Lemaricus Davidson

Timeline

• January 7, 2007 — Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom were kidnapped, later found after their vehicle had been carjacked.
• January 6, 2007 — Christian and Newsom went on a date at a local restaurant; they did not return home.
• January 9, 2007 — Police found the home unoccupied and Christian's body in a trash can in the kitchen after going to the address.
• October 16, 2008 — The house at 2316 Chipman Street was bought by a nearby business and razed in October 2008.
• May 27, 2007 — Around 30 white supremacists led by Alex Linder rallied in downtown Knoxville; they were met by counter-protestors dressed as clowns.
• October 28, 2009 — Lemaricus Devall Davidson was found guilty on all counts.
• October 29, 2009 — The sentencing hearing began at 9am EST.
• October 30, 2009 — The sentencing hearing ended at approx 3pm EST; a jury sentenced Lemaricus Davidson to death on 4 of the conviction counts after deliberating approx 3 hours.
• August 25, 2009 — Letalvis D. Cobbins was found guilty of the murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom.
• August 26, 2009 — Letalvis Cobbins was sentenced to life without parole.
• December 8, 2009 — George Thomas was found guilty on all counts; the sentencing hearing began.
• December 10, 2009 — The sentencing hearing ended at approx 10:45 am EST; the jury returned sentences of life in prison without the possibility of parole on each of the 4 capital convictions.
• December 8, 2009 — Eric Boyd had been found guilty earlier in federal court on April 16, 2008; the record also ties the later case progression to December 8, 2009.
• April 16, 2008 — Eric Boyd was found guilty in Federal court of being an accessory to a fatal carjacking and for failing to report the location of a known fugitive.
• May 13, 2010 — Vanessa Coleman was acquitted of first degree murder but found guilty on lesser charges.
• July 30, 2010 — Vanessa Coleman was sentenced to 53 years behind bars.
• July 30, 2009 — (Not provided; the record contains July 30, 2010 for Coleman sentencing.)

Background

Lemaricus Devall Davidson was a Memphis native and was sentenced to death in October 2009 for torturing and killing a young couple in Knox County. The victims were Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom. Both victims were raped, tortured and murdered after being kidnapped early on the morning of January 7, 2007. Their vehicle had been carjacked.

Christian moved from Louisiana to Tennessee with her family in 1997. She was a graduate of Farragut High School and a senior majoring in sociology at the University of Tennessee. On January 12, 2007, her family released a statement to thank the Knoxville community “for all their prayers and everything.” A candlelight vigil was held on the university campus January 25, 2007 in her honor.

In 2008, a Golf Tournament and Memorial Foundation were established in Channon Christian's memory to provide a scholarship for a Farragut High School Senior to attend the University of Tennessee.

Newsom was a former baseball player for the Halls High School Red Devils, graduated in 2002, and was interred at Woodhaven Memorial Gardens. A little-league baseball tournament in Newsom's honor was held at the Halls Community Park in 2008 and 2009. A memorial scholarship is given annually to a graduating Halls High baseball player.

The house at 2316 Chipman Street was bought by a nearby business and razed in October 2008; the new owners of the lot planned to build a simple memorial.

The offence

Christian and Newsom went on a date at a local restaurant on Saturday, January 6, 2007, but did not return home.

During their night out, the couple were hijacked, bound and blindfolded by three males, and “taken back to Lemaricus Devall 'Slim' Davidson's rented house on Chipman Street.”

Christian's parents found her abandoned Toyota 4-Runner two blocks away from the Chipman Street house the following Monday with the help of her mobile phone provider. Police recovered an envelope from the vehicle that yielded fingerprint evidence leading police to Lemaricus Davidson and 2316 Chipman Street.

When police went to the address on Tuesday, January 9, they found the home unoccupied and Christian's body in a trash can in the kitchen.

