Slain District Attorney in North Texas Told Friend: “I Know Who Killed My Assistant”
And the person he named, Eric Williams, has now been arrested for the murder of that Assistant — as well as the District Attorney himself, and his wife:
County Judge Bruce Wood said Sunday that [Kaufman County District Attorney Mike] McLelland repeatedly told him that McLelland believed Williams was behind [Assistant District Attorney Mark] Hasse’s slaying. The first time was in the emergency room in the hours after Hasse was shot down by a mysterious gunman dressed in black.
“He was distraught,” Wood said. “He very pointedly said to me, ‘I know who did this.’ I said, ‘Well, who, Mike?’ He said, ‘Well, Eric Williams.’”
McLelland, who worked for years as a diagnostic psychologist, described Williams as “a narcissistic psychopath” during that conversation and others. Wood said McLelland never elaborated on why he thought Williams was involved.
On March 27, Wood said he met with McLelland in the county judge’s office. “I said, ‘Are you still convinced that it’s Eric Williams?’” Wood recalled. “He said, ‘Absolutely.’”
Several days later, the McLellands’ bodies were found in their home near Forney.
If McLelland told this to his friends, that means he told law enforcement. And clearly McLelland was concerned that Williams would come after him, as he pointedly armed himself in the days and weeks before his murder.
And yet apparently law enforcement did not place Williams under surveillance, at least long enough to prevent the murder of Williams or his wife.
D.A. Mike McLelland told a friend he “knew” Eric Williams, a “narcissistic psychopath,” had killed his Assistant Mark Hasse. Williams has now been arrested in the murder of Hasse, McLelland, and McLelland’s wife.
Frankly, if Hasse, the initial victim, had been a police officer instead of an Assistant District Attorney — and McLelland had been his chief, telling people he believed Williams was guilty — it’s hard for me to believe that Williams would not have been under surveillance every second of his life until there was an arrest in the Hasse murder case.
The picture of McLelland going around telling everyone he knew and trusted that he felt he was in danger from this narcissistic psychopath, whom he believed was possibly plotting against his own life, is highly disturbing — especially in light of law enforcement’s failure to protect him and his wife.
More of the evidence in the case has been revealed, by the way:
The day after the bodies of Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland and his wife were found, an anonymous email went to county officials threatening another attack if the writer’s demands were not met.
Law enforcement authorities have since traced the threat to the personal computer of Eric Williams, a former justice of the peace who is now the prime suspect in the slayings. He is expected to be charged with capital murder as early as Tuesday, law enforcement authorities said Sunday.
Authorities on Saturday found numerous weapons inside a Seagoville storage unit linked to Williams as well as a car similar to the one seen leaving the McLellands’ neighborhood on the morning of the Easter weekend slayings.
This all comes via Robert Stacy McCain, who is upset that the media focused on the white supremacist angle of law enforcement suspicion, creating a distraction that McCain argues inhibited the investigation. I’m not sure I agree with that. We don’t know that the reported media angle had anything to do with the focus of the investigation. From the linked story, it sounds like Williams was an early and consistent suspect. They’re not necessarily going to disclose that to the media.
From the publicly known facts, though, the suspicion seemed well grounded: known white supremacist recently killed prison official in Colorado; Aryan Brotherhood announced intent to kill law enforcement; Hasse had worked on an Aryan Brotherhood case. And even if they aren’t behind this murder, the group is still a menace that poses significant danger.
That said, Stacy is clearly right about this: any media outlets or personalities that reported the Aryan Brotherhood angle owe it to their readers and viewers to report these new facts every bit as prominently. I’m looking at you, Martin Nashir and Chris Matthews.
I’m looking at you . . . but as I do so, I’m not holding my breath.
Patterico, it should be McLelland not “Williams or his wife” in the sentence immediately above the picture.
Also, it would be informative to know if DA Mark Hasse worked on a significant Aryan Brotherhood case or if the case he was involved with was relatively small potatoes and the AB angle has been exaggerated to fit the media narrative.
ropelight (fe547a) — 4/15/2013 @ 7:49 amOut this in another persepctive.
A military officer takes computer monitors from a warehouse in a military base (assume it is the same service) for his official use in his office, without filing the proper paperwork.
Would that be a crime?
Michael Ejercito (2e0217) — 4/15/2013 @ 7:55 amThe picture of McLelland going around telling everyone he knew and trusted that he felt he was in danger from this narcissistic psychopath, whom he believed was possibly plotting against his own life, is highly disturbing — especially in light of law enforcement’s failure to protect him and his wife.
