[dramatic music]
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- Hi, everyone, I'm dan abrams, and this is "courtcam."
- Are you ready to make a plea?
[group shouting]
- Don't run! - [bleep] you!
- I'll kill all you [bleep]
- I hope you die in prison as well.
♪ ♪
- First up, we're in columbus, ohio,
At the franklin county government center
For the sentencing of 44-year-old donald mullins.
He was found guilty of aggravated burglary,
Robbery, and theft.
Mullins had stolen $500 from an elderly neighbor.
But a sweet tooth proved to be his undoing
As his dna was found at the scene
On a cookie.
At sentencing, judge mark serrott
Issues mullins a sentence of four to six years in prison.
But this defendant has a much sweeter deal in mind.
[dramatic music]
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Mullins flees the sixth floor courtroom,
And two deputies quickly follow behind.
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Mullins appears to let go of a radio that was secured
To one of the deputies' uniforms...
Before jumping over a balcony railing
And landing on the fifth floor.
The two deputies continue their pursuit
While two others join the scene.
But soon the commotion catches the attention
Of several onlookers, including this guy
Who was just sitting on a bench
In the hallway minding his own business.
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As for mullins, his escape attempt has a bitter ending
When he lands on the fifth floor and is badly injured.
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He's unable to get up and lays on the floor
For several minutes with law enforcement surrounding him.
He was later taken to grant medical center
And was treated for a broken leg and a head injury.
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Donald mullins was charged with escaping custody
And was expected to get additional time
For his failed getaway.
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Next, we're in fort lauderdale, florida,
For a bond hearing.
29-year-old jermaine levy was charged with trespassing
After he allegedly refused to leave a liquor store
At the manager's request.
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Earlier, levy had a short chat with judge michael davis
And now greets him with a dose of enthusiasm.
- All right. - Hey!
- Good morning, mr. Levy. You're charged with--
- Good morning again, sir. - Good morning again.
- It seems levy is confused
About what he's actually been charged with,
So he bluntly interrupts the judge.
- Trespass-- - I'm charged with trees?
Trees? - Yep, I'm gonna find--
- Weed?
- After clarifying his charge is for trespassing,
Not marijuana, levy asks the public defender
To join the conversation.
- I'm gonna find probable cause for the trespass--
- Off camera, the public defender chimes in.
- Can I get a ror? - Let me ask.
- Levy's asking for an ror,
Which means "released on own recognizance,"
Meaning there wouldn't be cash bail set.
Despite sounding annoyed by levy's interruption...
- Let me ask.
- The public defender makes the request.
- He's charged with a simple trespass.
I'm respectfully asking
That he be released on his own recognizance.
- Without missing a beat,
The judge gives a simple answer.
- I understand. That's denied.
You'll see judge lerner-wren soon.
Good luck, sir.
- And that's when levy sends his own message,
And no, those are not two thumbs up.
- All done. All right.
♪ ♪
- Jermaine levy later pleaded no contest
To the trespassing charge
And was ordered to pay $293 in court fees.
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Next, we head to the franklin county courthouse
In columbus, ohio.
The morning arraignment just finished,
And a group of female defendants are being loaded
Onto a bus on their way to jail.
Keep your eyes on the two women in the back of the line.
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They just slipped under the carriage of the bus
In an attempt to escape.
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These brazen women are tracy mobley, 39,
Charged with aggravated theft...
And mari morrissey, 40,
Charged with a number of traffic violations,
Including drunken driving.
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The two women apparently concocted this plan
On their way to the bus.
Here they are near the end of the line.
Notice how they step quickly and move to the back.
As you can see, their legs are free,
But they're shackled at the wrists to each other.
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And without a security guard in sight,
They put the plan into action.
Watch again as they casually scoot under the bus.
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With both women now clinging to the undercarriage,
The ride begins.
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About 20 seconds later, the bus stops at a light,
And the defendants make their move.
There's morrissey over by the wall.
Somehow she's broken free from mobley and takes off.
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What she doesn't realize is that sitting
In this car is terry myer,
Who just happens to work for a private detective agency.
He sees what's happening,
So he gets out and chases after morrissey.
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Meanwhile off camera, mobley has also fled the scene,
But police detective amy morris,
Who's on her way to courtroom, sees mobley,
Tackles her to the ground, and turns her in.
