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Thread: Stephen Thompson Sentenced to LWOP in 2015 MO Slaying of Carissa Gerard

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    Stephen Thompson Sentenced to LWOP in 2015 MO Slaying of Carissa Gerard




    Defense motion in capital murder case seeks mental health records of victim

    By Jeff Lehr
    The Joplin Globe

    Attorneys for capital murder defendant Stephen Thompson are seeking Missouri Department of Social Services files on the son and stepchildren of Thompson and his wife, Kristina, as well as any state files on Carissa Gerard, his wife's lover and the woman he is accused of fatally shooting.

    Thompson, 57, is scheduled to go to trial in September 2019 on counts of first-degree murder, domestic assault and armed criminal action in the shotgun slaying of Gerard, 38, and critical wounding of his estranged wife three years ago at a house on the west side of Joplin where the two women were living.

    The Jasper County prosecutor's office has filed an intent to seek the death penalty in the case.

    Thomas Jacquinot, lead attorney for the defense, filed a motion April 17 looking to obtain the state's files not only on the son and stepchildren of the defendant but also on Gerard, including any medical and mental health records.

    The motion argues that on the date of the double shooting, June 10, 2015, the Thompsons were separated, and Gerard and Kristina Thompson were living together in the house at 4215 W. 26th Place that the Thompsons shared previously with their son.

    The document further states that the Thompsons' relationship was "in a severe state of deterioration." Both were using illicit drugs, and the state had removed their preschool-age boy from their custody because of their unfitness as parents, the motion states.

    In the meantime, Kristina Thompson had begun a relationship with Gerard, according to the document.

    The motion states: "Investigation, discovery and records available to both parties suggest that Thompson, his wife (K.T.) and his wife's paramour (C.G.) all (suffered) from mental illness."

    The document argues that an understanding of the mental health histories of all three principals in the case "will help a jury understand the intense dysfunctionality surrounding this love triangle."

    Jacquinot indicates in the motion that prior counsel for his client sought the social services records of the son and received "only a limited and redacted version of the file, with some of the redaction seeming arbitrary and unnecessary." He wants a court order to obtain the complete case file.

    Additional requests for social services records of Kristina Thompson's children from a prior relationship along with state records on Gerard appear to be an expansion of the defense's inquiries in the discovery phase of the case. The motion points out that while the guilt or innocence phase of a capital murder trial focuses on what happened, the sentencing phase "covers an expanse that goes well beyond the crime."

    The motion states that at the time of the offenses, the defendant "was severely distressed over the loss of his marriage and his child."

    The document reads: "He did seek help to deal with the situation, but allegedly he lost all self-control, committed two unthinkable acts of domestic violence, and then called police to turn himself in and confess. No jury can be fully informed regarding a life and death sentencing determination unless they fully understand the background and limitations of (Gerard), (Kristina Thompson) and (Stephen Thompson)."

    Affidavit

    A probable-cause affidavit filed with capital murder charges against Stephen Thompson states that he drove 96 miles to obtain a 12-gauge shotgun and bought shells for the weapon in Grove, Oklahoma, before coming back to Joplin and proceeding to his estranged wife's home. Police say he shot Carissa Gerard first, then turned the gun on Kristina Thompson and shot her "numerous times while she was fleeing from him."

    http://www.joplinglobe.com/news/loca...04b67c47d.html

  2. #2
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    COVID-19 forces delay of Joplin capital murder trial

    The COVID-19 pandemic has forced an indefinite postponement of the capital murder trial of Stephen Thompson.

    Thompson, 59, of Joplin, is charged with 1st-degree murder, 1st-degree domestic assault and 2 counts of armed criminal action in the June 10, 2015, shotgun slaying of Carissa Gerard, 38, and the wounding of his estranged wife, Kristina Thompson, 43.

    The Jasper County prosecutor’s office is seeking the death penalty in the case. Jury selection had been scheduled for the week of Oct. 5. The jurors chosen were to be sequestered during an anticipated additional two weeks of testimony and trial argument.

    Concerns with conducting a capital murder trial with a sequestered jurors in the midst of the pandemic have scuttled those plans.

    Thompson’s attorneys filed a motion in June pointing out a number of difficulties in conducting a fair and safe trial under the circumstances, and Circuit Judge David Mouton subsequently sustained the motion, postponing the trial indefinitely. There is to be a hearing Oct. 6 at which a new, and most probably still tentative, trial date could be set.

    This is the second time Thompson’s trial has been postponed at the request of his attorneys in a case that is now five years old. A continuance was granted less than a month before a September 2019 trial date when last-minute information surfaced that Thompson’s Oklahoma prison records, previously reported to have been lost, had been located.

    The motion filed this June by Thomas Jacquinot, an attorney with the capital murder team of the state public defender’s office, that Missouri Supreme Court directives governing state court operations during the pandemic have not included any guidance with respect to the resumption of trials with sequestered jurors.

    The guidelines the court has issued “suggest that capital cases should not be resumed (or even scheduled)” until “more progress has been made” in managing the pandemic and the state has demonstrated an ability “to fairly and efficiently conduct non-capital jury trials,” Jacquinot argued in his motion.

