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Thread: King Phillip Amman Reu-El aka Phillip Delbert Cheatham, Jr. - Kansas

  1. #41
    Administrator Heidi's Avatar
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    Jurors in Cheatham retrial won't hear testimony of lead detective

    Jurors won’t hear transcribed testimony by the lead detective, who died three years ago, during the retrial of Phillip D. Cheatham Jr., a district court judge ruled this week.

    The ruling is the second adverse decision suffered by prosecutors in the Cheatham retrial in the past two months.

    On Sept. 24, Shawnee County District Court Judge Richard Anderson ruled jurors wouldn’t hear Cheatham’s rap song during his retrial.

    Prosecutors contended the song was a confession to killing the two women in Cheatham’s capital murder case. Cheatham attorneys said it was just music about murder and mayhem and wasn't linked to truth. Anderson questioned the reliability of the lyrics as evidence.

    The Cheatham retrial is scheduled to start on Feb. 17, 2015, and is expected to last six weeks.

    Prosecutors had sought to have the testimony of Sgt. Lou Randall, the lead detective during Cheatham's first capital murder trial in 2005, read as evidence during Cheatham’s retrial.

    Randall died in September 2011 at age 57.

    Chief deputy district attorney Jacqie Spradling filed a motion in March asking Anderson to find that Randall wasn’t available to testify and to admit the detective’s testimony from Cheatham's first trial.

    John Val Wachtel, a Cheatham defense attorney, opposed admission of Randall’s testimony.

    When a witness isn’t available to testify in a trial, his testimony from an earlier trial or hearing can be read to the jury under certain circumstances.

    Cheatham attorneys opposed admitting Randall’s testimony, saying it would violate Cheatham’s Sixth Amendment right to confront the witness face to face.

    Cheatham defense attorneys said the defendant’s attorney in the earlier trial was denied exculpatory or impeachment evidence required to be disclosed by the prosecution.

    “In this respect, Detective Randall committed perjury during a suppression hearing in State vs. Stokes,” Anderson said in a decision issued Tuesday. In that case, the defendant, Raphael Stokes, was charged with robbery.

    Quoting a Kansas Court of Appeals decision in State vs. Stokes, Cheatham defense attorneys said Randall committed perjury when he testified during the criminal case of Stokes.

    “Because the perjured testimony of Detective Randall from the Stokes case was not provided to or obtained by defense counsel before the first trial, Mr. Cheatham was denied an opportunity to consider how such information could be used for cross-examination of Detective Randall as well as an opportunity to actually use such information during cross-examination of Detective Randall,” Anderson ruled.

    Without having Randall available to “confront,” the disclosure of the perjured testimony “is now useless,” Anderson said.

    Cheatham didn’t have the opportunity to cross-examine Randall during the first trial about the “recent disclosure of Detective Randall’s perjured testimony in the Stokes case,” Anderson said.

    “By permitting the trial testimony of Detective Randall to be used in the upcoming trial, the defendant would be denied his right to confront the witness face to face,” Anderson wrote.

    Cheatham is charged with capital murder in the Dec. 13, 2003, shooting deaths of Annette Roberson and Gloria A. Jones; two alternative counts of premeditated first-degree murder of Roberson and Jones; attempted first-degree murder of Annetta D. Thomas; aggravated battery of Thomas; and criminal possession of a firearm.

    A new trial was ordered for Cheatham, 41, in 2013 after the Kansas Supreme Court overturned his capital murder conviction and death penalty sentence for the killings of the two women in a home at 2718 S.E. Colorado.

    http://m.cjonline.com/news/2014-12-1...0ago#gsc.tab=0
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  2. #42
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    Jury selection starts Tuesday in 2003 capital murder retrial of King Phillip Amman Reu-El

    By Steve Fry
    THE TOPEKA CAPITAL-JOURNAL

    A panel of 64 prospective jurors quickly learned Tuesday some likely would be called on to decide whether to convict or acquit King Phillip Amman Reu-El, who is charged with capital murder in the 2003 shooting deaths of two southeast Topeka women.
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    A panel of 64 prospective jurors quickly learned Tuesday some likely would be called on to decide whether to convict or acquit a man charged with capital murder in the 2003 shooting deaths of two southeast Topeka women.

    An estimated 300 people divided among four panels will be called to Shawnee County District Court on Tuesday and Wednesday during the jury selection phase of the re-trial.

    "This is the case of King Phillip Amman Reu-El, formerly Phillip Cheatham Jr.," District Court Judge Richard Anderson told the first panel. On Jan. 23, Cheatham’s name was changed in courtl. His first name is “King Phillip,” and his last name is “Amman Reu-El."

