Post by SoulTrainOz on Jul 30, 2006 3:20:22 GMT -5
Judge imposes 2 life terms to capital murder defendant.
Life Spared
"His inhumanity to that baby elevates this murder far above most murders." Robert F. Horan Jr., Commonwealths Attorney
"He doesnt belong with the worst of the worst of this nation." Paul Maslakowski, capital public defender
30 months after murdering the wife and 22-month-old baby of his former employer, Dinh Pham addressed the husband and father of the victims, Hoang Ton, without turning to face him.
"I dont know what words to choose and what words to use to express my feelings to the victims family. Id like to apologize to the victims family for my actions, for the wrong that I did," said Dinh Pham.
Pham apologized to his family as well.
"I would like to ask the court to judge my crime and give me the sentence I deserve, a judgment equal to the action I have committed," he said.
Following more than two years of court proceedings in the capital murder case, Judge Leslie M. Alden called Phams crime "simply unspeakable," "reprehensible," and "heinous."
"Nothing the court can do today can bring back the lives of those innocent victims," she said. Alden sentenced Pham to two life terms in prison for the capital murder of 22-month old, Ashley Ton, and first-degree murder of Loan P. Nguyen. She also sentenced Pham to 40 years for grand larceny and statutory burglary.
Alden granted Phams motion on Jan. 3, 2006 to prohibit the death penalty because she ruled that his rights were violated under the Vienna Convention. The Virginia Supreme Court overturned her ruling on Jan. 19, 2006.
Although the Virginia Supreme Court ruled that Alden did not have the authority to make sentence decisions when ruling on a pre-trial motion, it stated that she would have the authority to decide whether to impose the death penalty at sentencing.
When Hoang Ton took the witness stand Monday, he sat less than 10 feet away from the man who murdered his wife and 22-month-old daughter on Jan. 7, 2004.
"I am alone in the world and my dreams are gone," Ton, 36, wrote in a statement he submitted to the court.
"Its hard for me to stand before him, but Ill try," Ton told Judge Leslie M. Alden, during the capital murder sentencing of Dinh Pham, 34, in Fairfax County Circuit Court on Monday, July 24.
By 9 a.m. on Jan. 7, 2004, Ton knew something was wrong when he called his wife at their home and on her cell phone and received no answer.
"I began to worry," he said.
Approximately an hour later, he called his wifes employer and found out she hadnt reported to the beauty salon where she worked.
"I began to worry," he said again.
Around noon, he was concerned enough to leave work to drive home. Although his wifes car wasnt in front of their Merrifield townhouse, the first thing he noticed when he walked inside was his daughters jacket.
"I feel something wrong," he said.
Ton called his mother to see if she knew anything. He went to his
daughters baby-sitter to ask if she had seen his wife and daughter. He drove to the emergency room of Inova Fairfax Hospital to see if they were there.
"I called my sister and she told me to wait until nighttime to report them missing," he said.
Ton then cleaned up the house and sat on the staircase and waited.
When his mother and sister came over, his sister asked if Dinh Pham, a former employee of Tons, might have done something to his wife and daughter.
"Sixth sense or something," next compelled Ton to walk to the laundry room of his home and check the crawl space underneath the house, he said.
There, Ton discovered the bodies of his daughter, Ashley, and his wife, Loan P. Nguyen. Both had been strangled to death.
When police arrived, they photographed Ton holding his daughters lifeless body on his shoulder, evidence Commonwealths Attorney Robert F. Horan Jr. presented to Alden.
"HIS INHUMANITY to that baby elevates this murder far above most murders," said Horan.
Horan sought the death penalty for Pham, who pleaded guilty to capital murder and 1st-degree murder in May.
"He kills the baby of a friend, he kills the baby of a man who was kind to him," Horan said. Pham, who had a gambling addiction, intended to steal money from the home of his former boss, something he had done before.
But on Jan. 7, 2004, Tons wife discovered Pham hiding in the closet of her home.
