was a difficult case," Bernstein said. "This is why I ran for state's attorney — to bring these types of cases, and let the jury make its decision."
On Friday, the judge overseeing the case, Alfred Nance, expressed "great concern" about the evidence in the case, and defense attorneys said they were stunned by the verdict. Russell Neverdon said the state's key witness lost all credibility on the stand, and that the other evidence "just didn't add up." But Ivan Bates, another attorney, noted that the state had offered a plea deal that would've sent Johnson to prison for 50 years.
"In our mind, we've already won something," Bates said.
Phylicia, a pretty girl with a big smile, was an honors student and athlete at her private school in Monroe, N.C., where she was set to graduate a year early. But as police officials searched for her, they expressed frustration that her case wasn't garnering more national media coverage, saying it underscored a racial bias in missing persons cases.
Last year legislators passed "Phylicia's Law," aimed at improving coordination between law enforcement and community groups when a child disappears — believed to be the first such bill named after a minority child.
At trial, prosecutors Lisa Goldberg and Tonya LaPolla focused attention on lax supervision that allowed the precocious teen, whose trips to Baltimore came after she connected with older half-siblings over Facebook, to indulge in drugs and alcohol. During one night of partying, she went streaking with Johnson and took part in a sexually explicit video.
That video became a centerpiece of the prosecutors' theory, positing that it marked a turning point in the relationship between Johnson and Phylicia, who he called "little sis." Over the next months, they exchanged more than 1,300 text messages, Goldberg said.
A neighbor testified that he saw Johnson struggling to carry a plastic storage container from the apartment where Barnes was staying on the day she disappeared. While he was in the process of moving out of the apartment, prosecutors argue he killed her there and removed the body inside the container.
None of the phone records presented by prosecutors could place Johnson anywhere near the Susquehanna River, and though Phylicia's death was ruled a homicide by asphyxiation, a medical examiner testified that the finding was based on a lack of other injuries and the suspicious circumstances of her disappearance.
Judge Nance, in denying a motion for acquittal on Friday, called the state's case a "circumstantial theory" that it had to prove "not by speculation or assumption, but by evidence," and questioned the medical examiner's finding of homicide.
Defense lawyers focused criticism on the testimony of a man named James McCray, who said that he advised Johnson about what to do with Barnes' body.
McCray, who is also known as James Lee and was brought to court from his jail cell in the Charles County courthouse where he is being held on unrelated charges, said Johnson told him he raped Barnes and strangled her after she wouldn't stop crying. But Johnson's lawyers attacked McCray for incorrectly testifying what floor the apartment was on and what day the crime occurred.
McCray's testimony, they said, was the only new piece of evidence introduced in the case since a Harford County grand jury that convened in late 2011 disbanded without charging Johnson. He came forward after Johnson was charged in Baltimore.
Johnson's attorneys also cast doubt on the time span during which Johnson would have had to kill Barnes, consult with McCray and move the body — a window of about 38 minutes.
"It doesn't make sense because it's not possible," defense attorney Tony Garcia said during closing arguments.
But prosecutors countered that McCray had information — about the neighborhood where the alleged crime took place and about Johnson's relationship with Barnes — that he would not have been able to provide if he was making up the story.
"There is only one person in this investigation that all of the facts and circumstances point to," LaPolla said during closing arguments. "There's only one logical conclusion."
Barnes' mother, Janice Mustafa, quivered with emotion as she spoke after the verdict was read. She did not spend much time in the courtroom during the trial, she said, because "it wasn't going to bring [Barnes] back."
Though she said she could not find peace after losing her daughter, Mustafa said she was relieved by the verdict.
"Now Simone can move on," she said, referring to Barnes by her middle name. "This is a great day. I can breathe now."
Pauline Mandel, a lawyer with the Maryland Crime Victim's Resource Center representing Sallis-Mustafa, thanked the prosecutors, jury and police, particularly city police Det. Daniel T. Nicholson IV. Nicholson was the lead detective in the murder investigation until he was suspended in April, accused of going on a rogue hunt for his own missing daughter.
Defense attorneys sought to raise questions about Nicholson's tactics, and won the ability to question him on the stand about whether he was truthful about the investigation into the search for his missing daughter.
