SIDNEE STEPHENS - 15 yo (2010) - Pinckeyville (SE of St Louis) IL

Dakota Wall Hearing Continued



Jun 10, 2011

Pinckneyville, Ill. —

The court hearing for Dakota Wall scheduled for June 9 continued to July 28 at 9 a.m. due to other commitments for both the prosecution and defense.

Perry County State's Attorney David Stanton said in a written statement "I expect that an order will be entered today dealing with the home confinement, the ankle bracelet and with a new court date being set."

The order was entered Thursday and no longer requires Wall to wear an ankle bracelet and lifts house arrest. Wall is also ordered to pay $1,096 from her bail bond to the Perry County Sheriff's Office for the cost of the ankle bracelet.

Along with the motion to continue, the defense counsel Richard Sturgeon filed an affirmative defense and a motion to dismiss.

Wall has been charged with obstruction of justice in relation to the murder of her half-sister, Sidnee Stephens.

Stephens' body was found in the Beacoup Creek in June 2010. Three local teens, Carl Dane, James Glazier and Robbie Mueller have been charged with Stephens' murder. Pre-trial hearings for all three were held at the end of May.

Mueller's case is set for trial in August.

Dane and Glazier both have status hearings set for June 23. Their trials may also begin in August.
http://www.duquoin.com/newsnow/x1162599846/Dakota-Wall-Hearing-Continued

Guilty Plea in Sidnee Stephens Murder Case: 60-Year Sentence
Posted Jun 24, 2011

One of three teenagers accused in last summer’s shooting death of a Pinckneyville girl has pleaded guilty before the Honorable Judge James Campanella in Perry County Circuit Court.

Carl Dane, 19, entered a guilty plea Thursday to first-degree murder. He was sentenced to 60 years in prison with no chance of parole.

Dane faced 11 counts in connection with the July 2010 death of 15-year-old Sidnee Stephens of Pinckneyville. Dane was 18 at the time of the murder.

Perry County State’s Attorney David Stanton says Dane has confessed to going to Stephens home and choking her until she passed out. He then drove her to a bridge on Cudgetown Road that crosses Beaucoup Creek in central Perry County , where he shot her and left her body.

Her body was found in the creek by fishermen.

Stephens’ mother, Tracy, fainted when she heard Dane’s plea. She says she’s one step closer to bringing justice for her daughter.

Two other teens have pleaded not guilty to the murder.

James Glazier and Robbie Mueller are also facing murder charges in Stephens' death. Sidnee’s half-sister, Dakota Wall, has been charged with obstruction of justice because she allegedly made false statements to investigators.

State’s Attorney Stanton said very strict Illinois Supreme Court administrative rules prevent him from detailing motive in the case as well as all other information as there are three more defendants to be adjudicated in this case.

Mueller's trial is set to begin Aug. 15 in Perry County Circuit Court. A pre-trial hearing is set for July 28 at 9 .m. Mueller’s attorney, Charlie Stegmeyer was not in the courtroom for Dane’s plea.

Glazier’s attorney, Tom Mansfield, indicated to the court on Thursday that he would be filing a motion to suppress statements in Glazier’s case. Judge Campanella gave the defense 10 days to file the motions and set a hearing date on the motion for August 3, 2011 at 9 a.m.

Dane was scheduled to be in court Thursday only for a pre-trial hearing. Then, Judge Campanella announced that Dane had reached a plea agreement with the Perry County State’s Attorney’s office.

Judge Campanella then made it crystal clear to Dane what the irrevocable consequences would be from his decision. He told those in the courtroom, “If you sit here and reach some sort of agreement, then there will not be a trial at all,” the judge said. “This, for all practical purposes, will be the end of it.”

He then asked Dane, “Do you understand that every minute of that 60 years will have to be served?”

Dane replied “Yes.”

There is no chance of parole and Dane would be almost 80 at the time of his release. Judge Campanella called it “a small light at the end of the tunnel.”

The other 10 counts are being dropped as a result of the plea. Judge Campanella said that because one of the counts was premeditated murder Dane could have faced the death penalty even though the death penalty is on the cusp of being abolished in Illinois.

State’s Attorney Stanton read the facts of the case. Sidnee’s mother showed her emotion, then became faint.

Dane admitted that on July 19 he entered Stephens’ house and choked her until she was unconscious. He then put Sidnee’s body into the trunk of his vehicle and drove it to the Beaucoup Creek, southeast of Pinckneyville. He took her body out of the vehicle and shot her two to four times with a handgun. Dane then took her body and pushed it into the creek in a back roads area of Perry County.

