Chandra Levy

[Nut44x4]

Ingmar Guandique

[MuffyBee]

Apr 11, 2:55 PM EDT

Lawyers question evidence in Levy case

By NAFEESA SYEED
Associated Press Writer

 WASHINGTON (AP) -- There are plenty of witnesses in the case against an imprisoned Salvadoran immigrant accused of killing former D.C. intern Chandra Levy - the ex-girlfriend who says she was beaten, other women he's convicted of attacking and a man believed to be a fellow inmate.

But none of the dozen prosecution witnesses outlined in a March 3 affidavit actually saw the attack on the young woman in a Washington park about eight years ago. Only two directly link Ingmar Guandique, who's expected to arrive in Washington in the next few weeks, to Levy's death.

Prosecutors have nailed convictions in other cases with no physical evidence and only secondhand or circumstantial witness accounts. New evidence could also emerge in the Levy case.

But without forensic evidence linking Levy and Guandique or an eyewitness account, the Levy case offers weaknesses the defense could pounce on, say several attorneys not connected to the case.

"It's long on witnesses and short on direct evidence that Guandique had anything to do with this," said David Benowitz, a criminal defense attorney who once worked as a public defender in the District of Columbia.

The same team of prosecutors and detectives working the Levy case last year solved the 1996 D.C. slaying of Shaquita Bell, even though her body has never been found and no one saw the killing.

Michael Dickerson, her ex-boyfriend and a convicted felon, pleaded guilty in October to killing her after authorities lined up evidence from ballistics, past domestic violence and witnesses who saw the couple argue.

Thomas A. "Tad" DiBiase, a former federal prosecutor in D.C. who now runs the Web site nobodymurdercases.com, recalled many other cases in which suspects were convicted even though a body was never found and no witnesses actually saw the killing.

"You line all these things up and that ends up being quite powerful and difficult for the defense to deal with," DiBiase said.

The Levy investigation has been problematic since it started. Critics have long pointed to early missteps such as the police department's failure to find Levy's body until a year after the Modesto, Calif., resident disappeared.

Some former investigators also say police remained too focused on former U.S. Rep. Gary Condit, the California lawmaker who was reportedly romantically involved with Levy. Condit lost his bid for re-election in 2002.

Guandique is accused of sexually assaulting and killing Levy on a trail in Rock Creek Park on May 1, 2001. By the time her remains were found, they were so decomposed that valuable evidence probably was lost.

The March 3 arrest warrant and affidavit make no mention of DNA or other forensic evidence pointing to Guandique. U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Taylor said that there was no physical evidence linking Guandique to the crime, but that the "cumulative weight" of circumstantial evidence led investigators to Guandique.

Guandique has been serving a 10-year federal prison term in California for two other attacks in the same park where authorities say he attacked Levy. Federal Bureau of Prisons officials said he was moved to their federal transfer center in Oklahoma City on Thursday.

Authorities have said they don't have a date for Guandique's arrival in Washington, but they expected the U.S. Marshals Service to transfer him to D.C. within 30 to 60 days of the arrest warrant date.

Channing Phillips, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney's Office, said a grand jury will convene to consider indicting Guandique, but he could not say when. In D.C., suspects must be indicted within nine months of being charged.

Santha Sonenberg and Maria Hawilo, Guandique's public defenders, have called authorities' investigation "flawed."

Some criminal defense attorneys say prosecutors, lacking forensic evidence and eyewitnesses, are relying too heavily on secondhand witnesses.

None of the witnesses are named, but police describe some of their identities. There's an ex-girlfriend who says they argued and that he occassionally hit, grabbed and bit her. Then there are the two women he's convicted of attacking along with another woman who was walking in the park and believes Guandique followed her around the time Levy went missing. Another witness is merely the dog-walker who discovered Levy's remains a year later.

Others include those who claim to have known Guandique for many years and those who say they've exchanged letters with him. One of the most extreme characterizations of Guandique comes from a witness who says Guandique boasted about being known as "Chuckie" because he had a reputation for killing and chopping up people.

In the affidavit, the interview with witness 11 is dated from February. That man also was present when Guandique allegedly heard a recent news report about authorities' plan to arrest him in the Levy murder. The witness claims Guandique said he was involved in her slaying and described the incident in detail. Given that Guandique was in jail at the time, it's likely that man is an inmate.

Another witness also said that Guandique admitted to killing Levy, though police say the account Guandique provided that person was "inconsistent in some respects with accounts he gave to other witnesses." The affidavit does not specify the discrepancies. Only that witness and the 11th witness connect Levy by name to Guandique.

Benowitz, the former public defender, said he would question witnesses' motivation for speaking to police and under what circumstances they were interviewed. He said that the 11th witness appears to be a "jailhouse snitch," and that the defense would need to know whether the inmate received any favors in exchange for the interview.

As for the two witnesses directly linking Guandique to Levy, the defense may question whether they could have gotten those details from published reports or other sources and not actually from Guandique, said Paul Rothstein, an evidence expert at Georgetown University's law school.