And McLelland had guns, and spoke of them, and he had guns hidden all over the house and he said he could defend himself. Of course, maybe he was bluffing.
And they said the killer was probably let into the house, which means his wife probably knew him, or they left the door unlocked (the reasoning was there was no sign of forced entry)
Something is wrong with this picture.
I heard in the middle of the night on Red Eye Radio – I turned it on for around a minute or two – that Williams was arrested for making terroristic threats (against others) and he is now not even officially a suspect in the murders.
And there seem to be some contradictions in what is being leaked. There’s a leak that says a gun (connected woith the crime?) was found in the house and more authoritative (?) leaks saying that’s not true at all.
Maybe this is not the killer at all. I mean if this is the person McLelland suspected, if that story that he susected him is true, how did he get into the house?
A little before he was arrested they were saying they were leaning toward the idea this was an individual – either somebody prosecuted, or somebody fired.
The person on Red Eye radio thought it was unlikely in the first place it was a somewthinbg like a Mexican drug gang. In Mexico this is done to control the police or reporters. They could not think there’s hope of getting there in the United States right now. So they wouldn’t attack a prosecutor in retaliation.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:00 amPerhaps law enforcement encouraged or promoted that angle to keep the real suspect thinking he was several steps ahead of lthe law? But then, encouraging speculation on red-herring possibilities is sort of crime-drama stuff used in fiction books and detective series. I can see how it might encourage a narcissist to be off his guard, though.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:04 amTo clarify, I meant LE encouraging the idea that some cartel or gang was to blame over Williams.
My impression of Williams is that he was all people feared about him, and that given what they found in the storage unit, he’s guilty.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:08 amMichael, there’s a link to a daily beast story in the older thread that puts some shade on the monitor-grab.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:10 amWhy doesn’t the MSM ever refer to standard issue Crips and Blood gangs as black supremacists?
DN (543479) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:15 amSammy, Williams’ storage unit in Seagoville contained a white Ford Crown Victoria, which matches the description of a vehicle reported near the McLelland home the night of the murders.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:16 amSo does that mean, that Ebel jr. actually shot Clement, and why?
narciso (3fec35) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:18 amFrom Dallasnews.com:
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:32 amMichael Ejecito, MURDER is a crime.
Gus (694db4) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:45 amEven if it weren’t a crime, it doesn’t justify his reaction of killing people.
But for what it’s worth, yes, that is obviously a crime. You don’t unilaterally take your company’s office equipment home, even if you justify it by saying you’ll do some work on it. That paperwork you’re mentioning sounds a lot like ‘permission’ to obtain that property, which is the important part of taking it.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:49 amSarah, I agree the evidence is piling up against Eric Williams as the assassin of both Hesse and the McLellands.
However, as the evidence for Williams’ conviction for the 2012 theft slowly emerges in media reports largely focused on the murder investigations, it’s becoming clear the evidence for his conviction was rather thin and if not inconclusive, at least open to interpretation. Also, the accusations of threats and other aggressive behavior (for which he was not charged) seemed to be used against him at every opportunity.
And in the face of an especially aggressive prosecution Williaims was only sentenced to probation. Although as a consequence of his conviction he also lost his job, his law license, and his military appointment.
Did the prosecutors use a trumped-up charge in 2012 to railroad Williams? Did they identify him as a nut case, a narcissistic psychopath, and decide to run him out of office without considering the possibility of violent retaliation?
ropelight (fe547a) — 4/15/2013 @ 9:24 amComment by SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:16 am
Sammy, Williams’ storage unit in Seagoville contained a white Ford Crown Victoria, which matches the description of a vehicle reported near the McLelland home the night of the murders.
The car was a different model than what was reported, but it is said the two makes and models are reasonably similar.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/15/2013 @ 9:41 amMichael E.’s comment began with a quote from a post of mine.
I was not trying to defend or accuse anyone of anything, I was just pointing out that if I intended to steal something from the storage room of my employer, I probably would not then use it in plain sight in my office.
Unless I wanted to act smart and try to get away with stealing it by first putting it to use obviously in my office.
But then again, stealing computer monitors from a government storage wearhouse? Aren’t odds that it was old equipment that had been replaced and maybe would get only $25 at a garage sale?
And why would I make a point of prosecuting something questionable with a defendant who I thought could/would want revenge out of proportion to the original crime.
