GARETT and GAVIN COLEMAN - (2009) / Convicted: Father Chris Coleman - Columbia IL

WATERLOO, IL (AP) - A southwestern Illinois man accused of strangling
his wife and two sons is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary
hearing. Wednesday's hearing is for 32-year-old Christopher Coleman of
Columbia. He's charged with first-degree murder in the May 5 deaths of
31-year-old Sheri Coleman and the couple's children, 11-year-old Garett
and 9-year-old Gavin.

Investigators contend Coleman carefully planned the killings. He's
accused of sending threatening notes to himself in the months
beforehand, then spray-painting vulgar messages on the home's walls as
the stalker-killer's supposed calling card.

Coleman claims someone else killed his family while he was working out at a gym.

Police haven't discussed a motive for the killings.

WATERLOO, Ill. — A judge says a
southwestern Illinois man should stand trial in the deaths of his wife
and two sons, who were found strangled in their home.
At a hearing Wednesday, Judge Dennis Doyle found sufficient evidence for
the case against 32-year-old Christopher Coleman to proceed to trial.
The Columbia man is charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of
31-year-old Sheri Coleman and the couple's children, 11-year-old Garett
and 9-year-old Gavin.Columbia Police Chief Joseph Edwards testified
that investigators traced an e-mail threatening the family to Coleman's
laptop. That was among several bits of evidence the chief outlined. He
was the only person to testify at the hearing.
Coleman claims someone else killed his family while he was working out at a gym.
He's scheduled to be in court again Aug. 26.

Pathologist reports Christopher Coleman's family died hours before he left for the gym

Wednesday, Jun. 10, 2009


BY BETH HUNDSDORFER - News-Democrat

WATERLOO -- On the night before his family was strangled, Chris Coleman told his Florida girlfriend that his wife would receive divorce papers the next day, according to testimony Wednesday morning in Monroe County Court.

And renowned forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden put the time of death for murder victims Sheri Coleman and her sons Gavin, 9, and Garett, 11, at between 11 p.m. and 3 a.m. -- well before the time her husband Chris Coleman said he left for a gym workout.

Images from a surveillance camera mounted right across the street from the Coleman home at the house of Columbia Police Detective Justin Barlow, one of the investigators on the triple murder, showed Coleman leaving at 5:43 a.m. on May 5.

"The expert said that it was not possible for them to be alive at 5:45 a.m.," said Columbia Police Chief Joe Edwards, the only witness to testify at Coleman's preliminary hearing on Wednesday morning.

Coleman, 32, is charged with three counts of first-degree murder in the ligature strangulations of his wife and sons. Coleman remains in the Monroe County Jail without bail.

Chris Coleman told police in a lengthy interview following the murders that he and his wife had a good marriage, but encountered marital problems in 2008 and received marriage counseling, Edwards testified.

Chris Coleman later admitted to police that he was engaged in an affair with one of his wife's friends, identified in court documents as Tara Lintz of St. Petersburg, Fla. Lintz and Coleman had at least one credit card in both their names that was used to pay for airfare for Lintz to accompany him on trips for Joyce Meyer Ministries.

Lintz and Coleman exchanged conversations about "body parts" that" his wife would not be very happy about," Coleman told police during the interview. The couple began a relationship on Nov. 5, 2008 and planned to be married in January 2010.

Lintz was looking for work and a home to share with Chris Coleman in the St. Louis area, Edwards testified.

The couple was also planning to take a cruise together in August.

Edwards also testified that the first alleged threat to the Coleman family reported by Chris Coleman came on Nov. 14 to his work e-mail at Joyce Meyer Ministries, where he worked as a security supervisor.

Detectives later discovered the e-mail was created on Coleman's Meyer Ministries-issued laptop and sent through the laptop's air card.

Other type-written, hand-delivered threats directed at the Coleman family were delivered to their mailbox at their home on Robert Drive in Columbia on Jan 2 and April 27 with the message, "Your worst nightmare is about to happen."

Evidence gathered by the Major Case Squad of Greater St. Louis included routine documents written by Chris Coleman that had the same misspelling of the word "opportunity" that was noted in an anonymous threatening letter left in the Coleman family's mailbox.

During a phone conversation the night before the murders, Lintz told police that Coleman told her that his wife would receive divorce papers the next day -- the day that the bodies of her and the boys were found.

Edwards testified Joyce Meyer Ministries did not employ people who get divorced, but Meyer spokesman Robie Walker had earlier told reporters that policy wasn't in place.

Lintz also told police that she and Chris Coleman exchanged sexual graphic videos and messages, Edwards said.

On May 5, Barlow, who lived across the street from Coleman, received a call from Chris Coleman on his cell phone, asking him to check on his family because he couldn't reach them, Edwards said.

Barlow called for an additional officer, Jason Donjon, then got dressed and walked across the street, Edwards said. They discovered the open basement window and crawled through.

They found threatening messages spray painted in the house in red paint.

Barlow discovered Garett first, Edwards said. His bed had red spray paint on it. Donjon discovered Sheri. Edwards said the sheet that covered Gavin was spray painted with an obscenity.

Emergency medical personnel were called to the scene and Chris Coleman was loaded into the ambulance with the chaplain for the Columbia police.

The chaplain reported seeing an abrasion on Chris Coleman's forearm and asked how it happened, but Edwards said he told the chaplain he didn't know. He later told his father, Ronald Coleman, minister of Grace Church Ministries in Chester, that he got the injury punching a gurney after learning of his family's deaths.

The chaplain left when Chris Coleman's relatives and co-workers began to arrive, Edwards said.

Police also noted the video surveillance cameras inside the Coleman's home were operational, but Edwards said the digital video recorder used to save the images was missing. Police discovered a "face plate" to a Digital Video Recorder in the west bound lane of Interstate 255 near the base of the Jefferson Barracks Bridge -- the same route Chris Coleman would have taken to get to the south St. Louis County gym the morning of the murders.

After hearing the evidence, Monroe County Circuit Judge Dennis Doyle found there was probable cause for Chris Coleman to stand trial.

Father and son team William Margulis and Art Margulis, Coleman's attorneys, entered a not guilty plea on Chris Coleman's behalf and waived the reading of the charge.

