Posted on 11/08/2002 5:01:09 AM PST by KS Flyover
WICHITA -- A forensic psychologist testified Thursday that Reginald Carr began having sexual interaction with girls at age 6 and that he was devastated when his father abandoned the family."Father abandonment, any parent abandonment, is a major risk factor across every study and textbook you wanted to read," psychologist Thomas Reidy said. "In this instance, Mr. Carr had a strong positive feeling about his father."
Reidy's testimony came on the third day of the penalty phase of Reginald and Jonathan Carr's capital murder trial. The brothers were convicted Monday on murder, robbery and sex crimes charges stemming from a nine-day rampage in December 2000. A total of five people were killed. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
The psychologist, who was testifying on Reginald Carr's behalf, told jurors that when Carr was 6 years old he began fondling girls his mother babysat at their home. By age 7, Carr said he had frequent sexual intercourse with a female cousin. Reidy said there also were allegations Carr and his siblings were sexually abused, but he couldn't verify those allegations.
Reidy, who acknowledged Reginald Carr knew what he was doing was wrong, said he based his testimony on interviews with Reginald Carr and other family members during the past two months. He also cited studies showing risk factors -- such as a dysfunctional family, abuse, violence and drugs -- will increase the probabilities a child will develop problems later in life.
He said Reginald Carr's moral development was stunted, and testified that children exposed to early sexual activity often have impaired sexual control and are aroused by deviant sexual behavior.
"We know deviance begins at home," Reidy said.
Drug use and violence also were prevalent in the Carr family, including marijuana and cocaine use by Reginald and Jonathan's mother, Reidy said. He said he was told the mother obtained some of her drugs from Reginald. By age 11, Reginald Carr was holding drugs for drug dealers and by age 13 he was selling them himself. At age 16, he was using alcohol heavily, Reidy said.
Violence also was prevalent in the family. As a punishment, the Carr children were made to strip naked for whippings by their mother while their siblings held them down, he said.
Reginald Carr was often in fights in elementary school, and beat up a teacher in ninth grade. He was suspended for sexually harassing a teacher in eighth grade, Reidy said. By age 13, Reginald Carr became a gang member.
In one incident Reidy recounted, the Carr brothers shot BB guns at each other when they couldn't find animals to shoot. He said Reginald Carr still has a BB lodged in his head.
The brothers' aunt, Phyllis Harding, also took the stand Thursday and testified about her observations of her sister's family. She said Jonathan Carr lived with her for a year in Brownsville, Texas, when he was about 7 years old, and later her sister and her family moved to Dodge City.
Harding, who is a pediatrician in Dodge City, testified she never saw any evidence of physical or sexual abuse of the Carr children.
"They never told me about any abuse, they never looked neglected," Harding said, adding the children looked healthy, nourished and wore decent clothes.
But Harding acknowledged later she wasn't always around the family and said she was shocked by some of the testimony offered during the trial.
She also told defense attorneys that Reginald Carr may have something mentally wrong with him -- and may have fabricated some of the abuse allegations.
At that point, defense attorney Jay Greeno told her Reginald Carr told the psychologist he had seen pornographic photos of his mother. Greeno offered to show them to Harding if she doubted Reginald Carr was telling the truth.
"I don't want to see naked pictures of my sister," Harding told him.
Jurors returned capital murder verdicts in the Dec. 15, 2000, deaths of Aaron Sander, 29, Brad Heyka, 27, Jason Befort, 26; and Heather Muller, 25. All four were shot execution style in the back of the head as the knelt side-by-side in a snow-covered soccer field.
The brothers were also convicted of attempted first-degree murder of Befort's girlfriend, then a 25-year-old teacher, who also was shot in the head but survived to testify.
The brothers also were convicted of forcing the five friends to engage in sex acts with each other and repeatedly raping the women. The Carrs also were convicted of first-degree murder for the shooting of another woman, Ann Walenta, four days before the quadruple murder. She later died.
So if Sebelius sticks to what she said during the campaign, she won't stand in the way of any executions. I guess we will find out.1994 HB 2578: Sebelius voted against the death penalty for capital murder and discretionary 40-year mandatory sentences for capital murder or premeditated murder.
Sebelius supports abortion rights and voted against the current Kansas capital punishment law in 1994. However, she said she would uphold the law if elected.
Let's not get nutty, now. No one is going to pardon these guys under any circumstances. Nor is a stay likely. That would be political suicide under the circumstances and Sebelius, if nothing else, is a political hack. She won't risk her political capital for these two animals.
Me, too.
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