The state of Missouri is bustling with crime.  Nevertheless there is a positive trend in which crime rates are slightly dropping or at least do not rise. This means, law enforcement authorities are able to contain the problem.  As a result, the number of Missouri arrest warrants has recently been lowered. To fully understand this positive phenomenon, one must refer to specific examples. The following figures relate to the years 1990 and 2011.

In 1990 there were 36,600 violent crimes in Missouri. In 2011, the number dropped to around 27,000 cases. The number of murders that occurred in 1990 was almost 450. 20 years later it was less than 370. The number of rape crimes in 1990 stood at close to 1,660.  In 2011 there were less than 1460 rape incidents reported.

When it comes to robbery, the year 1990 was characterized by 10,000. In 2011 this number was reduced to less than 6,300. This is an almost 40 per cent reduction.

These numbers are a clear indication of efficient law enforcement.

Further Reading:

Missouri Department of Public Safety - Missouri Crime Prevention Center

 Missouri Sheriffs' Association

Residents of a neighborhood in south Augusta, Georgia are shocked at the news of the badly decomposing body discovered in one of the houses on their street. Robin Adams Jr. may have been dead for up to eight months by the time his remains were found by police. On Friday, his mother, Angela Mercer, and sister, Deaidra Motley, were charged with concealing the death of Adams. The police indicated that the case is still being investigated and more charges may be added as more evidence is found. The autopsy will also indicate if Mercer or Motley were in anyway responsible for the death of Adams.

Adams was severely handicapped, both physically and mentally, and was confined to a wheelchair. Authorities discovered the body after a tip from a concerned family member and witnessing the state of the house when arresting Mercer for unrelated traffic charges. His body was mummified and had maggots, which are clear indicators that the body had been there for an extended period of time. The cause of death will be determined during the autopsy, but preliminary findings indicated that there was no sign of violence. The rest of the house was infested with cockroaches and filled with trash.

Today, Christopher Jenderseck pled guilty to helping cover up evidence of a murder in exchange for his testimony against his fellow F.E.A.R.- Forever Enduring, Always Ready- soldiers. F.E.A.R. is an anti-government terrorist group who operated around and inside Fort Stewart. Many of those arrested, including Jenderseck, were soldiers at this base.

F.E.A.R. began to ganner attention in December of last year when the bodies of Michael Roark, a recently discharged soldier, and his girlfriend, Tiffany York,  were found. They had been shot in the head before being dumped in the woods. Four Fort Stewart soldiers were arrested for the homicide, and it was revealed that F.E.A.R. was an even bigger operation. F.E.A.R. aimed to plant bombs in public places and assassinate the president of the United States.

Jenderseck pled guilty to helping cover up the evidence, but said he initially was unaware of what they were burning. He said that when he did realize what they were burning, he did not stop the other soldiers from continuing to burn the evidence. His lawyers were adamant that while Jenderseck was a member of the group, he was not present at the deaths of Roark and York and was not even aware of the murders prior to the incident.

the arrest of F.E.AR. members

The Supreme Court of Georgia State upheld the death penalty sentenced to Winston Clay Barrett. Barrett was convicted in the slaying of his best friend, Danny Youngblood, in August of 2002.
 
Youngblood allegedly urinated on Barrett’s television and attempted to defecate in the bed Barrett’s wife was sleeping in. When Barrett’s wife pushed Youngblood away, Youngblood began to verbally threaten her. Barrett heard the commotion and beat his friend with his pistol before shooting Youngblood.

Barrett’s lawyers had appealed the death penalty ruling, citing their belief that defendants in cases similar to Barrett’s had a lesser sentence. In an attempt to not use the death penalty in a disproportionate way, Georgia compares facts of trials similar and looks to see if the death row inmate is getting an unfair treatment. Barrett’s lawyers cited 15 different sentences in nine years in Georgia for similar crimes, all of which carried a lesser sentence. However, the Supreme Court Justices were able to cite many sources from the same amount of time and had similar crimes and circumstances to Barrett’s, and had also been sentenced to Capital Punishment.  The Supreme Court has not granted an appeal request such as this in over 30 years.

The remains of Sean Dugas were uncovered in Georgia over the weekend. Sean Dugas was a newspaper journalist from Florida who disappeared in August. His remains were found in the backyard of a rental house.

Christopher and William Cormier have been charged with the murder in the Dugas case. They are being held without bond in Georgia prisons awaiting trial. As of right now, it is not clear what the relationship was between the Cormier brothers and Dugas.

