UPDATE: 3 p.m.
The capital murder trial of Steven Lawayne Nelson has adjourned for the day. Testimony is set to resume on Tuesday morning.
-Dianna Hunt
UPDATE: 1:37 p.m.
Convicted killer Steven Lawayne Nelson had concealed three razor blades in his cell while he was in trial on Monday waiting for the jury to convict him of capital murder in the death of an Arlington pastor.
A jail official testified Tuesday that the three razor blades were hidden inside letters among Nelson's belongings. The razors could be used to make another weapon or to harm himself or another inmate or guard, he testifed.
"A lot of damage could be done with one of these razor blades," he said.
The jury in state District Judge Mike Thomas' court is considering whether to give Nelson a death sentence or life in prison without parole. The jury convicted Nelson on Monday of capital murder in the death of pastor Clint Dobson, 28, who was suffocated with a plastic bag during a robbery. Church secretary Judy Elliott was also beaten and left for dead but survived.
The punishment phase of the trial is expected to continue throughout the week.
-Dianna Hunt
UPDATE: 10 a.m.
Is Steven Lawayne Nelson's mom to blame?
Defense attorney Steve Gordon presented an evaluation by Oklahoma juvenile authorities that concluded Nelson's mother "abandoned him psychologically" when he was a young child.
Gordon asked the questions during cross-examination of Ronnie Meeks, a former caseworker for Nelson in the Oklahoma juvenile system.
-Dianna Hunt
Convicted killer Steven Lawayne Nelson was incarcerated in Oklahoma juvenile facilities at a young age because he kept committing crimes despite efforts to rehabilitate him, an Oklahoma juvenile officer testified Tuesday.
Ronnie Meeks, with the Office of Juvenile Affairs in Oklahoma, told jurors considering punishment for Nelson that he handled Nelson when he was 11 to 12 years old. He said every effort to help him was shrugged off.
At one point, Nelson stole Meeks trucks while being transported to an juvenile facility.
"That's the thing I remember about Steven. I don't remember ever seeing any remorse about anything," he said.
Prosecutors Bob Gill and Page Simpson are seeking the death penalty against Nelson, who was convicted this week in the brutal suffocation death of pastor Clint Dobson, 28. Dobson, pastor of NorthPointe Baptist Church in Arlington, was beaten, bound and suffocated with a plastic bag. Church secretary Judy Elliott was beaten and left for dead but survived.
Defense attorneys Bill Ray and Steve Gordon have suggested during questioning that Nelson showed signs of problems from a young age but didn't get the help he needed.
Testimony is expected to continue this week during the punishment phase of the trial before state District Judge Mike Thomas.
-Dianna Hunt
If killing a pastor doesn't deserve the death penalty...what in the world does?
Posted by: Skagnelly | October 09, 2012 at 04:20 PM