Juwan Deering

Case overview

Juwan Deering was tried and convicted in Michigan for deaths of five children in a house fire in Pontiac, Oakland County Circuit Court. He faced life in prison without parole on five counts of felony murder and one count of arson, and he was sentenced on August 23, 2006.

Timeline

• April 6, 2000 — A prowler splashed the Dean family's porch with charcoal lighter fluid and set the Michigan home ablaze; Eugene Dean and four other children died in the fire.
• 2001 — Juwan Deering returned to jail; prosecutors claimed he voluntarily told another cellmate he was working on an alibi and wanted to take antidepressants to throw off a lie detector test.
• 2003 — Juwan Deering was back in jail for violating probation; authorities sent in another inmate to elicit incriminating statements.
• March 2006 — Juwan Deering was taken into custody on murder and arson charges.
• Nov. 29, 2005 — Trial opened for a Michigan man accused of killing five children in a fire over a drug debt.
• Aug. 1, 2006 — A Michigan jury convicted Juwan Deering of first-degree felony murder and arson.
• August 23, 2006 — Juwan Deering was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Background

On the evening of April 6, 2000, 6-year-old Eugene Dean was celebrating his last birthday when a prowler splashed the Dean family's porch with charcoal lighter fluid and set the Michigan home ablaze. Eugene's mother, Marie Dean, escaped with four of her children. Trapped inside were Eugene, his 10-year-old sister Taleigha, brothers Craig, 8, and Aaron, 7, and their 11-year-old cousin, Michelle Frame. They all died in the inferno from burn injuries and smoke inhalation.

Six years later, a reputed drug dealer, 35-year-old Juwan Deering, stood trial for allegedly causing the five deaths over a $200 crack-cocaine debt.

Deering was described as a small-time hustler. His rap sheet for misdemeanor offenses such as narcotics possession and driving without a license dated back to 1989.

Michigan did not have the death penalty.

The offence

Deering was charged with life without parole on five counts of felony murder and one count of arson.

Prosecutors claimed Deering set the fire to get back at Marie Dean's estranged husband, Oliver "Big Mike" Dean, who allegedly owed Deering $200 in drug money.

The father, Oliver "Big Mike" Dean, was in a treatment facility for his crack cocaine addiction when the incident occurred. He later died from a drug-related heart attack one month after the deaths of his four children.

The jury convicted Deering of first-degree felony murder and arson related to the deaths of five children in the house fire.

Investigation

In a case absent of forensic evidence linking Deering to the crime, Deering’s lawyers claimed authorities had the wrong person.

Prosecutors relied on statements Deering allegedly made to several jailhouse informants to tie him to the crime.

Several months after the fire, while Deering was in jail for resisting arrest during a traffic stop, authorities placed a cellmate with him in an attempt to elicit damning statements. Prosecutors said the cellmate plan worked, and Deering allegedly described how he used charcoal lighter fluid to start the blaze.

When Deering returned to jail in 2001, prosecutors claimed Deering voluntarily told another cellmate that he was working on an alibi and wanted to take antidepressants to throw off a lie detector test. The statements were admitted against strenuous objections from the defense.

In 2003, after Deering was back in jail for violating probation, authorities sent another inmate to elicit incriminating statements. Prosecutors claimed Deering told the informant that he only wanted to "send a message" to Oliver Dean the night of the fire and that he never intended to harm the children.

After Deering was taken into custody in March 2006 on murder and arson charges, a bailiff from his preliminary hearing told authorities that Deering remarked that one of his jailhouse snitches would not leave jail alive.

CourtTV.com reported that the case gained notoriety for the county's handling of the case, or rather, its failure to pursue it. Charges were brought against Deering only after deputy prosecuting attorney James Halushka resigned amid allegations of professional misconduct. After Halushka’s departure, the Detroit Free Press obtained a memo through the Freedom of Information Act suggesting that Halushka purposely buried the investigation into Deering's involvement, though it remained unclear why he allegedly did so.

Arrest and custody

Deering was in custody on murder and arson charges in March 2006. Before that, he was in jail for resisting arrest during a traffic stop and later was in jail for violating probation.

Trial

Jury selection

A jury panel of six men and seven women was selected in Oakland County Circuit Court in Pontiac, paving the way for opening statements in the trial of 35-year-old Juwan Deering.

Opening statements and legal framing

Prosecutors opened with a case described as circumstantial. From the trial's start, Oakland County prosecuting attorney Greg Townsend conceded to the jury that the case against Deering was purely circumstantial.

Evidence presented

In five days, prosecutors called 21 witnesses, including friends and neighbors of Deering with links to the local drug trade.

Three jailhouse informants testified that Deering admitted setting the fire, and that Deering told one informant that he "didn't mean for them damn kids to die."

Jury questions

The panelists were stuck on the defendant's level of culpability earlier Tuesday. The panel sent a note to the court asking for clarification on the difference between felony and second-degree murder, stating that the former required elements of intent and premeditation that were not necessary for second-degree murder.

Closing arguments and counsel positions

In his closing argument Monday, Greg Townsend told the panel he did not believe Deering intended to kill the children. Townsend told the panel that Deering was still guilty of first-degree felony murder for setting the fire, fully aware that doing so would likely cause death or great bodily harm.

Defense attorney Arnold Weiner told the panel Monday that, while his client may have had a beef with "Big Mike" Dean, he had absolutely nothing to do with the fire. Weiner pointed to a lack forensic evidence or eyewitness testimony to support his claim.

Conviction

On August 1, 2006, a six-man, six-woman jury deliberated for just under five hours before reaching its verdict against 35-year-old Juwan Deering.

The defendant bowed his head slightly after the first count was read, and later shook his head slightly as he was led out in waist and wrist shackles.

The announcement of the verdict was delayed nearly two hours to allow time for the young victims' mother, Marie Dean, and Michelle Frame's father, Paul Frame, to get to the courthouse for the verdict. The pair broke into sobs and hugged each other as the jury foreperson read aloud each of the verdicts on five counts of murder and one count of arson.

Sentencing

The defendant faced a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole on five counts of first-degree felony murder and one count of arson when he was sentenced Aug. 23.

Outcome

The jury convicted Juwan Deering of first-degree felony murder and arson.

Juwan Deering was sentenced to life in prison without parole on August 23, 2006.

Aftermath

After the verdict, Paul Frame told Court TV: "I don't think I'll ever have closure, but it will make things better knowing someone is paying for what happened," and he added: "He took something precious from me. She was very smart, beautiful, she was a light. He took something very important from this world — she was going to be something," Frame said of his daughter, Michelle, who would have celebrated her 18th birthday this September.

Greg Townsend told Court TV: "I felt from the outset the evidence was very compelling," and "I believe justice for the five children will be a great relief for Paul and Marie."