Rothstein also said it would help if authorities could get evidence to show how Levy died - evidence that would square with Guandique's alleged admissions outlined in the affidavit. And if Guandique had accomplices, as some witnesses suggest, they would need to testify, too.

"What's set forth in this affidavit, without more facts, does not seem to add up to a sound case of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, if it went to trial," Rothstein said.

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/C/CHANDRA_LEVY_EVIDENCE?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=US

[Nut44x4]

Suspect in Levy Murder Makes Appearance in D.C. Court
Thursday, April 23, 2009; 2:27 PM

Ingmar Guandique made his first court appearance today on a first-degree murder charge stemming from the 2001 killing of Chandra Levy.

Guandique, 27, who is serving a 10-year prison term for attacking two other women, was called before Magistrate Judge J. Dennis Doyle in D.C. Superior Court. The small-framed defendant, wearing an orange jail jumpsuit, said nothing at the hearing, other than his name.

Guandique stood with a Spanish interpreter and his attorneys, Santha Sonenberg and Maria Hawilo. Doyle, who found there was probable cause to sustain the charge, set a follow-up hearing for May 27.

Guandique was brought to Washington by federal marshals after authorities obtained an arrest warrant last month in the May 2001 killing of the former federal government intern, who was slain during a random sexual assault along a desolate hiking trail deep in Rock Creek Park. Guandique had been serving a 10-year sentence in a California prison for attacking the two other women at knifepoint in the park about the time that Levy, 24, disappeared. Her body was found a year later.

Based on a police affidavit, authorities are hinging their case on a compilation of statements from victims of Guandique and from unidentified witnesses who said he admitted to the crime in letters and conversations that explained, often in grisly detail, how he attacked, sexually assaulted and killed Levy in the park. He said he acted with the help of two accomplices not named in the affidavit.

No new details emerged at the hearing. Afterward, one of Guandique's attorneys, Sonenberg, said that prosecutors were basing the case on "made-up claims of self-serving jailhouse informants."

more at link.....
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/04/23/AR2009042302672.html

[Nut44x4]

Chandra Levy Suspect Indicted on Murder Charge
Wednesday, May 20, 2009; 6:24 PM

The man accused of killing Chandra Levy has been indicted by a grand jury on charges that could lead to a life prison sentence with no chance of parole.

Ingmar Guandique, 27, was indicted late Tuesday on various charges, including first degree murder, kidnapping, robbery and sexual abuse. The indictment alleges that Guandique killed Levy on or about May 1, 2001 while attempting to kidnap her.

Guandique was brought to the D.C. Jail last month from a federal prison facility to answer charges in the killing of Levy, 24, a former federal intern. Authorities charged him earlier this year, and the case was presented to a grand jury in D.C. Superior Court.

He has been serving a 10-year sentence for attacking two other women at knifepoint in Rock Creek Park around the same time Levy disappeared. Levy's body was found in the park, a year later.

Guandique is due to appear Wednesday for a hearing in D.C. Superior Court.

His attorneys have contended that their client is not guilty and that the prosecutor's case lacks forensic evidence and built largely on accounts of unreliable witnesses, some of whom were incarcerated with Guandique.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/20/AR2009052003145.html

[Toler]

Man pleads not guilty to killing Chandra Levy
2 hours ago



 WASHINGTON — A man accused of killing federal intern Chandra Levy has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and other charges.

Twenty-seven-year-old Ingmar Guandique was arraigned Wednesday in District of Columbia Superior Court on six counts, including murder, kidnapping and attempted sexual abuse. He pleaded not guilty to all counts.

A judge set a two-week jury trial for Jan. 27. A status hearing is set for July 31.

Levy disappeared in May 2001, and her remains were found in a D.C. park a year later.

Guandique has been serving a 10-year sentence for two other attacks in the same park.

The case was blamed for destroying the political career of former U.S. Rep. Gary Condit of California, who was romantically linked to Levy but was never a suspect.


http://www.comcast.net/articles/news-national/20090527/US.Chandra.Levy/

[Nut44x4]

Judge rejects postponing Chandra Levy murder trial

Fri Jul 31, 4:00 pm ET
WASHINGTON — Ingmar Guandique will go on trial in January for the murder of former intern Chandra Levy despite his attorneys' requests for a delay, a judge declared Friday.

D.C. Superior Court Judge Geoffrey Alprin declined to postpone Guandique's Jan. 27 trial date, even as federal prosecutors unveiled more evidence. The evidence outlined in the latest filings ranges from testimony from a new witness to allegations about Guandique's behavior behind bars.

One new witness contends he or she was stabbed by someone resembling Guandique, while others characterize the Salvadoran illegal immigrant as violent or disturbed.

"If called to testify, Witness Three would state that (Guandique) was often in trouble in jail for masturbating in front of female guards," prosecutors state in one filing, adding that Guandique told this same witness "he was known on the streets as 'Chucky' because he had a reputation for killing and chopping up people."

