Deceased/Not Found IL - Yingying Zhang, 26, Urbana, 9 June 2017 #11 *GUILTY*

[kittythehare]

two new articles.

Brendt Christensen Today: Where Is Yingying Zhang's Killer Now?

Brendt Christensen is imprisoned at the USP Coleman II, a high-security federal penitentiary in Sumterville, Florida, according to his prison records. He is incarcerated within the federal prison system because his case was investigated by the FBI.

USP Coleman II is located in central Florida and houses 1,0237 male inmates, the prison website says. A handbook given to inmates details their rules, procedures and daily life. You can read the handbook in full here.


The second article concerns Michelle. It is brief
states
Michelle Zortman seems to be doing well based on her Facebook profile. In any case, things may not exactly have been easy for her too, since she allegedly moved out of state and even changed her surname in the wake of the whole case.
Brendt Christensen’s Ex-Wife Now 2020: Where is Michelle Zortman Today? Update
lightweight and hardly worth the time.

 

[kittythehare]

So Coleman 11 is closed to visitors.
Here's the Commissary List https://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/clp/COX_CommList.pdf
( lots of different shampoo types, God I'm a creep!)

Legal stuff https://www.bop.gov/policy/progstat/1315_007.pdf

all of it

USP Coleman II

I expect an appeal.
But I'd need sedation to sit through it again..

ETA - it's not that bad at all according to this booklet. So much for our fantasies about the other prisoners punishing him physically. It's unlikely to happen here if everything goes according to this handbook. (Fck him!)
https://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/clp/CLP_aohandbook.pdf

 

[dm92]

So Coleman 11 is closed to visitors.
Here's the Commissary List https://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/clp/COX_CommList.pdf
( lots of different shampoo types, God I'm a creep!)

Legal stuff https://www.bop.gov/policy/progstat/1315_007.pdf

all of it

USP Coleman II

I expect an appeal.
But I'd need sedation to sit through it again..

ETA - it's not that bad at all according to this booklet. So much for our fantasies about the other prisoners punishing him physically. It's unlikely to happen here if everything goes according to this handbook. (Fck him!)
https://www.bop.gov/locations/institutions/clp/CLP_aohandbook.pdf

I am just speculating here, but my guess is he was moved for his protection. I tend to believe he basically did what he said when it comes to disposing of her body, but if he is lying about that and her remains are somewhere else, there is no way he could ever change his mind and reveal her location if he ends up killed by another inmate first.

Cousin Yeti said he did not appeal, so I thought everything is done and final. However, he did mention that he thought they might attack the verdict, which is something else I am not clear about. Perhaps he can let us know what that is about and what it would entail.

 

[kittythehare]

I am just speculating here, but my guess is he was moved for his protection. I tend to believe he basically did what he said when it comes to disposing of her body, but if he is lying about that and her remains are somewhere else, there is no way he could ever change his mind and reveal her location if he ends up killed by another inmate first.

Cousin Yeti said he did not appeal, so I thought everything is done and final. However, he did mention that he thought they might attack the verdict, which is something else I am not clear about. Perhaps he can let us know what that is about and what it would entail.

He was in a transit prison awaiting his permanent prison according to article from Heavy.
Nothing to do with his protection... just par for the course.. transit lounge type thing..

They did request the transcripts , I think it's likely they will try something, anything..just so long as somebody foots the bill...
Be a nightmare to sit through this again..
I very much doubt he will ever disclose her location to a prison mate..

BUT, again from the Heavy article, a snippet of his 'confession' to @TEB.. He will never tell anybody where she is.. now,if she was simply in landfill, why such a secret? It just hit me again while reading it..
He had nothing to lose by telling tEB he had thrown her in the sea or in landfill... so why did he almost gloat about the keeping of that particular secret when he had already confessed to murder?

UNLESS... the reality of 4 walls and no door ever is getting to him and he's thinking he might throw some crumbs at the plebs again, just for the hell of it and the fawning babysitting defense attorneys will hasten to fulfill his every need...

probably while reading websleuths..

 

[dm92]

He was in a transit prison awaiting his permanent prison according to article from Heavy.
Nothing to do with his protection... just par for the course.. transit lounge type thing..

After his sentencing, he was held in Livingston County for a while, then he was transferred to the OKC transit facility. From there he went to USP McCreary in Kentucky, where he was housed for a month or two. He was then sent back to OKC, then moved to Coleman II where he is now.