William Margulis asked the trial be delayed to allow he and his father pursued certification through the Illinois Capital Litigation Bar. That certification would allow them to continue to represent Coleman, if State's Attorney Kris Reitz decides to pursue the death penalty. Reitz has 120 days to declare whether he will seek capital punishment if Coleman is convicted.

Doyle ordered Coleman to stand trial and set the next hearing in the case for Aug. 26.

Ronald and Connie Coleman, Chris Coleman's parents, attended the hearing, but didn't talk to reporters.

Mario Weiss, Sheri's brother and Garett and Gavin's uncle, attended the hearing, along with Sheri's godfather Joe Miglio, hearing the details of their deaths.

"It was extremely emotional. I felt a thousand different emotions," Weiss said after the hearing. "I didn't want to disrespect the judge by vomiting in court."

http://www.bnd.com/homepage/story/802518.html

Chris Coleman hearing details



During today's preliminary hearing in the Chris Coleman murder case, I took handwritten notes, which I'm going to transcribe now. I wasn't allowed to take in my laptop, so my notes are pretty rough, with many missing words, but I was able to take down all of the key points. Everything you see in [brackets] -- I observed. Everything you see in "quotes" was said under oath by Columbia, IL Police Chief Joe Edwards. Edwards started by saying he did not plan to testify. Sgt Justin Barlow was scheduled to testify until he faced a family emergency an hour before the hearing.
[Front two rows: Coleman's family and friends. I counted 15 total. Many who are members of Ron Coleman's 'Grace Church' in Chester, IL). Dad was usually smiling, even laughing. Friends and church members also smiled and laughed frequently before the hearing. On the left side sat Sheri Coleman's family, who were all very somber and silent.]
[The Monroe County courthouse has no metal detectors. Deputies wanded everyone who entered. At least 4 deputies surrounded the courtroom.]
[Chris Coleman walked in, shackled at the hands and feet. He did not look at his family. A deputy uncuffs his hands and his lawyers give him a pen. I could see Chris Coleman taking notes during the entire hearing.]
[Chief Joe Edwards now answers questions of the Monroe County S.A. The following is just about everything Edwards said.]
"Chris Coleman contacted Columbia, IL P.D. on 11-14-08 about a threat he received at work. He told police he traveled and wanted an extra patrol at his home." (It's unclear whether Coleman contacted P.D. Headquarters or Sgt Barlow who is a neighbor of his.)
"Coleman reported a second threat 1-2-09 - said he found the threat in his mailbox - no envelope."
"On 4-27-09 - another contact - again in the mailbox. It was a typed threat that mentioned 'family,' his position with the ministry and used the words 'worst nightmare.' Chris Coleman was head of security for Joyce Meyer Ministries. Coleman also mentioned to police that his wife received a threat prior to the 1-2-09 threat but did not report it. The word 'opportunity' is misspelled in each threat. Sheri Coleman pointed out the misspelling in the first threat that came in November. Cybercrimes investigated and reviewed Coleman's computers, documents and e-mail. Cybercrimes found Coleman misspells 'opportunity' the same way every time."
[The S.A. asks about the origins of the first threat]
"Cybercrimes tracked the original e-mail to [Coleman's] laptop computer from Joyce Meyer. His computer created it. Investigators also tracked it to his wireless air card. It was the same air card used to create the e-mail."
"5-5-09 Coleman called Sgt Justin Barlow on his cell phone at 6:50 a.m. Sgt Barlow lives katy corner from the Colemans. Barlow had been investigating the threats against Coleman. They had direct contact in the case and Barlow worked with Illinois State Police to set up video cameras around the neighborhood. One was placed at Barlow's residence. The video didn't show anyone else near the Coleman house around the time of the murders."
"Sgt Barlow was asleep when he received the call from Coleman. He woke up and contacted Columbia, IL Police. He met with an officer who went around back and found an open window - the screen leaning against the back of the house. They called on radio for back up. Looking in the window, they saw no one inside, no broken glass or footprints. They climbed through and announced their presence. Barlow noticed he was leaving wet footprints and grass clippings. The officers immediately saw red spray paint messages on the wall in the kitchen. Police took photos of the spray painted messages on the walls and compared them to multiple handwriting samples of Chris Coleman. An Illinois State Police handwriting expert determined Chris Coleman probably wrote the messages on the walls."
"Detectives inside the home heard the garage door open. Another officer arrived and stopped Coleman from coming into the home. Another Officer came inside and they worked their way up to the second story. --more spray paint - obscene. At the top of the steps Sgt Barlow could see Garret in bed.]
[Edward hesitates here. It's hard to tell if he was emotional or whether he was gathering his thoughts.]
"Garret's lips were blue - skin gray - ligature markings around his neck - his body was cold. The officer believed he was dead for quite some time. The officer also noted spray paint on the bed.
"Another Sgt. checked the bathroom and saw Sheri in the next room. He called out. She was face down. He checked for a pulse. He turned her over and said her entire body was locked, rigid and discolored. Her blood had settled to the front of her body. She was dead for quite some time."
"Another officer saw Gavin - face purple - skin yellow - spray paint on the sheets on top of the bed. The officer also saw evidence on Gavin - so he didn't touch him. He noticed ligature marks."
"Chris Coleman didn't come in the house or ask to come in the house. Police called for EMS. They put Coleman in the ambulance. A chaplain noticed an abrasion on Coleman's right forearm. He asked him how he got it. Coleman said he didn't know. He began punching the gurney. Later Coleman's dad saw the abrasion and asked Chris about it. Chris told his dad it was from punching the gurney. The mark was on his arm previously."
"Chris said his wife was alive and sleeping next to him when he left at 5:45 a.m. on 5-5-09. Surveillance from Sgt Barlow's home shows he left at 5:43 a.m. Coleman did call his home after he left."
"Coleman said he and Sheri had a good marriage with no problems. He said they sought counseling in 2008 and it helped."
[The S.A. asks about the affair]
"Coleman originally said he talked to a friend of Sheri's in Florida. He said they talked about body parts, but nothing else. He said Sheri would not be happy."
"The affair began November, 2008. The girlfriend gave an anniversary date of November 5th -- which is prior to the first e-mail threat. They planned to marry January 2010. Coleman and the girlfriend were looking for homes and a job for the girlfriend in St. Louis. They planned a cruise in August. The girlfriend reported Coleman saying he planned to divorce Sheri May 5th. Officers found no evidence that was real Joyce Meyer does not employ people who get a divorce."
[Ron Coleman and his wife looked at each other at this point, smiling and shaking their heads in such away that they thought this was ridiculous.]
"Coleman traveled with Joyce Meyer and would meet his girlfriend. They talked on the phone, sent each other videos and sexually graphic messages in which they exposed themselves. The girlfriend bought Chris Coleman a cell phone so Chris could talk freely without Joyce Meyer or Sheri Coleman finding out. They also took out a credit card in both of their names."
"Police asked Chris Coleman about the open window. Coleman said he checked every one that night. Police found all of them unlocked the morning they discovered the bodies. Only the front and back doors were locked. Coleman installs surveillance cameras as a side business. He installed some inside his home. Sgt Barlow worked with him. The week before the murders, Coleman told Barlow he was waiting for a power source to activate the cameras. Sgt Barlow offered to give ISP a call to help get a power source. Coleman turned him down. The cameras were operational and functional."
"Police conducted a lengthy interview with Coleman. The asked 'What can we do to find the killer?' Coleman responded, 'I don't know. I guess you can look at my videos.' Police checked and found the video recorder (DVR) gone. They're all twist lock connections. The DVR was missing. They found the faceplate for the DVR near the JB Bridge in the West bound lanes - same make and model. They found invoices for the DVR and it's a company where Coleman bought everything. The Friday before the murders, Coleman showed his surveillance equipment - it's all in his basement - to a neighbor. It was all there at the time."
"Police got a video from Gold's gym. He does go in after 6 a.m. Coleman enters the restroom and you don't see anymore."
"Autopsy. Ligature strangulation. They obtained an expert witness who found they all died before 5 a.m. -- likely between 11 p.m. the night before they were discovered, and 3 a.m. that morning. It's not possible they were alive when Coleman left at 5:43 a.m."
[End of testimony]
[After a recess, Chris Coleman approached the stand and gave one word answers to the judge. The judge asked him if he understood he could get the death penalty and whether he was sure he would waive his right to a speedy trial. Coleman said "Yes" he understood.
http://www.fox2now.com/ktvi-coleman-hearing-061009,0,1994556.story

