Gary Green

Case record: Gary Green

Status

Gary Green was sentenced to death on November 22, 2010.

Background

Gary Green was a Black male who was 39 when received into the case. He was 6' 3" tall, weighed 365, and had black hair and brown eyes. His native county and native state were not included in the record. He worked as a general laborer before the offences.

Green had prior prison record in the 1980s and 1990s in Dallas County, Texas:

• In 1989, he was convicted of Possession of a Controlled Substance-Cocaine and received 4 years probation.
• In 1990, he was convicted of Aggravated Robbery with a Deadly Weapon and received a 20 year sentence.

Green had a mental illness diagnosis described in testimony. A psychologist testified that Green suffered from schizoaffective disorder bipolar type and wrongly believed that people were trying to hurt him. The psychologist also testified that Green experienced paranoid delusions. The psychologist testified that Green had an IQ of 78, which was described as low but not low enough to indicate mental retardation. Prosecutor Andy Beach testified that prison tests showed Green's IQ to be 105. Prison records showed that in the 1990s Green told prison officials that he was contemplating suicide, had insomnia, and was pondering joining the French Foreign Legion.

Green’s younger brother, Nysasno Carter, testified that he believed Green had an undiagnosed mental illness “ever since I was little.” Carter said he tried to talk to their mother about getting Green help but she “kind of brushed me off.” Carter said Green often talked about having nothing to live for and that his brother heard demons. Shortly before the murders, Green checked himself into a mental hospital for about five days, then asked to be released, according to testimony. Carter also testified that while he visited Green in jail, Green told him that Armstead appeared to him while Green was sitting on his bed. Carter said Green told him that Armstead said “that she forgives him.”

A stepdaughter and two stepsons were mentioned in the case. Green was described as the stepfather of Jazzmen Montgomery and the husband of Lovetta Armstead. Armstead’s sons were described as ages 9 and 12 during the attacks, and the older son later testified at age 13 and the younger brother later testified as age 10 and 10 at the time of testimony described in the record.

The offence

During the night in Dallas County, Texas, Gary Green stabbed a 32-year-old Black female, Lovetta Armstead, with a knife and drowned her 6-year-old Black daughter, Jazzmen Montgomery, in their home.

Green was accused of killing Lovetta Armstead and her 6-year-old daughter, Jazzmen Montgomery, at their south Oak Cliff home in September 2009.

The record described the violence as extensive. Prosecutors said one knife broke and Green grabbed another. Armstead also grabbed a knife and stabbed Green twice behind his shoulder; the wounds were described as superficial. Prosecutors said Green then grabbed the girl and drowned her in the bathtub.

The record described that the attack occurred shortly after Armstead tried to end their relationship and sought an annulment of their marriage. It also stated that Armstead informed Green that she wanted to annul their marriage shortly after the wedding. The record stated that the attacks happened shortly after Armstead tried to end their relationship.

The record included the stepsons’ accounts of being threatened and spared. Prosecutors said that Armstead’s sons persuaded Green not to kill them. The younger brother testified that he told Green: “We're too little to die.” He also testified that he told Green: “We won't tell anybody about it.” The older boy testified that he was too scared. Prosecutors said that after Green told the boys he would spare their lives, he told them he had something to show them and took them into the bedroom to show their dead mother. The record stated that Green told the boys: “I killed your mom because I loved her to death.” Prosecutors’ account said the older brother was ordered to retrieve his pills and that he was forced to walk through the blood that covered the bathroom floor. The record stated that Green left after making the boys hug him and promise not to call the police until he was gone.

The record described Green’s statement about suicide. The record said Green told the boys he was going to kill himself and that the older quoted Green as saying: “You know how I told you to say, 'See you later' and never 'Bye?' “Well, this is goodbye.”