 

[CousinYeti]

I am just speculating here, but my guess is he was moved for his protection. I tend to believe he basically did what he said when it comes to disposing of her body, but if he is lying about that and her remains are somewhere else, there is no way he could ever change his mind and reveal her location if he ends up killed by another inmate first.

Cousin Yeti said he did not appeal, so I thought everything is done and final. However, he did mention that he thought they might attack the verdict, which is something else I am not clear about. Perhaps he can let us know what that is about and what it would entail.

He did not appeal, you are correct. After the appellate process is complete, however, there is still a potential post-conviction proceeding where he could attack his conviction / sentence. Usually that requires alleging some constitutional error. I'm not sure what he would allege - they tried to build a bunch of such "errors" into the record specifically to give him the option for such a post-conviction motion. He has one year from the day his deadline to appeal expired. His deadline to appeal was 14 days after judgment was entered. I don't recall when that was off the top of my head, but it would have been close to his sentencing. So the one year deadline is coming up soon. If he's going to file, we should know in the next month or so.

The interesting thing would be whether, if he won, we could seek the death penalty again....and if we could, whether we would simply concede his motion, give him another trial, and go for another shot at the death penalty. It would be a lot of complex litigation. I tend to think that if he files, we would simply defend the conviction as is, and he would likely lose the motion if we did so. You never know though. Judges do strange things sometimes, and the criminal justice system is under attack like never before right now.

 

[Parametric]

In other news: At the CourtListener page , it has been recorded that the Court has given notice that official transcripts have been filed for the pre-trial hearings that took place in October 2018 to January 2019. After a review period where redactions can be requested, the transcripts from the hearings should be made available to the public online 90 days after the initial filing. For most of them, that would be around June 4th, 2020.

Just curious if there's an update on this. I know a few people have asked about transcripts, but my knowledge of how the process works is limited.

The courtlistener site links to pacer, but that's clearly not intended for the public.

 

[lynneboh]

Lawsuit filed by Yingying Zhang's family against UI social workers dismissed again

 

[altojack]

Hi Sleuthers, isn't it great to have so many questions answered? Thanks so much.

I did pop in a while back and had a good read, it's the first time On WS that I've seen a professional pop in and give us all the gossip and answers they can. I must say I feel much better about so much of this case now than I did previously.

I understand why the landfill didn't go ahead, like I mentioned way back, the Corrie McKeague, it's here on WS, case involved landfill search and all for nothing. The time, effort and cost was over £2m if I recollect.

I would have preferred the DP for the monster, but I am happy he's locked away. The poor Zheng's are never going to find piece and my heart still breaks for Mrs Zhang.

 

[Raptors001]

Hi Sleuthers, isn't it great to have so many questions answered? Thanks so much.

I did pop in a while back and had a good read, it's the first time On WS that I've seen a professional pop in and give us all the gossip and answers they can. I must say I feel much better about so much of this case now than I did previously.

I understand why the landfill didn't go ahead, like I mentioned way back, the Corrie McKeague, it's here on WS, case involved landfill search and all for nothing. The time, effort and cost was over £2m if I recollect.

I would have preferred the DP for the monster, but I am happy he's locked away. The poor Zheng's are never going to find piece and my heart still breaks for Mrs Zhang.

Still pisses me off that tax payers feeding him and giving him a place to live

 

[altojack]

Still pisses me off that tax payers feeding him and giving him a place to live

Here in UK there's no DP now, hanging was stopped years ago because of wrongly convicted people being hung.

There must be a way to get this right. If there is sufficient evidence that a person is guilty then DP for them. JMO.

Makes my blood boil to think of the numbers of criminals that we as tax payers are paying for their keep, whether here in UK or US.

 

[dm92]

Just curious if there's an update on this. I know a few people have asked about transcripts, but my knowledge of how the process works is limited.

The courtlistener site links to pacer, but that's clearly not intended for the public.

I have been busy the past month, but I will try to take a look and see what I can dig up

 

[TEB]

As someone involved in the case, I just want to share a small article that came out 2 weeks ago. I understand this forum is intended to try to help sleuth out questions, and that there has been a lot of sadness and grief for those the case touch personally as well as those who followed it.