Prosecutors say Guandique attacked Levy in Washington's Rock Creek Park while she was jogging in May 2001 . Raised in Modesto, Calif. , Levy had recently finished a graduate school program and a Bureau of Prisons internship.

Levy's disappearance brought intense scrutiny to her private life, and reports that she was involved sexually with then-Rep. Gary Condit , a California Democrat. Condit lost re-election to his House seat over the matter, although police never called him a suspect.

Levy's skeletal remains were found in May 2002 .

"In this flawed investigation, there is not a single witness to testify they have ever seen Mr. Guandique and the decedent together," Guandique's public defenders stated.

Guandique's attorneys have noted previously the prosecution's reliance on jailhouse informants, and the latest filings show the attorneys are seeking to discover information about these witnesses' potential gang affiliations.

In 31 pages filed with the court late Thursday, however, prosecutors further outlined their case against Guandique. The documents don't provide the name of any specific witness, nor are the allegations cited always confined strictly to Levy's 2001 murder.

One witness, a former cellmate, claims Guandique forced him to perform oral sex and also raped him at knifepoint.

"As defendant was raping Witness Two, he told (him) that he liked to do it to women like that," the prosecution filings state. "Defendant told Witness Two that he tied down the woman that he raped and killed in Washington, D.C. "

Another witness told prosecutors that he or she was "walking along a trail" sometime prior to Levy's murder. This witness says he or she saw someone who looked like Guandique, who then "grabbed it by the shoulders, pushed it to the ground forcing it to sit and then stabbed it in the back."

In part, the latest court filings outline the estimated 5,000 pages of documents and other materials provided to Guandique's defense attorneys as part of the pretrial discovery process. They shed light on how the investigation has proceeded, including a previously undisclosed government plea offer that expired July 24 .

From Guandique's prison cell, for instance, prosecutors found articles about Levy's disappearance as well as sketches and letters. Investigators say they found on Levy's tights "a mixture of DNA," none of which matched Guandique's, and they also advised Guandique's attorneys of some unusual items.

"In reviewing the files of the Metropolitan Police Department , we discovered two file drawers which are filled with documents memorializing Chandra sightings, hot line tips, psychic predictions and the like," Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Haines noted.

Haines offered to provide the latter information to Guandique's attorneys, though she added that "we do not believe that any of the information contained therein is probative."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/20090731/pl_mcclatchy/3283066_1

[Nut44x4]

New Evidence Outlined Against Accused Levy Killer
Defense: 10 other possible suspects exist

Jul 30, 2009 10:42 PM EDT
The man charged with killing former D.C. intern Chandra Levy is being accused of a slew of other crimes.

Ingmar Guandique's defense attorneys, meanwhile, say they know of 10 other people who are possible suspects in the case.

Witnesses are set to testify that Guandique raped his former cellmate, committed lewd acts in front of female guards, threatened to "hogtie" and rape women who wouldn't have sex with him, and said he would "kill everyone he could" if released from jail, according to court documents.

In Superior Court Friday, defense attorneys said also they know of 10 other people who are possible suspects in the case.  According to court documents, DNA recovered from Levy's running tights doesn't match Guandique's according to a lab.

Guandique, 27, is accused of murdering then-24-year-old Chandra Levy in May 2001.  Her skeletal remains were found in Rock Creek Park a year later.

Court documents indicate that Guandique was offered a plea deal but decided not to accept it.

Guandique was serving a federal prison sentence for crimes against other women in Rock Creek Park when he was charged earlier this year in the Levy case.

The case is said to have cost former California Rep. Gary Condit his seat in Congress.  Condit was romantically linked to Chandra, but repeatedly denied having anything to do with her disappearance.  He was never named as a suspect.

A trial is scheduled to begin early next year.

http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local-beat/Chandra-Levy-Suspect-Accused-Of-Rape-Threats-52129252.html

[Nut44x4]

Saturday, Oct. 17, 2009
New mishap revealed in Chandra Levy case

WASHINGTON -- Attorneys handling the Chandra Levy murder case say an FBI forensic analyst mistakenly contaminated evidence from the site where the federal intern's body was found.

At a hearing Friday, attorneys revealed the FBI analyst mistakenly contaminated the evidence with some of her own DNA. She has since been fired.

It was the most recent mishap in a case riddled with mistakes since Levy disappeared in May 2001. A federal inmate, Ingmar Guandique, was charged with Levy's murder this year.

Public defender Maria Hawilo asked Judge Geoffrey Alprin to postpone the Jan. 27 trial to allow additional evidence testing. The judge declined but ordered that the evidence be made available for additional testing by the defense.

Another hearing is scheduled for Dec. 18.

http://www.modbee.com/state/story/896996.html#

[Nut44x4]

http://www.bellinghamherald.com/342/story/1117237.html#

POSTED: Friday, Oct. 16, 2009
Life sentence sought for accused killer of Chandra Levy
By MICHAEL DOYLE - McClatchy Newspapers
 
  WASHINGTON Federal prosecutors revealed Friday that they will seek life imprisonment without possibility of parole for the man accused of murdering former intern Chandra Levy.

