Southeast
Suspect in LSU student attack claims victim's romantic history 'crucial' to defense
WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT
A lawyer representing one of Louisiana State University student Madison Brooks’ alleged rapists claimed it’s crucial to speak to a man Brooks supposedly had consensual sex with 24 hours before the attack.
Joe Long, who’s representing Casen Carver in the ongoing rape case, filed the motion Monday to subpoena and interview the unnamed LSU male student and one of Brooks’ female friends.
He said in the court filings that the information could help exonerate his client, according to a report by WAFB 9.
But the latest filing didn’t sit well with Brooks’ family’s lawyer, Kerry Miller, and East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore, who told the local news outlet that Long’s motion “is totally improper” and vowed to fight it.
‘LAUGHING’ SUSPECT IN LSU STUDENT ATTACK INDICTED ON VIDEO RECORDING
Madison Brooks, 19, was a LSU sophomore when she was allegedly raped in January 2023 before she was fatally struck by a car. (Ashley Baustert)
Miller told Fox News Digital that Long’s motion doesn’t comply with Louisiana’s rape shield law and continues the defense’s trend of “circumventing the law.”
“We’re completely disgusted by this tactic,” he said. “You can’t just file a public document like this. There’s a policy to follow not to violate the rape shield law, which I think he did (violate), but that’ll be decided by the court.”
Carver, 19, is one of four suspects charged in connection with Brooks’ rape in January 2023. He was indicted on two separate occasions on charges of video voyeurism as well as first- and third-degree rape. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.
AS LSU REELS FROM MADISON BROOKS ALLEGED RAPE AND DEATH, CRIME TORMENTS COLLEGE TOWN
Carver was allegedly seen laughing in a self-recorded cellphone video and allegedly said, “They finna (sic) rape her.”
He was referring to the three other suspects in his car, who met Brooks in Reggie’s Bar in crime-ridden Tigerland, a social hot spot near the Baton Rouge university’s main campus.
Brooks, who was 19, was in the back seat of the suspects’ car when she was allegedly raped and let out on the side of a busy, four-lane highway, where she was fatally struck by an oncoming car.
Pictured, from left to right: Kaivon Washington, Everett Lee, Casen Carver and Madison Brooks. (East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office/Instagram)
Desmond Carter, 17, is being tried as an adult in the alleged rape of LSU sophomore Madison Brooks. (East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff’s Office)
Because Carver was indicted, he doesn’t have a constitutional right to a preliminary examination, except for when there’s a need to preserve evidence, WAFB reported.
Long argued that it should be allowed in this particular case because it’s vital to get under-oath statements from the unnamed male student and Brooks’ female friend.
He reportedly hasn’t been able to reach the man, and the woman said she wouldn’t testify, according to the local news outlet.
EXCLUSIVE: MADISON BROOKS’ MOM ‘KNEW SOMETHING TERRIBLE HAPPENED’ AFTER LAST TEXT
Carver’s video, which hasn’t been released to the public, is at the center of the court case against him and three other suspects: Everett Lee, 28; Kaivon Washington, 18, and Desmond Carter, a 17-year-old who is being charged as an adult.
Each suspect pleaded not guilty to all charges.
Madison Brooks, a 19-year-old LSU sophomore, was allegedly raped in January before being fatally struck by a car. (Ashley Baustert)
Madison Brooks’ mother and brothers pose with a photo of her. (Ashley Baustert)
Miller was in the courtroom when the video was played. He told Fox News Digital in a previous interview that Carver’s 10- to 15-second selfie videos provided law enforcement with eyes inside the car.
“You can see what’s going on in the back seat from the right side of the camera,” Miller said. “That’s where you see Kaivon pushing Maddie down.
MADISON BROOKS: TIMELINE OF LSU STUDENT’S ALLEGED RAPE, DEATH
“Then you see Carter with his pants down on top of Maddie. You kind of see her legs sticking up, and she doesn’t have anything on. You know it’s Desmond Carter because he wore a plaid shirt.”
As this alleged activity unfolded, Miller said, the music continued to play and at least one of the suspects was heard cheering.
A billboard for the Madison Brooks Foundation is seen on display in Times Square on Monday, May 8, 2023. Brooks was fatally struck by a car after an alleged rape earlier this year. (Julia Bonavita/Fox News Digital )
An updated photo of LSU student Madison Brooks, who was fatally hit by a car after an alleged rape in January 2023. (The Brooks family)
Good Samaritans try to save Brooks
Prosecutors continued to play short clips of videos after Brooks, who was intoxicated, was forced out of the suspects’ car in the middle of Burbank Drive in the early morning hours of Jan. 15.
