5 kids, woman found slain inside Florida Apt. 9/19/09(husband arrested)

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.nbc-2.com/Global/story.asp?S=11472895
New documents in Damas murder released
Posted: Nov 09, 2009 5:09 PM CST Updated: Nov 9, 2009 06:23 PM EST
COLLIER COUNTY: The State Attorney's Office just released hundreds of investigative documents in the deaths of six members of a North Naples family. Mesac Damas is accused of killing his wife and five children in September.

The documents include reports from the Collier County Sheriff's Office when they responded to allegations of domestic violence between Damas and his wife.

Guerline told deputies on several occasions spanning almost 10 years that her husband was abusive and violent.

A coworker of Guerline that took an anger management class with Damas says in class, Damas threatened to kill his wife and kids.

That co-worker also says before Guerline and her children were killed, Damas seemed depressed.

Investigators combed over hours of surveillance video taken from Collier County gas stations and stores.

A camera at a Wal-mart on Collier Boulevard took pictures of Damas buying a knife and duct tape two days before Guerline and the five kids were found with their throats slit.

The documents also mention the phone call Damas made to his father. He said he hit Guerline and thought she wasn't going to wake up.

Read the documents here:
Part one: http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/wbbh/documents/091109_damas1-8a.pdf
Part two: http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/wbbh/documents/091109_damas1-8b.pdf
Part three: http://ftpcontent.worldnow.com/wbbh/documents/091109_damas1-8c.pdf

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.winknews.com/news/local/69628042.html
New details released in Damas family murders
By WINK News

Story Created: Nov 9, 2009 at 11:22 PM EST

Story Updated: Nov 9, 2009 at 11:22 PM EST
COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. - Collier County investigators say they have video of Mesac Damas buying a the knife they say he used in the murders of his wife and five children.

More than 300 pages of newly released court documents detail the scene deputies walked into at the Damas home in September, where they found Guerline Dieu Damas and her kids with their throats slit.

The documents also give more perspective on the history of domestic violence between Guerline and Mesac Damas, including the night Mesac was arrested for beating Guerline with their youngest child in her arms. Both Guerline and the baby were taken to the hospital that night.
Their kids ages ranged from just 19-months to 9-years old.

There are several other reports in the documents showing a history of domestic violence.

As for the alleged murder weapon, investigators say they have video of Damas buying a fish filleting knife from Wal-Mart.

The documents also give us information on Damas' on and off girlfriend; Damas said he didn't want to divorce his wife, because he couldn't live without his kids.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.news-press.com/article/20091203/CRIME/91203019/1075/Prosecutors-seek-death-penalty-for-Mesac-Damas-accused-of-killing-his-North-Naples-family
Prosecutors seek death penalty for Mesac Damas, accused of killing his North Naples family

Denes Husty III • dhusty@news-press.com • December 3, 2009
 From our archives: Coverage of the Damas family tragedy

9:23 A.M. — State prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Mesac Damas, the man charged with killing his wife and five children in their North Naples home in September.

Documents stating that prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Damas were filed this morning with the Collier County Clerk of Courts office, said Samantha Syoen, spokeswoman for the state attorney’s office.

Damas, 33, is charged with six counts of first-degree premeditated murder.

The charges accuse Damas of killing his wife, Guerline Dieu Damas, 32, and their five children inside their North Naples townhouse.

The charges accuse Damas of slitting the throats of all six victims.

Damas is being held without bond and continues to be under suicide watch in the Collier County Jail.

His next court hearing is scheduled for Friday morning.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.marconews.com/news/2009/dec/03/state-seek-death-penalty-against-mesac-damas/
State to seek death penalty against Mesac Damas

    * By STEVEN BEARDSLEY, RYAN MILLS
    * Posted December 3, 2009 at 9:54 a.m. , updated December 3, 2009 at 9:33 p.m.
Naples — Accused of cutting the throats of his wife and five young children in September, 33-year-old Mesac Damas could pay the ultimate price — death — if convicted of the killings.

The State Attorney’s Office announced Thursday that prosecutors will seek the death penalty for Damas, who has confessed to the killings and previously expressed to a Daily News reporter his desire to die for the crimes. The notice of intent to seek the death penalty was filed in Collier County court on Thursday morning.

If sentenced to death, Damas would be only the second Florida inmate on death row in a Collier County case.

Damas remains on suicide watch in the Collier County jail, and has not been allowed any visitors other than his attorney since his September arrest, the Collier County
Sheriff’s Office reported.

Collier County Deputy Public Defender Mike Orlando, who represents Damas, filed a not-guilty plea in September and said at the time that he had concerns about his client’s mental state. When reached for comment Thursday, Orlando had little to say about the state’s decision to pursue the death penalty.

