TX - 21 arrests in gang rapes of 11yo girl, Cleveland, 2010

[Missizzy]

I'm afraid Marcus' mother was just plain wrong about her son. How I wish mothers would keep an open mind and look at the facts. Just because you love someone with all your heart does NOT mean that you fully know them:

http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=7976010

February 23, 2011

"...."Next thing I know here are the cops swarming up in the yard," SP said.
SP says her son, Marcus Anthony Porchia, is one of the accused suspects who are currently sitting in the Liberty County Jail. "It doesn't look good for him at all, and I hate he is going through this," she said. His mother and grandmother believe there is more to the story.

"It makes me feel extremely bad that he is even caught up in it," his grandmother, ShP, said. "I don't have to lie for Marcus. I'm not going to lie for Marcus because I don't see no way in God's heaven that Marcus fooled with this child."

"I feel for her. I hate it happened. I really do I hate that it happened to her, but my son says he had nothing to do with it, and I believe him...."

more at link

 

[Missizzy]

This is all I can find. I'm assuming Porchia's family came up with 10% of the lessened bail. I guess they lost that money when he reoffended. Just possibly, his loving family are waking up to this young man's very serious problems. No telling how many young girls he's hurt. It's a real shame that the judge didn't leave the bail at the higher amount.

http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/cleveland/news/article_a9147b3a-fc95-5bfe-b89e-1ffb21297f37.html

"....Originally Marcus Porchia had received a $100,000 bond, but it was later reduced to $25,000..."

Several articles state that Porchia worked at a "mental health clinic". I hope he didn't meet his victims there.

 

[Missizzy]

I have no idea if this is related to the child's rape but it is surely disturbing:

http://www.khou.com/news/local/Veteran-prosecutor-in-Cleveland-rape-case-arrested-124728609.html

Veteran Liberty County prosecutor in Cleveland rape case arrested

"One of the prosecutors handling the Cleveland rape case turned himself in to authorities Wednesday on criminal charges..."

and

"...Liberty County District Attorney Mike Little confirms ADA Joseph Warren surrendered to the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office. Warren is charged with tampering with a witness, terroristic threat and deadly conduct. No other details about the charges have been released...."

more at link


What, exactly, is "deadly conduct"?

 

[Missizzy]

Texas penal code definition of "deadly conduct":

http://blog.austindefense.com/2006/...efinition-of-deadly-conduct-texas-penal-code/

§ 22.05. DEADLY CONDUCT.

(a) A person commits an offense if he recklessly engages in conduct that places another in imminent danger of serious bodily injury.

(b) A person commits an offense if he knowingly discharges a firearm at or in the direction of:

(1) one or more individuals; or
(2) a habitation, building, or vehicle and is reckless as to whether the habitation, building, or vehicle is occupied.

(c) Recklessness and danger are presumed if the actor knowingly pointed a firearm at or in the direction of another whether or not the actor believed the firearm to be loaded.

(d) For purposes of this section, "building," "habitation," and "vehicle" have the meanings assigned those terms by Section 30.01.

(e) An offense under Subsection (a) is a Class A misdemeanor. An offense under Subsection (b) is a felony of the third degree.

 

[Missizzy]

Oh, how I recall the drama in small Texas towns. There's much I love about Texas but the drama wasn't one of them. It sounds like there was a dog issue. How that plays in with the pending case is unclear.


http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=8224644

ADA accused of deadly conduct still on the job

"Liberty County's assistant district attorney is still on the job and some are wondering why. Joe Warren faces charges of tampering with a witness, making a terroristic threat and deadly conduct. This arrest has raised many eyebrows across Liberty County. The assistant DA has kept his job despite the allegations against him. In the small city of Cleveland, much of the talk Thursday is about the arrest of Warren. "Can they trust him as a DA?"

and

"...At this point, Warren has not been indicted. He's been arrested and bonded out of jail...."

more at link (plus video)

Great to see that Quannel X is weighing in on the issue. That always "helps".