    The retrial is occurring more than 11 years after the two women were killed and more than nine years after Cheatham was tried, convicted and sentenced to death in 2005.

    A new trial was ordered for Cheatham in 2013 after the Supreme Court overturned his capital murder conviction and death penalty sentence for the killings in a home at 2718 S.E. Colorado.

    Anderson said Cheatham, 42, is charged with:

    ■ Capital murder in the Dec. 13, 2003, shooting deaths of Annette Roberson, 38, and Gloria A. Jones, 42.

    ■ Two alternative counts of premeditated first-degree murder of Roberson and Jones.

    ■ Attempted first-degree murder of Annetta D. Thomas, who was shot multiple times.

    ■ Aggravated battery of Thomas.

    ■ Criminal possession of a firearm.

    Amman Reu-El has pleaded not guilty to the charges, the judge told those reporting for jury duty.

    The time line for the trial is that four panels will hear an orientation movie about court duty and fill out a questionnaire on Tuesday and Wednesday.

    Prosecutors and defense attorneys will review the questionnaires. When court resumes on Feb. 23, prospective jurors will be questioned first about hardships -- financial, work and personal -- they might face by serving on the jury, then answer questions by prosecutors and defense attorneys about other topics.

    Finally, selection of the 12-member jury and five alternate jurors will be made after 51 prospective jurors are passed for cause.

    Prosecutors and defense attorneys will strike 17 people each, a total of 34 strikes, then 17 will remain. Those will be the 12 jurors and five alternates.

    The capital murder case has two phases, the judge told those called for jury duty. First, jurors consider whether to convict a defendant of capital murder. If they convict him, they must decide whether to recommend sentencing him to death. That requires a unanimous vote by jurors.

    The jury trial is expected to start on March 5. The whole process is expected to last six weeks, requiring much of March.On Nov. 14, 2014, the Supreme Court disbarred Dennis Hawver, of Ozawkie, the first attorney who represented Cheatham.

    The Supreme Court said Hawver violated Kansas rules of professional conduct while defending Cheatham during his 2005 trial. The Supreme Court said Hawver engaged in “inexplicable incompetence” when defending Cheatham.

    http://m.cjonline.com/news/2015-02-1...u-el#gsc.tab=0
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  3. #43
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    Surprise Plea Entered In Topeka Double Murder

    In a surprise development, the man accused of killing two women twelve years ago pleaded no contest to capital murder on Friday.

    King Phillip Amman Reu-El, formerly known as Phillip Cheatham, was charged with the 2003 shooting deaths of Annette Roberson and Gloria Jones. A third victim survived.

    Reu-El originally was convicted and sentenced to death but the Kansas Supreme Court later ordered a new trial, citing ineffective assistance of counsel.

    Attorneys were finishing their second week of jury selection when Reu-El opted to enter the plea. The decision takes away the death penalty as an option since, under Kansas law, a jury must recommend a death sentence. He now faces life in prison with no chance of parole.

    Sentencing is set for March 20th.

    http://www.wibw.com/home/headlines/S...1.html?ref=781
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  4. #44
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    Inmate says he plans to withdraw his no contest plea in Topeka capital murder case

    A Topeka man who surprised many observers by pleading no contest in a capital murder case plans to withdraw the plea.

    King Phillip Amman Reu-El, formerly known as Phillip Cheatham Jr., told The Topeka Capital-Journal (http://bit.ly/1Gnfbdo) Wednesday that he will withdraw the plea he made last Friday and seek to have his case dismissed.

    Amman Reu-El avoided the death penalty by pleading no contest as jury selection was beginning for a trial in the 2003 deaths of killing two women and the wounding of a third. He said it was obvious the potential jurors had already decided to convict him and sentence him to death.

    His original conviction was overturned by the Kansas Supreme Court because of ineffective counsel in first trial.

    Sentencing is set for March 20.

    http://www.dailyjournal.net/view/sto...lty-Case-Plea/
    An uninformed opponent is a dangerous opponent.

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

  5. #45
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    Judge deviates from plea in sentencing man in Kan. deaths

    A Shawnee County judge has deviated from a plea agreement in sentencing a man for killing two women and wounding a third in 2003 in Topeka.

    The Topeka Capital-Journal reported that King Phillip Amman Reu-El, formerly known as Phillip Cheatham Jr., was ordered Friday to serve his capital murder and attempted first-degree murder sentences back-to-back instead of at the same time. The decision means the earliest the 42-year-old could be released would be in about 26 years. He already has served more than 11 years for the crimes.