Again, not trying to excuse anything but putting the entire thing in context with the facts.
If the victim was indeed a diagnostic psychologist, why was he not listened to? If he knew he was not being listened to, why did he stay in town?
And what were the demands in the email?
Just a call to take into account the Murray Gell-Mann amnesia effect.
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/15/2013 @ 9:53 amSammy, my understanding is that the car on the neighborhood surveillance and the one in the storage unit are probably the same. Forensics pending.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:10 am“Why doesn’t the MSM ever refer to standard issue Crips and Blood gangs as black supremacists?
Comment by DN (543479) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:15 am”
Because they aren’t. They are simply out and out thugs, who have no recognizable philosophy; who are quite willing to prey on individuals of any ethnic group, including their own.
Mike Giles (4998ba) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:11 amAre the search warrants public yet?
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:13 amYou trump up bogus charges against someone, prosecute him, causing him to lose his job, law license, military appointment, career, and reputation, and, yeah, such persons can and do react violently. It’s what can happen to the Mike Knifongs of the world when they are not officially called to account. I’ve seen it happen before. Not saying it happened here, but as a possible scenario, it’s there.
G Joubert (a6ce93) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:13 amHaving guns and using guns are two different things.
Actually, deciding to use the gun is for most people the hard part.
Steve57 (b238b6) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:15 amRopelight, I wonder. I have the impression they truly believed his cover story was a lie. We might sometime get a more detailed picture of William’s dealings with IT.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:20 amWhen someone says they have a large number of guns or sending a lot of messages about their using guns, I think it’s mainly a message intended to prevent an attack.
You only need one gun, after all. Keep it with you (lawfully) and you’ll be better protected than stashing a dozen throughout your house. I’m not criticizing the victims… they were just trying to stop a killer.
I do find it intriguing that there are reports of no forced entry, but I disagree with Sammy’s presumptuous conclusions about that. There are a lot of ways to get into a home without breaking in. He could have held up the wife and ordered her to let him in, for example. Or someone forgot to lock the door momentarily on garbage day.
I guess I am on a different wavelength than some of you on this theft issue. A lawyer should be particularly responsible for others’ property (or money), and I’ve never worked anywhere where you can just take office equipment home without permission. It is a minor crime, but one that calls someone’s integrity into question. If that really did lead to three murders, then perhaps the source of the minor crimes was a fundamental lack of morality after all, and we are right to take such problems seriously.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:22 amDustin, I think the misappropriation, the “helping himself” is very serious even if he’s put out with the IT guy and has convinced himself he’s entitled to take whatever computer equipment he wants without requisition. That’s looking at it in the light most favorable to him. He just walked into the area where it was stored and took it away for his own use.
And that’s accepting his story at face value. aybe there is more to it.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:45 amPer DallasNews.com: “Attorney David Sergi no longer represents Eric Williams, who is expected to be charged soonin connection with the slayings of Kaufman County DA Mike McLelland, his wife and an assistant prosecutor.
His receptionist said Sergi is no longer on the case and she did not know who, if anyone, is representing him.”
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:48 amThanks for that update, Sarah.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:55 amWhat’s worse is it risks sending the message you only have the guns in the hope of not using them. Which sort of defeats the purpose.
Steve57 (b238b6) — 4/15/2013 @ 11:07 amComment by Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 10:22 am
You only need one gun, after all.
There’s a better argument for more guns – who knows where you might suddenly realize you need to use one – than there is for more bullets. I don’t think he actually spoke about the number of guns.
Keep it with you (lawfully)
All the time? Policemen are supposed to do that.
I do find it intriguing that there are reports of no forced entry, but I disagree with Sammy’s presumptuous conclusions about that.
That wasn’t my conclusions. It was what I was hearing or reading that the police were saying, and I was wondering about that, as a matter of fact. There obviously could be lots of ways someone could have gotten in.
There are a lot of ways to get into a home without breaking in. He could have held up the wife and ordered her to let him in, for example.
I would more think some sort of a ruse.
Sammy Finkelman (d22d64) — 4/15/2013 @ 11:25 amPatterico:
You wrote above, “That said, Stacy is clearly right about this: any media outlets or personalities that reported the Aryan Brotherhood angle owe it to their readers and viewers to report these new facts every bit as prominently. I’m looking at you, Martin Nashir and Chris Matthews.
“I’m looking at you . . . but as I do so, I’m not holding my breath.”
____________________________
Re Martin Nashir – did you mean Martin Bashir (from CNN)? GLZ.
