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Thread: Ralph Simon Jeremias - Nevada

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    Administrator Heidi's Avatar
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    Ralph Simon Jeremias - Nevada


    Ralph Simon Jeremias


    Death penalty to be sought in murder cases

    Two men accused in separate Clark County killings

    By FRANCIS McCABE
    THE LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

    The Clark County district attorney's office will seek the death penalty against two men accused of first-degree murder in separate cases.

    Ralph Jeremias, 24, is accused of executing two marijuana dealers while robbing them

    Rodney Marshall, 49, is alleged to have beaten a man to death while robbing him in order to feed a crack-cocaine addiction.

    Jeremias, along with Carlos Zapata, 23, and Ivan Rios, 24, faces two counts each of murder with a deadly weapon and robbery with a deadly weapon. They also face one count each of conspiracy to commit robbery and burglary.

    Investigators believe that on June 7, Jeremias went to the Polo Club Apartments on Decatur Boulevard south of Flamingo Road, to buy marijuana from Paul Stephens and Brian Hudson.

    Both Rios and Zapata told investigators that Jeremias entered the apartment alone with a handgun and shot each victim multiple times. Jeremias and at least one other suspect returned later to collect a laptop computer, marijuana, bank cards and cash, police said.

    All three men have pleaded not guilty.

    District Attorney David Roger said his office will seek the death penalty only against Jeremias because he was the shooter.

    Meanwhile, Marshall faces once count of murder committed against a person over 65 and robbery committed against a person over 65.

    Investigators allege that on April 24 Marshall struck up a conversation with 78-year-old Ronald North on Tropicana Avenue, near Swenson Street, before striking him in the head with his fist and then robbing him.

    Police said Marshall is a suspect in at least two other similar robberies.

    North succumbed to his injuries on April 26.

    Marshall has pleaded not guilty.

    http://www.lvrj.com/news/56052097.html

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    Man gets death penalty in 2009 double-murder

    By DAVID FERRARA
    THE LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

    A 29-year-old man was sentenced to death Monday for a 2009 double-murder inside a Las Vegas apartment.

    After a lengthy and emotional penalty hearing, a Clark County jury took just a few hours to sentence Ralph “Macky” Jeremias to capital punishment for the execution-style shootings of Paul Stephens and Brian Hudson.

    Last week, the same jury found Jeremias guilty of two counts of first-degree murder along with robbery and burglary charges.

    After a clerk read the sentence, Jeremias turned toward his mother, stepfather and grandmother seated in the courtroom gallery.

    “I love you mom,” he said, as his family members wept.

    Prosecutors said Jeremias used a 9 mm handgun to shoot and kill the two men execution-style. Jeremias had purchased marijuana from Stephens in the past and coveted money and laptops in their apartment.

    From the witness stand, Jeremias said he went to the apartment complex with friends Carlos Zapata and Ivan Rios to buy marijuana and found the victims already dead.

    Both Rios and Zapata told investigators that Jeremias went inside alone with a gun and shot each victim multiple times.

    About a year after their arrests, Zapata made a deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder, one count of robbery and one count of conspiracy to commit robbery. In exchange, he agreed to testify at Jeremias’ trial.

    In 2012 Rios was acquitted of the murder and robbery charges.

    http://www.reviewjournal.com/news/la...-double-murder

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    Nevada high court hears appeal of Ralph Jeremias death sentence

    By Sean Whaley
    The Las Vegas Review-Journal

    CARSON CITY — A judge’s decision in the 2014 Las Vegas murder trial of Ralph Jeremias is enough to overturn his conviction and death sentence, a defense attorney told the Nevada Supreme Court on Thursday.

    A 2010 U.S. Supreme Court decision found that it was an error to exclude the public during jury selection, said Las Vegas attorney Jonell Thomas. There is a constitutional right for the public to be present during jury selection, and it was violated in this case, she said.

    Thomas raised numerous issues in the appeal on behalf of Jeremias, who was sentenced for the execution-style shootings of Paul Stephens and Brian Hudson in 2009.

    “Sometimes constitutional rights are not convenient,” she told the court, which will rule later in the case.

    Clark County Chief Deputy District Attorney David Stanton characterized the exclusion differently, noting that all seats were taken up by potential jurors. Clark County District Judge Valerie Adair said seats would open up quickly for the family and other members of the public as jurors were dismissed, he said.

    “The court never ordered the public to be excluded,” Stanton said arguing the appeal of Jeremias’ death sentence.

    Thomas also cited concerns with testimony elicited during the penalty phase of the trial that incorrectly suggested to the jury that sentencing Jeremias to life without parole might not guarantee he would never be released from prison, giving impetus to a jury to impose death.

    “I can almost think of nothing more damaging in a capital case,” Thomas said.