The potential sentence is the most severe available in the District of Columbia, which does not have the death penalty. Prosecutors publicly confirmed their intentions at a court hearing where they also acknowledged they don't have blood or semen evidence implicating the accused man, Ingmar Guandique.

"No DNA has linked Mr. Guandique to the items collected at the crime scene," said Assistant U.S. Attorney Fernando Campoamor-Sanchez, adding without elaboration that "we have a very good explanation for why that is."

The only DNA found on Levy's clothing was residue left from a female lab analyst, Campoamor-Sanchez told D.C. Superior Court Associate Judge Geoffrey M. Alprin. After failing Friday to secure a four-week delay, Guandique's attorneys said they will now secure an independent laboratory testing of Levy's bra, underwear, tights and other clothing.

"They're trying to find out if they can find someone else's DNA," Alprin mused.

Raised in Modesto, Calif., where her parents still live, the 24-year-old Levy had recently completed her Bureau of Prisons internship when she was last seen alive on April 30, 2001. Her disappearance in Washington eventually brought to light her past relationship with then-U.S. Rep. Gary Condit, D-Calif., whose political career subsequently collapsed.

Levy's skeletal remains were found in Washington's Rock Creek Park in May 2002. Guandique was already serving a 10-year federal sentence for attacking two other women in Rock Creek Park in 2001 when prosecutors charged him in March 2009 with Levy's murder.

The prosecution spells out a circumstantial case in court documents, with heavy reliance on prison informants. Prosecutors and defense attorneys are battling over whether the informants' testimony, some of it very contradictory, can be admitted in the trial set to begin Jan. 27.

more at the link above

[Nut44x4]

Chandra Levy's accused killer to face new charges

Monday, November 23, 2009; 11:20 AM

Federal prosecutors in the Chandra Levy murder case told a D.C. Superior Court judge on Monday that they plan to file additional charges against Levy's accused killer, Ingmar Guandique.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Fernando Campoamor told the judge his office plans to file a superseding indictment within the next few weeks and has scheduled a new arraignment for Guandique for Dec. 15.

After the hearing, Campoamor declined to name the new charges. But in a court filing earlier this summer, prosecutors said they found at least one other person who claims to have been attacked by a man fitting Guandique's description.

As a result of the new charges, the trial, which was scheduled to begin in January, was rescheduled for Oct. 4, 2010.

Guandique, 28, was arrested in April and charged with six counts, including first-degree murder, kidnapping, robbery and sexual abuse in connection with Levy's 2001 disappearance and slaying.

If found guilty, Guandique could be sentenced to life in prison. Guandique, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador, has been serving a 10-year term for attacking two women at knife point in Rock Creek Park about the same time that Levy disappeared. Levy's body was found in the park a year after she disappeared.

Guandique's lawyers said that their client is innocent and that there is no DNA evidence linking Guandique to the crime scene. They say prosecutors based their case primarily on information from jailhouse informants.

Levy's disappearance generated international attention because she had been having an affair with then-Rep. Gary A. Condit (D-Calif.), who represented the district that includes her home town of Modesto.

Guandique, standing between his lawyers from the District's Public Defender Service and a court-appointed Spanish interpreter, said little at Monday's hearing, other than his full name and "good morning" to the judge.

The case will now be heard by Judge Gerald Fisher who assumed it from retiring Judge Geoffrey M. Alprin.

Campoamor told Fisher that Guandique will have completed his prison sentence for assault and is scheduled to be released around the time his trial is to begin. But Campoamor said if Guandique's release date and trial coincide, prosecutors will seek to have Guandique held in the D.C. jail for the trial.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/23/AR2009112301651.html

[Nut44x4]

Man accused in Levy killing faces new charges
December 03, 2009 02:04 PM EST
WASHINGTON (AP) — The man accused of killing federal intern Chandra Levy in Washington in 2001 has been charged with threatening a witness in the case.

A superseding indictment filed Wednesday in D.C. Superior Court charges Ingmar Guandique with obstructing justice, threatening to injure a person and conspiracy. Guandique was charged in April with first-degree murder and other counts in connection with Levy's death. He has pleaded not guilty to those charges.

The D.C. Public Defender Service, which is representing Guandique, had no immediate comment on the new charges Thursday.

According to the new indictment, Guandique wrote a note to a witness identified only as "J.G." and had someone deliver it. The note threatened to kill J.G. or J.G.'s family if J.G. cooperated with law enforcement in the case against Guandique.

A second threatening letter was mailed to the witness by someone involved in the alleged conspiracy, according to the charges.

Levy, 24, had just completed an internship with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons when she disappeared after leaving her apartment in jogging clothes in May 2001. Her body was found a year later by a man walking a dog in Rock Creek Park.

The case, which stumped investigators for years, has been blamed for destroying the political career of former U.S. Rep. Gary Condit of California, who was romantically linked to Levy. Authorities questioned the Democrat, but he was never a suspect in her death.

