MO - Elizabeth Olten, 9, St Martin's, 21 Oct 2009 #9

[Jodibug]

NEVERMIND! :banghead:

No need for that!

I just wanted to make it clear that there were no Alyssa supporters there.

 

[Robyn623]

I am very happy to hear AB will now be charged as an adult. Anyone know what will go at the 1pm hearing? Will this just be where she pleads guilty or not guilty? It seems like she has been pretty forthcoming so I am wondering if she will accept a plea deal if one is offered.

 

[PeriodicalCuriosity]

Jodibug, thanks for sharing the court room information. When you said that she showed no emotion UNTIL she was formally arrested, does that mean that she did at least show emotion?

 

[LadyBug99]

Thank you Jodibug for going and sharing all your information with us! Much appreciation!!

Do you know if they are allowing video at the 1pm hearing?

 

[gliving]

http://twitpic.com/pzump

pic of folks outside the hearing.

Aside: what kind of kid spends a day off school digging graves? No need to answer.

 

[vjlaw]

No need for that!

I just wanted to make it clear that there were no Alyssa supporters there.

Did they say anything about a court appointed lawyer or if Valentine will continue with adult court.

 

[Robyn623]

gliving, it says image not found. Can anyone else see it?

 

[Jodibug]

Jodibug, thanks for sharing the court room information. When you said that she showed no emotion UNTIL she was formally arrested, does that mean that she did at least show emotion?

I actually didn't see anything that I would call emotion, but W8Nc said that she saw emotion then and I will take her word for it. I was just trying to hang on to my daughter and keep from crying (too much). When I looked up they were leading her out and it looked to me like she was not willingly walking forward.... but that thought/sight only lasted a second. There were TONS of LE in the building so it's not like she had a choice.

 

[PeriodicalCuriosity]

Jodibug, you are a sweet soul. Thanks again.

 

[Jodibug]

Did they say anything about a court appointed lawyer or if Valentine will continue with adult court.

As a matter of routine, he was officially dismissed.

No idea if he will continue to serve as her attorney.... but I should know in about two hours!

W8Nc was not sure if she would be able to get back up there today, but I hope to see her there again.

I am able to go because right after that (they said the hearing would be brief) I have to take my youngest to the doctor. So I won't be back immediately posting, but I will call my sister Steph and update her with anything learned.

 

[danni]

Jodibug, I want to thank you for being there and not just for being there but for showing your support and allowing others to support Elizabeth's family with the ribbons you willingly made up and handed out.

Its amazing what a simple roll of ribbon can do for a family that is going through so much!

 

[droptoplesabre]

gliving, it says image not found. Can anyone else see it?

i couldnt see it either,,maybe we need a "twitter" account.

 

[AmandaReckonwith]

Pictures of Alyssa and the rest of the case pics:

http://s296.photobucket.com/albums/mm166/crankycrankerson/Elizabeth%20Olten/

 

[pghbrandi]

Jodibug, Thank you very much for all of the info. You are a wonderful person to make those ribbons and show your support.

 

[gliving]

I guess the twitpic has been deleted. It was maybe the attorneys? Just a couple of men in suits. I don't know why he deleted it. I'll check my cache.

 

[Jodibug]

Thanks for the sweet comments about the ribbons. Unfortunately there weren't many people there to hand them out to. I wish more people had shown up.

Since we weren't on the same floor as Patty and her family, I don't know if they even knew about them or saw any of them.

 

[gliving]

Possible live feed for later:

http://www.connectmidmissouri.com/news/content.aspx?id=316920

 

[desquire]

As a matter of routine, he was officially dismissed.

No idea if he will continue to serve as her attorney.... but I should know in about two hours!

W8Nc was not sure if she would be able to get back up there today, but I hope to see her there again.

I am able to go because right after that (they said the hearing would be brief) I have to take my youngest to the doctor. So I won't be back immediately posting, but I will call my sister Steph and update her with anything learned.

Thanks for being our eyes on the ground. Arraignments are usually very brief. The judge will explain the charges and the potential penalty, he'll ask the defendant to identify herself, if she's not already represented by a lawyer he'll explain her rights to have one appointed if she is found indigent, she will be asked to enter a plea, bail will be set (or in this case, likely denied), and then he will schedule a preliminary hearing. Should take all of a few minutes and then she will be led away again.

 

[vjlaw]

If I heard correctly, the grand jury is already in progress. I think that is what they said on KRCG 13

 

[desquire]

Her attorney, Kurt Valentine, never once tried to imply that she was innocent. He referred several times to the "acts she committed".

His only "defense" was that "you can't put a 15 year old girl in Dept of Corrections, they won't know what to do with her" and that we don't know that she "can't be rehabilitated in five years, it may be possible and we have to try".

He said that charging her as an adult is giving her a death sentence (which would be fine with me!) because she won't be adequately protected in the Cole County Jail or in DOC (cry me a river!).

He also said that she has tried to commit suicide since her time in Prenger, by ...... cutting herself with her fingernails. (now who thinks that was a serious attempt???)

He said that even though Alyssa has had almost DAILY counseling sessions since September 2007, if we just kept her in treatment at the youth center then maybe the counseling would work before she was 21 because "you can't just throw away a child because of the crime they committed".

blah, blah, blah.

I hope for justice's sake she gets a better lawyer for the criminal trial. It sounds like Valentine put in a minimal effort. I'm not sure whether this has been mentioned already but the testimony in a certification hearing cannot be used against her in the criminal trial, so his "acts she committed" comments disappear. Not that it matters since it sounds as if she gave a confession to police.