COLUMBIA, IL (KTVI-FOX2now.com) - Two Columbia, Illinois boys are honored for helping to raise money for the Coleman family. Cardinal skipper Tony La Russa sent them autographed jerseys from Albert Pujols and Yadi Molina.

Jeff and Robbie Respaz raised more than $5400. They collected the money a few weeks ago by selling lemonade and taking part in a yard sale. Both boys said they just wanted to do something good for the Coleman family.

But they're also honored to receive the gift from the Cardinal organization. The money will be presented to the family to spend as they choose.
http://www.fox2now.com/ktvi-coleman-funraisers-honored-061009,0,1199291.story

More details are emerging in the bizarre case of Chistopher Coleman, the Columbia, Illinois, man accused of killing his wife and two sons last month.

Yesterday Columbia Police Chief Joseph Edwards said that the threatening emails the Coleman family received prior to the murders originated from Christopher Coleman's laptop computer. The police chief also said that vulgar statements spray painted at the murder scene matched Coleman's handwriting.

Authorities also revealed yesterday that Coleman had told his Florida girlfriend, Tara Lintz, that he planned to file divorce papers against his wife, Sheri Coleman, on the day of the murders, May 5. That move would have cost Coleman his job as a security guard with Joyce Meyer Ministries, which has a policy against employing divorcees.

Yesterday it was also revealed that an autopsy has determined that Sheri Coleman and the couple's two children --
Garett, 11, and Gavin, 9 -- were dead from strangulation prior to
Christopher Coleman leaving the home at 5:45 a.m. for a morning
workout.

Coleman called the police from a south St. Louis
County gym the morning of May 5 after claiming to call his home and
getting no answer. Coleman told the police he was concerned about the
safety of his family after receiving anonymous threats.

The house where Sheri Coleman and her two sons were murdered is now authorized for sale, a judge ordered today.

Attorneys for both Chris Coleman and Sheri Coleman's family reached an agreement on a permanent injunction protecting the marital couple's assets on Friday afternoon, according to Belleville attorney Jack Carey.

The order, filed today in Monroe County, states that Sheri Coleman's mother is allowed to enter the couple's former home in Columbia and “secure, inventory and remove” items of personal property of her daughter's and grandchildren.

Sheri Coleman, 31, and her sons Gavin, 9 and Garett, 11, were found strangled May 5. Chris Coleman, the surviving husband and father, was arrested last month for their murders. He is currently jailed and awaiting trial.

Proceeds from the sale of the home are ordered to be deposited in a trust account of Sheri Coleman's family's attorney.

It remains unclear if there will be any money left over after the sale.

The house had little equity, according to mortgage documents filed in Monroe County.

Sheri Coleman's family sought court action involving the property shortly after the murders. They said their aim was to protect items of sentimental value – and also to prevent Chris Coleman from profiting off the murders or selling the couple's home to pay attorney's fees.

By agreement, the two parties also agreed on offering the sale of a Mazda automobile. Chris Coleman's family is also allowed to inventory and remove furniture and other belongings from the home and place it in storage.

A judge signed an order on Monday
permanently preventing murder suspect Christopher Coleman from
benefiting from the sale or disposal of assets, including the home
where his wife and sons were found strangled on May 5.The house
will be sold, but any proceeds won't go to Coleman, who is accused of
murdering his wife and two sons. Jack Carey, the lawyer representing
Sheri Coleman's family in the wrongful death suit, said there may not
be any money recovered from the home's sale."I have heard from the other side that there has been a notice of foreclosure on the house," Carey said Monday.