There are many narratives in a case. The one the defense wanted to voice was that of the criminal and his family. I do grieve for his family and friends and the shock and horror they must have felt. But the narrative that should prevail is not his, it’s hers. If I can just take a moment to show the spotlight on the aftermath, this article gives updates on the family:

Family suffers unbearable pain over loss of Zhang Yingying- China.org.cn

I think it is worth noting that the incredible love YingYing’s parents have is a great credit to them as well as to YingYing. Having met the family, I can say with certainty that I look up to them. They have handled everything with grace and dignity despite the whole tragedy being unimaginably painful.

If people follow true crime, I hope they can ultimately see people, not just characters. I think seeing all of the people involved in and impacted by the investigation and legal process has taught me to be more humane in our my own life. I hope hearing about the family and the new chapter in their life can humanize them and the case just a bit more.

I hope everyone is staying safe.

TEB

 

[kittythehare]

As someone involved in the case, I just want to share a small article that came out 2 weeks ago. I understand this forum is intended to try to help sleuth out questions, and that there has been a lot of sadness and grief for those the case touch personally as well as those who followed it.

There are many narratives in a case. The one the defense wanted to voice was that of the criminal and his family. I do grieve for his family and friends and the shock and horror they must have felt. But the narrative that should prevail is not his, it’s hers. If I can just take a moment to show the spotlight on the aftermath, this article gives updates on the family:

Family suffers unbearable pain over loss of Zhang Yingying- China.org.cn

I think it is worth noting that the incredible love YingYing’s parents have is a great credit to them as well as to YingYing. Having met the family, I can say with certainty that I look up to them. They have handled everything with grace and dignity despite the whole tragedy being unimaginably painful.

If people follow true crime, I hope they can ultimately see people, not just characters. I think seeing all of the people involved in and impacted by the investigation and legal process has taught me to be more humane in our my own life. I hope hearing about the family and the new chapter in their life can humanize them and the case just a bit more.

I hope everyone is staying safe.

TEB

"I can't feel anything except the anguish suffered by my daughter," Zhang said expressionlessly.

 

[kittythehare]

I'm unconvinced he ever threw her in the rubbish.
'cos he planned this, perhaps for a very long time, his plans surely included a disposal plan.
Just sayin'.
I wouldn't mind having an entire new look at this case and the geographies of what was possible within the time he had.
I accept he didn't take her to the cornfields, I never subscribed to that notion.
There may be a place he knew of, he lived there a long time, wasn't always a recluse .
It would mean researching all his student days, all his classmates and any acquaintances he ever had and figuring out where they used to hang out..
A cellar or other underground place... a little known local secret...??

 

[Laughing]

As someone involved in the case, I just want to share a small article that came out 2 weeks ago. I understand this forum is intended to try to help sleuth out questions, and that there has been a lot of sadness and grief for those the case touch personally as well as those who followed it.

There are many narratives in a case. The one the defense wanted to voice was that of the criminal and his family. I do grieve for his family and friends and the shock and horror they must have felt. But the narrative that should prevail is not his, it’s hers. If I can just take a moment to show the spotlight on the aftermath, this article gives updates on the family:

Family suffers unbearable pain over loss of Zhang Yingying- China.org.cn

I think it is worth noting that the incredible love YingYing’s parents have is a great credit to them as well as to YingYing. Having met the family, I can say with certainty that I look up to them. They have handled everything with grace and dignity despite the whole tragedy being unimaginably painful.

If people follow true crime, I hope they can ultimately see people, not just characters. I think seeing all of the people involved in and impacted by the investigation and legal process has taught me to be more humane in our my own life. I hope hearing about the family and the new chapter in their life can humanize them and the case just a bit more.

I hope everyone is staying safe.

TEB

They, and you, have handled everything with grace and dignity despite the whole tragedy being unimaginably painful.

Thanks for stopping by! I cannot imagine the Zhang's pain & distress.

JMHO YMMV LRR

 

[dm92]

As someone involved in the case, I just want to share a small article that came out 2 weeks ago. I understand this forum is intended to try to help sleuth out questions, and that there has been a lot of sadness and grief for those the case touch personally as well as those who followed it.

