Welcome to Courthouse Update, a weekly rundown goings-on at the Maricopa County Superior Court.
This week, two now-deceased children get their justice, jurors continue deliberations in the murder trial of former Phoenix cop Richard Chrisman, and more:
- Cynthia Stoltzmann gets 24 years in prison for child abuse
Cynthia Stoltzmann, the aunt of 10-year-old Ame Deal -- the Phoenix girl who was killed in horrific fashion in 2011, was sentenced to 24 years in prison, and a lifetime of probation. Ame was killed in July 2011 after, police say, she was locked in a small footlocker by family members as punishment for taking a popsicle without asking, and over the next year, police arrested six family members who police say were responsible for the girl's death or horrific abuses of Ame in the time before her death. The sentence was the result of a plea agreement on child-abuse charges.
See also: Ame Deal Murder: Aunt Pleads Guilty to Abuse
Next page: Another relative gets 10 years
- Judith Deal gets 10 years in prison for child abuse
Judith Deal was the grandmother of murdered 10-year-old Ame Deal, and Judith Deal has been sentenced to 10 years in prison, plus a lifetime of probation, for abusing Ame before her death. Murder charges are still pending against two of Ame's cousins.
See also: Police: Abuse of Ame Deal "Makes You Sick to Your Stomach"
Next page: Miguel Garcia gets 12 years in child's death
- Miguel Garcia gets 12 years in prison in 1-year-old's death
In late 2011, Garcia was watching four of his then-girlfriend's children while she was at work. Garcia got mad when the youngest child, who was 1 year old, wouldn't stop crying, so he wrapped her in a blanket and put her in a closet, which he told police he'd done before. The child died as a result. Judge Cynthia Bailey sentenced Garcia to 12 years in prison and a lifetime of probation on charges of manslaughter and attempted child abuse, as part of a plea agreement.
See also: Garcia, Once Investigated By CPS, Accused of Killing 1-Year-Old
Next page: Ohrisman jurors deliberating
- Richard Chrisman jurors continue deliberations
Jurors will continue their deliberations today at 10:30 a.m. in the first-degree murder case of former Phoenix cop Richard Chrisman. Chrisman is charged in the 2010 death of Phoenix resident Daniel Rodriguez. Chrisman responded to a 911 call from Rodriguez's mother, who asked that police remove her son from the trailer where they lived together. Another officer told investigators that Chrisman ended up shooting Rodriguez and his dog -- killing them both -- for no apparent reason.
See also: Richard Chrisman Report Released by Phoenix Police Department
Next page: Jodi Arias has a new court date
- Jodi Arias gets a new court date
A hearing scheduled for today in the Jodi Arias case has been rescheduled to October 4 at 8:30 a.m. Her attorneys filed a motion seeking the Twitter handles of jurors for the upcoming do-over of the penalty phase of her trial, as well as a motion to keep cameras out of the courtroom.
See also: Jodi Arias Wants to See Twitter Accounts of All Jurors
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Follow Matthew Hendley on Twitter at @MatthewHendley.
