Shawn Grell convicted of burning baby to death, back in court

[dr_awkward]

From booblady's link:

After watching Kristen fall to her knees, Grell returned to his car and drove around briefly before returning to see if the fire had gone out.
He then returned to one of the convenience stores he previously visited to purchase more beer. He told the worker at the cash register that he had just seen some kids light a dog on fire in the nearby desert. He said, “I can’t believe that kids would set a dog on fire[;] this is what the world is coming to when kids set dogs on fire.â€￾

Retard or no, that is one cold motherfucker who deserves nothing less than an excruciating death, a million times over.

 

[coffee achiever]

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/07/21/20090721mr-grell0721-ON.html

Convicted murderer Shawn Grell will speak to jurors Tuesday before they start deciding whether he is mentally retarded under Arizona law and if his death sentence should be reversed or reinstated.

...

Grell will speak to a jury of six men and nine women. Closing arguments are scheduled for Wednesday, followed by jury deliberations.

Judge Teresa Sanders rejected a defense motion for a directed verdict.

"Grell is or has been mentally retarded, and the death penalty is inappropriate for him," defense attorney Joseph Stazzone argued.

Grell, wearing a grey shirt with dark pants, fidgeted during the court hearing.

He agreed to speak to jurors, even though he has not received his medication for three days.

Pretty smart play by the defense team to withhold his meds for 3 days before he addresses the jury. Hopefully the jury won't be swayed by that.

 

[DogMom]

He needs to be in excruciating pain forever in the fires of hell.

 

[Unamused Cat]

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/07/21/20090721mr-grell0721-ON.html



Pretty smart play by the defense team to withhold his meds for 3 days before he addresses the jury. Hopefully the jury won't be swayed by that.

I just bet he put on a really good show for them. I don't care if he has the IQ of a turnip. He needs to be terminated. Bah!

 

[eliz1bef]

He pretty clearly showed intent through the entire crime. He planned it. He lied to her to lure her. He made sure she was dead. He tried to cover it up. THIS IS WHAT THE DEATH PENALTY IS FOR. If this man does not die for this crime, no one should ever die for any crime ever. Period.

Why couldn't he be in Texas? We wouldn't even be having this conversation.

 

[MadeaBecBec]

Convicted murderer Shawn Grell apologized today to jurors, the victim's mother and grandmother, and to his own family for one of the East Valley's most unspeakable crimes.

But Grell, 34, offered no explanation of why he lit his own daughter, Kristen Salem, 2, on fire on county land east of Mesa and watched her burn to death nearly 10 years ago.

"I'm extremely sorry for what I did to my daughter back in 1999. I'm extremely sorry to Amber (Salem), her mother, and her grandmother, Lee (Petruso)," Grell said.

"I'm extremely sorry you guys had to be here for three months in a very difficult case. I wish I could take back what I did; obviously, I can't."

Salem and Petruso declined comment on Grell's confession until after jurors return a verdict.

Closing arguments are scheduled for Wednesday, followed by jury deliberations.

Judge Teresa Sanders rejected a defense motion for a directed verdict on Tuesday

He agreed to speak to jurors, even though he has not received his medication for three days. He spoke for less than two minutes without a script.

Death by fire, one limb at a time, no pain medication administered. After he screams for mercy, cut his heart out with no anesthesia (obviously Grell never used it!)That would be my vote, if I was on this jury! A Horrendous evil act by a demonic human, my instincts tell me he raped Baby Kristen and did this to cover it up. I don't believe for a second, he is remorseful for this despicable deed, he is just trying to keep himself alive. His statement about kids setting a dog on fire, is how he felt about Kristen, she.was.just.a.dog to him after his "using"...

A wonderful and sweet theologian, once told me that when children die horrible and painful deaths, they do not remember how they get to heaven and enveloped in Gods arms, they only know joy and join the others in laughter and play! I didn't ask him, how he knew this, I just knew he was right and that comforts me and I pray it gives Kristens family some peace and they strive to join her there one day, when their time here is over!

 

[coffee achiever]

Well, if he's sorry, then that means he knows it was wrong. And THAT means he knows right from wrong. And THAT means he's NOT RETARDED.