The Colemans may have owed more
on the house than what it is worth, Carey said. Six months ago Sheri
Coleman signed a quit-claim deed on her house, surrendering her
ownership to the house at 2954 Robert Drive in Columbia. But Sheri
Coleman remained on the $230,850 mortgage for the same house. The
original mortgage on the home in 2005 was $202,269. The new mortgage
would have reflected between $28,000 and $30,000 in cash equity that
would have been taken from the home, Carey has said.Carey
and Chicago attorney Enrico Mirabelli, Sheri's cousin, said they will
investigate what happened to the equity as the lawsuit proceeds. The
money will be put in a trust account of one of the attorneys who sued
Coleman for the wrongful death of Sheri Coleman and sons Garett, 11,
and Gavin, 9, according to the order signed by Circuit Judge Mike
O'Malley.The wrongful death suit was filed last month on behalf
of Sheri Coleman's mother, Angela DeCicco, and her brother, Mario
Weiss, by Carey and Mirabelli. Joyce Meyer Ministries and Ronald
Coleman, Christopher Coleman's father and head of the Chester-based
Grace Church Ministries, were asked to produce documents in connection
with the wrongful death suit. Earlier this month, O'Malley
signed an order temporarily barring Christopher Coleman from selling or
disposing of any of the assets of Sheri, Garett or Gavin's estate.
Monday's court order makes permanent that temporary order and allows
Angela DeCicco, Sheri's mother and Garett and Gavin's grandmother, to
enter the home, take inventory and remove items belonging to her
daughter and grandsons.O'Malley's order allows Christopher Coleman and his agents to remove furniture from the home and put it in storage in Percy.Carey
has said he expects to receive information through the discovery
process that could point to further assets, such as bank accounts or
other property. The complaint states that this information could come
from Christopher Coleman's former employer, Joyce Meyer Ministries in
St. Louis, where he worked as a supervisor of security.Meyer and
the Rev. Ronald Coleman, Christopher Coleman's father, were named as
"respondents in discovery." The lawsuit names only one defendant,
Christopher Coleman.According to court documents, Christopher
Coleman was involved in an extramarital affair with dog-track waitress
Tara Lintz, of St. Petersburg, Fla., who was a good friend of Sheri
Coleman. Coleman told Lintz in a telephone conversation the night
before the murders that he expected his wife would receive divorce
papers the next day.Coleman and Lintz planned on marrying in January 2010.

The motion by Chris Coleman's defense attorneys to replace the judge presiding over the triple murder case was granted today.

Two judges -- Circuit Judge Dennis Doyle and Circuit Judge Dennis Hatch -- were disqualified from hearing the case.

"The defendant has reason to believe that Judge Doyle and Judge Dennis
Hatch are so prejudiced against him that he cannot receive a fair
trial,'' said the motion filed today by William Margulis, Coleman's
defense attorney.

Chief Judge John Baricevic will appoint a replacement, who must be
death penalty certified by the state of Illinois since the case is
eligible as a capital crime.

Prosecutors haven't announced their intent to seek the death penalty.

If prosecutors seek death, Coleman could get access to the Illinois
Capital Litigation Fund to pay for his defense -- if he convinces a
judge he's indigent.

The fund was set up in 2000 after revelations that innocent people were
sometimes being sentenced to death in Illinois. Last year, a
Post-Dispatch investigation revealed widespread abuse of the fund. The
newspaper documented cases in which out-of-state private investigators
charged the taxpayers hundreds of dollars an hour for their time
driving or flying to and from Illinois. One investigator's travel time
alone cost the fund more than $11,000.

In one instance documented by the paper, a defense team charged the
fund more than $10,000 to build a mock-up of a crime scene for trial,
then ended up not even using it.

A bill to overhaul the system in response to the Post-Dispatch articles is awaiting Gov. Pat Quinn's approval.

In May, Chris Coleman was arrested and charged with three counts of
first-degree murder in the strangling deaths of his wife, Sheri, 31,
and their two sons, Garrett, 11, and Gavin, 9.
He claims he is innocent of the crimes, however, evidence continues to mount against him.Coleman’s father, Ronald Coleman,
is the minister at Grace Church Ministries in Chester, Illinois. A
bereavement fund was collected from donors at the church on behalf of
the slain mother and children.One donor became disturbed after
Coleman’s arraignment, which outlined evidence against him in the
triple murder, and stopped payment on the check written to the fund.Sheri Coleman’s family has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Coleman and attorney Jack Carey was contacted by the donor.According to the donor, collection was taken by the church during funeral services for Sheri and her sons. Carey
said, “We were chagrined at this revelation of this fund and understand
it is a sizeable amount. I just wonder where that money went and
whether it is being used to benefit Christopher Coleman.”Carey wants an accounting of collections taken at the church at the May 9 wake.The
elder Coleman was also asked to produce documents in connection with
the wrongful death suit, including Christopher Coleman’s income tax
returns, firearms owner’s identification card, and copies of his
military discharge papers. Grace Church Ministries is a
not-for-profit corporation, which failed to file a 2009 annual report
with the Illinois Secretary of State.
Coleman’s former employer, Joyce Meyer Ministries has been named
a “respondent in discovery” in the wrongful death case to allow
attorneys to obtain his employment records, such as salary, benefits,
schedule, and life insurance information. Airline schedules and tickets purchased on commercial flights and
private plane passenger lists for travel arranged for Coleman is also
being sought.This information is important because Coleman was allegedly having an affair with a Florida woman, Tara Lintz, a friend of his slain wife. Attorneys want to determine if Lintz ever traveled with Coleman on business.Coleman
reportedly called Lintz and told her Sheri was receiving divorce papers
the next day on May 5, yet there is no evidence Coleman ever filed for
divorce. Coleman is currently in jail awaiting a trial date.

The Monroe County coroner has reversed course and said today she will
hold an inquest into the strangulation deaths of Sheri Coleman and her
two young boys.

"We decided it would be best for a check and balance on our office,"
said Julie Gummersheimer, the coroner. She previously said there would
be no inquest to determine the exact cause and manner of death because
an independent pathologist performed the autopsies.
Gummersheimer said she has recently received toxicology results for the
case – but is still awaiting a final autopsy report. She wouldn't
disclose the toxicology results.

"That information should be made available during the inquest," she said.

The inquest, which isn't required by state law, is scheduled for July
10 at the Monroe County Courthouse. The death information with be
presented before a jury.

Gummersheimer said she has subpoenaed only one witness for the public proceeding, Columbia Police Chief Joe Edwards.

Christopher Coleman, 32, is awaiting trial on first-degree murder
charges in the death of his wife Sheri, 31, and sons Garett, 11, and
Gavin, 9, whose bodies were found in their home on May 5.

Police say Coleman staged the crime scene by scrawling messages on the
home's walls with spray paint. He previously worked as chief of
security for televangelist Joyce Meyer.

Coleman has pleaded not guilty.

COLUMBIA, ILL. – Joyce Meyer Ministries is ready to provide
material sought in a civil suit involving former employee Christopher
Coleman, accused of killing his family, but wants it kept private.
Jack Carey, a lawyer for the family of Coleman’s slain wife Sheri, said they won’t agree to confidentiality.