Dugas’ girlfriend reported him missing to the police on August 27th. Around that time, the Cormier brothers returned to their fathers house in Georgia. They told their father that they buried Dugas’ dog in his backyard, and explained the dog had died while they were caring for it as a favor to Dugas, and they didn’t know anything about the highly publicized disappearance. However, when police came to investigate about the disappearance, they discovered Dugas was buried in the backyard as well. The father allegedly was not aware of the body in his backyard. The Cormier brothers had put Dugas in a plastic container before pouring cement on to it. The police have not yet released the official cause of death.

 Two men in Georgia were attacked by their wives, who were wielding hammers, in two unrelated incidents. 

 A man from Martinez, Georgia was forced to lock himself in his bathroom in order to keep his wife away from him and their eleven-month old child. The man said that his wife, Tuere Dawn Jackson, came after him with a hammer during an argument. When she couldn’t get into the bathroom, Jackson began breaking other household items.

 The man was able to call 911 to report the incident. When Jackson answered the door, she was reluctant to let the officers in the house and didn’t answer their questions. Jackson became very agitated when officers tried to arrest her, and was escorted to the police station in handcuffs.

 Jackson is out on a $4,800 bond. She has been charged with simple assault-family violence.

 In Evans, Georgia, a man alleged that his wife threatened him with a knife and a hammer. The man claimed he had not physically harmed his wife, but did admit to cheating on her. The man said that the attempted attack was prompted by his wife finding out about his infidelity. The police, however, did not charge the wife with anything, as she was also physically abused by her husband.

Tuere Dawn Jackson

 Many friends and relatives thought that Alexander Cornell was a shy, quiet kid who had no behavioral problems. However, in 2009, when he was only 18 years old, Cornell shot his mother nine times, killing her, without any clear motive for the slaying. Before the murder, Cornell had not shown any signs of violence or mental illness, nor any anger towards his mother.

 Prior to the killing, Cornell lived with his father and stepmother, but remained close to his mother. During his 2009 senior year of high school, Cornell dropped out of school and moved into his own apartment. Cornell’s apartment was the scene of his mother’s murder.

 When prompted in the past, Cornell has not given a consistent answer behind the reasons for the slaying. One detective working on the case testified that Cornell blamed dissatisfaction with himself and his mother’s inability to be a good parent.

 Cornell’s attorney is arguing the case as an affirmative defense, and pleading not guilty by reason of mental disease. On October 30th, a judge will decide whether or not Cornell should be forced to take his medicine as he awaits his trial in jail. The 21 year old Cornell is being held without bond in Fulton County Jail.

Pittsburgh, Georgia made headlines earlier this year with the homophobic beating of Brandon White and the subsequent video of the attack that was posted on Youtube. However, citizens of Pittsburg hope their town will soon be turning around, and a town they can be proud to live in.

Police in Pittsburgh hope that after the recently conducted sweep that their town will be a safer community to live in. The results of the sweep were released on Thursday. Local police, the FBI, and the United State’s District attorney’s office arrested one hundred and five people over a three month period this past summer. The multiple charges filed ranged from drug possession, homicide, and probation violations. Additionally, nearly fifty firearms, including many assault rifles and handguns, four thousand dollars in cash, and over eighty thousand dollars in drugs were also taken off of the streets.

City officials hope to see an economic boom as a result of the sweep. They suspect when people begin to feel that Pittsburgh is a safe place, more businesses will move back into the area. Pittsburgh is a suburb to the south of Atlanta, and is currently a poor neighborhood with little economy of their own.

This blog will include crime stories and reports from the state of Georgia, US

On Wednesday, Benjamin Edetanlen was sentenced to eighteen years in prison in death of his five-month old son in 2004. Edetanlen lived in DeKalb county at the time of the incident. Edetanlen’s attorney claimed that the bible inspired the killing.

Edetanlen’s five month old son died from blunt force trauma. The autopsy revealed brain injuries and a broken leg. Children at this age are very susceptible to brain damage and death when handled too rough. Edetanlen’s two year old daughter and one year old son were also injured in the incident that killed their younger brother.

Edetanlen allegedly followed rules from the biblical book of proverbs when disciplining his children. His defense attorney argued that Edetanlen also followed the rule of “spare the rod, spoil the child”, and truly cared for all of his children.

Nevertheless, Edetanlen decided to plead down to involuntary manslaughter and multiple counts of child cruelty. Assistant District attorney Dalia Racine requested the eighteen year sentence.

When he is released from prison in eighteen years, he will not be able to contact any of his children. The mother of these children has also been charged in this case for not protecting her children from Edetanlen’s violence.

Benjamin Edetanlen