The Dana Pretzer Show – Thursday, August 9, 2012 – With Special Guests Attorney Joel Brodsky and Former ADA Robin Sax Discussing the Drew Peterson Murder Case of Kathleen Savio

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Dana welcomes special guests:

• Attorney Joel Brodsky discussing the Drew Peterson murder trial
• Former ADA and current Fox Legal Analyst, Robin Sax also discussing the Drew Peterson trial

The Dana Pretzer Show – Thursday, August 9, 2012 Download Podcast

Jared Lee Loughner Pleads Guilty to 19 Charges in the Tucson, AZ Massacre and Will Likely Spend the rest of his Life in Prison

Jared Lee Loughner plead guilty to 19 charges in the Tucsan Massacre where six people were killed and 13 others wounded, including former US Rep. Gabby Giffords(AZ-D).  Loughner will spend the rest of his life in prison after accepting responsibility for a deadly shooting. Prior to the plea, a judge ruled that Loughner was competent to understand charge. Loughner pleaded guilty to 19 charges, with U.S. District Judge Larry Burns dismissing 30 others. Sentencing is set for November 15. The plea deal brings an end to a tragic and senseless act of violence and spares the victims and their families having to relive the horrible events of the day so many were gunned down. The outcome was welcomed by some victims, including Giffords herself, as a way to move on.

Jared Lee Loughner agreed Tuesday to spend the rest of his life in prison, accepting that he went on a deadly shooting rampage at an Arizona political gathering and avoiding the prospect of a trial that might have brought him the death penalty.

His plea came after a federal judge found that months of psychiatric treatment made Loughner able to understand charges that he killed six people and wounded 13 others, including his intended target, then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

Comment from Mark Kelly, the husband of Gabby Giffords, regarding the plea deal.

“The pain and loss caused by the events of January 8, 2011, are incalculable,” Mr. Kelly said. “Avoiding a trial will allow us—and we hope the whole Southern Arizona community—to continue with our recovery and move forward with our lives.”

Is Jared Loughner Going toto Plead Guilty in Tucson Massacre Shooting?

It is being reported at the LA Times that Jared Lee Loughner is going to plead guilty to the shooting deaths in the Tucson massacre. Loughner is charged in the January 8, 2011 Tucson, AZ massacre where six people were killed, including 9 year old Christina Greene. Loughner also injured 13 people, including US Rep. Gabby Giffords (AZ-D) who was shot in the head and has since retired from Congress. It is suspected that mental health officials will now state that Loughner is now competent to understand the charges against him and he is expected to present his plea in federal district court Tuesday.

Jared Lee Loughner is set to plead guilty Tuesday in the shooting attack that severely wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, according to knowledgeable sources, as mental health officials believe he is now competent to understand the charges against him in the assault, which killed six people and injured 13 at a gathering with the congresswoman’s constituents in Tucson.

At the hearing Tuesday morning in U.S. District Court in Tucson, psychiatric experts who have examined Loughner, 23, are scheduled to testify that they have concluded that despite wide swings in his mental capacity, at this time he comprehends what happened and acknowledges the gravity of the charges, according to two sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case was still unfolding.

Judge Edward Burmila Halts Trial Abruptly After Prosecution Elicits “Low Blow” Testimony … Will Judge Grant Mistrial in the Drew Peterson Murder Trial in the Death of Kathleen Savio?

Will the murder trial of Drew Peterson in the death of Kathleen Savio be over before it has barely started? We will find out today as court was halted abruptly yesterday by Judge Burmila after the prosecution attempted to enter questionable evidence into the case that they could not prove. The Judge called it a “low blow”. Could the judge call a mistrial or will the murder case against Peterson, the former Bollingbrook police officer go forward?

After angrily upbraiding prosecutors for improperly introducing evidence, the judge presiding over the Drew Peterson murder trial abruptly halted the proceedings, sent the jury home and said he will rule Thursday on how the case will move forward.

It was the second time in as many days that the judge appeared to consider granting the defense’s request for a mistrial. Despite the seemingly made-for-TV cliffhanger, prosecutors, defense attorneys, experts and even the judge indicated that stopping now was unlikely.

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Drew Peterson Murder Trail of Third Wife Kathleen Savio Begins Today in Joliet, Illinois … Opening Arguments

It’s finally here … will there be Justice for Kathleen Savio?

In 2004 Drew Peterson’s third wife Kathleen Savio was found dead in a bath tub, the death was ruled as an accidental death. It was not until the disappearance and presumed death of Drew Peterson’s fourth wife Stacy Peterson. That opened up speculation into to how Savio might have died. Her body was exhumed and it was determined that her death was actually a drowning by homicide.  Drew Peterson was then arrested and charged in the murder of Kathleen Savio.

Finally, three years after he was arrested and eight years after Kathleen Savio was found dead, the murder trial begins today for Drew Peterson, the former Bolingbrook, IL police officer. Peterson’s defense attorney Joel Brodsky has stated he planned to use his opening statement to “tell the story of Drew Peterson from beginning to end … and show the state’s theory is implausible at best.” One has to wonder how the media attention starved Drew Peterson will act in court in front of the jurors and whether it will make him sympathetic or a pariah. The defense is expected to argue that Savio’s death was an accident and that there is no physical evidence placing Peterson at the scene of her death.

JUSTICE FOR KATHLEEN SAVIO

Eight and a half years after his third wife was found dead in a bathtub, the murder trial of former Chicago-area police officer Drew Peterson is set to begin in earnest with opening statements Tuesday.

The 58-year-old Peterson is accused in the 2004 death of his third wife, Kathleen Savio, in a trial that has been postponed for two years. He also remains under investigation in the October 2007 disappearance of his fourth wife, Stacy Peterson.

A jury of seven men and five women, chosen over two days last week, will weigh Drew Peterson’s fate during a trial in Joliet, Illinois, that is expected to last about a month, according to his lawyer Joel Brodsky.

Drew Peterson murder trial finally set to begin.

Though the trial officially began last week with the selection of a seven-man, five-woman jury, Will County Judge Edward Burmila reserved opening statements for this week. Prosecutors and defense attorneys are preparing to explain for the first time to Peterson’s jurors what they should expect to hear during the highly anticipated case.

Opening statements are expected to begin Tuesday morning after Burmila and the attorneys first address two last-minute motions by Peterson’s defense team. The contents of the motions were sealed.