When Guandique, 28, was charged this year with sexually assaulting and killing Levy, the illegal immigrant from El Salvador had been serving a 10-year sentence for separate assaults in Rock Creek Park.

Guandique's attorneys have criticized the lack of physical evidence in the case. The case rests in large part on two witnesses who said Guandique told them he was involved in Levy's killing.

The additional charges have delayed the trial, which had been scheduled to start next month.

http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977929327&grpId=3659174697244816

[Nut44x4]

BLOCKED WEBSITE

[Nut44x4]

Man charged in Levy slaying wants trial moved

Last Update: 7:36 am 

WASHINGTON (AP) — Attorneys for the man charged in the slaying of federal intern Chandra Levy want his trial moved from the D.C. area.

Ingmar Guandique has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and other counts filed in Levy's death. Levy vanished in 2001 after completing an internship with the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. Her body was found a year later in Rock Creek Park.

WTOP-FM reports that Guandique's attorneys want the case moved from D.C. Superior Court to a federal court outside the region.

Before Guandique's arrest, his attorneys say the Levy case was described as "the most famous unsolved murder in modern Washington." In a court filing, they argue that through media reports potential jurors have been exposed to information that may or may not be admitted as evidence.

http://www.nbcactionnews.com/news/national/story/Man-charged-in-Levy-slaying-wants-trial-moved/eaoYfbDMo02koi8Z2ORGqw.cspx

[MuffyBee]

http://www.modbee.com/2010/03/05/1076178/high-courts-ruling-to-help-levy.html
High Court's ruling to help Levy case?
Justices: Miranda rights don't bar requestioning

March 6, 2010



WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court has made it easier to successfully prosecute the man accused of killing former intern Chandra Levy.

By recently expanding police powers to interrogate certain suspects without having lawyers present, the high court eased one of the burdens confronting prosecutors in the high-profile Levy case. The justices did so without mentioning Levy or the man accused of killing her, Ingmar Guandique.

Nonetheless, the Supreme Court's Feb. 24 ruling in Maryland v. Shatzer will likely have a direct bearing on Guandique's courtroom future. The ruling gives prosecutors potentially more opportunities to use Guandique's unmediated words and behavior against him.
More...

[MuffyBee]

http://www.modbee.com/2010/03/10/1082988/prosecutors-in-levy-slaying-oppose.html
Prosecutors in Levy slaying oppose efforts to move trial
Thursday, March 11, 2020



WASHINGTON — Prosecutors are resisting defense efforts to relocate the trial of the man accused of murdering former intern Chandra Levy.

Amid crucial pretrial maneuvering, prosecutors argue in new legal filings that accused killer Ingmar Guandique should be held to account in the nation's capital. Potentially biased jurors can be excluded through the questioning process known as voir dire, prosecutors say.

"This case has received media attention all across the United States, not just D.C.," the prosecutors argue in their latest brief.

 "As a result, the fairness of the trial in this or any jurisdiction depends upon voir dire, not the location of the trial."

Prosecutors say Guandique attempted to sexually assault Levy and then murdered her in Washington's Rock Creek Park in May 2001, while the one-time Modesto resident was jogging on a remote trail. Levy's skeletal remains were found a year later.

The prosecutors' arguments, in legal pleadings filed March 9, tee up one of the most important decisions to be made by Superior Court Judge Gerald Fisher. Guandique's attorneys argued previously that the trial must move because of the case's "extremely sensational" media coverage.

"Given the pervasiveness of modern communications and the difficulty of effacing prejudicial publicity from the minds of jurors, trial courts must take strong measures to ensure that the balance is never weighed against the accused," Guandique's attorneys argued in earlier legal filings.

Guandique's attorneys, Santha Sonenberg and Maria Hawilo, cited among many other stories a lengthy Washington Post series that ran in July 2008. An expanded version of the Levy series will soon appear as a book by reporters Sari Horwitz and Scott Higham. One D.C.-area television station had run "thousands and thousands of stories on the case," the attorneys added.

Relationship with Condit

Much of the original coverage arose from speculation, and then revelations, about the former federal Bureau of Prisons intern's relationship with then-Rep. Gary Condit, a Democrat from Ceres.

The publicity spurred the flameout of Condit's congressional career in 2002. Some critics also believe it distracted police early in the investigation.

Guandique faces life in prison if convicted on first-degree murder charges, as the District of Columbia lacks the death penalty.

Though he is being tried in a superior court, it is a federal jurisdiction, and the prosecutors are members of the U.S. attorney's office. His defense attorneys want the trial moved to an unspecified federal court elsewhere.

While acknowledging that "publicity surrounding the murder of Chandra Levy has been extensive," Assistant U.S. Attorneys Amanda Haynes and Fernando Campoamor-Sanchez contend that alone isn't enough to compel a new trial location. They note numerous other high-profile cases have safely occurred in Washington.

"The strong presumption must be that, in any case, jurors can be found in the District of Columbia whose exposure to the case will have been sufficiently minimal to enable them to render a fair and impartial verdict," the prosecutors argue.