 

[Missizzy]

An update:

http://news.yahoo.com/14-men-charged-sex-assaults-texas-girl-091239347.html

14 men charged in sex assaults of Texas girl
July 6, 2011

"More than a dozen men accused of taking part in a series of sexual assaults on an 11-year-old girl are expected in court Wednesday in a case that has divided and horrified their southeast Texas town.

The 14 men, who along with five juvenile boys are facing charges, are scheduled to be in a state district courtroom in Liberty for status updates. The investigation began in December, after one of the girl's friends told a teacher he had seen a lurid cell phone video that showed the girl being raped..."

and

"...Authorities say the girl was assaulted on at least five occasions, sometimes by as many as seven or eight young men or boys at a time, from mid-September to early December..."

more at link


Note: I think this is the first time it's been revealed that there was another rape in December.

 

[Missizzy]

Another article from July 6th:

Texas gang rape case delayed over DNA testing

"DNA testing delays prompted a judge Wednesday to push back until October the cases of 14 men accused of taking part in a series of sexual assaults on an 11-year-old girl that have horrified and divided their small southeast Texas town.

The men are part of a group of 19 individuals charged in the alleged assaults. Twelve of them, including one who remains jailed, appeared in state district court for status updates on their cases. Two others who remain jailed did not appear in court but also had their cases reset. Prosecutor Joe Warren asked for delays in the cases because it could be another four to six weeks before DNA testing of evidence is complete. The testing is being done by the Texas Department of Public Safety...."

more at link

So, this confirms that all of the accused have bailed out except for one. I wonder if the one man still in jail is the one who committed another rape of a child while out on bail the first go round? This also confirms that Joe Warren is still on the job, in spite of being arrested for "deadly conduct" and tampering with a witness. Hmmmm. Has anyone considered a change of venue here?

 

[Missizzy]

I'm gobsmacked. Marcus Porchia is walking free tonight. How many more little girls does he have to rape before they keep him locked up?

From Vinelink:


MARCUS ANTHONY PORCHIA
Offender ID: 11060917422745
Date of Birth: 08/24/1984
Age: 26
Race: African American
Gender: Male

Custody Status: Out of Custody
Date: 07/06/2011
Reason: Bonded out



The article about Porchia raping another young girl (and possibly impregnating her) while out on bond:

http://www.khou.com/news/local/Susp...-accused-of-raping-14-year-old-123654624.html

 

[tlcya]

Laying low and lurking mostly or not - this is very unsettling. Very unsettling.

 

[tlcya]

I miss ws and I miss you missizzy. Bottom lining it here.

I cannot ever describe how this one has captured my soul. My concern for this child. My worry that in this small venue, things get swept beneath the carpet. I thank you, for you vigilance, you concern, your attention.

 

[Missizzy]

I miss you too, tlcox. Very much. I'll keep updating and you check back in as you see fit. There's a current running under this case that's actually right out in the open, IMO. I wish it would be exposed. Can't someone ask some pertinent questions about how these young people met. I believe I know but I don't have proof.

I really wish that this county would hand this off for a change of venue. There's just TOO much dirty pool and cronyism and acrimony for justice to get done, IMO.

 

[Tuffy]

I'm gobsmacked. Marcus Porchia is walking free tonight. How many more little girls does he have to rape before they keep him locked up?

From Vinelink:


MARCUS ANTHONY PORCHIA
Offender ID: 11060917422745
Date of Birth: 08/24/1984
Age: 26
Race: African American
Gender: Male

Custody Status: Out of Custody
Date: 07/06/2011
Reason: Bonded out



The article about Porchia raping another young girl (and possibly impregnating her) while out on bond:

http://www.khou.com/news/local/Susp...-accused-of-raping-14-year-old-123654624.html

Who bonds a guy like this out of jail?

