Post by Anja on Jun 1, 2006 21:58:05 GMT -5
Prosecutors to seek death penalty in Mission Village slaying
Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for a man accused of beating and
strangling his longtime girlfriend in their Mission Village apartment, it
was announced Thursday.
Jack Henry Lewis Jr., 37, is charged with murder, torture and a special
circumstance allegation of murder during torture in the death last Sept. 8
of Jan Hasegawa.
A Sept. 18 trial is scheduled, but that date will probably change because
of the punishment the District Attorney's Office is seeking if Lewis is
convicted, said defense attorney Doug Miller.
A status conference is scheduled on June 21 so the case can be assigned to
a judge.
Debbie Faremouth, a real estate agent for Lewis and Hasegawa, testified at
a Dec. 20 preliminary hearing that Lewis showed up at her home around
midnight Sept. 8, wanting to talk.
Faremouth said she overheard Lewis telling her girlfriend that he had
beaten Hasegawa after she refused to have sex act with him.
"He said he thought he did something really bad. He wasn't sure,"
Faremouth testified.
In a May 2005 conversation, Lewis told Faremouth that he had pushed
Hasegawa backward and she fell and broke her arm, the witness said.
Faremouth said Lewis was sad that the relationship was falling apart and
that he and Hasegawa were getting in more and more fights, the witness
said.
The defendant's friend, James Brown Jr., testified that Lewis showed up at
his house around 4 a.m. Sept. 9.
"He kept saying, 'I went too far,"' the witness testified.
Trying to recall Lewis' exact words, Brown testified the defendant might
have said, "I think I beat her up pretty good."
Brown said he convinced Lewis to call 911 about 48 hours after the
incident.
Chief Medical Examiner Glenn Wagner testified that the 48-year-old
victim's entire body was covered in bruises, well over 100 in number.
He said the victim was hit in the legs, arms, face, neck and chest and had
clumps of hair missing.
The bruises were probably inflicted by human hands and a Mag-Lite
flashlight, which was found on a bed near the body with biological
material on it, Wagner said.
The victim also had deep bruises on the soles of her feet, considered to
be very painful injuries, the medical examiner said.
He said Hasegawa was grabbed by the neck and lifted up, possibly against a
wall, and strangled.
The victim was under the influence of methamphetamine when she died,
Wagner testified.
Ron Hasegawa, the victim's older brother, testified that he confronted his
sister about abuse at the hands of Lewis.
The brother testified that he asked the victim how many times Lewis had
strangled her to the point of "blanking out."
He said Hasegawa rolled her eyes and couldn't answer because it had been
too many times to remember. He said he asked his sister if the strangling
was something that happened during sex, and she said yes.
The witness told prosecutor Nicole Cooper that his sister confided in him
that she was afraid of Lewis and had tried to leave him repeatedly.
(source: San Diego Union-Tribune)
Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for a man accused of beating and
strangling his longtime girlfriend in their Mission Village apartment, it
was announced Thursday.
Jack Henry Lewis Jr., 37, is charged with murder, torture and a special
circumstance allegation of murder during torture in the death last Sept. 8
of Jan Hasegawa.
A Sept. 18 trial is scheduled, but that date will probably change because
of the punishment the District Attorney's Office is seeking if Lewis is
convicted, said defense attorney Doug Miller.
A status conference is scheduled on June 21 so the case can be assigned to
a judge.
Debbie Faremouth, a real estate agent for Lewis and Hasegawa, testified at
a Dec. 20 preliminary hearing that Lewis showed up at her home around
midnight Sept. 8, wanting to talk.
Faremouth said she overheard Lewis telling her girlfriend that he had
beaten Hasegawa after she refused to have sex act with him.
"He said he thought he did something really bad. He wasn't sure,"
Faremouth testified.
In a May 2005 conversation, Lewis told Faremouth that he had pushed
Hasegawa backward and she fell and broke her arm, the witness said.
Faremouth said Lewis was sad that the relationship was falling apart and
that he and Hasegawa were getting in more and more fights, the witness
said.
The defendant's friend, James Brown Jr., testified that Lewis showed up at
his house around 4 a.m. Sept. 9.
"He kept saying, 'I went too far,"' the witness testified.
Trying to recall Lewis' exact words, Brown testified the defendant might
have said, "I think I beat her up pretty good."
Brown said he convinced Lewis to call 911 about 48 hours after the
incident.
Chief Medical Examiner Glenn Wagner testified that the 48-year-old
victim's entire body was covered in bruises, well over 100 in number.
He said the victim was hit in the legs, arms, face, neck and chest and had
clumps of hair missing.
The bruises were probably inflicted by human hands and a Mag-Lite
flashlight, which was found on a bed near the body with biological
material on it, Wagner said.
The victim also had deep bruises on the soles of her feet, considered to
be very painful injuries, the medical examiner said.
He said Hasegawa was grabbed by the neck and lifted up, possibly against a
wall, and strangled.
The victim was under the influence of methamphetamine when she died,
Wagner testified.
Ron Hasegawa, the victim's older brother, testified that he confronted his
sister about abuse at the hands of Lewis.
The brother testified that he asked the victim how many times Lewis had
strangled her to the point of "blanking out."
He said Hasegawa rolled her eyes and couldn't answer because it had been
too many times to remember. He said he asked his sister if the strangling
was something that happened during sex, and she said yes.
The witness told prosecutor Nicole Cooper that his sister confided in him
that she was afraid of Lewis and had tried to leave him repeatedly.
(source: San Diego Union-Tribune)