Surprised at being caught, Pham strangled her to death with a belt, Horan said. The tremendous amount of deep bruising on 2 places on her neck revealed her struggle and fight to stay alive, he said.
Tons daughter walked in the room and started to scream and cry as Pham murdered her mother. Pham later told police he was afraid neighbors would hear and find out. So he took the belt and tightened it around the babys neck until she no longer cried, said Horan.
"What could be more unprovoked than killing a 22-month old infant? A child who didnt do anything but cry," Horan said.
He called the murders "torture."
After Pham hid the bodies, he took the victim's car and drove it to
Rosecroft Raceway to gamble just hours after the murders.
"That goes to depravity of mind," Horan said.
Pham was caught the next day at the race track in Fort Washington, Md.
"HE DOESNT BELONG with the worst of the worst of this nation," said capital public defender Paul Maslakowski.
"[Horan] wants you to believekilling a child automatically warrants the death penalty," he said. Maslakowski argued that Pham needed to be sentenced by looking at the totality of his life, not just by his "horrible" crime.
"There is nothing about his background except those 30 minutes on Jan. 7, 2004, to suggest hes violent or something other than a limited man who acted reflexively and did a horrible thing," Maslakowski said.
"He is going to be punished. He will sit in that 7-by-10-foot cell for the next 35, 45 years," and think about what he did, Maslakowski said.
Maslakowski argued that Phams early exposure to violence and hardship in Vietnam were mitigating factors that should rule out the death penalty. He also presented testimony that Pham has developmental disorders.
Pham didnt go the house to commit murder, he didnt go to the house with "evil in his heart," Maslakowski said.
Approximately 2 months ago, Phams father and three siblings testified to the impact the fall of Saigon had on Pham and his family.
But during a cross examination of one witness two months ago, Deputy Commonwealths Attorney Raymond F. Morrogh said Tons father was also imprisoned by the Communist Party after the fall of Saigon.
"Do you realize Tons father spent 11 years in prison? Many thousands of families who fled had similar experiences," said Morrogh.
(source: The Connection)
Life Spared
"His inhumanity to that baby elevates this murder far above most murders." Robert F. Horan Jr., Commonwealths Attorney
"He doesnt belong with the worst of the worst of this nation." Paul Maslakowski, capital public defender
30 months after murdering the wife and 22-month-old baby of his former employer, Dinh Pham addressed the husband and father of the victims, Hoang Ton, without turning to face him.
"I dont know what words to choose and what words to use to express my feelings to the victims family. Id like to apologize to the victims family for my actions, for the wrong that I did," said Dinh Pham.
Pham apologized to his family as well.
"I would like to ask the court to judge my crime and give me the sentence I deserve, a judgment equal to the action I have committed," he said.
Following more than two years of court proceedings in the capital murder case, Judge Leslie M. Alden called Phams crime "simply unspeakable," "reprehensible," and "heinous."
"Nothing the court can do today can bring back the lives of those innocent victims," she said. Alden sentenced Pham to two life terms in prison for the capital murder of 22-month old, Ashley Ton, and first-degree murder of Loan P. Nguyen. She also sentenced Pham to 40 years for grand larceny and statutory burglary.
Alden granted Phams motion on Jan. 3, 2006 to prohibit the death penalty because she ruled that his rights were violated under the Vienna Convention. The Virginia Supreme Court overturned her ruling on Jan. 19, 2006.
Although the Virginia Supreme Court ruled that Alden did not have the authority to make sentence decisions when ruling on a pre-trial motion, it stated that she would have the authority to decide whether to impose the death penalty at sentencing.
When Hoang Ton took the witness stand Monday, he sat less than 10 feet away from the man who murdered his wife and 22-month-old daughter on Jan. 7, 2004.
"I am alone in the world and my dreams are gone," Ton, 36, wrote in a statement he submitted to the court.
"Its hard for me to stand before him, but Ill try," Ton told Judge Leslie M. Alden, during the capital murder sentencing of Dinh Pham, 34, in Fairfax County Circuit Court on Monday, July 24.