Capt. Stanley Brandford, who recently became commander of the homicide unit, said Nicholson and the other detectives on the case "did an excellent job. I'm proud of them."
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-phylicia-barnes-verdict-20130206,0,1628770,full.story
ladibug- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Collecting feral cats
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by twinkletoes Thu Feb 07, 2013 1:17 am
The second degree finding was most likely a compromise. I hope he gets the maximum, which isn't long enough. He needs to be in prison until they carry him out in a pine box.
twinkletoes- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Trying to keep my sanity. Trying to accept that which I cannot change. It's hard.
Re: PHYLICIA BARNES - 16 yo (2010) - Baltimore MD
by ladibug Thu Mar 21, 2013 3:06 am
Michael Johnson, found guilty of killing Phylicia Barnes, will get a new trial after a judge ruled key evidence was withheld from prosecutors.
9:28 p.m. EDT, March 20, 2013
A Baltimore judge threw out the murder conviction of a man who was to be sentenced Wednesday in the killing of 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes, saying prosecutors withheld information about a key witness from defense attorneys.
The second-degree murder conviction of Michael Maurice Johnson, 29, last month had appeared to close the case of the North Carolina girl who disappeared while visiting family in Baltimore in 2010. But Circuit Judge Alfred Nance's ruling will give Johnson another chance to plead his innocence.
Prosecutors said they were "disappointed" in the ruling but planned to retry the case. Barnes' father expressed confidence that Johnson would be convicted again.
Defense attorneys, who had requested a new trial, said the ruling would help them present a more complete rebuttal of the state's case.
Nance's decision turned on the testimony of James McCray, who said he saw Barnes' body after Johnson asked him for help in disposing it. His was the only testimony that linked Johnson directly to a murder scene. The defense questioned McCray's credibility, deriding him at trial as a "jailhouse snitch."
Prosecutors had said that McCray was incarcerated in Charles County and did not have access to media accounts of the Barnes trial, but the defense team later learned that he had been detained in Baltimore County for a time. That was one of several details Nance said the defense should have disclosed.
"This court notes that while defendant is not guaranteed a perfect trial, he is guaranteed a fair trial, and these violations amount to a failure to meet that standard," the judge said in a written opinion.
McCray also testified that he had been a witness in two other trials. But the day after the verdict was handed down in the Barnes killing, prosecutors in Montgomery County contacted the Baltimore state's attorney's office about McCray's role as a potential witness in a separate murder case.
One county officer's notes raised concerns about McCray's credibility, though a later prosecution response argued that other area investigators had vouched for the witness. Ultimately, he did not testify in the Montgomery County murder trial.
City prosecutors took two weeks to notify the defense of the new information — outside the 10-day window for the defense to request a new trial — but said they did so because they were researching the validity of the new claim. Nance said that "by withholding it from the defendant during a critical time period after the verdict, the state in essence suppressed the information."
After the judge's ruling, defense attorney Ivan Bates said, "It's important that everyone play by the same set of rules, and the state got its hand caught in the cookie jar."
Barnes' disappearance and her family's desperate search for clues became one of the highest-profile missing persons cases in recent years, drawing broad attention to the issue of missing children.
Johnson has been held without bail since his arrest in April. He was not released Wednesday, but his attorneys said they might petition for his release on bond. Because the jury acquitted him of first-degree murder, they believe he cannot face that charge again.
Russell Barnes, Phylicia's father, said the family was not upset by the judge's ruling. "It's a setback," he said. "We know the state has the right person, no ifs, ands or buts about it."
After being convicted after a 12-day trial last month, Johnson could have been sentenced to 30 years in prison. He had dated Barnes' elder sister Deena for years, and prosecutors alleged that he had grown inappropriately close to the teen in the months preceding her death.
Though they could not explain how Barnes' body was found months later floating in the Susquehanna River, prosecutors said circumstantial evidence pointed to Johnson's guilt. That included Johnson's having called out of work the day of the girl's disappearance and his being seen by a neighbor struggling to move a plastic tub that prosecutors believe contained her body.
The judge had said during the trial that the prosecution's theory of the killing had caused him "great concern" and that the circumstantial evidence gave added importance to McCray's testimony, which was direct.
McCray testified that he knew Johnson through an under-the-table vehicle tag business he ran, and that Johnson had told him he had raped the girl and killed her because she would not stop crying. He said he advised Johnson how to elude police detection.