The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Coleman shortly after
he was charged with three counts of first degree murder. Police say
Coleman, the former security manager for Meyer, murdered his wife
and two young sons in the home in Columbia, Ill.

The internationally known televangelist’s organization, was named in
the suit as a “respondent in discovery,” and has vowed to cooperate.

Carey has asked the Jefferson County-based ministry for information
about life insurance policies, safe deposit boxes, pensions, overheard
conversations, travel records and other information.

In such a case, the response is provided to the inquiring attorney, not a public court file.

“We have all the information ready to go, we’re just working on
logistics right now,” said Michael King, an Oklahoma attorney
representing Meyer’s ministries.

He said it is standard to ask for confidentiality when dealing with personal and financial information.

“I think we can get this finalized by next week,” King said. But Carey
said Friday, “We are not going to sign any confidentiality agreement.”
He said he will continue to work to get the matter cleared up, but
declined to discuss specifics.

Carey filed May 26 seeking answers within 28 days but such deadlines
are negotiable between the parties. A judge intervenes only if asked.

Christopher Coleman is the only defendant in the suit, which Carey said was filed to keep him from profiting from the deaths.

Attorneys for Sheri Coleman's family filed papers today demanding a
court to order Joyce Meyer Ministries to cooperate with a wrongful
death lawsuit against Christopher Coleman, the ministry's former
security chief.

The ministry has vowed to cooperate, but is also asking for a
confidentiality agreement. Jack Carey, a Belleville lawyer representing
Sheri Coleman's family, said the level of confidentiality requested by
Joyce Meyer Ministries would prevent him from "prosecuting the case."

"Ain't gonna happen," Carey said of the proposed confidentiality agreement.

Now, Carey wants a judge to order the internationally known
televangelist's organization to hand over information about life
insurance policies, safe deposit boxes, pensions, overheard
conversations, travel records, private flight plans and other
information. The Jefferson County-based ministry is named as a
"respondent in discovery" in the civil suit.

The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Christopher Coleman
shortly after he was charged with three counts of first-degree murder.
Police allege Coleman strangled his wife and sons, Garett and Gavin.
They were found dead in their bedrooms on May 5 in their home in
Columbia, Ill.

Joyce Meyer Ministries said some of the material requested contains
"sensitive information" pertaining to the ministry or information the
ministry is "required by law or contract to keep confidential."

The ministry, through its lawyers, sent Carey a draft protective order
earlier this month, which would give it the power to designate as
confidential all or any part of the requested information. The
agreement would also allow Joyce Meyer Ministries to challenge various
documents provided by the ministry if Carey wanted to use them at
trial—or in the run up to trial.

Carey wrote to a lawyer representing Joyce Meyer Ministries last week
saying, "As I view [the draft protective order], if I elect to use any
of the materials in subsequent pleadings, memorandums, client
communication, press releases, I first must seek the permission of
Joyce Meyer Ministries, Inc., ain’t gonna happen."

Christopher Coleman resigned from his job at the ministry last month,
just after the Post-Dispatch disclosed he was having an affair with
Tara Lintz, a friend of Sheri Coleman's living in Florida. Law
enforcement sources told the Post-Dispatch Coleman also met up with
Lintz in Arizona and Hawaii while he was working for the ministry. A
ministry spokesman said the resignation was due to an unspecified
"violation of moral conduct."

Police later acknowledged the affair in search warrant documents, saying the two planned to marry next year.

Successfully cracking a murder case can hinge on a number of things.

It could depend on the quickness of police to lock down a scene.

Maybe the cooperation of witnesses and the community.

And, sometimes, a little luck.

Well,
the Columbia Police Department and the major Case Squad of Greater St.
Louis had some of the first two and a good helping of the last one in
building their case against Chris Coleman in the murder of his wife,
Sheri, and two sons, Gavin and Garett.

To illustrate, after police found the bodies the morning of May 5 in
the Coleman's Columbia home, police were baffled by Chris Coleman's
time frame, which said he left the house a little before 6 a.m. and
drove to a South St. Louis County gym.

About an hour later, he
said he called the CPD to check up on his family because he was afraid
of their welfare. So Columbia police responded to the call around 7
a.m. and found the victims' bodies, the cause of death apparently
strangulation.

Problem was, Sheri Coleman was already showing
signs of rigor mortis when police found her body. Rigor mortis is when
the bodies muscles tense up, making them hard to manipulate. This
usually doesn't occur until several hours after death, throwing doubt
on Coleman's statements.

So in came a little luck in the form of famed New York based forensic pathologist Michael Baden.

For
those who don't know how big of a deal Baden is, he was involved with
the OJ Simpson criminal trial; was chairman of the Forensic Pathology
Panel of the House Select Committee on Assassinations in the John F.
Kennedy death; investigated comedian John Belushi's death; and was part
of music producer Phil Spector's murder trial.

Needless to say, quite an impressive resume.

While
Columbia Police Chief Joe Edwards wouldn't say how Baden came to the
case, the host of HBO's "Autopsy" was instrumental in narrowing down
the victims time of death to between 11 p.m. and 3 a.m., totally
dismissing Chris Coleman's alibi.

Edwards can't specifically
comment on Baden's involvement because of evidential reasons, but did
say working with a person of his stature was key.

"Any homicide
case involving children we want to use any and all resources towards
it," Edwards said. "Upon arrival to the scene, we knew we needed more
help.

"As things continued to progress, we had to use all available resources, including opinions from professionals."

WATERLOO -- Accused triple murderer
Christopher Coleman's employment records from his job as a bodyguard
for televangelist Joyce Meyer will first be reviewed in her lawyer's
private office before they can be made public.Coleman is charged with strangling his wife and two sons.Belleville
attorney Jack Carey, who represents the family of Coleman's murdered
wife, Sheri Coleman, said, "I need that information. They have it, and
they won't give it to me."