Christopher Newsom was repeatedly sodomized with an object and then blindfolded, gagged, arms and feet bound and his head covered. Barefoot, he was either led or dragged outside the house to a set of nearby railroad tracks. He was shot in the back of the head, the neck, and the back, and his body then set on fire. The record attributes these details to the testimony of Knox County Acting Medical Examiner Dr. Darinka Mileusnic-Polchan at the subsequent trial of Eric Boyd.

Channon’s death came only after hours of sexual torture, medical examiner Mileusnic-Polchan testified. Channon suffered injuries to her vagina, anus and mouth. She was not only raped but savaged with “an object,” possibly a broken chair leg, the doctor testified. She was beaten in the head. Some type of chemical was poured down her throat, and her body, including her bleeding and battered genital area, likely scrubbed with the same solution while Channon was alive, the forensic expert said. She was then “hog-tied,” with curtains and strips of bedding, her face covered tightly with a small trash bag and her body stashed inside five large trash bags before being placed inside a large trash can and covered with sheets. Channon died slowly, suffocating, the medical examiner said.

Investigation

Police found Christian's body in a trash can in the kitchen after going to 2316 Chipman Street.

An envelope recovered from the vehicle yielded fingerprint evidence that led police to Lemaricus Davidson and 2316 Chipman Street.

Arrest

Five suspects were arrested and charged in the case.

Lemaricus Davidson had completed serving a five-year sentence in Tennessee on a previous felony conviction for carjacking and aggravated robbery on August 5, 2006.

Vanessa Coleman was arrested by the Lebanon Police Department in Lebanon, Kentucky.

Eric DeWayne “E” Boyd was arrested in connection with the fatal carjacking, though he was not indicted by the Knox County grand jury.

Letalvis D. Cobbins and George Thomas were among the arrested suspects.

Trial

The four suspects indicted in Knox County were originally scheduled to be tried separately, at trials scheduled between May and August 2008. The trial date for the Knox County subjects was moved back to 2009 in February 2008.

In an attempt to force the prosecution to try the case with the least forensic evidence first, the attorneys for Thomas filed a motion for a speedy trial, arguing there was no forensic link between their client and the crime scene. Thomas was granted the motion and was scheduled to go on trial on August 11.

Judge Baumgartner ruled that Thomas' phone calls made from the jailhouse to his acquaintances were admissible as evidence.

District Attorney Randy Nichols announced that the state would seek the death penalty for both Cobbins (the first to go to trial) and Coleman if convicted.

Davidson was also indicted for a second robbery committed after the murders.

The publicity against the accused led the defense to argue that a change of venue was required to ensure a fair trial. The state argued that an impartial jury could be found during voir dire. The presiding judge subsequently denied the motion as “premature”.

Eric Boyd (federal trial)

On April 16, 2008, Eric Boyd was found guilty in federal court of being an accessory to a fatal carjacking and for failing to report the location of a known fugitive. Boyd was sentenced to the maximum of 18 years in Federal prison and was incarcerated at Beckley FCI. He was the only suspect not charged with murder.

Letalvis Cobbins (state trial)

On August 25, 2009, Letalvis D.

Cobbins faced the possibility of the death penalty because he was convicted of first degree felony murder in the murder of Christian. He was found guilty of facilitation of murder for Newsom but he was acquitted of Newsom's rape.

The jurors worked about 10 hours Monday and on Tuesday morning before reaching a verdict. They never asked Judge Richard Baumgartner any questions during their deliberations.

On August 26, Cobbins was sentenced to life without parole.

Lemaricus Davidson (state trial and sentencing)

On October 28, 2009, Lemaricus Devall Davidson was found guilty on all counts.

He was found not guilty on three counts of the aggravated rape of Christopher Newsom but was found guilty of the lesser included charges of facilitation of rape.

The sentencing hearing began on October 29, 2009 at 9am EST. It ended the next day October 30, 2009 at approx 3pm EST when a jury, after deliberating approx 3 hours, sentenced Lemaricus Davidson to death on 4 of the conviction counts.