“I would have preferred that they had not filed that, but that’s what they chose to do,” Orlando said. “I understand that and will prepare accordingly.”
Detectives say that sometime between Sept. 17 and 18, Damas left work, returned to his North Naples townhouse and cut the throats of his wife, Guerline Dieu Damas, 32, and their five children. He then fled to his native Haiti, where he was later arrested and returned to the U.S.

Family members on both sides were tight-lipped when asked Thursday about the possibility of Damas receiving the death penalty.

“I don’t want to talk about this,” Damas’ father, Jean Damas Sr., said before closing the door at his Naples Manor home.

Mackindy Dieu, 24, Guerline’s brother who is listed as a witness in the case, said he is not allowed to discuss it. Guerline’s mother, Thelicia Medor, also declined comment.
However, earlier in the day, Medor, who does not speak English, had her 12-year-old granddaughter, Sabrina Obsaint, return a call to the Daily News. She said the family is not sold on the death penalty.

“We wanted to see him live and suffer the consequences in jail,” she said.

The decision to file for the death penalty means that Damas will receive a second attorney for his defense and that he’ll undergo a penalty phase if convicted. During the penalty phase, the same jury that convicted him would decide whether to recommend Damas receive life in prison or the death penalty. They would weigh aggravating factors with mitigating factors offered by the defense.
Aggravating factors are defined in Florida law and include acts that are “heinous, atrocious and cruel;” acts that are “cold, calculated and premeditated;” acts in which a victim is under the age of 12; and those in which the offender is the parent of the victim.

Furthermore, under Florida law, each individual killing counts as a prior violent felony to the next.

David A. Brener, a Fort Myers criminal defense attorney, said all the aggravators listed above may apply to Damas. He said one mitigating factor stands above all others:

“Clearly this gentlemen is ill,” he said.
And though insanity is a notoriously difficult standard to meet, mental illness can play a major role in the penalty phase, Brener explained.

“In other words the jury can find him legally sane but mentally ill and therefore not deserving of the death penalty,” he said.

A status check is slated for Damas in court this morning, though Orlando said he doesn’t “anticipate Mr. Damas will be there.”

According to the Florida Department of Corrections, there are 387 inmates on death row in Florida.

If sentenced to death, Damas would join Brandy Bain Jennings as the only inmates with Collier cases on death row. Jennings was sentenced to death for his role in a 1995 triple homicide and robbery at Collier County’s Cracker Barrel restaurant.
Thomas Lee Gudinas’ was sentenced to death in Collier County in 1995. However, his case was moved to Naples from Orlando due to extensive publicity. Gudinas killed a former homecoming queen near a downtown Orlando bar in 1994.

Raymond Koon was sentenced to death in Collier County in 1982 for gunning down a U.S. Secret Service informant. In 2005, at 73 years old, he died in prison of natural causes.

In 2003, John Ballard, a suspected serial killer and former Golden Gate resident, was sentenced to death for robbing and killing two neighbors. However, the Florida Supreme Court vacated Ballard’s two murder convictions and his death sentence in 2006. He was last believed to be living in California.

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Notice Of Intent To Seek The Death Penalty
http://media.marconews.com/media/static/Intent_to_seek_death_penalty_damas.pdf

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.news-press.com/article/20091204/CRIME/91204011/1075/Mesac-Damas-makes-first-court-appearance
Mesac Damas makes first court appearance

Denes Husty III • dhusty@news-press.com • December 4, 2009

9:33 a.m

8:31 A.M. — The man charged with six counts of first-degree premeditated murder in the killings of his wife and five children in North Naples made his first appearance in court since his arrest in September.

Collier Circuit Judge Frank Baker set a tentative trial date for March 19, although that date will probably be continued because of the complexities of the case, prosecutors and defense attorneys agreed.

State Attorney Steve Russell told Baker that he will seek the death penalty for Damas, 33.

Damas is charged with killing his wife, Guerline Dieu Damas, 32, and their five children in September inside their North Naples home. He is accused of slitting the victims throats.

Baker ruled that both he and Chief Assistant Public Defender Michael Orlando have the experience and qualifications for death penalty cases.

"I wish they wouldn't have filed" documents notifying the judge of the intent to seek the death penalty.

"I'll now prepare for that aspect of the case, which is called the penalty phase," Orlando said.

Damas will also waive his right to attend future court hearings, said Orlando.

Damas remains on suicide watch in the Collier County Jail, although he was allowed to attend the hearging
State prosecutors will seek the death penalty for Mesac Damas, the man charged with killing his wife and five children in their North Naples home in September.

His next court hearing is scheduled for this morning at 8:30 a.m. Demas is scheduled to appear in the courtroom.

Documents stating that prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Damas were filed Thursday morning with the Collier County Clerk of Courts office, said Samantha Syoen, spokeswoman for the state attorney’s office.

