[dramatic music]
♪ ♪
- Hi, everyone, I'm Dan Abrams, and this is "Court Cam."
- You should be ashamed of yourself.
- I want dude off my case. [spits]
♪ ♪
- Got a runner.
[people yelling]
- Get out!
- This is not TV court. This is for real.
♪ ♪
- First up, we're in Paducah, Kentucky,
for a protective order hearing.
♪ ♪
24-year-old Luke McClain
has been charged with fourth-degree assault
with domestic violence and resisting arrest.
The alleged victim? His own mother.
♪ ♪
He's being held on $10,000 bond.
And today, McClain's mother, Penny Lumley,
is asking Judge Deanna Henschel
for a personal protection order against him.
- Mrs. Lumley, what is the relationship
between you and Luke?
- You're asking that there be no contact?
- At least six months to a year so he can get help.
- OK.
♪ ♪
So I'm going to order that you cannot have any contact
with your mother while this order is in effect,
and I'll put it in effect for a year.
And I'm hearing from your mom that she wants you to get help,
and so if you do, and this-- she can be protected,
then we can-- we can amend this order.
- Uh-huh. - We just can't do it.
There was too much property damage this time and--
- I honestly don't care.
I don't have any intention of ever having
a relationship with my mother.
- He broke $3,000 worth of stuff.
♪ ♪
- The bailiff, Charles Holt, approaches the defendant.
- I'm not her, OK? - You don't scare me.
- I'm not trying to scare you.
I'm trying to tell you you in the courtroom.
Act like you're in a courtroom. - [bleep] you!
- Let's go. Come on. Let's go. Come on.
- Get the [bleep] off me. - Get up. Get up. Get up.
- Bailiff Holt seems to have things under control.
Moments later...
♪ ♪
- [bleep].
♪ ♪
- Luke, stop! - [bleep].
- McClain sends the bailiff to the ground
and is quickly on top of him
when a bystander and legal aid lawyer
John Straub stepped in to help and restrain him.
♪ ♪
- [bleep]. I'll kill you later!
- Hey.
♪ ♪
- Stop, Luke.
You're just making this worse.
♪ ♪
- [bleep] you. Get the [bleep] off of me.
♪ ♪
Get off of me!
♪ ♪
Get off the-- [bleep] off me!
- A court deputy arrives to give Holt a hand.
- [grunts] - Stop that.
Child--
- Breathe, please. - Is he OK?
- The bailiff and the bystander
suffered minor injuries in the skirmish.
As for McClain, he was charged with disorderly conduct,
menacing, and third-degree assault for his actions
in court that day.
He has yet to enter a plea on any of his charges.
Both of these cases are pending.
♪ ♪
Next, we're in Grand Rapids, Michigan,
for a sentencing hearing.
♪ ♪
65-year-old Garry Artman has been convicted
of murder, felony murder,
first-degree criminal sexual conduct.
♪ ♪
27 years earlier, police say a delivery driver
found the body of 29-year-old Sharon Hammack
on the side of a road
near Division Avenue in Grand Rapids.
The pregnant mother of two was found hogtied
and wrapped in a blanket.
She'd been sexually assaulted, stabbed,
and strangled to death.
At the time, Sharon was one of 12
unsolved murders of young women in the area,
many of them sex workers.
In Sharon's case, police had no viable leads,
and for decades, the case went cold.
But in 2019, through the advancement
of forensic genealogy,
investigators were able to match DNA
found on Sharon to Artman,
a long-haul trucker who lived
just 8 miles from the crime scene.
Artman had previously been convicted of sexual assault
and for threatening to kill two 16-year-old girls.
He was arrested in Mississippi and officially charged
with Sharon's death.
Artman pled not guilty, and the case went to trial.
Jury just took 30 minutes to find him guilty.
Today, Artman appears in court for sentencing,
but first, Sharon's sisters Terri Navitskas
and Tina DeYoung have something to say
to the defendant.
- You're not even a person.
You killed my sister and my nephew
that was inside of her body.
'Cause you're not even a person.
You're not a man.
You're not nothing but a piece of garbage.
♪ ♪
And I hope you get everything that's coming to you
for the rest of your life.
- When Artman is given a chance to speak,
he offers no apology or admission of guilt.
- You detectives right there--
excuse my language-- are [bleep] idiots.
Why?
Because you keep looking at me, and I didn't do it.
♪ ♪
Why don't you go back and start from the beginning
and look and actually do your job,
and maybe you'll find out who did it?
Yeah, no [bleep].
♪ ♪
- Thank you for your time, Your Honor.
For the murder of Sharon Hammack,
Artman was sentenced to life in prison
with no chance of parole.
And while he was interviewed but never charged
for any other murders near Grand Rapids,
Artman was later charged with murder
in the 2006 killing of a sex worker in Maryland.
His DNA was found on the victim.
But that case never went to trial
since Artman died of natural causes
just months after being sent to prison.