    The motion further reads: “Missouri is just beginning to prepare for the resumption of non-sequestered jury trials. It is unknown what impact resumption will have on the trial’s participants. It will not be known until after the trials occur.”

    A capital jury trial with sequestered jurors requires “an enormous number of participants,” including jurors “living in relative isolation” and lawyers and support staff “living out of town for several weeks,” the motion reads. The logistics associated with a capital murder case make the Missouri Supreme Court’s stated primary objective of ensuring the safety of jurors, parties, court personnel, attorneys and courthouse visitors all the more difficult to obtain, Jacquinot argued.

    The Missouri Supreme Court’s directives with regard to resumption of jury trials include maintaining social distancing in courtrooms and on courthouse premises, limiting the size of jury panels called at any one time, freely deferring jury service and not issuing warrants for failure to appear.

    The defense motion points out that such measures, while understandable from the public health viewpoint, could create “a viable legal challenge” in any jury trial. Jacquinot cites limiting of communitywide participation in jury service through deferrals as a directive that “tinkers” with statutory assurance that “panels will be created in conformity with community demographics.”

    A response to the defense motion filed by Assistant Prosecutor Kimberly Fisher acknowledges “that the COVID pandemic creates legal and logistical questions that do not have answers at this time.” But it is too early to tell that a fair trial is not possible this fall, she argued and asked the court to take a “wait-and-see approach.”

    “There is no end date for COVID and cases cannot be placed on hold indefinitely until there is a ‘fool-proof model,’” Fisher wrote.

    Shotgun violence

    Stephen and Kristina Thompson were separated 5 years ago when he allegedly went to the house where she was living with her paramour, Carissa Gerard, at 4215 W. 26th Place in Joplin and fatally shot Gerard with a 12-gauge shotgun before turning the weapon on Kristina Thompson and shooting her numerous times as she fled out the back of the residence. She survived the shooting.

    (source: The Joplin Globe)
    An uninformed opponent is a dangerous opponent.

    "Y'all be makin shit up" ~ Markeith Loyd

  3. #3
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    Edited:

    Trial in Joplin capital murder case pushed back a year

    By Jeff Lehr
    The Joplin Globe

    Circuit Judge David Mouton has reset the capital murder trial of Stephen Thompson for September 2021 out of concerns with conducting such a trial in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Thompson, 59, of Joplin, is charged with first-degree murder, first-degree domestic assault and two counts of armed criminal action in the June 10, 2015, shotgun slaying of Carissa Gerard, 38, and the wounding of his estranged wife, Kristina Thompson, 43.

    The Jasper County prosecutor's office is seeking the death penalty in the case. Jury selection was scheduled to begin this week, with those chosen to hear the case to be sequestered during an anticipated additional two weeks of testimony and trial argument.

    Thompson's attorneys filed a motion in June pointing out a number of difficulties in conducting a fair and safe trial under the circumstances, and Mouton sustained the motion, postponing the trial indefinitely pending a hearing on Tuesday. The judge set a new date at that hearing for the start of the trial on Sept. 13 of next year.

    The capital murder trial has been postponed twice now. A continuance was granted the defense less than a month before a September 2019 trial date when last-minute information surfaced that the defendant's Oklahoma prison records, which previously had been reported to have been lost, had been located.

    https://www.joplinglobe.com/news/loc...01f520aae.html
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Defense seeks sequestered questioning of prospective jurors in death penalty trial

    By Jeff Lehr
    The Joplin Globe

    Attorneys for Stephen Thompson are seeking to have prospective jurors kept individually sequestered during jury selection at their client’s capital murder trial in September.

    Thomas Jacquinot, capital murder case attorney with the state public defender’s office, filed the motion for individual sequestered jury selection on March 12. A hearing on the matter has been set for May 12 before Judge David Mouton in Jasper County Circuit Court.

    Assistant Prosecutor Kimberly Fisher said Monday that the state intends to oppose the motion. Individual sequestering of potential jurors has never been necessary in the past, she said.

    Thompson, 59, of Joplin, is charged with first-degree murder, first-degree domestic assault and two counts of armed criminal action in the June 10, 2015, shotgun slaying of Carissa Gerard, 38, and wounding of his estranged wife, Kristina Thompson, 44.

    The Jasper County prosecutor’s office is seeking the death penalty in the case, which is set to go to trial starting the week of Sept. 13.

    The court currently has the first week of the trial set aside for jury selection, with two additional weeks scheduled for the phase to determine innocence or guilt and a possible punishment phase.

    If the motion is granted, both the length and expense of the trial could be affected.

    Jacquinot’s motion argues that sequestering of prospective jurors is needed to ensure a fair and impartial trial and in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and how it might affect the safety of proceedings for all concerned.

    The defense wants to question potential jurors not only about their own personal positions on the death penalty but also about their exposure to media coverage of the case.

    The motion cites both a Jackson County case in which a judge set aside a day to conduct individualized questioning of prospective jurors exposed to pretrial publicity and a Florida case in which an appellate court decided that the trial court’s refusal to allow individual sequestering in jury selection had resulted in jury contamination.