Attorney Dennis Fields, of Waterloo, appearing at a hearing Monday with James Michael King, of
Tulsa, Okla., on behalf of the Joyce Meyer Ministries based in
Missouri, agreed that Carey could review all of the requested records,
but if there's a disagreement about whether the document is
confidential, Associate Circuit Judge Andrew Gleeson will be on hand to
moderate and decide. The review is set for July 20.Coleman
is in the Monroe County Jail without bail, charged with the
first-degree murders of his wife and their sons Garett, 11, and Gavin,
9. Information released in the case after the News-Democrat won a court
action to open search warrant applications showed that Coleman wanted
to divorce Sheri and had talked to a Florida girlfriend just hours
before the victims were found May 5 in their home on Robert Drive in
Columbia.During the hearing Monday, attorneys for both sides
agreed that no assets from Coleman received as part of his employment
with Joyce Meyer Ministries will be transferred to Christopher Coleman,
who has pleaded not guilty.Also attending the hearing was Mike Bauer, who handles "risk management" for Joyce Meyer Ministries Inc.

Coleman inquest convenes Friday

By Nicholas J.C. Pistor
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH
07/09/2009

A coroner's jury will hear details today about the deaths of Sheri Coleman and her two sons.

The inquest is open to the public and begins at 10 a.m. in a Monroe County courtroom. Toxicology results are expected to be given.

One law enforcement witness is scheduled to testify, according to the Monroe County coroner.

Police say Sheri, 31, Garett, 11, and Gavin, 9, were strangled in their beds at home in Columbia, Ill. The bodies were found May 5. Christopher Coleman, the husband and father, claimed they had been alive when he left for a morning workout less than an hour and a half before.

Police say a forensic pathologist consulted on the case and said the bodies were dead before Chris Coleman left the home.

The affixture of a time of death is tricky among medical experts. Some say it's possible to discern a range between the time a person died, while others disagree.

Chris Coleman is charged with three counts of first degree murder. He is currently jailed in Monroe County awaiting trial, which is expected some time next year.

The inquest has no bearing on the criminal case. It's a common but not mandatory hearing in which a jury classifies the manner of death as natural, accident, homicide, suicide or undetermined.
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/laworder/story/E95F69746E3AE810862575EF00189914?OpenDocument

WATERLOO -- A Monroe County Coroner's inquest determined that the Coleman family members each died of ligature strangulation.

Julie Gummersheimer told a coroner's jury that all three victims had no drugs in their bodies when murdered.

She testified today before a coroner's jury about details of the deaths of Sheri Coleman and her two sons.

The inquest was open to the public and began at 10 a.m. in a Monroe County courtroom.

One law enforcement witness was scheduled to testify, according to the Monroe County coroner.

Police say Sheri, 31, Garett, 11, and Gavin, 9, were strangled in their
beds at home in Columbia, Ill. The bodies were found May 5. Christopher
Coleman, the husband and father, claimed they had been alive when he
left for a morning workout less than an hour and a half before.

Police say a forensic pathologist consulted on the case and said the bodies were dead before Chris Coleman left the home.

The affixture of a time of death is tricky among medical experts. Some
say it's possible to discern a range between the time a person died,
while others disagree.

Chris Coleman is charged with three counts of first degree murder. He
is currently jailed in Monroe County awaiting trial, which is expected
some time next year.

The inquest has no bearing on the criminal case. It's a common but not
mandatory hearing in which a jury classifies the manner of death as
natural, accident, homicide, suicide or undetermined.

Art Margulis, a defense attorney representing Chris Coleman, was at the inquest today.

He said his client is "doing fine."

Margulis said he is considering a motion to move the trial away from
Monroe County. But, he said, the media attention in the case is
national, meaning people all over Illinois have heard about the case.

"I'm not sure where we can go," Margulis said.

It took a Monore County coroner's jury
about five minutes Friday to determine that the deaths of Sheri Coleman
and her two sons were homicides by ligature strangulation.Christopher Coleman, Sheri Coleman's husband and the boys' father, is charged with all three murders."The
details of the case are disturbing, clearly," said Coleman's lawyer,
Art Margulis, who attended the coroner's inquest. "As anyone would
imagine, they are disturbing."

Chris Coleman - BND

After the sort hearing, Margulis said he is considering asking that the
case be moved out of the metro-east because of publicity surrounding it
and a wrongful death civil lawsuit filed by Sheri Coleman's family."Well, we could do without (the publicity) because it does impact the criminal case," Margulis said. Columbia
Police Chief Joe Edwards was the only witness during the 10-minute
hearing called by Monroe County Coroner Julie Gummersheimer to
determine the cause and manner of death for Sheri Coleman, 31, Garett
Coleman, 11 and Gavin Coleman, 9.Edwards told the six jurors and
one alternate that Detective Justin Barlow received a call on his cell
phone at 6:50 a.m. May 5 from his neighbor Christopher Coleman asking
him to check on Coleman's wife and children. Coleman said he was
calling from Gold's Gym in south St. Louis County, and that he was
concerned because his family wasn't answering the phone. Months
earlier, Barlow had investigated Coleman's complaint involving letters
threatening his family.After receiving Coleman's call, Barlow
got up, got dressed, then called Columbia police dispatcher for an
additional officer. Sgt. Jason Donjon arrived and went to the back of
the house, located at 2845 Robert Drive, and discovered an open
basement window. Barlow and Donjon entered the home through the window,
Edwards testified.The two went up the basement steps and
discovered a spray-painted message on the kitchen wall that Edwards
described as "obscene and vulgar." Christopher Coleman, who at
the time was a bodyguard for televangelist Joyce Meyer, arrived at the
home at the same time as Patrolman Steve Patton, who also responded to
Barlow's request for assistance. They told Coleman was told to wait
outside.Barlow discovered Garett Coleman's body in his bed,
Edwards said. He checked and could not find a pulse. He noticed a
ligature mark on the boy's neck and that the body was "cold and stiff,"
Edwards said.Donjon found Sheri's body, which was "locked and rigid," Edwards said. There were also ligature marks on her neck.Patton
found Gavin's body in his bed. He also had ligature marks on his neck,
but Patton didn't touch the body because he believed there was
"evidence on the body," Edwards said."A disturbing message was sprayed on the sheet that covered him," Edwards said.The
officers told Coleman about his family's deaths and they put him into
an ambulance, then radioed Edwards, who came to the house.Forensic
pathologist Raj Nanduri conducted the autopsies. Toxicology reports
showed no drugs or alcohol in their blood, Gummersheimer said.Two weeks later, police charged Coleman with the murders. He is being held without bond in the Monroe County Jail.During
police questioning before his arrest, Coleman admitted to having an
affair with St. Petersburg, Fla., dog-track waitress Tara Lintz, who
was a high school friend of his wife, according to court records.
Coleman and Lintz planned to be married in January. The night before
the murders, Coleman told Lintz in a telephone conversation that Sheri
Coleman would receive divorce papers the next day, according to court
records.Art and William Margulis are seeking certification by
the Illinois Capital Litigation Trial Bar to continue working on
Christopher Coleman's case if the Monroe County state's attorney
decides to seek the death penalty, Margulis said. Both men have tried
numerous murder cases, as well as death penalty cases before the 1997
reforms, and are trying to expedite their certification."We anticipate this case will go to trial next year," Margulis told reporters.