Fry him.

Another pic of sweet Kristen:

 

[DogMom]

If that's not the face of an angel, then angels don't exist.

 

[MadeaBecBec]

He's not retarded, he is just an evil imbecile and I have been praying that this jury sees through his "act" and imposes the death penalty!

Grell in Court on Tuesday

"I'll accept any decision you give to me for sentencing, I'll accept it, and from now on I'll be good. Thank you," he told jurors.

http://www.abc15.com/content/news/s...ire-asks-for-life/JNLd1m4KDkCphqI0RrNyJQ.cspx

Lying to jurors is criminal, too! He couldn't accept the first death penalty sentence, although he administered that same judgement to an innocent, beautiful treasure of a child, in a heartless and horrendous manner, I don't believe Shawn Grell will accept any verdict unless it frees him! He will continue to waste away time and money through the courts until he gets it!

 

[MadeaBecBec]

Heavenly Angel Kristen Salem

 

[Athena]

I know what he did was unimaginably horrific, but I'm a little put off by the disregard for law and the constitution in this thread.

The U.S. Supreme Court found that executing mentally retarded persons is illegal. We don't just say "so what" to that, no matter how bad what that person did is.

 

[MadeaBecBec]

Video of Grells apology here : http://www.azfamily.com/video/localnews-index.html?nvid=382454

 

[Silvahalo]

Even Kristen’s screams and pleas of â€￾No, Daddy, no!â€￾ weren’t enough to stop him.

“I took the match and threw it on her.â€￾

Detective Donald Walsh of the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office testified in court that Kristen was lying on the ground when the blaze began on the front of her body. She got up and ran about 12 feet, walking in circles at one point as the flames spread upwards to her face, he said.

The heat was so intense, Walsh said, that a barrette on the left side of her head melted, the plastic running down her face. She finally collapsed face-first in a ditch and died.

In my mind’s eye I see a little child, running with that stumbling gate that two-year-olds have, screaming in abject agony, her face blistering, then melting away.

God help me.

Grell drove back and forth until he couldn’t see the flames anymore. Then he went back, got out and walked over to Kristen.

‘I just looked at her.â€￾

Hell. Is. Waiting.​

People You'll See In Hell.

 

[Silvahalo]

I know what he did was unimaginably horrific, but I'm a little put off by the disregard for law and the constitution in this thread.

The U.S. Supreme Court found that executing mentally retarded persons is illegal. We don't just say "so what" to that, no matter how bad what that person did is.

Of course you are right to question this. I'll put some thought into it after I can wrap my mind around this. It's beyond horrific. As a society I know it is cases like this when we our truly tested, in essence the very fabric of our soul is at stake.

But then, little Kristen didn't get a choice. Not one of her cries of anguish mattered at all.

Right now I say fuck'em.

 

[OMalley]

I'm having trouble with the experts analysis of his IQ. He knew what he wanted to do and executed the task pretty efficiently with planning and premeditation - lying to the child, purchasing what he needed, and was smart enough to choose a remote location.

Apparently he never said WHY he did this terrible thing?

Just a low IQ can't be what caused him to do such a thing (could it?). I don't know whether he's mentally retarded or how low his IQ is, but he's certainly a sick bastard & not fixable.

 

[MadeaBecBec]

Here again is the decison( http://www.supreme.state.az.us/opin/pdf2006/cr010275AP.pdf ) to remand Grells case back to court for re-sentencing by a jury of his peers! The AZ Supreme Court did not decide that he was mentally retarded, had they, we wouldn't be discussing this, Grell would've received a commutation of his original sentence down to life without parole. The AZ Supreme Court in fact agreed with the trial court, that Grell did NOT prove he was mentally retarded!! The SC decided Grell had not waived his right to sentencing by a jury, so here we are.....

In an old newspaper article in the Casa Grande Dispatch,dated 7-9-2001, it was reported that the autopsy of Kristen showed signs of sexual abuse, this was taken into consideration by Judge Jarrett, when she sentenced him to death.

Please read the above document.....