McCray testified that while reading the Bible one night, he felt compelled by his guilt to come forward with the information. That occurred months after Johnson was indicted.
Prosecutors asserted Wednesday that the totality of the evidence was strong. "The jury heard all the testimony, and their verdict is correct," Assistant State's Attorney Lisa Goldberg told Nance. "It would be a miscarriage of justice not to let this verdict stand."
Prosecutors are required to turn over information to defense attorneys before trial — including evidence that they intend to use and information that could be favorable to the defendant. Prosecutors did not say whether they would call McCray as a witness in a new trial.
Bates said prosecutors gave the defense only a handwritten summary of McCray's criminal history that inhibited their ability to investigate him, particularly because of his use of aliases and varying birth dates in court databases.
Goldberg argued that the summary was meant to help the defense as it combed through 30,000 pages of other documents and said defense attorneys "could have followed up" on what was provided.
Bates said the defense later learned that charges against McCray in Baltimore County were dismissed the day after he spoke to city detectives about Barnes' death. Prosecutors said the case had been dismissed for unrelated reasons, and a Baltimore County prosecutor was on hand to confirm that.
But Nance said the defense was entitled to know that information earlier, and wrote that it "casts doubt on the state's contention that McCray is not biased because he did not receive any favors in exchange for his testimony in the case."
Prosecutors also said they had people in the courtroom Wednesday who were prepared to dispute the contention that McCray was not credible.
In the Montgomery County letter, Detective Dimitry Ruvin wrote that McCray gave false information about a high-profile case in Prince George's County involving a man named Jason Thomas Scott, who was charged in 50 burglaries, nine home invasions and the deaths of two women found in a burning car.
Ruvin said he determined that McCray was never incarcerated with Scott, as he said he had been. The detective also said he spoke to an investigator in Arlington, Va., who said she, too, had received bad information from McCray. Ruvin was told by Washington police that McCray had reached out to them several times and was not deemed credible.
Prosecutors said their research "reveals that nearly all the information contained in Detective Ruvin's memo is incorrect." They said records showed that Scott and McCray were in fact incarcerated during overlapping periods and that Washington police had told them that McCray had provided credible information.
Nance said the new material from Montgomery County was nonetheless "material and persuasive" and that the defense was entitled to use it.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-ci-johson-sentencing-phylicia-barnes-20130320,0,6243671,full.story
9:28 p.m. EDT, March 20, 2013
A Baltimore judge threw out the murder conviction of a man who was to be sentenced Wednesday in the killing of 16-year-old Phylicia Barnes, saying prosecutors withheld information about a key witness from defense attorneys.
The second-degree murder conviction of Michael Maurice Johnson, 29, last month had appeared to close the case of the North Carolina girl who disappeared while visiting family in Baltimore in 2010. But Circuit Judge Alfred Nance's ruling will give Johnson another chance to plead his innocence.
Prosecutors said they were "disappointed" in the ruling but planned to retry the case. Barnes' father expressed confidence that Johnson would be convicted again.
Defense attorneys, who had requested a new trial, said the ruling would help them present a more complete rebuttal of the state's case.
Nance's decision turned on the testimony of James McCray, who said he saw Barnes' body after Johnson asked him for help in disposing it. His was the only testimony that linked Johnson directly to a murder scene. The defense questioned McCray's credibility, deriding him at trial as a "jailhouse snitch."
Prosecutors had said that McCray was incarcerated in Charles County and did not have access to media accounts of the Barnes trial, but the defense team later learned that he had been detained in Baltimore County for a time. That was one of several details Nance said the defense should have disclosed.
"This court notes that while defendant is not guaranteed a perfect trial, he is guaranteed a fair trial, and these violations amount to a failure to meet that standard," the judge said in a written opinion.
McCray also testified that he had been a witness in two other trials. But the day after the verdict was handed down in the Barnes killing, prosecutors in Montgomery County contacted the Baltimore state's attorney's office about McCray's role as a potential witness in a separate murder case.
One county officer's notes raised concerns about McCray's credibility, though a later prosecution response argued that other area investigators had vouched for the witness. Ultimately, he did not testify in the Montgomery County murder trial.