♪ ♪
- Next, we go to Reno, Nevada, for an arraignment.
♪ ♪
28-year-old Max Seve has been charged
with trespassing.
♪ ♪
A day earlier, Seve was arrested
for trespassing at a local casino.
According to police reports,
it was his second trespassing charge
at the same location in two months.
Seve was found guilty in the first case,
and a judge sentenced him to 130 days in jail,
which was suspended, provided he stay away
from the casino and not get arrested again.
♪ ♪
Today, Seve appears from the county jail
before Judge Christopher Hazlett-Stevens
to enter a plea in his new case
and to see if his suspended sentence
will be revoked.
He's represented by attorney Roberto Fuentes.
- In this case, sir, you were charged
with a crime of trespassing.
This was alleged to have occurred
at the Cal Neva Casino. Do you understand that charge?
- Yes.
- How do you wish to plead to that charge, Mr. Seve?
- Can I respond back before I plead to anything, Your Honor?
- Mr. Fuentes, do you know what he's going to say,
or do you want--
- Mr. Seve, hang on.
♪ ♪
- Mr. Seve, please stop. Please stop.
Mr. Fuentes, do you know what he's trying to do?
- Your Honor, at one point, he was going to admit.
I told him about the revocation,
and then he became extremely disrespectful.
♪ ♪
And the conversation didn't get much further after that.
- OK, I got you. Thank you. All right.
So, Mr. Seve, my question to you is,
how do you wish to plead to your new charge
of trespassing?
- I'll accept your not guilty plea.
We're going to set this for trial.
I will appoint counsel to represent you.
- Mr. Seve, hang on.
I will appoint counsel to represent you
because you do face the possibility
of having that suspended sentence revoked.
There's also, on that same case,
10 days Washoe County Jail...
- Consecutive. So--
- Mr. Seve.
- The judge does not seem too happy
with the defendant's name-calling.
- Mr. Seve, if you continue to act like that--
Deputy, Deputy I'm going to--
- Mr. Seve. Mr. Seve.
- I'm going to hold you in contempt right now
if you continue to act this way.
You're being belligerent to me, belligerent to your attorney,
and I'm going to hold you in contempt.
♪ ♪
Stop, please, or you're gonna spend more days in jail.
We're gonna go ahead and continue Mr. Seve's case.
He's not in the right spirit,
so we'll continue into Tuesday morning.
Actually, we're good.
We'll get him a trial date, and he'll be given
that trial date in his cell. You can take Mr. Seve away.
His trial date will be given to him.
- As he's taken back to his cell,
Seve has a few parting words for the court.
♪ ♪
- The judge set bond at $1,500,
and Seve's latest trespassing charge
was eventually dismissed.
As for his first case,
the judge revoked Seve's suspended sentence
and was made to serve 130 days in the county jail.
- Next, we're in Jonesboro, Georgia,
for the beginning of a trial.
♪ ♪
24-year-old Hannah Payne has been charged
with malice murder, felony murder,
aggravated assault, and a number of other charges.
♪ ♪
Three years earlier, Payne told police
that she was driving in Clayton County
when she witnessed 62-year-old Kenneth Herring
run a red light and then hit a semi-truck with his pickup.
No one was hurt, but Herring left the scene
of the accident and Payne called 911.
- But according to prosecutors,
Payne did follow Herring for a mile
before boxing him in on the highway.
Payne then approached the vehicle with a loaded gun
and commanded Herring get out of the car.
- But Herring refused, and the two
allegedly got into a struggle.
That's when Payne's gun went off...
- Oh, my God. Oh, my God.
- Hitting Herring once in the stomach.
♪ ♪
- Herring died later that day at the hospital.
Payne was arrested and charged with murder.
She pled not guilty and, after being denied bond,
was later released on a bond of $320,000.
According to a state corrections officer
with medic training who spoke to Herring at the scene,
Herring, a diabetic, was most likely experiencing
a medical emergency at the time of the accident.
And investigators say they found no evidence
that Herring was intoxicated that day.
Now, three years after the incident,
Payne is about to get her day in court.
There's just one problem.
She's informed the court that her attorney,
Matt Tucker, recently had a stroke
and is recovering in the hospital.
This is news to Judge Shana Rooks Malone,
and she's not exactly sympathetic.
- I'm going to find that Mr. Tucker
is in contempt of court.
He failed to follow the rules of court
in notifying the court.
I'm gonna also file a grievance with the State Bar of Georgia.
But what I will tell you, Ms. Payne,
is you need to seriously seek new counsel.
- Later that day, after Tucker's informed
of the judge's ruling,
he shares his feelings with a local news crew
from his hospital bed.
- I was astonished. I couldn't believe it.
I've never lied to the court. I'm a officer of the court.
We've been waiting for this trial for three years.
- Tucker claims he did follow protocol
and alerted the court of his condition.
He also claims the judge never filed
a grievance against him
and that he was not charged with contempt.
