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Thread: Jacob Shaffer Pleads Guilty and Gets Life Sentence in 2009 AL Slaying of Sidney Wade Dempsey

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    Jacob Shaffer Pleads Guilty and Gets Life Sentence in 2009 AL Slaying of Sidney Wade Dempsey

    Six people believed to be from one family were slain in a two-state spree and authorities charged a man who was sitting on the porch when authorities arrived at one home in the killings.

    Five people were found dead in two neighboring rural homes near Fayetteville in southern Tennessee Saturday, and a sixth body was discovered at a business about 30 miles away in Huntsville, Ala., authorities said.

    Jacob Shaffer, 30, of Fayetteville was charged late Saturday with homicide. He was jailed without bond in Lincoln County, which borders Alabama.

    Investigators said the victims were four adults and two juveniles, but their names and ages were not being released until they are identified and next of kin are notified.

    Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman Kristin Helm said in an e-mail that Shaffer was charged with five counts of homicide for the Tennessee deaths and faced an additional count in Alabama.

    "Most of the victims are suspected to be related. The motive of the killings is domestic," Helm said. She did not immediately respond to an e-mail seeking more details.

    Lincoln County Sheriff Murray Blackwelder said at a news conference that his department is investigating three crime scenes, though he did not elaborate. He did not release the victims' names and would not confirm the causes of death in what he called "horrendous" killings and "one of the worst crimes Lincoln County has seen."

    Helm said the Tennessee victims were killed Friday night or early Saturday. Shaffer was sitting on the porch of one of the Fayetteville houses when authorities first arrived Saturday.

    Huntsville police Sgt. Mickey Allen, who works for the city's major crimes unit, said that based on the suspect's information, police found a body at Hall Cultured Marble Granite on Saturday morning. Authorities have not said how the slayings in the two communities are linked.

    While authorities have not released the victims' ages, Karon Weatherman, who lives about a half-mile away from the Tennessee homes, said she saw children as young as 4 and 5 running back and forth between the houses across the road from each other.

    One of the Tennessee homes was once a skating rink that was converted into a duplex, said Weatherman. She did not know the family but said they moved in earlier this year.

    "I wouldn't expect nothing like this to happen," she said.

    Fayetteville is a town of 7,000 people about 90 miles south of Nashville near the Tennessee-Alabama border. Huntsville, about 30 miles south, is the largest city in northern Alabama with more than 170,000 people.

    http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SOUTHERN_TENNESSEE_SLAYINGS?SITE=VANOV&SECTION= HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

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    Cops: Man's Attack On Wife, 6 Others Was Planned

    A man accused of fatally stabbing and bludgeoning six people in Tennessee and Alabama was targeting his wife and killed the others first so they couldn't stop him, authorities said Tuesday.

    Jacob Shaffer, 30, is charged with six counts of homicide. He bought two stun guns Friday, the day before the victims were found, indicating the attacks were planned, District Attorney Charles Crawford said at news conference.

    Lincoln County Sheriff Murray Blackwelder said officers found out about the crimes after Shaffer called 911. He was still at the scene when officers arrived and found five people dead in two neighboring rural homes. A sixth man was killed at a business about 30 miles away in Huntsville, Ala.

    Investigators believe 38-year-old Traci Shaffer was the last person to die and that the couple had been having marital difficulties, Tennessee Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman Kristin Helm said. Shaffer "went out of his way" to kill Traci's father, Billy Hall, 57, and brother Chris Hall, 34, in their home across the street from hers in Lincoln County.

    "In this case, he wanted to make sure the father and the brother who were in close proximity wouldn't interfere with him killing his main target," Helm said.

    Helm said investigators think Shaffer then went to Traci Shaffer's duplex and killed his stepson, Devin Brooks, and a neighbor, Robert Berber, both 16, before killing his wife.

    The only person left unharmed inside the home was Jacob and Traci Shaffer's 4-year-old daughter, Helm said.

    "She was probably asleep," Helm said. "As far as what she witnessed, I don't know."

    Helm said investigators are still trying to figure out the motive in the beating death of the first victim, 50-year-old Sidney Wade Dempsey, who was found at Huntsville's Hall Cultured Marble Granite in Huntsville, Ala., where he worked and was allowed to live. Unlike the stabbings in Tennessee, Hall died of blunt-force trauma, police said. A family friend said the business belongs to Traci Hall's family.

    "I think the guy (Dempsey) was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I think the guy (Shaffer) just decided to start there," said Huntsville police Sgt. Mark Roberts.

    Helm said Shaffer made a statement to police, but would not say if he confessed to the murders.