She stumbled into the middle of the busy, four-lane highway, where she was hit by an oncoming car.
EXCLUSIVE: LSU STUDENTS HAILED AS GOOD SAMARITANS AFTER ALLEGED BATON ROUGE RAPE
The driver stayed at the scene and called 911, while good Samaritans – Beau Adams, 21, and Kathryn Devillier, 21 – pulled over to try to save her.
Emergency personnel responded and rushed her to a hospital, where she ultimately died.
Kathryn Devillier, and Beau Adams in Baton Rouge, LA, Tuesday, May 16, 2023. The 21-year-old roommates are credited with prolonging the last moments of Madison Brooks’ life after she was hit by a car by performing CPR. (KR/Mega for Fox News Digital)
Close-ups of tattoos on the arms of Kathryn Devillier and Beau Adams in Baton Rouge, LA, Tuesday, May 16, 2023. The matching tattoos are in honor of Madison Brooks, who these 21-year-old roommates are credited with prolonging the last moments of her life after she was hit by a car by performing CPR. (KR/Mega for Fox News Digital)
The suspects did not seem to know that Brooks died until the next day, prosecutors alleged, according to Miller.
Brooks’ mom, Ashley Baustert, told Fox News Digital in a previous interview that she spoke about Adams’ and Devillier’s bravery.
“It gives me a lot of comfort and peace in that Beau and Kathryn were both there. The last few people that Madi saw wasn’t going to be her [alleged] attackers,” Baustert said.
The LSU seniors marked the area of the accident with a cross as a memorial for Brooks on the side of Burbank Highway, which grew with stuffed animals and other trinkets. They also attended Brooks’ funeral and memorial services.
They keep in touch with Brooks’ mom and check in on her.
Read the full article from Here
This year several crime victims took it upon themselves to fight back against their attackers, and videos captured the incidents. Here is a recap of some of 2024’s most notable examples.
ROAD RAGE RESPONSE
Back in March, a truck driver was attacked by a colleague on the road. Deputies were called to a Love’s Travel Stop for a report of shots fired during a road rage incident along Interstate 75 near Ocala, Florida, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) said.
The victim said he was driving a semi-truck southbound on Interstate 75 when Dylan Belleastin, 43, threw a water bottle at his truck.
FIERY CHAOS AT FLORIDA INTERSECTION HAS SHERIFF’S OFFICE SEARCHING FOR DOZENS OF SUSPECTS
“The footage clearly depicted him shooting at the victim at two separate times,” MCSO said. (Marion County Sheriff’s Office)
“The victim pulled over to confront Belleastin but decided against it and drove away,” MCSO said on Facebook. “Belleastin then continued to follow the victim and eventually pulled alongside him again, at which time he fired several shots toward the victim.”
Deputies say the victim decelerated in an attempt to avoid being struck before returning fire toward Belleastin “out of fear for his own life.”
Dash camera footage from Belleastin’s semi-truck cab “clearly depicted him shooting at the victim at two separate times,” MCSO said. The suspect was arrested days later, and charged with aggravated assault, criminal mischief, and displaying a firearm during the commission of a felony.
TEEN FOUND GUILTY OF BEATING DISABLED DC MAN REGGIE BROWN TO DEATH SENTENCED TO 7 YEARS
BIKINI BARISTA STRIKES BACK
In June, the owner of a Seattle bikini espresso shop defended her decision to smash a customer’s windshield with a hammer after he threw coffee at her.
The incident at Taste of Heaven Espresso was caught on camera at 3 p.m. June 11 and shared in a now-viral social media video. Emma Lee, 23, told FOX 13 Seattle it was not the first time the customer had been disrespectful, and she wants him held accountable for his actions.
What transpired on video was the culmination of a 15-minute exchange over the price of a 32-ounce coffee and 24-ounce water, Lee said. The price tag was $22.
“You don’t get to name your own price,” Lee told FOX 13, adding the man screamed, spit and tried to pry open the business’ window. “It was a threat. I felt in danger. It’s OK for him to be outraged about the price of his drinks, enough to assault me, but it’s not appropriate for me to respond?”
Police can be seen at the espresso stand taking a report of the alleged assault. (FOX 13 Seattle)
CARJACKING THWARTED
In October, a D.C. bartender was attacked on video while at a gas station by three teenagers who tried to take off with his Jeep.
The suspect, Randy White, told FOX 5 DC the teens demanded his belongings. He instead fought back until the trio eventually gave up and left the gas station.