D.C. court unique

Prosecutors also note that, in earlier cases, the D.C. Court of Appeals has concluded that changes of venue aren't allowed because of the unique character of the D.C. Superior Court.

A change of venue typically moves a trial from a superior court in one part of a state to another, as when the sensational 2004 murder trial of Scott Peterson was moved from Modesto to Redwood City.

By contrast, there is no other superior court comparable to the District of Columbia's; it's one of a kind.

Prosecutors added that "citizens in the District of Columbia have been contacted and asked a number of questions regarding the criminal justice system in general and the murder of Chandra Levy in particular." Prosecutors say they don't know if this was being done by the defense team, perhaps to provide further evidence for the change-of-venue request.

[Edward]

He is an Illegal person in our nation attacking our people.
 

[Nut44x4]

Authors discuss 'Finding Chandra'

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, May 7, 2010; 12:00 PM

Investigations reporters Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz took your questions about their new book, Finding Chandra: A True Washington Murder Mystery.

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: Hi, we're here and looking forward to answering all of your questions. With us is Jeff Leen, our editor and the head of the Post's Investigative Unit who edited the 13-part series, Who Killed Chandra Levy?, which ran in July 2008. We did extensive addtional reporting for our book, Finding Chandra: A True Washington Murder Mystery, which will be published by Scribner on May 11.

_______________________

New York City: I look forward to hearing your book. Since I have not seen it, would you please tell us what we may find in the book that has not already been published in the press?

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: When we embarked on the book, we were surprised by how many new facts we discovered. We learned that the suspect, Ingmar Guandique, has a tattoo on his chest of a naked woman resembling Chandra Levy, according to police. We also write about how unidentified male DNA was found on Chandra Levy's leggings in Rock Creek Park. It has not been linked to either former Congressman Gary Condit or Guandique. Our book is full of new details about the innerworkings of the investigation and its aftermath.

_______________________

Rockville MD: I really enjoyed your series and look forward to reading the book. Without giving away too much, how does the book expand on the series? I'm guessing you must have widened the focus beyond the facts you already covered in the Post stories?

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: The series was about 20,000 words; the book is more than 60,000. It fleshes out the individual stories of Chandra, Condit, Guandique and other major players in the case. It is a deeper look at how police, lawyers, prosecutors and the press interacted. We pick up after the series finished in July 2008 and take the story to the present.

_______________________

Washington DC: Hi,

Thank you for taking questions, and writing this book! I am fascinated by this case, and very glad that you all are keeping it at the forefront. I will never forget that summer when Chandra went missing.

My gravest concern is that if Guandique is guilty, that there are enough mis-steps by investigators that he could still go free. Knowing that you don't have a crystal ball (but that you do know the case), can we be reasonably assured that if he is guilty, it won't be thrown out on a technicality?

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: Thank you for your comment. This is going to be a tough case for prosecutors to prove because the evidence is circumstantial. There is no forensic evidence or eyewitnesses tying Guandique to the crime. This Friday there is an important hearing in DC Superior Court where some of the key legal issues involving Guandique's statements and past actions will be debated. Anything can happen at trial because you never know what a jury is going to do. It's going to be fascinating.

_______________________

Baltimore, MD: I mean no offense, I truly don't, but my question is... why?

This story was overplayed at the time, and like a zombie, it just won't die. Young women are killed -every day.- This particular young woman wasn't outstanding, interesting, or useful to anyone but her rich parents who could afford to keep the heat turned up.

Her involvement with the Congressman was vaguely sordid, and while there was still a chance he did it the story was interesting in a "wow, a Congressman might go down for murder instead of getting away with it?" kind of way. Without that element, the story became a non-starter.

So many murdered women have no voice. This woman had a voice thanks to her wealth. Why did the Post amplify hers instead of someone who will never be heard?

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: That's a good question and one that has come up before. We chose this case because at the time it was Washington's most famous unsolved murder and the investigation appeared to be stuck after six years. Also, as you point out, there were suspicions early on that a congressman might have been involved, and Gary Condit was still living somewhat with a cloud over his head. The press attention this case got in the summer of 2001 was extraordinary and unprecedented. Yet the case seemed to be abandoned in the public mind after 9/11. We had heard that there had been serious mistakes and missed opportunities by the police and the FBI. We wanted to hold them accountable and find out precisely how the case went awry.


The Post investigative unit has looked deeply into other murder cases involving the less well-known. In 2000, we did a four-part series examining more than 200 unsolved murder cases. The next year, we investigated the deaths of more than 180 children who perished while they were under the watch of the D.C. child protection agency.

_______________________

Washington, DC: I lived in DC when Chandra went missing (as I do now) and I don't remember hearing anything about the other women attacked in Rock Creek.

All eyes were on Condit and I, a regular runner, was never told that gang members were hanging out in the woods and "picking off" women. Combined with the truly laughable "sketches" of Chandra the police put out, the news that's come out that police "never showed up" to interview other victims and the fact that my apartment was burglarized around this time and the police touched/moved everything, making fingerprint capture impossible and didn't seem at all concerned about finding the perpetrator, my confidence in the DC police dept is quite low.