Gary L. Zerman (7d32a2) — 4/15/2013 @ 11:25 amIf try operate with the same efficacy as the LAPD, they’d be shooting up everyone that was driving the same type of car as Williams if they were hunting a cop killer.
Ghost (2d8874) — 4/15/2013 @ 11:29 amAfter having their Narrative exposed as not just wrong, but terribly, grossly so; these two paragons of journalistic ethics (along with their peers) will just move on and never mention what has occurred.
askeptic (b8ab92) — 4/15/2013 @ 11:31 amIt is what the Progressive Left does.
Dustin, you keep repeating that Williams took office equipment home. He didn’t. He was accused of taking 3 computer monitors from a storage area and putting 2 of them in his office and one in his truck which he said he intended to take to the county jail but hadn’t installed it yet.
Since he’d been back and forth from home to work with the monitor in his truck several times, he obviously had plenty of opportunity to take it home if that was his intention.
ropelight (fe547a) — 4/15/2013 @ 11:33 amI stand corrected, but I only repeated it once.
And I’m sure he did take it home. Where do you think his truck was after he drove home?
I don’t have a problem with someone taking office supplies from storage and then putting it in their office, if you’re talking about a pen. Taking several monitors and filling your office with some and driving some home (even if the thief says they never left his home) is not acceptable behavior to me.
I do appreciate the correction, but it’s seems to me that he did take that one monitor to his home.
Sammy,
I don’t understand why you would do this, but it’s everyone’s individual responsibility to protect themselves. Use your own judgment. I’d rather just carry a single pistol I was very familiar with than hide a series of weapons under various objects in my home. I’d put other weapons in a safe. That way, I wouldn’t worry they were dirty or a kid could access them or someone moved them, and I’d also know for sure I’d be able to protect myself.
To the extent you can lawfully do so, yes, especially if you are concerned about your safety. This seems like a no-brainer.
So?
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 11:53 amDustin’s right. You can keep gun on you at all times. My “always” gun used to be an AMT DAO in .380. It didn’t take any more room in my pants than a wallet. If it weighed more I didn’t notice.
Point being, if you need a gun it has to be within arm’s reach. Otherwise it might as well be on the Moon.
Steve57 (b238b6) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:00 pmThere are better choices than the stainless .380 I used to carry. The .380 at best being marginal. And now 9s are lighter.
Steve57 (b238b6) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:02 pmDustin, maybe you’ve never worked for a large inefficient operation.
In the past I myself and others needed to virtually be on the point of quitting after asking for things that we had been promised for years.
I find no problem at all with a person taking unused items from storage and putting them in his office to use them. Now, if you tell me the person took of identifying tags and tried to pass them off as his own then I would see it as criminal.
The things I was referring to above were new and needed to be obtained. If I was told I could have “X” out of storage and 6 months later my work productivity was suffering because “X” was still in storage collecting dust I would be happy to help myself to it, unless I had to break and enter or physically assault someone to take it.
And if they wanted to discipline me for it I would guess they were more concerneed with something other than work getting done. And I would think it over the top to be charged with a crime.
But that is all dependent on the reliability of the facts we are given.
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:05 pmSteve, I used to carry a Smith .380 Bodyguard in my pocket. Very similar to a classic AMT pocket pistol. It was a double action like yours, of course, which I don’t really like, but it does feel a lot safer, as I wouldn’t use the safety.
It was so easy to carry and I feel that someone really concerned for their safety really should get something like this.
Of course, us guys can throw a ‘big wallet’ in our front pocket without a second thought. Women have to be more creative.
—-
Ropelight, I think our difference of opinion might be based on how reasonable it is to take away someone’s job over essentially a $100 or so offense. My view is that someone in his specific position should have known that he couldn’t do anything perceived as dishonest, and thus should have simply been patient with supply requests. That he couldn’t shows poor judgment and self control. I also admit I’m assuming a history.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:15 pmDustin! Good to see you around.
Leviticus (1aca67) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:23 pmThat’s terrible, and indeed I would probably quit if something I needed for my job was not available to me solely due to inefficiency. At a previous job, I wound up purchasing and supplying things I needed, after my patience ran out waiting for them.