 

[Silvahalo]

Here again is the decison( http://www.supreme.state.az.us/opin/pdf2006/cr010275AP.pdf ) to remand Grells case back to court for re-sentencing by a jury of his peers! The AZ Supreme Court did not decide that he was mentally retarded, had they, we wouldn't be discussing this, Grell would've received a commutation of his original sentence down to life without parole. The AZ Supreme Court in fact agreed with the trial court, that Grell did NOT prove he was mentally retarded!! The SC decided Grell had not waived his right to sentencing by a jury, so here we are.....

In an old newspaper article in the Casa Grande Dispatch,dated 7-9-2001, it was reported that the autopsy of Kristen showed signs of sexual abuse, this was taken into consideration by Judge Jarrett, when she sentenced him to death.

Please read the above document.....

Thanks for this info!

 

[coffee achiever]

I know what he did was unimaginably horrific, but I'm a little put off by the disregard for law and the constitution in this thread.

The U.S. Supreme Court found that executing mentally retarded persons is illegal. We don't just say "so what" to that, no matter how bad what that person did is.

I agree. I just don't believe for a second that he's mentally retarded. He may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he had enough mental capacity to plan and execute Kristen's murder, including checking her out of day care under her mom's name to cover his tracks, and certainly enough capacity to understand that what he had done was wrong, both legally and ethically.

 

[MadeaBecBec]

It's up to the jury now!

Defense attorney Gary Bevilacqua gave jurors a long list of reasons to give Grell life in prison rather than death. He said Grell suffers from a cognitive disorder and a lack of impulse control, has a low intelligence quotient and is mentally retarded.

"He's not just a bad guy. He's a damaged guy. He will pay for it. I ask that you give him life," Bevilacqua said.

He said executing Grell would not bring Kristen Salem back to life and would serve no purpose. (It does my mind

But prosecutor Kristen Hoffmeyer said Grell made a series of choices that culminated in the intentional murder of his own daughter.

"He has a low IQ, he's not a super smart guy, but do you think his IQ caused him to murder his own daughter?" Hoffmeyer asked. "The only punishment that fits this crime is that he spend the rest of his days sitting on death row. Justice demands no less."

Hoffmeyer showed jurors pictures of Kristen Salem's remains as part of her closing arguments and said Grell's problems still don't explain his irrational act of killing his daughter.

"Lots of people have bad childhoods. They come from damaged backgrounds and they still don't commit murder," she said. (Soooo right)

A jury of eight women and four men will deliberate. Grell first received a death sentence from now retired Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Barbara Jarrett in 2001.

In reaction to two U.S Supreme Court rulings, the Arizona Supreme Court upheld Grell's conviction in 2006 but sent the case back to the lower court for re-sentencing by the jury.

Prosecutors argue that Grell doesn't meet the legal definition of mental retardation.

In Grell's case, the jury already has found three aggravating factors to qualify Grell for death: the victim's age, that the act was cruel and depraved, and that he had committed a previous unrelated robbery.

I really feel for this jury, having to see pictures of Kristens body, they will never be the same!

 

[DamagedGoods]

I wish I hadn't read this... I do not want to know this...

 

[mrcarolinablue823]

i admire the folks who want him executed and gone...just gone. i'm not that merciful. i'll gladly pay extra taxes to keep him alive in prison where the other inmates can teach him that it's not nice to hurt little babies. hate this man. hope he dies screaming.

 

[MadeaBecBec]

Sentenced to DEATH.AGAIN.Yippeee!!!

PHOENIX - Shawn Grell, the Phoenix man convicted of murdering his 2-year-old daughter by setting her on fire in a desert, was sentenced to death Monday.

A jury sentenced 34-year-old Grell to death for the December 1999 murder of his daughter Kristen.

Grell was convicted and sentenced to death in 2001, but a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 2002 found that Arizona's system of judges sentencing defendants to death was unconstitutional. They decided that only juries could sentence defendants to death.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/shawn_grell_death_sentence_07_27_2009

I wonder what he'll choose lethal injection or the gas? Oh wait a sec, He doesn't get to choose, the jury does!!! They chose L.I.

Jim Walsh
The Arizona Republic
Jul. 27, 2009 05:57 PM

Eight years after a judge sentenced to Shawn Grell to death for murdering his 2-year-old daughter, a jury reached the same conclusion and ordered that he die by lethal injection.