WATERLOO — Chris Coleman sent his lover in Florida a text message saying he "missed her" and "loved her" on the day of his slain wife and sons' funeral, according to search warrants made public on Thursday.

The documents say the messages were sent to girlfriend Tara Lintz on her mother's cell phone, which Lintz was using because her phone had already been taken by police.

In addition, the documents state that a latex glove found lying on the side of Interstate 255 near the Jefferson Barracks Bridge had remnants of red spray paint. Police say obscene messages were spray-painted in red on the walls of the family's Columbia, Ill., home. In the upstairs bedrooms, Coleman's wife, Sheri, 31, and sons Garett, 11, and Gavin, 9, were found strangled on May 5.

Coleman told police he left the home around 5:45 a.m. that day to work out. He later called police, asking them to check on his family because he could not reach them by phone. Police say his cell phone records indicate he began calling his house within minutes of leaving the house.

Investigators went to Joyce Meyer Ministries, where Coleman worked as head of security, and found a box of gloves similar to the one found on the side of the highway, the documents say. The box of gloves was found in the security manager's office, according to the documents.

Coleman resigned from the security job after the Post-Dispatch revealed his affair with Lintz a week after the murders. Police sources told the Post-Dispatch that Coleman met Lintz in Hawaii and Arizona while he was working for the ministry.

Lintz told investigators she last had contact with Coleman on May 9, the documents state. Investigators say they can't verify that because Lintz told them she lost her mother's cell phone on June 3 while at Busch Gardens in Florida.

Coleman called Lintz on the phone a few days after the murder — and while she was being interviewed by police. The documents say Coleman asked Lintz if the police were there, and then told her the "police were looking for a motive."

Coleman, 32, was charged a few weeks later with three counts of first-degree murder. Authorities allege he sent anonymous threats to his house shortly after he began a sexual relationship with Lintz, a former high school friend of Sheri Coleman's.

An e-mail threat revealed in the warrants said: "If I can't get to Joyce, then I will get to someone close to her and if I can't get to him then I will kill his wife and kids. I know Joyce's schedule, so I know Chris' schedule. If Joyce doesn't quit preaching this (expletive deleted) then they will die. During the Houston conference, I will kill them all as they sleep. If I don't hit there, then I will kill them during the book tour or the trip to India. I know where he lives and I know they are alone."

Meyer held a conference in Houston on Nov. 20-22 at Lakewood Church, the megachurch led by popular televangelist Joel Osteen, according to a schedule posted on the ministry's website.

Coleman and Lintz began their affair in early November, according to the search warrants.

Sheri Coleman's family filed a wrongful death suit against Coleman in May. Joyce Meyer Ministries has promised to turn over Coleman's employment records, but only if they are shielded from the public. A hearing in the case is set for Monday.
http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/laworder/story/37621E5458877E8D862575F6000D6E0C?OpenDocument

On the days of his murdered wife's and
sons' wake and funeral at his father's Chester church, Chris Coleman
texted his Florida girlfriend and told her he loved and missed her,
according to court documents.Chris Coleman's lover and Sheri
Coleman's high school friend, Tara Lintz, of St. Petersburg, Fla., told
police that Chris Coleman sent the text messages on May 8 and 9 -- the
days of Sheri, Garett and Gavin Coleman's wake and funeral at the Rev.
Ronald Coleman's Grace Church Ministries.Lintz also told police
that she hadn't received a text message or a phone call from Chris
Coleman since May 9, but detectives were "unable to verify this
statement because Lintz advises she lost (the) cellular phone while at
Busch Gardens on June 3," according to a search warrant return filed on
Wednesday.


Chris Coleman tried to hide from the media
by laying down in the back seat of a Monroe County Sheriff's patrol car
as he is driven into the Monroe County Courthouse garage June 10 for a
preliminary hearing.

Coleman, the former personal bodyguard of televangelist Joyce Meyer,
faces three counts of first-degree murder in the ligature
strangulations of his 31-year-old wife and sons, ages 9 and 11, who
were found on May 5 in their beds in their Columbia home.But
nearly six months before their deaths, Chris Coleman reported to
Columbia police that he received a threatening e-mail at his Joyce
Meyer Ministries account from the e-mail account [url=mailto://]"destroychris@gmail.com."[/url]"If
I can't get to Joyce, then I will get to someone close to her and if I
can't get to him then I will kill his wife and kids," the e-mail
stated. "I know Joyce's schedule, so I know Chris' schedule. ... During
the Houston conference, I will kill them all as they sleep. If I don't
hit there, then I will kill them during the book tour or the trip to
India. I know where he lives and I know they are alone."The
search warrant ordered the e-mail provider, Google, to provide the
Internet provider address to allow police to track the letter's author.A
subpoena sent to AT&T showed that on the morning of the murders,
Chris Coleman called his wife's cell phone at 5:44 a.m. -- just one
minute after a surveillance video captured Chris Coleman leaving his
home to go to a south St. Louis County gym.He called Sheri Coleman's cell phone three times after that.Another search warrant requested fingerprints and palm prints from Coleman. In
that document, Columbia Detective Karla Heine stated police found a
latex glove stained with, "what appeared to be red spray paint on it,"
along the median on the Illinois side of the Jefferson Barracks Bridge
by members of the Major Case Squad. The glove was collected as evidence
because investigators found threatening and vulgar messages in red
spray paint inside the Coleman home.The messages included "Punished" and "Whore paid."Investigators
also found a box of latex gloves at Meyer Ministries in the security
office that "were similar" to the glove found on the side of the
highway. Chris Coleman had a master key to that office, the document
stated.Another search warrant, this one served on the operators
of the social networking site Facebook revealed that Coleman had a
Facebook fan club that was established before the murders. Mary
E. Davis, a staffer at Joyce Meyer Ministries told an Illinois
investigator, "That a Facebook group account titled something to the
effect of Fans of Joyce Meyer Bodyguard," was available on the Internet
until the site was removed after the murders. Davis said that on Sept.
19, 2008, she had a record of an a "Natalie Johnson," an apparent fan,
asking about Coleman."Does anyone know Chris' e-mail address? I'd like to send him a note," Johnson e-mailed, according to the search warrant.Videos
still available online of Meyer's trips to events where she addressed
ten of thousands of followers, show Coleman never more than a few steps
away on the stage. Another video shows him pouring milk into her coffee
and handing her books at a book signing. In still an other video, Meyer
pretends to repel "temptation" during a speech by play-fighting with a
smiling Coleman, who mock fights with her before backing away. The search warrants were released by a judge's order after a News-Democrat request in the weeks after the murders.Coleman remains in the Monroe County Jail without bail.