But there’s two sides to that. What if you couldn’t get the monitor you requested because the three monitors in storage were taken by a psychotic coworker? You don’t really need more than one, so I’m not really granting that he was being reasonable.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:23 pmThanks, Leviticus! A rare Monday off for me, which means I can’t spend it with my wife.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:23 pmMd in Philly – in the light most favorable to Williams, he helped himself without asking to all the monitors he wanted for whayever purpose he pleased. I wonder how furtive he looks on the tape. One sort of untold part of the story is Williams’ allusions to some bad blood with the IT guy… There is some history there, although I don’t know it. Maybe that tale of bad blood was all concoction, too….just to cover his actions.
I get the firm impression of a pattern, and a longstanding one, of dishonest dealings. The office supply contretemps is known. His being regarded as a lying narcissist is known. I’m betting the storage unit was a secret until recently, and perhaps under a false name. We know the car he stored there was registered under a false name. We’re all the weapons legally purchased? We’re they purchased at all, or did he maybe help himself to some “training supplies?” Was he ever in charge of money in his military training capacity? I realize I am operations out of hindsight, but I can’t help thinking they had good reason to believe he was lying about his grab of office equipment. I can’t say they proved he belonged in jail over it , but that would be a firing offense even if he didnt mean to convert them to money or for his personal use.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:31 pmThis is not directed to anyone else in particular. I think it’s silly to be guessing and maybe-ing and what if-ing and sort of speculating about the charges and evidence against Williams both new and old. Based on recent history of say, Trayvon, Benghazi, seal team 6, etc. etc., trying to figure out the truth of this case is a fool’s errand, when so much of it just seems to make no sense.
My confidence in any info that is passed off as news these days–especially when it’s based on what is “leaked” to a gullable press is almost zero.
elissa (31efb3) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:31 pmOperations = operating
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:31 pmYou don’t really need more than one, so I’m not really granting that he was being reasonable.
Comment by Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:23 pm
I don’t want to be in an argument over 3rd hand information, so we’ll just call it trying to have a common understanding.
The story i read on this said he wanted to set up a live video link from his office to the jail so he could perform some duties without having to be present. So he needed one monitor to go to the jail, which reportedly was in his truck (wherever his truck was) awaiting to be put in the jail (when he was put in the jail instead). He presumably needed two in his office, perhaps so one could be a feed from a camera pointed at the person being charged and another feed from a camera pointed at a lawyer or jail official or whomever.
I’m just assuming that if a person takes something out of government storage (hence probably old equipment) and puts it in his government office, that is not what I would expect for someone trying to steal things of worth from their employer. Not that it justifies anything other than a person saying, “I’m really mad at you for what I think is unfair treatment”.
My main point is that I’m not satisfied we have the final story yet because i don’t see things adding up. Now, if you told me he was embezzling by buying things for personal use that he was picking up at a loading dock that sounds more like corruption and a crime.
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:37 pmGood point, Elissa.
Then again, when we want to discuss this interesting story and recognize just how poor the media has been with other recent stories, all we can do is maybe and what-if in good faith.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:37 pmThe court testimony indicates a guy who considers murdering people who cross him. One, he threatened in person, and police protection seems to have kept him from approaching his target again. His computer was used to threaten another attack. He was crossed something awful, whether he was done wrong or just caught. If forensics match car and/or guns, it’s over.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:40 pmYou’re right, MD. This isn’t the same as actually selling office equipment on Ebay. But that would explain his lighter sentence. It still ruined his career. And what was his career? I believe his career was based on his ability to exercise good judgment in guiding people through the proper procedure and law, and to resolve conflicts peacefully. Maybe we’ll eventually learn how off base or on target I am about his behavior, which in my limited estimation seems pretty irresponsible. But maybe we won’t. Journalism is lousy lately and it leads to a lot of arguments based entirely on good faith and reasonable folks who filled in the blanks differently.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:41 pmI agree with elissa and SarahW that getting hung up on the interpretation of 3rd hand details is not really very fruitful, which is what I also alluded to with the reference to the Murray Gell-Mann phenomenon.
Millions of people laughed at what Radar O’Reilly and other such types have done trying to work the ridiculousness of a system, that’s all. Taking the story of what he supposedly did at face value doesn’t add up to me with being convicted of a crime that caused him so much trouble.
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:43 pmAs i said, I’m happy to agree that we do not know all of the details yet.
