murder


Unfathomable: Grief, shock, and questions follow family slaying Published on Sep 4th, 2012 210 comments "The shining light in the room." That's how Jenny Clark remembers her friend Beth Walton, the 49-year-old mother of three who died along with her children in a murder-suicide that police say appears...
Chip Harding: Sheriff made hash of case against Hash Published on Feb 29th, 2012 7 comments The Albemarle County sheriff has uncovered a scandal that's rocking the state, a questionable capital murder conviction in Culpeper. The Richmond Times-Dispatch, with the assistance of the Progress,...
Suit dismissed? $200 million action over High's prosecution hits bump Published on Apr 15th, 2011 1 comments The deadline for serving defendants in the $200 million civil suit against the City of Staunton passed on April 12, and the plaintiff says he's not sure whether his case will now be dismissed after a...
Long gone: How UVA lost Pat Collins Published on Mar 24th, 2011 43 comments Barbara Shannon was so nervous about flying overseas that she called her son in Charlottesville, where the 27-year-old had recently moved from California. "Pat's last words to me were, ‘Don't...
Staunton suit: Cleared High's murder suspect sues city for $200 mil Published on Dec 22nd, 2010 5 comments Carolyn Perry, 20, and "Connie" Hevener, 19, were murdered at High's Ice Cream on April 11, 1967. FILE PHOTO The man who lived under a cloud of suspicion for 41 years as the main suspect in the...
Brutal crime: Culpeper authorities seek public's assistance Published on Dec 18th, 2010 39 comments Culpeper Commonwealth's Attorney Gary Close and Sheriff James Branch Jr. are asking for help solving the horrific murder of mother-of-three Sheryl Warner, pictured here, on the fifth anniversary of...
Fight for justice: Justine Swartz Abshire's family wages war on widower Published on Nov 10th, 2010 53 comments Hook cover image. Since their daughter's mysterious death on a winding country road, the parents of Justine Swartz Abshire have made no secret about who they believe is responsible. But four years...
Carlton Arnold: Convicted killer arrested in UVA robbery, assaults Published on Oct 1st, 2010 35 comments Arnold was convicted for killing a man here in 1998. MUGSHOT; FILE PHOTO One day after a gray hoodie-clad perpetrator accosted two female UVA students, taking one by the shoulder and forcing the...
Orange's alleged 'black widow' gets burned Published on Sep 11th, 2010 10 comments [caption id="" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="The controversy landed on the cover of the Hook in 2004."] [/caption] Donna J. Somerville, the so-called "black widow" of Orange County, has lost...
Suspect in trailer park slaying arrested Published on May 20th, 2010 5 comments Demonte Marquis Burgess. MUGSHOT COURTESY CHARLOTTESVILLE POLICE Police have arrested Demonte Marquis Burgess, 19, for the January 22 shooting that killed Miguel Lugio Salazar, 32, and wounded...
Dangerous rage? What compelled Huguely to attack? Published on May 11th, 2010 71 comments George Huguely on the field and behind bars. What compelled his rage? UVA SPORTS/POLICE PHOTO Papa loved mama Mama loved men Mama's in the graveyard Papa's in the pen –Carl Sandburg Why would...
Suspect in homicide arrested Published on Feb 12th, 2010 10 comments Richmond resident Antonio Jha-Mhal Grooms, 18, is arrested February 11 and charged with the January 22 murder of Miguel Lugio Salazar, 32, who was socializing at Mountain View Mobile Home Park when...
Senseless killer suddenly pleads guilty Published on Jan 28th, 2010 32 comments On the eve of his trial, 20-year-old Michael Stuart Pritchett, one half the duo that killed a woman for little more than her laptop computer, has joined his colleague in crime, William Douglas Gentry...
UVA student allegedly murders dad Published on Jan 20th, 2010 7 comments It happened in Henrico, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
The husband, the wife and the hitman... who wouldn't Published on Sep 17th, 2009 11 comments Happier times: Patrick Shemorry and his wife, Starla. He was later tape-recorded ordering her killed. FACEBOOK PHOTO It sounds like the plotline of a Lifetime television drama. A young married...
Fraud case recalls 'rose petal' murder Published on Sep 3rd, 2009 1 comments The Progress has a short item Thursday, September 3 about a woman who allegedly stole a credit card and then–- in a doltish moment–- used her Kroger savings card to extract a little extra...
Free man: Morris avoids 2nd murder trial Published on Aug 27th, 2009 16 comments Dorothy McAllister and Earl Shifflett still believe Butch Morris murdered their baby brother. PHOTO BY LISA PROVENCE Throughout the trial of Alvin Lee "Butch" Morris for the murder 21 years ago of...
Continued: No date set for Morris murder retrial Published on Aug 3rd, 2009 2 comments Barbara Shifflett Morris, center, with supporters of her husband, Butch Morris, whose August 3 court appearance yielded no decision on whether he'll face a second trial for the murder of her first...
60 years for Wood Grill Buffet killer Published on Jul 30th, 2009 2 comments Roderick McDowell, 25, the man convicted of fatally bludgeoning William Godsey, 48, with a baseball bat outside the eatery where Godsey's wife, Sandra, worked and was leaving with the day's proceeds...
Deadlocked: Mistrial declared in murder trial Published on Jul 14th, 2009 6 comments Barbara and Butch Morris. FILE PHOTO After listening to five days of testimony and deliberating for 13 hours, the jury in the murder trial of Alvin Lee "Butch" Morris today remained evenly divided 6-...