By 9 a.m. on Jan. 7, 2004, Ton knew something was wrong when he called his wife at their home and on her cell phone and received no answer.
"I began to worry," he said.
Approximately an hour later, he called his wifes employer and found out she hadnt reported to the beauty salon where she worked.
"I began to worry," he said again.
Around noon, he was concerned enough to leave work to drive home. Although his wifes car wasnt in front of their Merrifield townhouse, the first thing he noticed when he walked inside was his daughters jacket.
"I feel something wrong," he said.
Ton called his mother to see if she knew anything. He went to his
daughters baby-sitter to ask if she had seen his wife and daughter. He drove to the emergency room of Inova Fairfax Hospital to see if they were there.
"I called my sister and she told me to wait until nighttime to report them missing," he said.
Ton then cleaned up the house and sat on the staircase and waited.
When his mother and sister came over, his sister asked if Dinh Pham, a former employee of Tons, might have done something to his wife and daughter.
"Sixth sense or something," next compelled Ton to walk to the laundry room of his home and check the crawl space underneath the house, he said.
There, Ton discovered the bodies of his daughter, Ashley, and his wife, Loan P. Nguyen. Both had been strangled to death.
When police arrived, they photographed Ton holding his daughters lifeless body on his shoulder, evidence Commonwealths Attorney Robert F. Horan Jr. presented to Alden.
"HIS INHUMANITY to that baby elevates this murder far above most murders," said Horan.
Horan sought the death penalty for Pham, who pleaded guilty to capital murder and 1st-degree murder in May.
"He kills the baby of a friend, he kills the baby of a man who was kind to him," Horan said. Pham, who had a gambling addiction, intended to steal money from the home of his former boss, something he had done before.
But on Jan. 7, 2004, Tons wife discovered Pham hiding in the closet of her home.
Surprised at being caught, Pham strangled her to death with a belt, Horan said. The tremendous amount of deep bruising on 2 places on her neck revealed her struggle and fight to stay alive, he said.
Tons daughter walked in the room and started to scream and cry as Pham murdered her mother. Pham later told police he was afraid neighbors would hear and find out. So he took the belt and tightened it around the babys neck until she no longer cried, said Horan.
"What could be more unprovoked than killing a 22-month old infant? A child who didnt do anything but cry," Horan said.
He called the murders "torture."
After Pham hid the bodies, he took the victim's car and drove it to
Rosecroft Raceway to gamble just hours after the murders.
"That goes to depravity of mind," Horan said.
Pham was caught the next day at the race track in Fort Washington, Md.
"HE DOESNT BELONG with the worst of the worst of this nation," said capital public defender Paul Maslakowski.
"[Horan] wants you to believekilling a child automatically warrants the death penalty," he said. Maslakowski argued that Pham needed to be sentenced by looking at the totality of his life, not just by his "horrible" crime.
"There is nothing about his background except those 30 minutes on Jan. 7, 2004, to suggest hes violent or something other than a limited man who acted reflexively and did a horrible thing," Maslakowski said.
"He is going to be punished. He will sit in that 7-by-10-foot cell for the next 35, 45 years," and think about what he did, Maslakowski said.
Maslakowski argued that Phams early exposure to violence and hardship in Vietnam were mitigating factors that should rule out the death penalty. He also presented testimony that Pham has developmental disorders.
Pham didnt go the house to commit murder, he didnt go to the house with "evil in his heart," Maslakowski said.
Approximately 2 months ago, Phams father and three siblings testified to the impact the fall of Saigon had on Pham and his family.
But during a cross examination of one witness two months ago, Deputy Commonwealths Attorney Raymond F. Morrogh said Tons father was also imprisoned by the Communist Party after the fall of Saigon.
"Do you realize Tons father spent 11 years in prison? Many thousands of families who fled had similar experiences," said Morrogh.
(source: The Connection)