During sentencing, Judge Richard Baumgartner said to Davidson:

“The state imposes the penalty of death by lethal injection. May you find peace with your maker.”

On October 30, 2009, the jury foreman read the first death penalty sentence in court and the jurors unanimously found Davidson, 28, should receive the death penalty on four called capital charges.

The four called capital charges were for the two first degree felony murder charges and the two premeditated first degree murders of Channon Christian and her boyfriend, Christopher Newsom, in January 2007.

Jurors found a long list of aggravating factors, including the torture of the victims and their ability to identify the defendant, outweighed all mitigating circumstances brought by the defense.

After the sentences were read, Judge Richard Baumgartner said to Davidson:

The record says Davidson was found guilty Wednesday of all the murder charges of Channon Christian and her boyfriend, Christopher Newsom, in January 2007. It also says Davidson was found guilty of especially aggravated robbery, especially aggravated kidnapping, aggravated rape and theft in this case. The record states the jury found Davidson guilty of the lesser charge of facilitating Newsom's rapes, rather than raping Newsom himself, and that Davidson was found guilty of raping Christian.

Prosecutors sought called members of the victims' families to the stand Thursday to give their impact statements as they sought the death penalty. The defense had hoped he would receive life in prison (with the possibility of parole after 51 years), or life in prison without parole instead.

The jury had extra security to leave the court Friday afternoon.

Defense attorney Doug Trant delivered closing argument including:

“I'm going to ask you to spare his life,”
“Please, I'm begging you to do the right thing.”

The prosecutor Takisha Fitzgerald told the jury:

“it does not excuse what he did. Life is about opportunities and decisions you make.”
“So what if he had a bad childhood, a crack addicted mother? You still have choices,”
“Just obey the rules, Mr. Davidson,” she says, “but he doesn't. He won't.”
“What does he do after six years in prison for aggravated robbery? ”He comes to Knoxville to sell dope.”
“he (Davidson)took that,” Fitzgerald said.
“She didn't want to die.”
“He didn't have to kill her.”
“A rough early life does not excuse what you do at 26 when you take the lives of two young kids,” Fitzgerald said.

Prosecutor Leland Price said:

“Davidson had people who tried to help him”
“He had every opportunity in the world.”
“The aggravating circumstances are overwhelming beyond the shadow of a doubt,”
“Think of the suffering those kids went through,” Price said.
“You know the physical suffering. Think about the mental anguish.”
“Heinous, atrocious and cruel doesn't begin to describe what they went through,” Price said.
“Why were they killed,” Price asked? “They knew too much.”
“Why burn Newsom's body? Why did they mutilate his body?” Price asked.
“They left him there for the whole world to see along those railroad tracks.”
“These weren't just murders,” Price said.
“These crimes cry out for the maximum penalty. Give us justice.”

A quote attributed to one media question and response is also included:

“Do you think this will be the last death penalty in this case,” one of the media asked.
“We hope so, but we don't know,” Deena said.

George Thomas (state trial and sentencing)

On December 8, 2009, George Thomas was found guilty on all counts, including the ones the other defendants were acquitted of despite his case being based solely on circumstantial evidence and testimony.

On December 8, 2009 the sentencing hearing began and ended on December 10, 2009 at approx 10:45 am EST when a jury, after approx 3 hours of deliberation, returned a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole on each of the 4 capital convictions.

Sentencing

Lemaricus Devall Davidson was sentenced to death by lethal injection on October 30, 2009 after the jury sentenced him to death on 4 conviction counts.

Letalvis Cobbins was sentenced to life without parole on August 26, 2009.

George Thomas was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole on each of the 4 capital convictions after December sentencing.

Vanessa Coleman received a sentence of 53 years in prison on July 30, 2010.

Eric Boyd received a sentence of 18 years in Federal prison.

Appeals

No appeal information was provided for Lemaricus Davidson in the supplied material.

Outcome

Lemaricus Devall Davidson was found guilty on all counts and was sentenced to death on four of the conviction counts.