    Stanton said the testimony was intended only to present the parole process to the jury. The jury was properly instructed and it was never an issue, he said.

    Prosecutors said during his trial that Jeremias used a 9 mm handgun to shoot and kill the two men execution-style. Jeremias had purchased marijuana from Stephens in the past and coveted money and laptops in their apartment.

    Jeremias testified that he went to the apartment complex with friends Carlos Zapata and Ivan Rios to buy marijuana and found the victims already dead.

    Both Rios and Zapata told investigators that Jeremias went inside alone with a gun and shot each victim multiple times.

    https://www.reviewjournal.com/crime/...eath-sentence/
    "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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    Nevada Supreme Court upholds death penalty in double murder

    By Nevada Appeal Capitol Bureau
    The Lahontan Valley News

    The Nevada Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the death sentence ordered for Ralph Jeremias, rejecting the argument the conviction can't stand because jury selection was closed to the public.

    Under federal case law, closing jury selection normally entitles a defendant to reversal of his conviction because he didn't get a public trial.

    But in this case, the high court ruled Jeremias didn't preserve that error for appellate review because he and his counsel made no objection at the time.

    "Under Nevada law, this means he must demonstrate plain effort that affected his substantial rights," according to the opinion by Justice Lidia Stiglich.

    She wrote that failed to demonstrate the jury selection process affected his rights.

    Jerenias was convicted of murdering Brian Judson and Paul Stephens by shooting them in the head in the apartment they shared.

    Credit cards belonging to the victims were used at various locations after the murders and surveillance videos identified Jeremias as a subject.

    He was convicted of double murder with a deadly weapon, conspiracy to commit robbery and burglary and two counts of robbery with a deadly weapon.

    All seven members of the Nevada Supreme Court concurred in the opinion.

    https://www.nevadaappeal.com/news/lo...double-murder/
    "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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    In today's United States Supreme Court orders, Jeremias' petition for a writ of certiorari was DENIED.

    Lower Ct: Supreme Court of Nevada
    Case Numbers: (67228)
    Decision Date: March 1, 2018
    Rehearing Denied: April 27, 2018

    https://www.supremecourt.gov/search....c/18-5331.html

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    Death penalty conviction overturned in Las Vegas double murder

    By David Ferrera
    Las Vegas Review Journal

    A Las Vegas judge on Tuesday reversed a double murder conviction and death penalty for a man, ruling that his lawyers failed to call a potentially significant witness at trial.

    Ralph “Macky” Jeremias, now 36, was sentenced to die after a trial in which prosecutors said he shot and killed Paul Stephens and Brian Hudson inside their central valley apartment during a 2009 marijuana deal that turned into a robbery.

    Before his 2014 trial, his attorneys learned that a man named Danny Carrillo had information that could impeach one of Jeremias’ co-defendants, Carlos Zapata, a key trial witness for the prosecution.

    District Judge Cristina Silva ruled Tuesday that deputy special public defenders Charles Cano and Clark Patrick failed to investigate Carrillo as a potential witness and “did not reasonably investigate or prepare for trial.”

    Jeremias’ stepfather, Gordon Daniel, learned of the judge’s decision through a reporter’s phone call.

    “That’s the best news we had in a long time,” said Daniel, who attended the trial. “It’s a great opportunity. He’s going to be really happy, I’m sure.”

    From the witness stand at his trial, Jeremias said he went to the apartment complex with friends Zapata and Ivan Rios to buy marijuana. Both Rios and Zapata told investigators that Jeremias went inside alone with a gun and shot each victim multiple times.

    About a year after their arrests, Zapata made a deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder, one count of robbery and one count of conspiracy to commit robbery. In exchange, he agreed to testify at Jeremias’ trial.

    In 2012, Rios was acquitted of murder and robbery charges.

    “If Carrillo’s testimony had been presented to the jury, it also could have impacted the outcome of the trial,” Silva wrote. “Even if the jury believed some part of Zapata’s testimony, his role in the murders could have potentially been minimized. The jury could have believed he was simply present, or he in fact committed the robbery or burglary, but not the murders.”

    The judge added that jurors presented with testimony from Carrillo could have questioned whether Jeremias was the shooter “or any other possibility that could have resulted in a different outcome at trial and, importantly, a different penalty.”

    Prosecutors have 30 days to decide whether to appeal the decision to the Nevada Supreme Court.

    Cano testified during a post-trial hearing that he wished the defense attorneys had taken further efforts to meet with Carrillo, according to court records. On Tuesday, Cano said he was happy Jeremias could get a new trial.

    “We’re pleased that the petition was granted,” Cano said Tuesday. “Our office never felt that this case should have proceeded as a death penalty case to begin with and wish all the best to Mr. Jeremias going forward.”

    https://www.reviewjournal.com/crime/...urder-2445184/
    "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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