The record described letters that were exchanged on the day of the murders. It said that:

• In the first message, written on notebook paper, Armstead asked Green to move out of their home: “I know you love me and I love you but it's time we part.”
• In the second message, Armstead voiced regrets at allowing Green back into her life.
• In the final letter, Green said he planned to kill Armstead, her three children and himself. The typed letter shown to jurors included: “You asked to see the monster so here is the monster you made me!” and “There 'will be 5 lives taken today me being the 5th!'” The original was described as covered in blood and found on Armstead's bed.
• In that final letter, Green wrote: “I pray that the Lord allows my soul to enter Heaven,” and “If not I will burn in Hell forever.”

Victims

The record identified two victims:

• Lovetta Armstead, 32, a Black female.
• Jazzmen Montgomery, 6, a Black female.

Investigation

Homicide Detective Robert Quirk interviewed Green during the confession. Investigators found Jazzmen in the bathroom and Armstead face down in the bedroom. Armstead had been stabbed more than two dozen times, and signs of a struggle were apparent. Homicide Detective Robert Quirk testified: “Frankly, it was a bloody mess.”

The record included details of Green’s account to police. Green told police that he tied up the girl in her bedroom and then took her to the master bedroom. He told police he attacked Armstead in the bathroom, stabbing her “about 30 times,” though not all at once. The record stated that Green said Armstead grabbed a toilet tank lid and tried to hit him and that she also grabbed a knife and stabbed him in the shoulder, though the wounds were superficial. The record included Green’s statement: “When she stabbed me, I backed up off her,” Green said.

Green’s taped interview included additional statements. He told police: “I killed her in the bathtub.” The record also described Green saying after being treated that he did not “really want to do anything to anybody,” and that he couldn’t get the images of his wife and her child out of his head. The record included Green’s statement in his taped interview: “I didn't really want to do anything to anybody.”

Arrest

After overdosing, Green was treated for the overdose at Parkland Memorial Hospital. Police Sgt. Kevin Kirchdorfer accompanied Green to the hospital and testified about Green’s comments. The record stated that Green took 20 to 30 pills in hopes that he would “just go to sleep.” The record stated that his family found him at a friend's house a day later and persuaded him to turn himself in.

Trial

Green was tried for capital murder related to the deaths of Lovetta Armstead and Jazzmen Montgomery.

A jury convicted Green earlier in the week and then sentenced him to death late on November 22, 2010.

Defense attorneys spent several days presenting evidence in an effort to persuade jurors to spare his life. During victim impact statements, a roughly 30-second video of Jazzmen Montgomery, Green's step-daughter, was played in the courtroom. One of Jazzman’s older brothers took the stand to address Green directly at sentencing and told him: “Hey Gary, I love you and I thought you weren't going to betray me like this,” “To me, you were my father and I love you. But I'm not going to let you take over my life.”

A psychologist, Gilbert Martinez, testified about Green’s mental illness. Prosecutor Andy Beach cross-examined Martinez, including evidence about prison tests showing Green’s IQ as 105. Martinez clarified that he was not saying that the illness made Green murder his wife and stepdaughter.

Green’s younger brother, Nysasno Carter, testified in the capital murder trial. Carter said Green often talked about having nothing to live for and that he believed Green had an undiagnosed mental illness “ever since I was little.” Carter also testified that while he visited Green in jail, Green told him that Armstead appeared to him while he was sitting on his bed and said “that she forgives him.”

The record described prosecutors’ opening statements about the stabbing and drowning. It described that Green’s defense attorneys, Paul Johnson, Kobby Warren and Brady Wyatt, asked jurors not to make up their minds until they heard all the evidence.

Sentencing

A jury sentenced Gary Green to death late today for killing his wife and her 6-year-old daughter. The record included that the jury sentenced him after convicting him earlier in the week.

Appeals

No appeal information was included in the provided record.

Outcome

Other details

Green had moved out before the day he persuaded Armstead to let him spend the day at the house.

Green told the boys that he was going to show them something. He ordered the older brother to retrieve his pills.

The record stated that Green showered in the same tub, changed clothes, picked up the boys from church, then changed clothes again and left them at the house, according to the detective testimony and Green’s account.

The record stated that Green later told police that “it was so bad, I had to turn away.”

The record included that the youngest brother testified he said to Green, “We won't tell anybody about it,” and that they also told Green that they loved him.