The victim's mother cried and hugged the victim's grandmother when the verdict was read. At least two jurors also cried.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/grellverdict0727.html

I know Kristens family is relieved, I am, for them!

In 2001, a judge sentenced Grell to death following a first-degree murder conviction. The sentence was remanded for determination of his mental capacity in 2004.

The sentence was reissued in 2004 after a judge ruled that Grell was NOT mentally retarded.

:cheers:

 

[Chaindrive]

The green mile.

Walk it, fuckhead.

 

[proudmom]

i am usually against the death penalty. I believe death is too easy, however, no freakin way this guy should ever get to breathe the light of day again. Six feet under sounds like the best place for him

 

[coffee achiever]

I sincerely hope that Kristen's mom can finally have some peace and move on with her life... 10 years is a LONG time for her to have to wait for it.

 

[trams]

death cant come to soon for this piece of shit.

 

[Whisper]

Man Gets Death Penalty For 3rd Time,Shawn Grell Set His 2-Year-Old Daughter On Fire,

July 28 2009 PHOENIX --

A Phoenix man has been sentenced to death for a third time for the brutal 1999 murder of his 2-year-old daughter, Kristen, Maricopa County Attorney Andrew Thomas said on Monday.

Grell took the child into the desert near Apache Junction and set her on fire.

In 2001, a judge sentenced Grell to death following a first-degree murder conviction. The sentence was remanded for determination of his mental capacity in 2004.

The sentence was reissued in 2004 after a judge ruled that Grell was not mentally retardedThe death sentence was overturned a short time later after the Arizona Supreme Court decision that ruled juries and not judges shall determine if a defendant is sentenced to death.

In May 2009, a trial began to determine if Grell should receive the death sentence.

On Monday, the jury ruled in favor of a death sentence

http://www.kpho.com/news/20195977/detail.html

 

[Jessiesgirl1108]

Grell picked up little Kristen Salem at the daycare she attended, then took her to McDonald’s for a hamburger. They ate in an apartment complex parking lot, then cruised around for a while, looking at Christmas displays.

Kristen started whining.

”I just got tired of it and slapped her in the mouth. After she stopped crying a few minutes later, she said, ‘Sorry, Daddy,’ and then she started being good, and then she just went nuts again because she wanted to see her mom again.”

Grell snapped.

He took Kristen to the Target store and purchased a red plastic 3-gallon gasoline jug for $4. He filled it at a gas station, then he drove around the desert for about 45 minutes until he found a ditch on the side of the road that appeared to be just what he was looking for.

“Kristen was already asleep, so I got out of the car, then I picked her up out of the car. I said, ‘Kristen, Mommy’s here. Let’s lay down,’ so I laid her in the dirt next to the car. “I took the gasoline and poured it on her.”

Even Kristen’s screams and pleas of ”No, Daddy, no!” weren’t enough to stop him.

“I took the match and threw it on her.”

People you'll see in Hell has a complete report on what happened the day this monster took his daughter's life. If you want to know more check it out...but I warn you, it's not pleasant.

 

[TheLittleFriend]

Lethal injection? It's not good enough. I've heard people saying it will make inmates go into deep sleep and die in peace. That poor girl did not die in peace. Someone need to tie that sick fucker on tree and burn him ALIVE.

 

[Morgana]

I just want to thank all the members who provided so much detail, photos, legal papers, etc. regarding this heinous, unjustifiable act committed on this angel. I like to know the whole story, every ugly particular to not hide the truth and to see the reality of what lies before us, humans and the acts of humans, which personally I think we need more than one class, like humans, monsters, shit, etc.... those of whom being not human being executed on the spot...!

I want to voice my anger but I can't. I'm at a loss for words--anger that deep has no place, it's an unthinkable anger to an unthinkable crime. I feel like I am in mourning. The pain and suffering and Kristen's mental thoughts during and prior to her agonizing death are far too excruciating at this moment. This is so fucked up, I don't know how her mother was able to cope and move on,,,,,,I could never have moved on from this. RIP baby Kristen,if you can.