Was it ever explained WHY they didn't interview the other women til years later and why they didn't publicize the other attacks?

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: In the summer of 2001, the DC detectives failed to Chandra's disappearance to the attacks on women in Rock Creek Park. Those were investigated by a different agency, the US Park Police, and somehow the information was not immediately communicated between the two agencies. The US Park Police interviewed two of the women attacked, but the original DC detectives did not think that those crimes were connected to Chandra's disappearance. Former police chief Charles Ramsey later told us that he was unaware that his detectives had not interviewed the women, and surprised by the oversight.


After the Post series that pointed to Ingmar Guandique as the most likely suspect, new detectives assigned to the case by Chief Lanier interviewed the women attacked in the park.

_______________________

Bowie, Md.: Good Afternoon,

Why isn't/wasn't any more mention of Chandra stopping to get two ice creams at an ice cream store on her way into Rock Creek Park? I find that piece of information quite interesting but never was brought up in the series. Thank you.

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: That has never been proven. While Chandra did look up Baskin Robbins on her computer the morning of May 1, there is no evidence that she went there that day. In fact, no one knows exactly what she did between the time she signed off on her computer and entered Rock Creek Park.

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NYC: I'm very pleased that the case has been solved--on the other hand, though, it's deeply depressing that it took newspaper reporters to get the job done (no offense). Why couldn't law enforcment put 2 and 2 together the way you did?

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: That's a good question. The police have a very difficult job. They were working under incredible pressure, with an international media frenzy, sensational speculation about Condit and a true mystery to solve. Mistakes were definitely made. The case went cold, and in 2007 a new police chief assigned new detectives to the investigation. After the Post series ran in July 2008, the new detectives interviewed several key witnesses and visited Guandique in his cell in California. They arrested him in April 2009.

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NYC: Will your book include further interviews with Condit and the Levy family? How cooperative were they?

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: We had subsequent interviews with Robert and Susan Levy, and their son, Adam. We interviewed Condit extensively for the series, but he did not give us another interview for the book. We included new material from the earlier interviews in the book. We also re-interviewed his lawyer, Abbe Lowell, at length.

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San Francisco, CA: This is a story of abiding interest, but what about the bigger picture? What lessons can we learn from how this case was handled?

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: In high-profile media cases, the police and the press have to be careful about a rush to judgment. We saw this in the Richard Jewell Atlanta bombing case, the Anthrax investigation and the D.C. sniper case. With the advent of cable television and the proliferating blogosphere there is more noise and inaccurate information out there than ever before. It's important for law enforcement to stay focused on their investigations and the press to try harder to be accurate.

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Across the hall from Apt 315: As a neighbor who knew Chandra slightly, I wanted to thank you for dogging this. I also want to say that I spoke to Det. Kennedy on a number of occasions, and he was determined to get to the bottom of this case. I think the media's obsession with Gary Condit was much more damaging. You can't imagine what it is like to have your home (mine!) surrounded by reporters, night and day, some from as far away as Japan and Germany. I was interviewed by some of them as well, and couldn't believe what some of them wrote.

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: Thanks for your thoughtful comment.

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Gary Condit?: What has become of Gary Condit since he left office? Has the fact that charges were made against someone else helped him at all?

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: Last we heard, Gary Condit was living in Arizona and splitting his time between California and Colorado. He had opened two Baskin Robbins ice cream stores outside Phoenix but lost the stores in a franchise dispute. When we interviewed him, he told us he was doing some consulting work, but did not elaborate. It has also been reported that he was planning to write a book.


His attorney has said that he is pleased that his client has finally be exonerated, but the case cost Condit his career and caused his family great pain.

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Richmond, VA: Has anyone looked into Ingmar Guandique's past in Latin America--is there any evidence of attacks on women down there, before he came to the U. S.?

Also, to what extent are all these bragging, macho, jailhouse confessions by Guandique likely to stand up in court? Wouldn't the inmates testifying about these confessions have to be given some type of reward for cooperating with the prosecutor, such as a reduced sentence for their own crimes? And what about the identity of the other men that Guandique claims participated in the attack on Chandra?

Thanks.

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: A Post reporter, our former colleague Sylvia Moreno, traveled to El Salvador to Guandique's village and interviewed his family and friends. She was not able to find any evidence of past crimes.


The question of the admissibility of the jailhouse confessions is a key one for the defense and prosecution, and will take center stage at upcoming pre-trial hearings. Cooperating witnesses usually are given some type of reward by the government, often a reduced sentence after they testify.


There is no evidence beyond Guandique's statement that others were involved.

_______________________

Scott Higham and Sari Horwitz: That's all the time we have. Thanks for all of your great questions. If you want more information about the book go to www.findingchandra.com, and for updates on the case go to www.washingtonpost.com/investigations.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2010/05/06/DI2010050603646.html

[Nut44x4]

Accused Chandra Levy killer to be tried in D.C.   
May 14, 2010 - 6:13pm

WASHINGTON - A judge has decided to keep the trial of a man charged in the killing of federal intern Chandra Levy in the District.