Eric Boyd was found guilty in federal court and sentenced to the maximum 18 years in federal prison.

Letalvis Cobbins was found guilty and sentenced to life without parole.

George Thomas was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Vanessa Coleman was acquitted of first degree murder but found guilty on lesser charges and was sentenced to 53 years in prison.

Aftermath

Victim families’ statements

Channon Christian's mother Deena said:

“The Christians and the Newsoms got justice today,”
“I finally get to go see her (my daughter) and tell her, one down,”

Channon's father Gary said:

“He's been crying since day one. Let him cry.”
“I respect this court. I respect this jury, but I do not have to respect a couple of individuals because the court made them do something,”
“for attacking their son (as he looked at the Newsoms) and our daughter.”
“There is no vindication in this,”
“the death penalty”
“This made a dent in it,”
“We got justice despite the system,”

Chris Newsom's father Hugh said:

“the jury, which is from Knox County, is "the pillars of our community"”

When asked what Deena thought of Davidson's attorneys already seeking a mistrial, she said:

Deena also said:

“The death penalty ‘just makes it easier to go on,’”

Deena said:

Hugh Newsom said Davidson:

“not one time”
showed remorse for his actions during the trial.

Gary Christian asked:

“thousands and thousands of people praying for them to pray for the jury. I know it was hard for them to do.”

Hugh Newsom said after the other trials in this case was over, he wanted to sit down with all the media and set the record straight on the reprimand they received during the testimony phase of this trial for an exchange with a defense attorney:

“weren't the instigators.”

Gary Christian said with a laugh that he didn't know if he would wait that long:

“I didn't know if he would wait that long.”

Reaction to media coverage and racism accusations

The national news media was criticized for allegedly ignoring the story because the victims were white and the suspects black. The criticism was fueled by erroneous early reports of dismemberment and mutilations. The initial reports with misinformation reportedly came from a federal deputy US Marshal after the suspects' arrest in Kentucky; these were later denied by the District Attorney.

The president of Criminal Justice Journalists, an association of crime, court and prison writers, editors and producers, said:

“I can't say that this one would have had any more coverage if five whites had been accused of doing these things to two blacks, absent a blatant racial motive... as bad as this crime is, the apparent absence of any interest group involvement or any other 'angle' might also explain the lack of coverage.”

Police Chief Sterling Owen IV said:

“there is no indication the crimes were racially motivated and that the murders and assault ‘appears to have been a random violent act.’”

John Gill, special counsel to Knox County District Atty. Randy Nichols, said:

“There is absolutely no proof of a hate crime,”
“We know from our investigation that the people charged in this case were friends with white people, socialized with white people, dated white people. So not only is there no evidence of any racial animus, there's evidence to the contrary.”

Some commentators disagreed, claiming such a crime would include a motive of racial hatred. Conservative political commentator Michelle Malkin repeated this accusation on her blog and on Fox News' O'Reilly Factor program.

Newsom's mother sympathized with the “hate crime” position, saying:

“It may have started out as a carjacking, but what it developed into was blacks hating whites.”

Christian's father appeared ambivalent, stating:

“[the crime] ain't about you.”

The case also attracted the attention of white supremacists. On May 27, 2007, around 30 white supremacists led by Alex Linder rallied in downtown Knoxville in protest of the murders. They were met by a larger number of counter-protestors, many dressed as clowns (parodying the Ku Klux Klan).

After the protest, syndicated columnist Leonard Pitts dismissed claims that the crime was underreported, citing a 2001 report that found “Blacks and Latinos are underrepresented in news media as victims of crime and significantly overrepresented as perpetrators.” Pitts added he was:

“unkindly disposed toward the crackpots, incendiaries and flat-out racists who have chosen this tragedy upon which to take an obscene and ludicrous stand”

Pitts also said those who felt victimized could:

“cry me a river.”