The “storage room” is some stories referred to as the “IT department.” I’d rather see court transcripts than a recounting of the tale by a reporter . I don’t think it’s at all clear this equipment was just gathering dust, or that he couldn’t have gotten it for the purposes he claimed using regular channels. Maybe he just saw it and wanted it because it would make working easier. Again, there was another situation where he ordered office supplies with money he was not authorized to spend in that fashion. They never found the supplies in his possession, so the story went. Whether he’s a thief or fast and loose with the rules hardly seems to matter now, though. He had people convinced he was hideously awful, and he appears to have borne out their conclusions.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:49 pmterrorist attack at Boston Marathon, many died, many devices
E.PWJ (bdd0a6) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:51 pmDustin, S&W has named a couple of pistols “bodyguard” over the years. Excuse me if I play ignorance. Which one do you have?
One thing, actually, is that one of the S&W .357s called “bodyguard” is one of the other better choices I mentioned earlier.
Have you seen what they can fit in their purses?
Steve57 (b238b6) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:58 pmThanks for the heads up, E.PWJ
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/15/2013 @ 12:59 pmhttp://www.bloomberg.com/live-stream/
narciso (3fec35) — 4/15/2013 @ 1:00 pm“a narcissistic psychopath”
Nominate him!
lyle (5559e9) — 4/15/2013 @ 1:09 pmThe following is an excerpt from DRJ’s link at #16 on the initial thread. It’s from the Dallas Morning News web site, dallasnews.com
To me it indicates there was serious bad blood between Williams and McLelland going back to at least to late 2010 and supports the speculation that once McLelland became DA he went hard after Williams on dubious charges, which is not to say that Williams is a choir boy, but it seems clear his prosecution was motivated by personal animosity.
…Mutual dislike
ropelight (fe547a) — 4/15/2013 @ 1:20 pmIt is a .380 6+1 automatic with a laser built in (which isn’t bright enough to be very helpful, but it also has good sights). It looks quite a bit like your AMT, only black.
Good point, lol.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 1:34 pmI am unfamiliar with that model.
The last I looked in, this is what S&W was the kind of thing they were calling a “Bodyguard.”
http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product4_750001_750051_764944_-1_757912_757798_757797_ProductDisplayErrorView_Y
I guess S&W is nothing if not creative.
Steve57 (b238b6) — 4/15/2013 @ 2:51 pmThat’s the .38. They currently have two Bodyguard pistols, a .38 revolver, and a .380 automatic.
This is the automatic.
I removed the extra plastic piece on the magazine because it prints a bit.
They run about $400 these days, which is reasonable considering the integrated laser.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 2:56 pmSemi-automatic or automatic?
JD (554e77) — 4/15/2013 @ 3:04 pmIt’s news to me. And I like guns. My problem is they keep making them faster than I can come up with the money to buy them.
That’s why I cancelled my subscriptions to gun rags.
Steve57 (b238b6) — 4/15/2013 @ 3:05 pmOK, OK, Semiautomatic. 🙂
I don’t think it’s been around for that long. I got one on impulse because I had some back problems and found myself leaving my H&K at home even on days when I was handling large amounts of cash (I worked at a financial institution). Went from realizing I wanted a pocket pistol to driving away from the store with a pistol in my pocket in about twenty minutes. God Bless Texas.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 3:23 pm“Semi-automatic” is a relatively recent gun-writer thingie. Maybe they get paid by the word. “Automatic” is the original term. In any case, the best gun is the one you have with you. Taurus snubnose in .38 Special, Beretta in .380 Automatic Colt Pistol ~_^. Fit in a back pocket, reliable, ditchable.
nk (d4662f) — 4/15/2013 @ 3:59 pmGoing backwards…..
Semi-Automatic – Automatic – Self-loading!
The problem arose when the general media began describing S/A rifles as “automatics” in an attempt to confuse the low information voter/viewer/reader into believing that the country was being over-run with machine-guns.
askeptic (b8ab92) — 4/15/2013 @ 4:03 pmAs far as Williams being prosecuted on a relatively minor charge for a “narcissistic psychopath”, Capone was sent up only for tax evasion. Sometimes prosecutors have to work with what they have to work with.
nk (d4662f) — 4/15/2013 @ 4:14 pmI’ve got a vintage poster for the Remington Model 8 that calls it the “autoloading rifle.” Not automatic.
It was, by the way, the rifle Frank Hamer used to put an end to Bonnie and Clyde’s career.
http://thegreatmodel8.remingtonsociety.com/?page_id=434
It strikes me that there’s no “original” term. The manufacturers seemed to invent their own to differentiate their products.