Meanwhile, myer also manages to return morrissey
To the courthouse as well.
She suffers no serious injuries
And is returned to police.
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Mobley, however, is not so lucky.
She suffers a broken back during the attempted escape
And is taken to a hospital.
In addition to their pending cases,
Both women are later charged with felony escape.
- Next, we head to skokie, illinois.
30-year-old jerome townsel's here for a bond hearing,
The charge, criminal trespassing.
Before he sees the judge, townsel makes a phone call,
Perhaps to his attorney or a family member.
A couple of deputies keep watch
As this guy quietly waits for townsel to finish.
He's been on for about 30 seconds,
And everything looks fine.
It's been over a minute now,
And townsel's still chatting away.
He's been on for three minutes,
And the officers seem to be growing impatient.
One motions to him, perhaps telling townsel
To wrap it up.
Townsel appears frustrated.
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He even gives the deputies the "hang on a second" gesture.
Perhaps feeling the gesture wasn't enough,
He tries a different approach.
Townsel squares up with fists drawn.
The deputy gives him a shove, and then...
Punches begin flying.
Four deputies are now on the scene.
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This female deputy strikes the resisting defendant.
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Finally, the deputies get townsel in cuffs.
By now it looks like eight deputies have arrived
To make sure the defendant goes quietly.
Townsel's taken away as this guy reenters the picture,
Perhaps hoping his phone call goes a bit better.
The four deputies were all taken to the hospital
With minor injuries.
Townsel refused medical treatment
And later appeared before a judge
Where he was ordered held in lieu of $150,000 bond.
Additional charges were expected.
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We're headed south, way south
To wollongong, australia, for a sentencing hearing.
Seated inside what's known as the dock is the defendant,
25-year-old jesse rose.
The one-time aspiring rugby league player pleaded guilty
To the charge of reckless wounding
For an assault captured in this surveillance video.
After receiving a complaint about rose's drunken behavior
In a pub, he and his mate were asked to leave by security.
But when he refuses, a second camera shows things
Turning physical.
One of the security guards ends up on the floor.
Backing away from the situation,
Rose then hurls his drinking glass
At the downed man, striking him in the head.
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The guard suffered serious injuries,
Including a laceration and depressed skull.
Now at sentencing, rose's attorney made a case
To not send him to jail, claiming he's a changed man,
Holding down a steady job
And living on the straight and narrow.
But judge andrew hasler makes it clear
This is no kangaroo court,
Stating that the assault was too serious
To consider leniency.
And right about now he announces rose's sentence,
14 months in prison.
But as one door closes for the defendant,
He kicks another one wide open.
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Unhappy with his sentence,
Rose perhaps channels his rugby days
And boots open the divider door.
It's unclear what he says to these two security guards,
But one guard takes a step or two back.
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After some more jawing, rose takes things up a notch
And throws not one but two chairs at the guards.
Those are not folding chairs rose just tossed.
Those are standard office chairs
Weighing up to 60 pounds, or 27 kilograms in australia.
What you might have missed is this guard
Who sneaks around the back side of the dock and,
Like a boomerang, flies back into action,
First bobbing and weaving,
Then going down under for a tackle.
With the help of the other guard,
Rose is pinned to the floor.
His girlfriend can be seen in the rear of the courtroom.
Other officers eventually enter,
Get rose to his feet, and escort him out.
For his courtroom tantrum, jesse rose was charged
With property damage
And assaulting a law enforcement officer.
An additional eight months was added
To his original 14-month sentence.
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- For our next story, we need to warn you
It contains images that may be disturbing for some viewers.
- Sandra twiggs. - Yes, ma'am.
- We're at a bond hearing in broward county, florida,
For a disturbing incident
Involving judge merrilee ehrlich.
- Good morning.
- The defendant is 59-year-old sandra twiggs.
She's charged with misdemeanor domestic battery
Against her 18-year-old daughter.
Twiggs relies on a wheelchair.
She suffers from asthma, diabetes,
And pulmonary disease.
- I've read the probable cause affidavit.
- Yes, ma'am.
- You don't have to respond to each thing,
But thank you.
- At first, judge ehrlich is cordial toward the defendant,
But that doesn't last.
- None. - Excuse me, ma'am.
I'm asking my courtroom staff.