    "It's a pretty solid case for us," Helm said. "We've got everything we need to prosecute him."

    http://kdka.com/topstories/jacob.shaffer.wife.2.1095397.html

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    Shaffer Could Face Death Penalty

    FAYETTVILLE, Tenn.- There is new information this weekend, in the case of confessed killer Jacob Shaffer.

    The 30-year-old's charged with killing his estranged wife, her son, his friend, her father and her brother in Lincoln County, and another man in Huntsville, Alabama two weekends ago.

    Lincoln County District Attorney General Charles Crawford told the Elk Valley Times Newspaper he believes the state's maximum punishment, the death penalty, is appropriate for Shaffer.

    But the District Attorney stopped just short of saying he will seek it. Investigators also say they are zeroing-in on the exact time in which the murders occurred as well as other aspects of the case.

    http://www.newschannel5.com/global/story.asp?s=10832304

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    Tenn. slayings suspect asked to hug daughter

    By LUCAS L. JOHNSON II
    Associated Press Writer

    FAYETTEVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A man charged with fatally stabbing and beating six people in Tennessee and Alabama asked a responding deputy to let him hug his 4-year-old daughter - the only person spared in the attack, the deputy testified Thursday.

    Testifying at a preliminary hearing, Bob Jones of the Lincoln County Sheriff's Department said that when he reached the crime scene, suspect Jacob Shaffer was seated on the porch with his 4-year-old daughter. The 28-year-old Shaffer then stood up, turned around and put his hands behind his back and said, "You need to cuff me ... but I need to hug my daughter first," Jones told the court.

    Shaffer's estranged wife, Tracie, her teenage son, her father and brother and a 16-year-old neighbor were found killed in two homes in rural Fayetteville on July 18. A man who was described as an acquaintance of Shaffer's was found beaten to death at a Huntsville, Ala., business, about 30 miles south.

    Shaffer said at that time that his wife had been cheating on him, Jones testified.

    He said he heard the little girl say "he hurt," but that she didn't finish the sentence. Jones said the child was crying, so he didn't want to press her for information.

    After Shaffer was placed in Jones' patrol car, the deputy asked him what was going on.

    "They're all dead," said Jones.

    When he went inside the home, Jones said he discovered three bloody bodies.

    "There was a tremendous amount of blood," Jones recalled.

    Minutes later, Jones said Shaffer told him there were two bodies in a home across the street and a dead body in a barrel in Huntsville. Authorities there were notified and they found the body exactly where Shaffer said it would be.

    "He knew things that only the killer could have known," District Attorney Charles Crawford told reporters after the hearing.

    During his testimony, Jones acknowledged that he didn't read Shaffer his rights, and never really gave defense attorneys a clear reason as to why he didn't.

    Shaffer, making his first in-court appearance in the case, sat in a beige bulletproof vest. He was mostly stonefaced and slumped over.

    Shaffer was ordered held without bond for grand jury action.

    Crawford has requested a mental evaluation for Shaffer. He said he has not decided whether to seek the death penalty.

    There was no indication Thursday why the unrelated neighbor was slain.

    Police have said the killing spree began with the beating death of 50-year-old Sidney Wade Dempsey in a Huntsville business. They think Dempsey may simply have been at the wrong place at the wrong time.

    Shaffer's lawyers did not speak to reporters after the hearing.

    http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_SOUTHERN_TENNESSEE_SLAYINGS?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOM E&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

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    2011 trial for man charged in 5 Tennessee slayings

    FAYETTEVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- A judge set a January 2011 trial for a man charged in the slayings of his estranged wife and four other people in southern Tennessee.

    At a Tuesday hearing, Circuit Judge Robert Crigler said jury selection in the death penalty case of Jacob Shaffer is to start Jan. 24. The trial is expected to last several weeks.

    Shaffer's estranged wife, Tracie, her teenage son, father, brother and a teenage neighbor were slain in two homes in Lincoln County on July 18. Shaffer is also the suspect in the fatal beating of a man in Huntsville, Ala.

    Sheriff Murray Blackwelder has said Shaffer used large knives in some of the killings.

    Shaffer previously told an investigator he "slayed them all."

    A hearing is set May 4 on a change of venue motion by public defender Donna Hargrove.

    http://www.volunteertv.com/news/headlines/90031502.html

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    Defense Delays Venue Motion in 5 TN Slayings

    FAYETTEVILLE, Tenn. - Attorneys for a man charged in the slayings of his estranged wife and four others in southern Tennessee have told a judge they want to hire a media expert to help them with a change of venue motion.

    WAFF-TV reports that attorneys for Jacob Shaffer said Tuesday at a Lincoln County court hearing that the jury for his death penalty trial should be picked in other counties. The judge delayed the venue hearing to Aug. 3.