Steve57 (b238b6) — 4/15/2013 @ 4:28 pmAuto-loading, self-loading. That explains how people get shot with what were thought to be unloaded guns. The damn things seek out ammunition and load themselves. It’s a major safety concern and we need a law.
nk (d4662f) — 4/15/2013 @ 4:40 pmNumber 17 gives the standard apologia.
DN (e13e38) — 4/15/2013 @ 4:43 pmDN, then refute it with a coherent argument.
SPQR (768505) — 4/15/2013 @ 5:12 pmBTW, can anyone other than Judge Wood say they heard McLelland say directly to them that Williams did it?
Just askin’.
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/15/2013 @ 5:44 pmThe comment that notes that a gang victimizes its own race a lot, so it’s not reasonable to call them black supremacists?
Did you disagree with that? If so, how? Remember that a hateful group of people will hate many groups. They aren’t supremacists just because they hate another race. They have to promote their own race over others to be supremacists.
Unfortunately, the comment system doesn’t have the same number for everyone, so I am not sure we’re talking about the same comment.
Dustin (6e7388) — 4/15/2013 @ 8:39 pmWowser. Justice of the Peace Williams’s wife has also just been arrested and charged with capital murder. Maybe law enforcement initially looked at the wrong hands for gunpowder residue? And might the McLellands have been more likely to answer the door if they saw her rather than him on the porch?
elissa (a4a051) — 4/17/2013 @ 7:50 amhttp://dfw.cbslocal.com/2013/04/17/former-kaufman-county-jps-wife-charged-with-murder/
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/17/2013 @ 7:57 amElissa, I did not see this coming. But that would explain the door-opening.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/17/2013 @ 7:58 amSarahW–
elissa (a4a051) — 4/17/2013 @ 8:23 amThe economy and available finances suck for both government entities and real people these days and all– but I do not understand why, under the circumstances and his job title and his high profile in the press, the McLellands were not given police protection outside their house and/or why they had not personally installed surveillance camera equipment outside their home. This is all after the fact thinking, but it sure seems more and more like the second murders could and should have been prevented or caught in the process.
I read – somewhere – that the Maclellands DID have a security detail. That detail, for whatever reason, was taking that specific day off.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/17/2013 @ 8:37 amThe lack of surveillance cameras I wonder about. THat would have been a prudent installation. Maybe they did have cameras, but they were erased?
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/17/2013 @ 8:38 amAs I asked above, I wonder if there is any corroboration of the claim by Judge Woods that McLelland said what was claimed about Williams.
Because I agree with you that if I thought there was a real possibility I was the next target of a murderer I think I would have done more than buy a gun to have at home.
Like the Boston situation, awaiting details, especially correct ones.
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/17/2013 @ 8:39 amOk, this is what was going on with security assignments and cameras –
McLelland himself had a sheriff’s deputy guarding his house after Hasse’s death. Exactly why the deputy stopped patrolling the home is unclear.
CNN affiliate KTVT said the sheriff’s department removed the security detail because McLelland thought it was unnecessary and didn’t want to waste taxpayer dollars.
But sources told WFAA a deputy was dispatched to McLelland’s home only as a temporary assignment. The home was equipped with surveillance cameras, but not the kind that constantly record, the affiliate said.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/02/justice/texas-da-killed
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/17/2013 @ 8:43 amSo what “I read” was probably something along the lines of, they had been assigned security after Hasses murder but there was none on the day of the murder.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/17/2013 @ 8:46 amI don’t know this DA but I know DAs and law enforcement in small counties like Kaufman County. The last thing most of them would do is put personal demands on the limited resources of the small county’s law enforcement. Big cities like Houston, Austin and Dallas would detail police or sheriff’s deputies to protect the DA. Small counties just don’t have those resources.
Plus, I suspect there’s also the feeling that if our LE officials — with their training and guns — can’t protect themselves, what chance do the rest of us have?
DRJ (a83b8b) — 4/17/2013 @ 8:46 amAll very good points DRJ. But I think the other conclusion–that anyone can easily get to a prosecutor and murder him in retaliation or warning–is also a message that law enforcement should not want to have widely known and propagated. This is what they do in places like Mexico and Columbia. It’s not supposed to happen here, and when it does how can it not affect the decision making and investigations going forward on all kinds of dangerous cases in all kinds of jurisdictions?
elissa (a4a051) — 4/17/2013 @ 8:57 amThanks for that info, SarahW.
I guess people do tend to either minimize a threat or over react, depending upon a multitude of undefined personal characteristics.