The creek was shallow and Dane went back to the scene two days later to try and weigh the body down to conceal it. The body was found by fishermen on July 25.
As the investigation evolved, the work of the Perry County task force in concert with the professional investigative disciplines of the individual departments began to focus on a group known around Pinckneyville as the P-Town Saints. Dane was the self-professed leader of that group.

Dane still had traces of his blood on Sidnee’s clothing when he was arrested on July 28. At one point, Dane is said to have asked interviewers how many “calendars” he would get if he admitted to the crime. The mounting evidence later included a taped confession admitting to the murder.

Investigators individually have told the newspaper since Sidnee’s death that this was the most thorough investigation ever conducted in Perry County. The weight of the interviews, depositions, video tapes, DVDs and CDs is apparently voluminous. Stanton, again, could not comment.

With three more defendants to be dealt with in some form or fashion, the case remains a work in progress.

http://www.duquoin.com/topstories/x438673140/Guilty-Plea-in-Sidnee-Stephens-Murder-Case-60-Year-Sentence

Confessed killer found dead at Perry Co. Jail
Aug 05, 2011


Illinois State Police are investigating the death of a 19-year-old prisoner who pleaded guilty to murdering a Pinckneyville teen.

Carl Dane, 19, of Pinckneyville was pronounced dead at 5 a.m. in his cell at the Perry County Jail in Pinckneyville Friday.

Carl Dane's Attorney Brian Trentman says, he was told they believe Dane killed himself.

An autopsy was conducted Friday afternoon. The Perry County Coroner says he is awaiting those results.

A corrections officer found Dane's body in his cell at the Perry County Jail early Friday Morning. Investigators say they don't suspect foul play.

Today Dane was set to be taken to Menard Correctional Center to begin serving a 60-year-sentence for the murder of 15-year Sidnee Stephens.

Dane pleaded guilty in June 2011 to a charge of 1st degree murder in the 2010 death of Stephens. The Perry County State's Attorney says as part to plea deal, Trentman asked Dane stay in the county jail until August 5th.

Perry County Sheriff Keith Kellerman tells Heartland News he's never had this type of incident in the jail during his more than ten years in office.

Meanwhile Trentman says it's an extremely sad day. He adds in the year of representing Dane, there was no indication he would cause harm to himself.

The incident is current under investigation by Perry County Coroner's Office and the Illinois State Police.

http://www.kfvs12.com/story/15217434/investigation-death-of-carl-dane-perry-county-jail

Trial delayed in teen murder case
Reporter - Robert Bradfield
Photojournalist - Ryan Brooker
Story Created: Jul 28, 2011 at 8:01 PM CDT
Story Updated: Jul 28, 2011 at 8:01 PM CDT
PINCKNEYVILLE, Ill. — One year, that's how long it's been since police found the body of a local teenage girl in a creek.
Now another teenager charged with that murder will have to wait longer to present his side of the story.
Robbie Mueller was 15 when police found 15-year-old Sidnee Stephens dead.
Mueller, along with Carl Dane and James Glazier were charged with kidnapping Stephens in July before killing her by a creek in Perry County.
Stephens' half sister, Dakota Wall, was also arrested for lying to police.
One year after those arrests, 16-year-old Mueller was in court again Thursday.
Mueller shieled his face from our cameras as he walked into the Perry County courthouse but he can't hide from the charges he's facing in Stephens' death.
Mueller pleaded not guilty last year to killing the teen.
Her body was later found by a fisherman near Illinois Route 152. It was determined Stephens was shot and strangled to death.
Mueller's trial was set to start Aug. 15 but his defense attorney said he needs more time to build the case since Carl Dane pleaded guilty to first degree murder earlier this year.
Mueller's trial is now scheduled to start Nov. 14.
Mueller, who was 15 at the time, is being charged as an adult. He faces 10 charges in connection with the death, including four first degree murder charges. He remains in the Perry County Jail on no bond.
Mueller and James Glazier also face kidnapping, home invasion and burglary charges.
Glazier's trial is also expected to start in November along with Dakota Wall.
Dane is serving a 60-year prison sentence as part of his plea deal.

http://www.wpsdlocal6.com/news/il-state-news/Trial-delayed-in-teen-murder-case-126367033.html

Stepsister Pleads Guilty in Connection with Pinckneyville Murder


Story Updated: Oct 28, 2011 at 3:38 AM CST

PERRY COUNTY -- The search for justice in the Sidnee Stephens murder case hit close to home Thursday when a Pinckneyville teen charged in connection with her stepsister's murder pleaded guilty.