    Shaffer's estranged wife, Tracie, her teenage son, her father, her brother and a teenage neighbor were slain in Lincoln County in July 2009. Shaffer is also the suspect in a Huntsville, Ala., beating death.

    The trial is set in January 2011.

    http://www.myfoxmemphis.com/dpp/news/local/070610-efense-delays-venue-motion-in-5-tn-slayings

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    Suspect In 5 Slayings Has Court Hearing
    Defense Attorneys File Change Of Venue Motion For Trial


    A judge said he will review a request to have the death penalty trial of a man charged in five southern Tennessee slayings decided by a jury picked outside of Lincoln County.

    The Lincoln County Sheriff's office revealed new information Tuesday about Schaffer and the murder spree.

    They said that on the day before the killings that Schaffer bought two stun guns in Huntsville, Ala. Authorities said that clearly points to pre-meditation when he allegedly killed Sidney Dempsey at a nearby business.

    Circuit Judge Robert Crigler at a Tuesday hearing in Fayetteville took the change of venue motion on behalf of Jacob Shaffer under advisement until Aug. 17.

    Shaffer's trial is set in January 2011.

    He is charged in the July 2009 slayings of his estranged wife and four others in Lincoln County.

    Shaffer's estranged wife, Tracie, her teenage son, her father, her brother and a teenage neighbor were the victims. Shaffer is also the suspect in Dempsey's Huntsville, Ala., beating death.

    http://www.wsmv.com/news/24500209/detail.html

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    Jacob Shaffer Trial Jury Will Not Be Loca

    The jury in the upcoming trial of accused killer Jacob Shaffer will not be coming from Lincoln County, Tennessee.

    Judge Robert Crigler made the ruling Monday afternoon. Earlier this month, Crigler ruled the trial would remain in Fayetteville, but remained undecided on whether or not the jurors would come from the local pool. Judge Crigler didn't say where the jurors will come from, but that issue will be addressed in October.

    Shaffer is accused of killing his estranged wife and four of her friends and family members in Fayetteville back in July of 2009. Police believe Shaffer killed a sixth person in Huntsville shortly before the attack in Tennessee. He's been charged with murder in Alabama in connection with that crime, but won't stand trial there until his case in Tennessee is settled.

    Shaffer's trial is set to begin early in 2011. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.

    http://www.waaytv.com/global/story.asp?s=12989009

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    Judge In Jacob Shaffer Case Makes Secret Decision
    Judge Robert Crigler picked where the jury pool will come from, but he's keeping it secret


    LINCOLN COUNTY, TN —
    It was a pivotal decision in the case of Jacob Shaffer. He's the man charged with capital murder in connection with the deaths of five people in Lincoln County, Tennessee, and is accused of a murder in Huntsville. This week, the judge ruled the jury for Shaffer's murder trial will be selected from a pool outside Lincoln County. But where those potential jurors will be coming from will be sealed so the media won't report where potential jurors will be coming from so as to not taint the jury pool.

    "This case has garnered so much publicity that this judge is just wanting to make sure that everything is done right. That this person, this defendant gets his constitutional rights and so if there's a conviction, it will stand," said Legal expert Mark McDaniel.

    He says because this is a capital murder case, every minute of the trial as the potential to be closely analyzed both during and after the trial.

    "If the state's seeking the death penalty, the judge will go out of their way to make sure the defendant gets a fair trial because again, if there's a guilty verdict and if there's a death sentence in the case, then this case is going to be looked at for the next 10 to 15 years," said McDaniel.

    He says if the potential jurors in the location the judge chose know too much about the trial, then the judge will have to come up with another plan. Lincoln County District Attorney Chuck Crawford, is the one who suggested the judge seal his decision. He was arguing to keep the jury selection nearby, while the defense asked the judge to pick jurors from outside the middle Tennessee area.

    Judge Crigler says eventually, the word will get out on where jury selection will be held because the people who are chosen will get letters in the mail. But he says at least it will suppress some of the media attention.

    http://www.whnt.com/news/whnt-shaffe...,6425866.story

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    FAYETTEVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The death penalty trial of a man charged in five southern Tennessee slayings has been delayed indefinitely while his attorneys try to suppress evidence that includes comments he made to investigators.

    A Lincoln County court official said the trial that was set Jan. 31 for Jacob Shaffer in Fayetteville has been postponed while a state appeals court considers pending motions.

    The 31-year-old Shaffer is charged in the July 18, 2009, stabbing deaths of his estranged wife, Tracie Hall Shaffer, three members of her family and a family friend in Tennessee. He is also charged in Alabama in the killing of a Huntsville man the night before.

    Fifty-year-old Sidney Wayne Dempsey was killed at a business owned by the family of Tracie Shaffer.

    http://www.waaytv.com/news/state/sto...dukzMaBkw.cspx

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