The attorney for Joyce Meyer
Ministries arrived at the televangelist's local counsel's Waterloo
office Monday morning bearing a satchel full of documents.Jack
Carey, the attorney for the family of Sheri Coleman in a wrongful death
lawsuit, arrived at 9:45 a.m. at attorney Dennis Field's office to
review the documents. With him was attorney Enrico Mirabelli, murder
victim Sheri Coleman's first cousin and spokesman for her family.Carey
filed a motion to force Joyce Meyer Ministries, Chris Coleman's
employer, to provide documents including scheduling, salary, benefits,
life insurance information and airline tickets and schedules on
commercial flights and private airline passenger lists from Joyce Meyer
Ministries for travel in connection to Coleman's former job there as a
security guard. Chris Coleman, the former personal bodyguard of televangelist Joyce
Meyer, faces three counts of first-degree murder in the ligature
strangulations of his 31-year-old wife, Sheri, and sons, Garett
Coleman, 11, and Gavin Coleman, 9. The three were found strangled to
death on May 5 in their beds in their Columbia home.Michael
James King, of Tulsa, Okla., attorney for the Joyce Meyer Ministries
based in Missouri, agreed that Carey could review all the requested
records. However, if there is a disagreement about whether the document
is confidential, Associate Circuit Judge Andrew Gleeson will be on hand
to moderate and decide.Also attending the review is Mike Bauer, who handles "risk management" for Joyce Meyer Ministries Inc.

Attorneys for a world renowned televangelist fought hard, but lost the
battle to keep records secret in the civil case against accused killer
Chris Coleman. We're talking about 400 pages of records from Coleman's
former employer - Joyce Meyer Ministries - where he worked as head of
security. Sheri Coleman's family attorneys say Chris Coleman took out a
large life insurance policy on his wife. We might find out if he tried
to cash that out after the murders.

We may also learn what the ministry knew about Coleman's affair and when it found out.

Attorney's for the televangelist fought hard to keep all records
confidential and they even asked the Judge to take the hearing into his
private chambers. Ministry attorneys said the documents involve private
personnel records they need to protect, such as employee interviews and
travel itineraries. Judge Andrew Gleeson ruled against them and ordered
the documents delivered to the court clerk where they'll be under seal
for 72 hours.

Judge Gleeson repeatedly criticized the attorneys for Joyce Meyer
Ministries and at one point accused him of asking for special treatment.

Attorney Michael James King responded after the hearing. "I certainly
wasn't asking for special treatment, but I wasn't trying to argue with
the judge. I understand what he was saying but all we were doing was
filing and I file protective orders fairly routinely in a lot of cases
I handle and they're certainly not special treatment." He added that
the ministry has nothing to hide. "The ministry has always acted
responsibly. They have nothing to do with this [Reporter Chris Hayes
asked] Are the documents going to reveal that the ministry should have
known about the affair? [Attorney King responded] Absolutely not.

Attorneys for Sheri Coleman's family can pick up the documents Thursday
July 23rd at 2 p.m. Joyce Meyer Ministry attorneys say they'll keep
fighting for confidentiality until then.

A county judge said Monday that the ministry
of televangelist Joyce Meyer must publicly release the employment
records of a former security chief accused of killing his wife and two
sons. Joyce Meyer Ministries had requested that the 400 pages of documents
sought in the case against 32-year-old Christopher Coleman be kept
confidential, fearing that their release could compromise the privacy
of the alleged killer and others who still work at the St. Louis-based
ministry.
But after hearing the ministry’s argument, Judge Andrew Gleeson
declared, “We are a society where courts are open,” according to the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
"We have nothing to hide," responded Michael King, the lawyer for the ministry.
The confidentiality "is to protect my client from other
litigation,'' he clarified, saying the employment documents are
confidential under Missouri law. The attorney also said the disclosure
of Meyer's flight manifests is a "security concern" because the popular
life coach is a "national figure," as reported by the Post-Dispatch.
Joyce Meyer Ministries had been named as one of the “respondents in
discovery” in the lawsuit against Christopher Coleman, who has been
charged with the first-degree murders of his wife and two sons.
Coleman was working as a security guard for Joyce Meyer Ministries
until he resigned not long after his family was found dead in his home
on May 5.
According to investigators, Coleman had called police from a gym
that day and asked a police officer who had investigated prior threats
related to the family to check on them after calls to the house
allegedly went unanswered.
When police got to the house later that morning, they found the
bodies of Coleman’s 31-year-old wife, Sheri, and children, 11-year-old
Garett and 9-year-old Gavin, all strangled with some type of wire, rope
or cord. Spray-painted across the walls of the house, meanwhile, were
obscenities that appeared to have been directed at Sheri Coleman,
including the words “punished,” “wh*re paid,” “u have paid,” and “I saw
you leave, [expletive] you, I am always watching.”
Though some of the Colemans’ neighbors said the family had received
threatening letters and that their mailbox was tampered with, police
arrested Coleman around two weeks later after more evidence came
forward.
The week before, Coleman had resigned from his position at Joyce
Meyer Ministries after being questioned about a violation of the
organization's moral conduct policy, according to Roby Walker, a
spokesman for Joyce Meyer.
Walker would not say what policy Coleman allegedly violated but
reports have alleged that he was romantically involved with a woman
from Largo, Fla., and had visited her while traveling with the ministry.
Coleman, who pleaded “not guilty” on May 20, has since remained in jail and denied bond by the judge.