From the outside looking in, one would think that once a murder had actually been committed (not just “some hot-head making threats”), that the prudent thing would have been to say (collectively) “no way in he## are we going to let texas turn into mexico with government officials gunned down to intimidate”.
While I understand the sentiment DRJ expresses, on the other hand it is not a self-centered thing to want to protect threatened governmental officials, it is a matter of protecting civil order.
But as I said at the beginning, people have all kinds of jumbled motivations that add up to decisions that may be more or less wise. Usually we are not in situations where our decisions are so direcly life and death.
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/17/2013 @ 9:30 amThis event could change people’s perspective about the security risks court personnel face, although I’m not sure it will change it much. Texas prosecutors and courts have prosecuted high-profile Mexican cartel drug trials for years. Security before, during and after those trials is already extensive — including SWAT teams, helicopters, and military-style assets. There aren’t many resources for other threats.
Frankly, Texas is stretched thin trying to secure the border and all our communities, now that the entire state that has become a second home to the Mexican cartels. And DA McLelland was right that Texas taxpayers expect officials to be fiscally conservative with their money.
Maybe this event will change minds about protection for court personnel, but it’s hard for law enforcement to protect anyone 100% of the time when someone is determined to do evil. And this isn’t the first time this has happened in Texas: The assassination of Judge John H. Wood, Jr., the first federal judge to be murdered in office in the 20th century.
DRJ (a83b8b) — 4/17/2013 @ 9:37 amBy the way, Eric Williams’ ex-wife was charged today with capital murder in the deaths of the prosecutors and Mrs. McLelland. To my knowledge, her ex-husband (the fired JP) still hasn’t been charged. Interesting, isn’t it?
DRJ (a83b8b) — 4/17/2013 @ 9:42 amI just find it strange, whether asking for the county to pay for it or not.
If my friend and colleague joe was murdered, and I expected to be next, it seems I would have found a way to do more, even if asking volunteers from the community. I mean I bet a few dozen respectable people who knew how to handle a rifle could have been mobilized. it’s not like they were being asked to defend against a professional hit squad, just discourage someone with a grudge.
In some ways it is not surprising to me the wife is involved. It would seem either a wife would recognize her husband is trouble and would take off, or defend his honor, stcokholm syndrome like.
Then again, i think i will just stop now because it is hard to know what to think or what not to think.
MD in Philly (3d3f72) — 4/17/2013 @ 9:54 amDRJ, she’s still his wife I think.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/17/2013 @ 9:57 amMD in Philly, I still think Amy Bishop’s husband might have been encouraging her. He certainly covered the gun purchase, and was always suspected to have a hand in the mailbomb.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/17/2013 @ 9:59 amMy big question is did she just know about it/assist/help plan, or was she not only there assisting, but a triggerman.
SarahW (b0e533) — 4/17/2013 @ 10:00 amYou’re right, SarahW. She’s the wife of the ex-JP, not the ex-wife.
Thanks for the correction and I apologize for my mistake.
DRJ (a83b8b) — 4/17/2013 @ 10:01 amJust a guess, SarahW, but the fact they recently found weapons in the Williams’ storage facility and the fact that Kim Williams was charged with capital murder first suggests to me that LE found the murder weapon(s) and it had her fingerprints.
DRJ (a83b8b) — 4/17/2013 @ 10:08 amDrudge via Breitbart reporting that the lady has confessed to involvement.
http://www.breitbart.com/system/wire/DA5NDVTO4
Busy news morning.
elissa (a4a051) — 4/17/2013 @ 11:11 amYep it looks like this one’s over. She’s confessed to all 3 murders. Since they’re calling it a “scheme” it does not appear to dis-involve her hubby.
Kim Williams told investigators during an interview on Tuesday that she shot Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland and his wife, Cynthia, and Assistant District Attorney Mark Hasse.
“Kim Williams confessed to her involvement in the scheme and course of conduct in the shooting deaths,” said a warrant for her arrest released by the sheriff’s office.
http://news.yahoo.com/kim-williams-arrested-kaufman-county-texas-jail-records-144446132.html
elissa (a4a051) — 4/17/2013 @ 11:39 amIf it’s true that Kim Williams killed all 3 people, I wonder if any of the victims saw her as a threat? They probably would have exercised far more caution if they came face-to-face with her husband than with her.
DRJ (a83b8b) — 4/17/2013 @ 1:41 pmThis report indicates the wife says her husband killed the 3 victims.
DRJ (a83b8b) — 4/17/2013 @ 6:28 pm