 

[Missizzy]

Sadly, we're going to need the thread header changed:

http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/clev...cle_9a0a0b23-354c-5e66-af9d-afccca5cb577.html

20th male charged in 'Cleveland gang rape case'
August 25, 2011

"A 20th male has been charged in what has come to be known as the “Cleveland gang rape case.” Sources close to the case said that the person recently arrested was a minor at the time of the alleged crime but has since reached the age of an adult.
However, he will be charged as a minor; therefore his name will not be revealed to the media...."

more at link (plus comments)

 

[wfgodot]

L-o-n-g and interesting GQ article about the case, by Kathy Dobie, well worth a read:

The Girl from Trails End

---
By mid-December, TV-news trucks were gathered outside the high school. Reporters ducked into pews at church services and, notebooks in hand, grimly worked the playgrounds. Each new development brought another wave of media attention. Frustrated, a Cleveland teenager posted on Facebook, "man yall y r we still on the f/ckin news they need to let that sh/t go." The story, already red-hot, became inflammatory when it was reported that all of the suspects were black and the victim Hispanic. Friends and relatives of the men and boys were quoted defending them and blaming the girl, who they said acted much older than 11, wearing makeup and sexy clothes. They speculated that she had probably lied about her age, so how were the males to know? The New York Times was roundly castigated for its "rape-friendly" coverage of the assault, which was heavy on sympathetic quotes about the defendants and uncritical of malicious comments about the victim. After receiving tens of thousands of readers' complaints, the Times took the extraordinary step of sending its reporter back to Cleveland for a do-over, and the media began to cover its own coverage. Clearly no one was planning to "let that sh/t go" anytime soon.
---

the rest at link above

 

[Salem]

Wow! Great read. Thanks wfgodot!

Salem

ETA: I wish I could wrap this girl up in my arms and let her know that it will all be okay

 

[Steely Dan]

Wow! Great read. Thanks wfgodot!

Salem

ETA: I wish I could wrap this girl up in my arms and let her know that it will all be okay

I haven't read it yet. I have a feeling it will greatly disturb me, but I'll get around to it soon.

 

[LadyL]

L-o-n-g and interesting GQ article about the case, by Kathy Dobie, well worth a read:

The Girl from Trails End

the rest at link above

thanks for posting wfgodot

from the article:

According to police documents, Eric McGowen called Regina and asked if she wanted to go for a ride. McGowen and two others—Jared Cruse, 18, and a 16-year-old boy whose identity has been protected because he's a minor—picked Regina up in Trails End.

[bbm] so I'd like to know how Eric had the victim's phone # to begin with? was he one of her FB 'friends'?

Most of the teenagers and children who knew kept it among themselves, but someone reported it to the principal.

[bbm] and bless the youth who reported it!

 

[LadyL]

I miss you too, tlcox. Very much. I'll keep updating and you check back in as you see fit. There's a current running under this case that's actually right out in the open, IMO. I wish it would be exposed. Can't someone ask some pertinent questions about how these young people met. I believe I know but I don't have proof.

I really wish that this county would hand this off for a change of venue. There's just TOO much dirty pool and cronyism and acrimony for justice to get done, IMO.

[bbm]

we can speculate can't we?
or we can post links where there are interesting/possibly informative comments

I was thinking gang members & they 'initiated' the victim in ...

 

[Missizzy]

If they were gang members, I'm very afraid that they were allowed (without proper background checks) to access children through a particular children's center. That center and the directors might have the best of intentions but I get a strong sense that safety rules and supervision regulations were not always a priority and these teens and men took advantage of that fact.

Being that I don't see connections between the perps and the victim through church, the neighborhood or school and I seem to remember finding some crossover at that center, that's my suspicion.

Hopefully, if this is true, that center has tightened up its rules considerably. Child rapists will use anything to access the children.

 

[jjenny]

I don't see any evidence they have met at some sort of center. The articles I've seen so far indicate the 11 year old liked to hang out in particular neighborhoods. Which is where she most likely met these men.