    Amman Reu-El avoided the death penalty by pleading no contest in February as jury selection was beginning for a retrial. His original conviction was overturned by the Kansas Supreme Court because of ineffective counsel in his first trial.

    http://www.hayspost.com/2015/03/20/j...in-kan-deaths/
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    "Y'all be makin shit up" ~ Markeith Loyd

  6. #46
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    Kan. man claims ineffective counsel in death penalty retrial

    TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A 42-year-old Kansas man claims he didn’t have effective counsel during a retrial of his death penalty case.

    The Topeka Capital-Journal reports King Phillip Amman Reu-El wants a Shawnee County judge to void his two consecutive sentences, as well as his convictions based on no-contest pleas.

    He was convicted in 2005 of capital murder and other charges in the killings of two women in Topeka in 2013. Those convictions were overturned, and the case was sent back for retrial.

    During his second trial, Amman Reu-El says he was misled into thinking a no-contest plea wouldn’t be used by the Kansas Supreme Court to deny a pre-trial action he filed in 2014.

    Amman Reu-El changed his name from Phillip D. Cheatham Jr. while awaiting retrial in the capital murder case.

    http://salinapost.com/2015/09/08/kan...nalty-retrial/

  7. #47
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    Supreme Court mulls plea-deal appeal by convicted killer of two Topeka women

    Convicted killer King Phillip Amman Reu-El's appeal Thursday to the Kansas Supreme Court could allow withdraw of a no-contest plea in a Topeka homicide case and enable Shawnee County prosecutors to reintroduce the prospect of death by lethal injection for the accused.

    Appellate counsel for Amman Reu-El pressed the justices to issue an opinion permitting retraction of the plea deal leading to a sentence of more than 30 years on two counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder. It stemmed from a gruesome 2003 shooting at a residence that left two women dead and a third riddled with bullet holes.

    Amman Reu-El's death sentence in 2005 was overturned by the high court due to incompetence of his original defense lawyer, who was disbarred for flawed representation of the man known at that time as Phillip Cheatham.

    Meryl Carver-Allmond, an appellate defender representing Amman Reu-El, argued the plea arrangement entered in 2015 by her client to avoid retrial was muddled by District Court Judge Richard Anderson and his defense attorney Paul Oller, who both made statements in court blurring legal precedent closing the door on most appeals after a plea.

    She said Amman Reu-El, who had filed a double-jeopardy appeal before entering the plea in Shawnee County District Court, was confused by the proceedings but eventually concluded he would be permitted to continue with an appeal asserting retrial to be improper.

    "I don't think they were purposefully trying to mislead him," Carver-Allmond said. "They were throwing around language pretty fast and lose. When, in fact, he had just completely waived the issue. He was done."

    Jodi Litfin, assistant district attorney for Shawnee County, said the Supreme Court ought to reject Amman Reu-El's request for authority to renounce the plea arrangement. She said the defendant's second trial lawyer represented his client competently and the judge relied upon correct legal standards in considering the defendant's request to withdraw the plea.

    "I don't think that's in any way misleading," Litfin said. "I don't agree they muddied the water."

    Justice Eric Rosen, a former Shawnee County District Court judge, said the court record indicated Anderson explained limits of Amman Reu-El's prospects of advancing appeals after pleading in the homicide case.

    "It's hard to fathom a more cautious and more informed plea colloquy with the court and counsel and the defendant," Rosen said.

    Carver-Allmond, who argued there was a difference between a judge or lawyer saying "maybe" and "no" to potential for appeals, said her client didn't absorb full legal implications of his plea.

    "You can have a great attorney, but they can be wrong," she said. "If it substantially effects the advice they give their client on a key point -- that's ineffective."

    In response to a question by Justice Lee Johnson, Litfin said she didn't believe Amman Reu-El ought to be allowed to rescind the plea based on a claim he misunderstood instructions by the judge or attorney about appellate opportunities.

    "It doesn't matter if there is a misunderstanding?" asked Justice Carol Beier.

    Litfin said Amman Reu-El was aware enough of repercussions to grasp the deal meant he wouldn't be subjected the death penalty.

    "It was clear he understood the benefits he was getting with the plea," the prosecutor said.

    The plea agreement was drafted to exempt the defendant from a death sentence in this case. It also would allow the district attorney to avoid complications inherent in a retrial so long after the crime. If Amman Reu-El were to prevail and rescind the no-contest plea, Shawnee County prosecutors would be at liberty to refile a capital case.

    http://cjonline.com/news/state/2016-...o-topeka-women
    An uninformed opponent is a dangerous opponent.

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

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