“Where I grew up, it’s just… I work too hard for what I have,” White told the local Fox station. “I can’t give up my property like that. It’s not in me. I wasn’t raised that way. I was just hoping that they would see that I am resisting them and they would’ve just given up or went off, but that wasn’t the case. I was able to keep them occupied and fight them off long enough that they ended up cutting their losses and hitting bricks.”
QUICK-THINKING CALLER
Not all who fought back did so physically.
Also in October, a Florida woman who was being held captive prior to an alleged attempted rape called 911 to order a “pizza.”
“I would like to order a pizza,” a 911 call shared by Volusia Sheriff’s Office on social media starts out. “I’m so stuck in here.”
The suspect is caught by deputies on top of the victim in a field in Volusia County, Florida, on Oct. 19, 2024. (Volusia Sheriff’s Office)
“OK. Are you aware you’re calling 911?” the dispatcher asks the female caller, who responds, “Yes, I’m sure I’m calling to that number.”
Dispatchers were able to “triangulate her phone,” Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood said, explaining that the victim did not know her location. The victim was able to tell the dispatcher she was being held by an unarmed man. Once her location was determined, deputies were sent out.
The victim can be heard screaming for help in shared body camera footage.
“He’s trying to rape me. Can you help me?” she asked.
“Thank you, Lord!” she repeatedly said while crying, after being rescued. “Thank you, Jesus.”
Read the full article from Here
Southeast
Two Hurricane Helene victims, a family of four and a Vietnam veteran, gifted campers on Christmas Day
Two families in North Carolina who were impacted by Hurricane Helene received the gifts of a lifetime on Christmas Day – a new place to call home.
The first recipient was the Penley family, of Boone, North Carolina, who lost everything during the storm.
The family of four was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday following the birth of their second child and was planning on moving into a homeless shelter until EmergencyRV stepped in.
“We weren’t gonna have that at EmergencyRV. We got this trailer here for them and it’s going to be a great place for them to stay now,” the company said in a video posted on X.
PUPPIES RESCUED FROM HURRICANE HELENE TO BE REHOMED WITH MILITARY VETERANS, FIRST RESPONDERS
The Penley family (pictured with EmergencyRV founder Woody Faircloth and his daughter on the far right), of North Carolina, was gifted a camper from EmergencyRV on Christmas Day after losing their home to Hurricane Helene. (EmergencyRV/X)
The RV gifted to the Penleys will comfortably fit their family, which consists of two adults, a toddler and a newborn. It has a bedroom on one side of the camper and two sleeping areas on the other side, along with a nice-sized bathroom and a large kitchen area with seating at a table and a couch.
The second recipient was Timothy McCord, a 70-year-old Marine Corps veteran who served in Vietnam. Helene tore the roof off of his camper, where he continued to live despite experiencing leaks and other damage.
EmergencyRV traveled to Canton, North Carolina, to gift him a brand-new camper after McCord’s daughter contacted the company explaining that he needed help.
“You helped me turn my life around and I appreciate it,” McCord said when his new home was delivered.
Timothy McCord, 70, was gifted a brand-new camper by EmergencyRV after Hurricane Helene ripped the roof off the camper he was living in. (EmergencyRV/X)
HURRICANE HELENE VICTIM GIFTED A TINY HOME JUST IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS AFTER HELPING STORM-RAVAGED COMMUNITY
EmergencyRV is a non-profit organization that provides housing to displaced survivors of natural disasters and has gifted 77 campers to people impacted by Helene since the storm wreaked havoc in the Carolinas, Georgia and Tennessee at the end of September. The RVs are gifted completely free with a clean title in the recipient’s name.
The organization said it has 700 families on its waiting list who have been fully vetted and are truly in need of help following a natural disaster.
The brand-new camper that was donated and delivered to Timothy McCord through EmergencyRV. (EmergencyRV/X)
“We take this seriously as we have limited resources,” the organization said on X. “We also ensure that the family has a legal and safe place to park an RV before we will gift it and deliver to them.”
Though they prioritize veterans and first responders, EmergencyRV said they have helped families and singles who lost their home or suffered serious damage in Helene.
EmergencyRV was established by Woody Faircloth and his then 6-year-old daughter in 2018 in response to the deadly Camp Fire in Paradise, California.
Their goal was to raise enough money to bless one family impacted by the fire with a RV. They were able to do that and have since donated hundreds of RVs to victims of wildfires and other natural disasters.
Read the full article from Here
A Florida man was arrested for his 35th time right before Christmas, after stealing a car and attempting to escape authorities.
Kevin Campana, 31, was taken into custody on Monday after allegedly breaking into a local auto repair shop in Edgewater, Florida and stealing a customer’s car while wearing no shoes, according to the Edgewater Police Department.
Read the full article from Here
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