[68skylark]

Their death sentences were commuted to life.

I heard about the crime you mentioned, but I hadn't heard their death sentences were commuted. I'm sorry to hear that -- their case seemed to be the picture-perfect example of why we need a death penalty.

I guess the same thing will happen in this Knoxville case also.

[SmithL]

Prosecutor: Carjacker faces death penalty

By JAMIE SATTERFIELD, MATT LAKIN AND DON JACOBS,
satterfield@knews.com lakinm@knews.com jacobs@knews.com

January 12, 2007

A federal prosecutor told a 25-year-old man today in U.S. District Court he faces death if convicted of carjacking a Knoxville couple who were found slain this week.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tracy Stone addressed Lemaricus Davidson, 25, during his arraignment before U.S. Magistrate Judge Clifford Shirley.

Davidson is charged with carjacking Christopher Newsom, 23, and Channon Christian, 21, whose bodies were found in North Knoxville. Davidson's fingerprint was found inside Christian's vehicle, according to federal records.

He also is charged of being a felon in possession of an M1 carbine rifle, a rifle he is accused of using to shoot Newsom "several times."

And he is charged with possession of the M1 in commission of a violent crime — carjacking.

Davidson, his brother Letalvis Cobbins, 24, George Thomas and Eric Boyd all have been arrested in connection with the slayings.

Charges have not been made public against Thomas or Boyd, who is due to appear in federal court later today.

Cobbins has been charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm.

During Davidon's arraignment on the criminal complaint, Shirley appointed Knoxville attorney David Eldridge to represent him.

The courtroom was packed with family and relatives of the victims. Also present were state prosecutors who declined to say when state charges, including murder, could be filed.

Federal records unsealed at the hearing indicate that Davidson stole Newsom's cellular telephone, and it was the records from that phone that led in part to his arrest Thursday.

Records released so far do not detail how Christian was killed.

Investigators believe Christian was held hostage and raped repeatedly for days before her death, a federal marshal said Thursday.

Details surfaced on the same day authorities captured Cobbins, Thomas and Davidson.

Davidson was arrested in Knoxville. Cobbins, 24, and Thomas, no age available, were arrested in Lebanon, Ky.

Authorities believe Christian and Newsom were abducted during a Sunday morning carjacking, said Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal Rich Knighten of the Western District of Kentucky.

Newsom was shot and his body burned, Knighten said. He said he didn't know how Christian died.

"It apparently started with a carjacking," Knighten said. "They did some really nasty things to this lady. There is some evidence that she was held and sexually abused for a couple of days."

Federal and local authorities found Cobbins and Thomas about 10 a.m. Thursday in a house at 213 Shuck Ave. in Lebanon. Knoxville investigators had learned that Cobbins had a relative there, Knighten said.

Knoxville Police Department spokesman Darrell DeBusk said five KPD investigators went to Lebanon, a town of about 6,000, on Wednesday night.

The men surrendered peacefully to a force that included U. S. marshals, Knoxville police, Knox County Sheriff's Office deputies, Kentucky State Police, and agents from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

Knox County Sheriff Tim Hutchison and KCSO Chief Deputy Tom Spangler flew to Lebanon in helicopters. They were sworn in as special deputy marshals and assisted, Knighten said.

"When you have that kind of an overwhelming force, the bad guys just give up," he said.

Authorities also found two women and a child in the house. They were questioned and released, Knighten said. The owner of the house wasn't home but probably won't be charged, he said.

Owen said Thomas faces a criminal charge in Kentucky, but he was unsure of the offense.

Local and federal authorities nabbed Davidson around 3:35 p.m. in an empty house at 1800 Reynolds St. off Western Avenue in the Mechanicsville area. He didn't resist and cried as he left in handcuffs, police said.

None of the men has been charged in the killings. Owen called them "persons of interest," but Knighten said investigators consider all three to be suspects in the case.

DeBusk said investigators would consult the Knox County district attorney general about filing charges in connection with the slayings.

Cobbins remained in the Grayson County jail in Leitchfield, Ky., and could appear in U.S. District Court in Louisville, Ky., today on a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

That charge stems from evidence discovered at the Chipman Street house where Christian's body was found Tuesday, records show.

A complaint filed in federal court by Special Agent Rebecca A. Bobich with the ATF states that investigators found "a firearm magazine containing two rounds of nine-millimeter Winchester ammunition" in the Chipman Street home. Authorities found a fingerprint on the magazine that was matched to Cobbins, the complaint states.

Cobbins was convicted in May 2003 in New York on a charge of felony third-degree attempted robbery, the complaint states. That conviction makes it illegal for Cobbins to possess a firearm or even a bullet, under federal law.

There was no indication if the bullets found in the house were the same kind used to kill Newsom.

Newsom, of Halls, and Christian, of West Knox County, had been dating since November. They told their parents they planned to join friends in an apartment off Washington Pike on Saturday night to watch movies. Christian last spoke to her mother by telephone at 12:35 a.m. Sunday.

At 12:24 p.m. Sunday, a railroad employee on a passing train alerted police about a body along Norfolk Southern tracks between Ninth Avenue and Cherry Street. It was Newsom's body.

At 2 p.m. Tuesday, police armed with a search warrant entered a nearby rental home at 2316 Chipman St. and found Christian's body. Davidson and Cobbins had listed that residence as their address.

Christian's family found her abandoned 2005 Toyota 4-Runner about 1:15 a.m. Monday. It had been left at the intersection of Chipman Street and Glider Avenue, about two blocks from the house where her body was found.

KPD Sgt. Tim Snoderly said the KCSO had determined where Christian's cell phone had last been used and launched a search of the area. Christian's relatives joined the search and found the vehicle. There was no indication who had used Christian's cell phone in that area.

Knoxville attorney James A.H. Bell, a personal friend of the Newsom family, issued a statement on their behalf. The Newsoms had requested that the media leave them to mourn privately.

"The family is very grateful for the combined efforts of the area law enforcement agencies involved in the arrests of the suspects," Bell said. "The family believes in the justice system and will let it run its course."

More details as they develop online and in Saturday's News Sentinel,

http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/local_news/article/0,1406,KNS_347_5275295,00.html