Dakota Wall, 19, was accused of lying to police as they investigated the murder of her stepsister, Sidnee Stephens, 15. Wall pleaded guilty to obstructing a peace officer. Felony charges were dropped and she will not serve any more time in jail.

Dakota Wall now joins Carl Dane on the conviction list. Two of the four teens charged in connection with the death of Stephens have pleaded guilty.

After confessing to shooting Stephens and dumping her body in a creek in July of 2010, Carl Dane, 19, strangled himself in the Perry County Jail using his bed sheets. He was set to be transferred to Menard Prison that same day to begin his 60 year sentence.

Also in court Thursday, Robbie Mueller waived his right to a jury trial opting for a bench trial in December on first degree murder charges in the case. The judge warned the 16 year-old:

"You realize there's a risk" going on to say, "There will be a decision made and unlike a jury, a judge can't be hung," said the honorable Richard Aguirre.

As for James Glazier, 18, he is back in court Friday for a pre-trial on the murder charges against him.

Investigators say all three of the teenage boys belonged to a gang known as the p-ville saints, and that Wall lied to try to protect the gang members after her sister was killed.

Wall was ordered to pay a $400 fine and was sentenced to 22 days in jail and 261 days of home confinement, which she has already served.

http://www.wsiltv.com/news/your-community/perry-randolph/Stepsister-Pleads-Guilty-in-connection-with-Pinckneyville-Murder--132747398.html

Defense to argue against statement
Glazier’s hearing reset for Nov. 17

PINCKNEYVILLE - A hearing on a motion to suppress statements made to police by a murder suspect has been rescheduled for next month.
The attorney for James Glazier, 18, who is charged with murder, kidnapping and home invasion in connection with the 2010 murder of Sidnee Stephens, will argue Nov. 17 that statements Glazier made to police after he was arrested should be suppressed.
Glazier, along with Robbie Mueller and Carl Dane, are accused in the death of Stephens, 15.
Dane pleaded guilty to the crime June 23 and was sentenced to 60 years in prison. He killed himself in his Perry County Jail cell the day before he was scheduled for transfer to Menard Correctional Center.
Mueller is set for a bench trial in December.
A fourth person, Stephens' half-sister Dakota Wall, 19, pleaded guilty earlier this week to a misdemeanor charge of obstructing a peace officer in the case.
Defense attorney Tom Mansfield is expected to argue Glazier had asked for counsel; did not voluntar-ily give up his right not to incriminate himself; and the statements he made were not voluntary.
Perry County State's Attorney David Stanton previously argued against the motion. He called wit-nesses who testified that Glazier, among other things, was read his Miranda rights twice during his interview with police, both times agreeing he understood those rights.
Glazier's trial is expected to begin in January.


Read more: http://thesouthern.com/news/local/article_9c2221a0-01eb-11e1-b051-001cc4c03286.html#ixzz1dnCuk3zW

Murder trial for Pinckneyville teen postponed

BY BRENT STEWART, The Southern | Posted: Thursday, December 8, 2011 4:29 pm

PINCKNEYVILLE - The bench trial of Robbie Mueller - who is accused of murder, kidnapping and home invasion in the death of Pinckneyville teen Sidnee Stephens - has been postponed until January.
Thursday, Judge Richard Aguirre granted a motion for continuance requested by Mueller's lawyer, Charles Stegmeyer, who asked for more time to review evidence, including 63 pages of statements by Mueller and his mother.
In October, Mueller, 16, waived his right to a trial by jury. His fate will be decided by Aguirre in a bench trial that will now begin Jan. 26.
Mueller is one of two remaining suspects charged in connection with Stephens' death.
James Glazier, 18, of Pinckneyville also stands accused in the incident. The second part of an evidentiary hearing to decide whether to suppress statements Glazier made on the day of his arrest is set for Dec. 21.
A third suspect, Carl Dane, was convicted earlier this year but was found dead in his jail cell in August, the same day he was to be transferred to Menard Correctional Center in Chester to begin a 60-year sentence.
Dakota Wall, Stephens' half-sister, pleaded guilty in October to obstructing a peace officer during the 2010 investigation into the murder, a Class A misdemeanor. She was ordered to pay a $404 fine and given credit for time already served in Perry County Jail and in home confinement.


Read more: http://thesouthern.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/murder-trial-for-pinckneyville-teen-postponed/article_45603ae8-21ec-11e1-b5d5-001871e3ce6c.html#ixzz1gXPbWaxc