    Plans currently call for jury selection to be conducted in small groups. The overall size of the jury pool to be called for the trial and the exact size of the groups to be used in jury selection do not appear to have been set as yet.

    Jacquinot argues that a private setting for questioning of jurors provides a better opportunity for the court to hear their “unique” and “non-contaminated” views on punishment and the death penalty.

    “Undoubtedly, jurors who sit and watch multiple peers questioned about capital punishment will be influenced by the questions and answers they hear,” the motion reads.

    https://www.joplinglobe.com/news/def...866080bfb.html
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

  5. #5
    Administrator Helen's Avatar
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    Defense objects to request to televise Thompson murder trial

    By Jeff Lehr
    The Joplin Globe

    A request to televise his trial this month on murder charges drew an objection Tuesday from Stephen Thompson’s attorneys.

    The Law&Crime Trial Network recently filed the request for a camera in the courtroom at the trial of the Joplin murder case, which is set to begin with jury selection next week. The network wants to place a camera and streaming device in the courtroom to record and broadcast the trial.

    Thompson’s attorneys responded Tuesday with a brief outlining their objections to the Jasper County Circuit Court granting any such request. Judge David Mouton has scheduled a hearing on the issue for Monday morning.

    Thompson, 60, is accused of shooting and killing Carissa Gerard, 38, and wounding his estranged wife, Kristina Thompson, 44, six years ago at an address on Joplin’s west side where the two women lived. He is charged with first-degree murder, first-degree domestic assault and two counts of armed criminal action.

    The Jasper County prosecutor’s office was seeking the death penalty in the case, but offered in August to take it off the table in order to preserve the September trial date.

    The offer was made in light of a defense motion for a continuance until March of next year due to the unavailability this month of a witness needed by the defense in a potential punishment phase of a death penalty trial. Without the death penalty, a punishment phase would not take place and the witness would not be needed by the defense.

    The judge has indicated that the court is inclined to grant the continuance if the case remains a death penalty case.

    Thompson’s lead attorney, Thomas Jacquinot, indicated at a hearing on the matter Aug. 24 that the defense would be receptive to proceeding with the September trial date with the death penalty removed.

    Jacquinot also suggested that his client might be open to changing his plea in advance of the trial. But no plea change has been entered with the court as yet.

    In its objections to the camera in the courtroom request, the defense stated that Thompson “has significant mental health concerns.”

    “Twelve hours before the alleged offenses, he tried to check himself into an area hospital for a mental health assessment,” the brief reads. “Due to his self-described lack of patience, he unfortunately walked away from potential help.”

    The brief states that Thompson has been diagnosed with both post-traumatic stress and personality disorders and that his mental health deteriorated over the six years he has been held in jail awaiting trial.

    “The fact that Thompson is not presenting a defense based upon mental health does not warrant minimizing the seriousness of his situation,” the brief reads.

    The defense maintains that the network seeking to livestream the trial “is known for sensationalizing and emphasizing prurient and inflammatory facts in order to enhance viewership and revenue” and that such coverage “does little to educate or inform.”

    The brief further states a concern with the effect such coverage will have on the defendant and his emotional health.

    https://www.joplinglobe.com/news/loc...ceea47a6f.html
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

  6. #6
    Senior Member CnCP Legend Mastro Titta's Avatar
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    Man found guilty in Joplin woman’s death, shooting of wife

    By AP News

    JOPLIN, Mo. (AP) — A Joplin man was convicted Thursday of killing a woman and seriously injuring his estranged wife in a shooting six years ago.

    Stephen Thompson, 60, was found guilty of first-degree murder and three other counts in the death of Carissa Gerard and the wounding of his wife, Kristina Thompson.

    Prosecutors said Thompson shot Gerard and his estranged wife at a home in west Joplin on June 10, 2015, as they tried to get away from him by climbing over a backyard fence, The Joplin Globe reported.

    Thompson was angry that his wife and asked him to leave and moved in with Gerard, prosecutors said.

    Defense attorneys argued that Thompson did not commit the shooting with the premeditation required for a first-degree murder conviction. They asked for a second-degree murder conviction.

    Thompson was also found guilty of first-degree domestic assault and two counts of armed criminal action. His sentencing was set for Oct. 29.

    https://apnews.com/article/crime-sho...1844168188765e

  7. #7
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    October 29, 2021

    Steven Thompson sentenced to life behind bars after September trial verdict

    By Priscilla Mace
    fourstateshomepage.com

    JOPLIN, Mo. — The man convicted of shooting his estranged wife and killing her girlfriend will spend the rest of his life behind bars.

    Today, a judge sentenced Stephen Thompson to life without parole for first degree murder, 50 years each on two counts of armed criminal action and 30 years in prison for first degree domestic assault. Those sentences will run consecutively.

    A jury convicted Thompson back on September 23rd on the charges stemming from a shooting on June 10, 2015 in the 4200 Block of West 26th Street, where Thompson shot and killed Carissa Gerard and shot his estranged wife Kristina Thompson.

    https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.fou...l-verdict/amp/

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