- Oh, okay. - That's okay.
- I'll let you know each time I'm talking to you.
- Okay, I'm sorry.
[coughing] - you okay, ma'am?
- Yes, I have asthma with copd, and I have a cough today.
- Okay.
- Apparently, she and her adult daughter
Live in the same home...
- The judge reviews the case,
But there seems to be some information missing.
- I don't know whose house this is.
I don't know if she's in a position to evict.
Excuse me, don't tell me.
- The judge is beginning to show some frustration.
- Does your daughter live with you, ma'am?
- Yes, yes, ma'am.
But she also lives-- - excuse me!
Don't say anything beyond what I am asking you.
Trust me-- - I'm telling you--
- Ma'am! - Telling you, she lives--
- Ma'am, ma'am--she lives with who?
- She lives with me, and she lives with my daughter
In miami.
- Is that a different location? - Yes, in--
- Excuse me!
- The judge's impatience grows.
- Ma'am, my one question to you--
- [coughs]
- Can someone there give her water as a kindness?
Ma'am, do you need water? Just nod your head.
- Yes, and a breathing treatment.
- Ma'am, I am not here to talk to you
About your breathing treatment.
- Excuse me! Oh, lord.
- It's clear twiggs is struggling,
But the judge just gets increasingly irritated.
- I'm not gonna spend all day with her interrupting me.
It's your turn to speak, counsel.
- I'm done, ma'am. Sorry, I'm done.
- Ms. Twiggs, just stay silent for a moment.
- Twiggs takes the counsel's advice
As judge ehrlich tries to finish up the hearing.
But it's not enough to avoid judge ehrlich's wrath.
- Do you want her to stay in the home
But have no harmful contact with you?
- Absolutely, yes, ma'am.
Yes, your honor.
I need her-- - excuse me!
- I'm sorry. - Excuse me!
- Instead of bond, the judge offers twiggs
Pretrial release.
- Instead of money,
Do you want to be supervised by pretrial release?
- Is it the right answer? Yes, ma'am.
Yes, your honor. - Pretrial services.
- Yes, your honor. - Ma'am, listen.
- I don't know what to say.
- You've already said too much.
Listen, please. - Yes.
- Once again, the judge berates
The already rattled twiggs.
- Don't even say yes! Just listen.
Can you hear me? Do you understand me?
- Yes.
- You have to check in with pretrial services
By noon on Monday.
Do you understand me?
- Yes. - Good, thank you.
You can return her.
- An exasperated judge ehrlich seems relieved
When the hearing's over,
But the story does not end there.
Just three days later, sandra twiggs passed away
In her sleep at home.
After video of twiggs' appearance
In court was made public, ehrlich's treatment
Of the defendant came under intense scrutiny.
Broward chief administrator judge jack tuter asked ehrlich
Not to return to work.
While he didn't have to power to fire her,
Two days later, ehrlich decided
To announce an early retirement.
- We're in the greenville county courthouse
In greenville, south carolina
For the sentencing of 19-year-old tyler scraggs.
He's pleaded guilty to felony dui resulting in death
For a car crash that killed 16-year-old haylee cantrell.
News reports say scraggs was driving 21 miles
Over the speed limit with meth, thc,
And amphetamine in his system.
That's when he lost control of his pt cruiser,
Crossed over an embankment, and flipped the vehicle.
Cantrell, who was riding in the car with scraggs,
Was thrown from the vehicle
And died at the hospital several days later.
Two others were hurt in the incident.
No one was wearing a seatbelt.
Scraggs has been in custody for 267 days.
He faces up to 25 years in prison.
Now in court, tina cantrell faces the man
Responsible for the death of her daughter.
Fighting to hold back tears,
Cantrell even blames herself for the loss of haylee.
- I blame myself every day
For letting her walk out that door.
- Now it's scraggs' turn
To address haylee's family and friends.
He's visibly shaken as he delivers his apology.
- The time has come for sentencing,
But first, tina cantrell reacts to scraggs' statement.
- Finally, scraggs hears from the judge.
- I have to take into consideration
The harm you caused by your actions,
And that's immeasurable.
- The judge decides to sentence scraggs
To ten years in prison,
Plus the 267 days total served.
That's it for this edition of "courtcam."
I'm dan abrams. Thanks for watching.
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