Payne retained Tucker as her attorney.
They filed a motion to recuse Judge Malone from the trial.
That was denied initially, but the judge
was ultimately reassigned.
Seven months later, before a new judge,
Payne's trial concluded, and the jury
returned with a verdict.
- As to the offense of malice murder,
we, the jury, find the defendant guilty.
As to the offense of felony murder,
we, the jury, find the defendant guilty.
♪ ♪
- Payne was also found guilty of aggravated assault,
false imprisonment, and possession of a firearm
during a felony.
She was sentenced to life in prison
with the possibility of parole during a minimum of 43 years.
♪ ♪
- Next, we head to Adrian, Michigan,
for a pretrial hearing.
♪ ♪
53-year-old Donald Lester has been arrested
and charged with possession of methamphetamine,
two counts of resisting or obstructing a police officer.
Bond was set at $20,000.
The defendant has been unable to pay.
So today, Lester appears from the county jail
before Judge Michael Olsaver.
He's represented by public defender John Glaser,
Lester's second attorney, having had his first one
removed from the case.
- Mr. Glaser, where do we stand with Mr. Lester's case today?
- Your Honor, at this point, I can't talk to Mr. Lester.
He-- when we try to talk, he just starts screaming
and yelling at me and won't listen to anything
I've got to say.
♪ ♪
Now, there are some notes that he may have some...
- Oh, my God.
- Some mental health issues, according to a family member.
- What did you just say? What did you just say?
A family member did what?
- Mr. Lester, Mr. Lester, please sit down and be quiet.
- My family member couldn't have.
There's nobody up here with me but me.
- This phone call-- - There's no one here but me.
And if you have a name, please let me have it.
Put the phone number, because I've been
trying to call my family for the past three months, sir.
Let me say something, please. Can I say something?
- All right, both of you--
both of you stop talking right now.
- OK, that's fine.
I'm willing to listen, but this is getting ridiculous.
- Mr. Lester, I said stop talking.
You're continuing to talk. If you continue to--
Mr. Glaser, stop talking.
♪ ♪
That is not a difficult instruction.
And I am not going to lose control of this proceeding.
- I appreciate that. Thank you.
- Mr. Lester, I've muted your device.
I instructed you to not talk two times,
and you continue to talk.
I can't hear what you're saying.
You're on mute.
Mr. Bayoneto, is there a plea offer in this case?
- There is, Your Honor?
- That's assistant prosecutor Alexander Bayoneto.
- The plea offer is attempted possession of methamphetamine
and then the two R&Os as charged.
- The state's offering to lower Lester's
initial charge from possession to attempted possession.
- I need to speak with Mr. Lester, but--
and see if he can calmly talk
about this plea bargain with me.
♪ ♪
- Mr. Lester, Mr. Glaser just said
he would like to talk to you to explain that offer to you.
But you need to be able to sit and listen to what he says.
Do you want to do that? - I'm being railroaded.
What am I supposed to do? - You're not being railroaded.
Mr. Lester, if you're not-- if you're not gonna
to participate and answer my questions,
I'm just going to set this for another--
- I don't know how many times I gotta say it.
Let me talk to Mr. Glaser, please.
- OK, thank you.
That's the first time you've said that.
So I will set up a breakout session for you
with Mr. Glaser right now.
- 15 minutes later, the defendant and his lawyer
returned to the hearing.
- Mr. Glaser, where do we stand with Mr. Lester's case
at the moment?
♪ ♪
- He belittled me, and I would like to get somebody else,
please. Please.
- Mr. Lester, I only have the ability
to appoint the public defender's office, so--
- Not out of their office. 'Cause he keep--
- Mr. Lester, stop interrupting me.
♪ ♪
I'm trying to explain to you that I
only have the ability to appoint
the public defender's office. I've done that.
We've been through two attorneys
now that you have not liked.
You don't have the ability to pick your public defender.
- OK, that's fine, but I still don't want him
to no longer represent me in this.
Mr. Glaser continues to sit up there
and belittle me and slander my name to you.
There's no way this is gonna work between me and him.
- Mr. Glaser has not said anything
to me that has not occurred on the record about you
or about your case. - Yes, he did.
- Mr. Lester, do not interrupt.
♪ ♪
- All right, at this point, I don't think
Mr. Lester is in a position
to be able to continue this hearing.
- I'm sorry.
- We can address who represents you next.
- I don't want him as an attorney, man.
Y'all railroad me, man.
This is crazy. This is crazy.
♪ ♪
- Lester was granted a new attorney,
but soon after, that lawyer withdrew from the case,
citing a breakdown in their relationship.
Lester was also disruptive in court again
and was sentenced to 93 days in jail for contempt.
Lester now has another new attorney,
and the court has entered a not guilty plea
on his behalf. That case is pending.
♪ ♪
That's it for this edition of "Court Cam."
I'm Dan Abrams. Thanks for watching.
♪ ♪