An October 16, 2009 article in The Daily Mail stated:

“Ironically, the case has now generated more publicity surrounding the furore over whether or not political correctness was behind the US media’s decision to largely ignore the story than it did for the murders themselves.”

The same article quoted Michelle Malkin as saying:

“This case – an attractive white couple murdered by five black thugs – doesn’t fit any political agenda. It’s not a useful crime. Reverse the races and just imagine how the national media would cover the story of a young black couple murdered by five white assailants.”

Other outcomes for co-defendants

Vanessa Coleman was convicted and sentenced to 53 years in prison on July 30, 2010. The record says she was acquitted of first degree murder but found guilty on lesser charges on May 13, 2010.

The record says Vanessa Coleman’s case was complicated by the fact that she was granted immunity by federal authorities for testimony in the federal case on the car-jacking, but state courts ruled the federal grant of immunity did not extend to the state charges on murder and rape.

Eric DeWayne “E” Boyd was convicted in federal court and served 18 years in federal prison on his conviction as an accessory to the carjacking. Later, Thomas and Cobbins accused Boyd of rape and murder, and a search warrant was obtained for his DNA. The accusations did not result in state charges against Boyd.

Other details

Suspects and charging

The grand jury indicted four of the suspects on counts of murder, robbery, kidnapping, rape and theft.

The record lists five suspects arrested and charged; the four indicted were George Geovonni “Detroit” Thomas, Letalvis “Rome” Cobbins, Lemaricus Devall “Slim” Davidson, and Vanessa Coleman.

George Geovonni “Detroit” Thomas, 24, faced a total of 46 charges. Thomas was indicted on 16 counts of felony murder growing out of the rape, robbery, kidnapping, and theft of Christian and Newsom; 2 counts of premeditated murder; 2 counts of especially aggravated robbery; 4 counts of especially aggravated kidnapping; 20 counts of aggravated rape; and 2 counts of theft.

Letalvis “Rome” Cobbins, 24 (b. December 20, 1982), faced the same 46 charges as Thomas. Cobbins was also charged with assaulting a correctional officer while incarcerated pending trial. Previously in 2003, Cobbins was convicted of third-degree attempted robbery in New York state. The record says Cobbins and Davidson were brothers.

Lemaricus Devall “Slim” Davidson, 25 (b. June 13, 1981), faced the same 46 charges as Thomas. Previously Davidson had just completed serving a five-year sentence in Tennessee on a previous felony conviction for carjacking and aggravated robbery on August 5, 2006.

Vanessa Coleman, 18, faced 40 Tennessee state charges. She was indicted on 12 counts of felony murder growing out of the rape, robbery, kidnapping, and theft of Christian and Newsom; 1 count of premeditated murder (of Christian only); 1 count of especially aggravated robbery (of Newsom only); 4 counts of especially aggravated kidnapping; 20 counts of aggravated rape; and 2 counts of theft.

The record says that, in each indictment, the large number of rape counts were included to provide a range of options for prosecutors, not to reflect the number of rapes which actually occurred.

Timing around trial proceedings

The record says the trial for Knox County defendants was moved back to 2009 in February 2008, with earlier trials scheduled between May and August 2008.

It also states that Thomas' phone calls from jail to acquaintances were ruled admissible.

It states that the jury never asked Judge Richard Baumgartner any questions during deliberations in Cobbins' case.

Crimestatement and “thrown” details

The record attributes a claim of “blacks hating whites” to Newsom's mother.

It also states that there were erroneous early reports of dismemberment and mutilations, and that those were denied by the District Attorney.

Additional contextual notes preserved in the record

The record includes the line: “Wikipedia.org 4 death sentences for LeMaricus Davidson in Christian-Newsom murders Wate.com October 30, 2009 KNOXVILLE (WATE) -- A loud gasp was uttered in the courtroom Friday when the first death penalty sentence was read by the jury foreman as LeMaricus Devall Davidson was given four death penalty sentences for the murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom.” The statements that follow in the same block are preserved as written in their respective sections above.