There are many narratives in a case. The one the defense wanted to voice was that of the criminal and his family. I do grieve for his family and friends and the shock and horror they must have felt. But the narrative that should prevail is not his, it’s hers. If I can just take a moment to show the spotlight on the aftermath, this article gives updates on the family:

Family suffers unbearable pain over loss of Zhang Yingying- China.org.cn

I think it is worth noting that the incredible love YingYing’s parents have is a great credit to them as well as to YingYing. Having met the family, I can say with certainty that I look up to them. They have handled everything with grace and dignity despite the whole tragedy being unimaginably painful.

If people follow true crime, I hope they can ultimately see people, not just characters. I think seeing all of the people involved in and impacted by the investigation and legal process has taught me to be more humane in our my own life. I hope hearing about the family and the new chapter in their life can humanize them and the case just a bit more.

I hope everyone is staying safe.

TEB

Thanks for that. Hope you are doing well.

I drove by her memorial the other day for the first time in a few weeks. I noticed that the makeshift memorial around the tree had been mostly cleaned up, although a string of pictures was still attached to the tree. I must admit that seeing no more flowers or the stuffed animals made me a little sad.

 

[Koalium]

Here in UK there's no DP now, hanging was stopped years ago because of wrongly convicted people being hung.

There must be a way to get this right. If there is sufficient evidence that a person is guilty then DP for them. JMO.

Makes my blood boil to think of the numbers of criminals that we as tax payers are paying for their keep, whether here in UK or US.

No.
Death penalty was abolished for good in the United Kingdom because of the 13th protocol to the European Convention on human rights

 

[TEB]

Hello everyone,

Though the documentary “Finding YingYing” does not provide criminal or legal information, I stated a while back that it was a very special film that shows aspects of what happened in a way that I think people might want to see if they are able. I feel like it goes beyond ‘true crime,’ and is deeply personal. Many excerpts from YingYing’s journal are read throughout.

While I was wary of making any post that seemed like any kind of ‘promotion,’ I feel like this is important. It is a chance to see a deeper side of the impact crime has on people and, having viewed it once, it is something I feel is worth sharing with anyone who has been invested in this case and even those who have not. So I hope I’m not overstepping by sharing this here.

The film is now accessible digitally in some regions through film festivals.

There is a link through the Chicago Film Festival which will be available to stream October 14-25 from locations in the United States. There is an additional livestream with the film maker this Friday October 16th at 9pm CST.

Finding Yingying - Cinema Chicago

Additionally, the film continues to show at other online film festivals shown in this link:

See the Film — Finding Yingying

It looks like all of the film festivals will be limited to the US or regions of the US, but the film has been picked up by MTV Documentary films. There is a link to an article describing what that could mean below:

'Beautiful Something Left Behind,' 'Finding Yingying' Nabbed by MTV Documentary Films

I hope that it will be more widely accessible one day, but it is still ‘on tour’ as an art film even though film festivals have gone digital due to the pandemic.

I hope everyone is staying safe. I don’t want to inundate the thread with promotional materials, but I wanted to at least make sure to make this information available.

TEB

 

[roche.analisa]

Hello everyone,

Though the documentary “Finding YingYing” does not provide criminal or legal information, I stated a while back that it was a very special film that shows aspects of what happened in a way that I think people might want to see if they are able. I feel like it goes beyond ‘true crime,’ and is deeply personal. Many excerpts from YingYing’s journal are read throughout.

While I was wary of making any post that seemed like any kind of ‘promotion,’ I feel like this is important. It is a chance to see a deeper side of the impact crime has on people and, having viewed it once, it is something I feel is worth sharing with anyone who has been invested in this case and even those who have not. So I hope I’m not overstepping by sharing this here.

The film is now accessible digitally in some regions through film festivals.

There is a link through the Chicago Film Festival which will be available to stream October 14-25 from locations in the United States. There is an additional livestream with the film maker this Friday October 16th at 9pm CST.

Finding Yingying - Cinema Chicago

Additionally, the film continues to show at other online film festivals shown in this link:

See the Film — Finding Yingying

It looks like all of the film festivals will be limited to the US or regions of the US, but the film has been picked up by MTV Documentary films. There is a link to an article describing what that could mean below:

'Beautiful Something Left Behind,' 'Finding Yingying' Nabbed by MTV Documentary Films

I hope that it will be more widely accessible one day, but it is still ‘on tour’ as an art film even though film festivals have gone digital due to the pandemic.

I hope everyone is staying safe. I don’t want to inundate the thread with promotional materials, but I wanted to at least make sure to make this information available.

TEB

Much appreciated! Thank you!