Attorneys for Ingmar Guandique, 28, had argued he would not get a fair trial in Washington because of the extensive publicity. But Judge Gerald Fisher denied a motion Friday to change the venue.

Levy disappeared in May 2001 and her remains were found a year later in Rock Creek Park. Guandique faces a first-degree murder charge in her death.

The judge still has to rule on another defense request to suppress statements Guandique made to authorities in 2008.

The trial is set for October.

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=25&sid=1957097

[Nut44x4]

Levy Suspect's Fellow Inmates May Testify
Updated 9:45 AM PDT, Sun, Jul 18, 2010

Prosecutors said they may call four fellow inmates of the man charged in federal intern Chandra Levy's slaying to testify at trial.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Fernando Campoamor told D.C. Superior Court Judge Gerald Fisher on Friday that he did not want to reveal certain details about the witnesses to the defense until two weeks before the October trial, citing concerns about their safety.

Defense attorneys for Ingmar Guandique, the man charged in Levy's death, said they needed the information much earlier to review whether they have issues with honesty.

But Fisher agreed with the prosecution's timeline, saying they only needed to give the defense information, including whether the witnesses provided inconsistent statements, two weeks before trial.

http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local-beat/Levy-Suspects-Fellow-Inmates-May-Testify-98702899.html

[Sister]

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/09/22/1837448/judge-in-chandra-levy-case-issues.html
Judge in Chandra Levy case issues more rulings as trial nears
 
By MICHAEL DOYLE
McClatchy Newspapers
WASHINGTON -- A judge on Wednesday both eased and complicated the job of prosecuting the man accused of killing former intern Chandra Levy with a pair of pretrial rulings that lets some evidence in but keeps other evidence out.

Superior Court Judge Gerald Fisher also indicated that he's likely to let Levy's mother, Modesto, Calif., resident Susan Levy, attend most if not all of the trial even though she could be called as a witness.

"I'm certainly inclined to let Mrs. Levy to be present as much as legally possible," Fisher stated, though he stopped short of a formal ruling. "She's going to be present for a large portion of the trial, and maybe the entirety of it."

Fisher said he'd make a final determination about Susan Levy's appearance on the eve of the trial, now scheduled to start Oct. 4.

Prosecutors say Salvadoran immigrant Ingmar Guandique attempted to sexually assault Chandra Levy on May 1, 2001, and then killed her while she was jogging in Washington's heavily wooded Rock Creek Park. At the time, Levy had finished graduate studies and a Bureau of Prisons internship.

Levy was reportedly planning to return to California, where she was raised.

There are no direct witnesses or DNA evidence linking Guandique to the attack. Instead, the prosecutors are relying on various statements Guandique has made to fellow prison inmates and others over the years, as well as his own admitted record of attacking women in Rock Creek Park.

Consequently, the success or failure of the prosecution could turn on the kind of evidence that the judge allows to be admitted.

During a two-and-a-half-hour hearing Wednesday afternoon, Fisher agreed that papers, photographs and other material seized from Guandique's prison cell in Victorville, Calif., can be admitted. Guandique's defense attorneys had argued that the cell search was unconstitutional.

"In a prison setting, prisoners have a diminished and in some cases (non-existent) expectation of privacy," Fisher countered.

Fisher further agreed that the prosecutors could present testimony from park police officers who interviewed Guandique after an August 2001 attack in Rock Creek Park.

But in a victory for defense attorneys, Fisher said he would not permit the prosecutors, assistant U.S. attorneys Amanda Haines and Fernando Campoamor-Sanchez, to present statements Guandique made to a court officer preparing a pre-sentencing report.

"Sometimes, I cannot control myself when I see someone alone in a secluded area with something of value," Guandique allegedly told a court officer in 2001.

The pre-sentence report was being prepared to assist a judge handling another, unrelated criminal case involving Guandique.

Defense attorneys Santha Sonenberg and Maria Hawilo had argued that the statements would unfairly prejudice jurors against Guandique by suggesting that he had a propensity for violent action. They also noted Guandique had spoken to the court officer without being given his Miranda rights.

Miranda rights remind suspects that their words can be used against them and that they can request an attorney.

Fisher did not directly address the Miranda issue, but he cited a number of prior cases that concluded pre-sentence reports were not intended as tools for prosecutors.

"I find disclosure of this material is in violation of a clear and compelling policy that governs the preparation of pre-sentence reports," Fisher said.

Guandique faces a potential sentence of life in prison, as the District of Columbia doesn't allow the death penalty. Attorneys predict the trial will last about five weeks. Jury selection alone is expected to consume the first three days, as the trial's length and the case's notoriety will make it harder to find unbiased jurors able to serve.



Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/09/22/1837448/judge-in-chandra-levy-case-issues.html#ixzz10JNIfoC0