City prosecutors took two weeks to notify the defense of the new information — outside the 10-day window for the defense to request a new trial — but said they did so because they were researching the validity of the new claim. Nance said that "by withholding it from the defendant during a critical time period after the verdict, the state in essence suppressed the information."
After the judge's ruling, defense attorney Ivan Bates said, "It's important that everyone play by the same set of rules, and the state got its hand caught in the cookie jar."
Barnes' disappearance and her family's desperate search for clues became one of the highest-profile missing persons cases in recent years, drawing broad attention to the issue of missing children.
Johnson has been held without bail since his arrest in April. He was not released Wednesday, but his attorneys said they might petition for his release on bond. Because the jury acquitted him of first-degree murder, they believe he cannot face that charge again.
Russell Barnes, Phylicia's father, said the family was not upset by the judge's ruling. "It's a setback," he said. "We know the state has the right person, no ifs, ands or buts about it."
After being convicted after a 12-day trial last month, Johnson could have been sentenced to 30 years in prison. He had dated Barnes' elder sister Deena for years, and prosecutors alleged that he had grown inappropriately close to the teen in the months preceding her death.
Though they could not explain how Barnes' body was found months later floating in the Susquehanna River, prosecutors said circumstantial evidence pointed to Johnson's guilt. That included Johnson's having called out of work the day of the girl's disappearance and his being seen by a neighbor struggling to move a plastic tub that prosecutors believe contained her body.
The judge had said during the trial that the prosecution's theory of the killing had caused him "great concern" and that the circumstantial evidence gave added importance to McCray's testimony, which was direct.
McCray testified that he knew Johnson through an under-the-table vehicle tag business he ran, and that Johnson had told him he had raped the girl and killed her because she would not stop crying. He said he advised Johnson how to elude police detection.
McCray testified that while reading the Bible one night, he felt compelled by his guilt to come forward with the information. That occurred months after Johnson was indicted.
Prosecutors asserted Wednesday that the totality of the evidence was strong. "The jury heard all the testimony, and their verdict is correct," Assistant State's Attorney Lisa Goldberg told Nance. "It would be a miscarriage of justice not to let this verdict stand."
Prosecutors are required to turn over information to defense attorneys before trial — including evidence that they intend to use and information that could be favorable to the defendant. Prosecutors did not say whether they would call McCray as a witness in a new trial.
Bates said prosecutors gave the defense only a handwritten summary of McCray's criminal history that inhibited their ability to investigate him, particularly because of his use of aliases and varying birth dates in court databases.
Goldberg argued that the summary was meant to help the defense as it combed through 30,000 pages of other documents and said defense attorneys "could have followed up" on what was provided.
Bates said the defense later learned that charges against McCray in Baltimore County were dismissed the day after he spoke to city detectives about Barnes' death. Prosecutors said the case had been dismissed for unrelated reasons, and a Baltimore County prosecutor was on hand to confirm that.
But Nance said the defense was entitled to know that information earlier, and wrote that it "casts doubt on the state's contention that McCray is not biased because he did not receive any favors in exchange for his testimony in the case."
Prosecutors also said they had people in the courtroom Wednesday who were prepared to dispute the contention that McCray was not credible.
In the Montgomery County letter, Detective Dimitry Ruvin wrote that McCray gave false information about a high-profile case in Prince George's County involving a man named Jason Thomas Scott, who was charged in 50 burglaries, nine home invasions and the deaths of two women found in a burning car.
Ruvin said he determined that McCray was never incarcerated with Scott, as he said he had been. The detective also said he spoke to an investigator in Arlington, Va., who said she, too, had received bad information from McCray. Ruvin was told by Washington police that McCray had reached out to them several times and was not deemed credible.
Prosecutors said their research "reveals that nearly all the information contained in Detective Ruvin's memo is incorrect." They said records showed that Scott and McCray were in fact incarcerated during overlapping periods and that Washington police had told them that McCray had provided credible information.
Nance said the new material from Montgomery County was nonetheless "material and persuasive" and that the defense was entitled to use it.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/blog/bs-md-ci-johson-sentencing-phylicia-barnes-20130320,0,6243671,full.story
ladibug- Supreme Commander of the Universe With Cape AND Tights AND Fancy Headgear
- Job/hobbies : Collecting feral cats
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