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Man gets life for murder |
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Thursday, 07 May 2009 |
A 20-year-old Benton man convicted of capital murder was sentenced Wednesday to life plus 70 years in the Arkansas Department of Correction.
Paul Norris of Chapel Ridge apartments in Benton was tried in Saline County Circuit Court for the death of a Sheridan man. Circuit Judge Grisham Phillips presided in the two-day trial.
In addition to convicting Norris of murder, the jury found Norris guilty of two counts of aggravated robbery and first-degree battery. The death penalty previously had been waived by the state.
Phillips added 25 years for one count of aggravated robbery, another 25 years for the second count and 20 years for the battery charge. All sentences were ordered to run consecutively.
Norris is one of four men charged in the severe beating of Alex Ragan of Benton and the beating death of Darick Foster Kellems on Sept. 6, 2007. Ragan was 19 and Kellems was 26 at the time of the incident.
The three others charged with capital murder are Tim Jackson, 22, of the 1700 block of Interstate 30; Justin Gatewood, 20, of the 1600 block of Huntley Street; and Charles Moore, 24, of the 40 block of Hiland Circle. All three are being held without bond at the Saline County Detention Center.
Ragan told police that on Sept. 6, 2007, he and Kellems drove to an area near Reed Street to look for someone who allegedly had stolen money from Ragan during a drug transaction. He and Kellems allegedly first met with Moore, who told them to pick up Norris, Jackson and Gatewood and to find the person who stole their money. They drove to the abandoned house on Reed Street, where Ragan said they were beaten with pieces of lumber and robbed.
After Norris, Jackson and Gatewood fled, Ragan said Kellems was unconscious and bleeding from both ears. Ragan reportedly drove to Saline Memorial Hospital in Benton and told police where to find Kellems.
Kellems was taken to Saline Memorial and later transferred to Baptist Health Medical Center in Little Rock, where he died, authorities said.
During the two-day trial, jurors saw videotaped testimony from Norris in which he admitted hitting Kellems and Ragan with a two-by-four section of lumber. Norris, however, said Kellems tried to attack him with a blade from a Leatherman (multipurpose) tool and that he acted in self-defense.
Brent Standridge, Norris’ attorney, told the jury that Norris was justified in the death of Kellems.
He asked the jury to find Norris not guilty of capital murder or to convict him of the lesser charge of manslaughter.
In closing arguments Standrige contended that Benton police did not find enough evidence to find Norris guilty of any of the charges.
“It wasn’t a secure crime scene at all, and I don’t think anything sinister was going on here,” Standridge said. “There was no board, no Leatherman, no weapon found ... Kellems was about to use a weapon and deadly force on [Norris]. Whatever is lying around you, you have the right to defend yourself. The state said my client is the initial aggressor and had a plan set up, but the evidence does not show that fact.”
Standridge also said no DNA or blood was found on the board, which was later found in a wooded area near the abandoned structure on Reed Street. He said there was also no evidence that Norris robbed Kellems and Ragan. Standridge also questioned the credibility of Ragan’s testimony and said the reason Norris didn’t call 911 is “this was all over drugs (marijuana) ...people in this type of situations isn’t going to call 911.” Strandridge, however, said Norris was truthful and open with Benton police.
“My client was very forthcoming on [police] video,” he said. “He didn’t hide, he turned himself in, allowed DNA swabs in his mouth and admitted to hitting Kellems with a board. I ask you to question Kellems state of mind. Why did he have a Leatherman? He was going over to settle a score on a drug trade gone wrong after they were robbed earlier that day.
“We do know a drug deal was going on,” Standridge said. “But there was no toxicology [on Kellems]. So we don’t know if there was drugs or alcohol in his system.”
In closing, Strandridge told the jury again that Norris’ involvement in Kellems’ death was justifiable and that the state and police failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that his client was guilty of any of the charges.
Saline County Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Rebecca Bush, representing the state, said Norris’ involvement in Kellems death was premeditated and deliberate. She also said Ragan suffered brain injuries from the incident, leaving him with headaches and a lifelong struggle to maintain balance. “The defense is giving you a long explanation of statutes of why this is not a classic case of capital murder,” Bush said. “This is not law school and you don’t have to write an essay about the law. This is real life and even [Norris] said he hit Kellems’ head like a baseball. Ragan also had to have brain surgery from being hit on the head from Norris. This isn’t law school games; this is common sense and this is capital murder.”
Bush said “premeditated and deliberate” can happen “in an instant.” She also said the defense’s claim that Kellems had a blade out from a Leatherman, but this did not constitute evidence. Bush said if Kellems had used the weapon, he would have been in no condition to hide it or discard it.
“The only way they knew Kellems had the multipurpose tool was because they took it out of his pockets,” Bush said. “Yes, this case did involve drugs. Ragan admitted to going to the house to buy drugs ...what does he set to gain from lying?”
Bush also said that the intent of Norris and the other three men was to purposely rob them. She also said the incident happened at the back of the abandoned house and that his family lived there years ago.
“[Norris] was familiar with the house,” Bush said. “He knew there was lumber back there ... he picked that house. He also made sure the victims were outnumbered. [Norris] set a trap and the purpose was to rob. He also said he was justified because [Kellems] pulled a knife, but that’s absurd. If you lead someone to the back yard of a home to bash their heads in and rob them ... [Kellems] has the right to fight back. But there wasn’t a blade found.”
Bush also questioned Norris’ testimony that he jumped back from Kellems swinging a Leatherman blade and asked why Norris didn’t just run.
“He had no right to take that man’s life,” She said. “If it was self-defense, why hide and destroy evidence? His defense is ‘I didn’t do it, but if I did do it, it was justifiable. I am not guilty, but if you find me guilty, find me guilty of a lesser charge.’
“There is no doubt that we have proven [Norris] directed the robbery and in the course cause the death of Darick Kellems.”
The jury deliberated for just under three hours before returning the verdict. Norris previously had been convicted of sexual assault.
Saline County Prosecuting Attorney Ken Casady thanked deputy prosecutors Chris Walton and Rebecca Bush, along with Benton police detective Kory Bauer for their work in the case.
No trial dates have been set for co-defendants Gatewood, Jackson and Moore.
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