Damas, 33, is charged with six counts of first-degree premeditated murder.

The charges accuse Damas of killing his wife, Guerline Dieu Damas, 32, and their five children inside their North Naples townhouse.

The charges accuse Damas of slitting the throats of all six victims.

Damas is being held without bond and continues to be under suicide watch in the Collier County Jail.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.nbc-2.com/Global/story.asp?S=11620959
Not guilty plea for Masac Damas, state seeks death penalty
Posted: Dec 04, 2009 9:50 AM CST Updated: Dec 04, 2009 9:55 AM CST
COLLIER COUNTY: A Collier County man accused of killing his wife and five kids appeared in a Collier courtroom for the first time on Friday.

The state is seeking the death penalty against Masac Damas, who has confessed to murdering his family inside their North Naples home in September.

"It certainly makes it a lot more difficult. Anytime you have a confession, you have to weigh that into the process," said Defense Attorney Mike Orlando. "So, it doesn't make it any easier that's for sure."

Damas only spoke in court when responding to the judge, who asked him if he understood he has the right to appear at every hearing in the case.

Today's docket sounding only took fifteen minutes, with prosecutors updating the status of the case.

Despite the confessions, Damas has pled not guilty.
   
The next hearing in the case is set for March.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.news-press.com/article/20091205/CRIME/91204066/1075/Damas-begins-long-legal-road-to-murder-trial
Damas begins long legal road to murder trial

By DENES HUSTY III • dhusty@news-press.com • December 5, 2009
1:10 A.M. — The first full fledged hearing for accused family killer Mesac Damas Friday signaled the start of a long legal process as prosecutors and defense attorneys prepare for trial.
Although a preliminary date of March 19 was scheduled for Damas, 33, the trial may take place long afterward because of complexities in the case. Those include intent by prosecutors to seek the death penalty, Damas’ confessions to authorities and the media, and questions about his mental state.
<snipped>

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2009/dec/08/new-discover-mesac-damas-case-includes-photos-alle/
New discovery in Mesac Damas case includes photos of Walmart purchase

    * Posted December 8, 2009 at 12:04 p.m. , updated December 8, 2009 at 3:12 p.m.
The State Attorney’s Office released new discovery in the Mesac Damas case. The 33-year-old is accused of cutting the throats of his wife and five young children in September in their North Naples home.

Among the items released today is surveillance pictures of someone making a purchase at Walmart. Authorities have stated in the past that it is believed Damas bought a knife used to kill his family at Walmart. The discovery also includes six photos of men used in suspect lineups for witnesses (see gallery to the left).

The State Attorney’s Office announced last week that prosecutors will seek the death penalty for Damas, who has confessed to the killings and previously expressed to a Daily News reporter his desire to die for the crimes. The notice of intent to seek the death penalty was filed in Collier County court last Thursday morning.
Photo at link

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/jan/10/defending-self-confessed-killer-mesac-damas-likely/
Defending self-confessed killer Mesac Damas likely to be very costly

    * By STEVEN BEARDSLEY
    * Posted January 10, 2010 at 6:44 p.m.
The effort to save the life of Mesac Damas gains full steam in 2010.

As the self-confessed killer of his wife and five children remains in a holding pattern in jail, his lawyers will begin a long — and expensive — quest to answer a crucial question: Who, exactly, is Mesac Damas?

Jurors may lean upon their discoveries to determine if the native Haitian should receive the death penalty or be spared, criminal attorneys say. The innocence-guilt phase of the trial will be straightforward, they forecast. The penalty phase, comparable to a second trial, will be hard fought.

“The only question is whether he lives or dies,” said Fort Myers criminal attorney John Mills.
Damas, 33, is charged with six counts of first-degree murder for the slayings of his wife, Guerline Damas, 32, and his five children. The children were Meshach “Zack,” 9; Maven, 6; Marven, 5; Megan, 3; and Morgan, 19 months.

The victims were discovered on Sept. 22 in various rooms of the family’s North Naples house. Each had a cut throat and multiple stab wounds.

Damas fled to Haiti, where he was captured days later. He told a Daily News reporter that his mother-in-law’s influence made him commit the killings and that he wanted to be executed. Prosecutors filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty in late November.

The suspect remains at the Naples Jail Center, where he is on suicide watch, Collier County Sheriff’s officials say. He is allowed no visitors, save his lawyer, Deputy Public Defender Mike Orlando.
Orlando’s road is a difficult and pricey one, according to Miami-Dade County assistant public defender Stephen Harper, who works capital cases in the 11th Judicial Circuit and has 25 years of experience as a defender.

“The defense has a tremendous burden of looking at everything about this man and his life and synthesizing what this man did, when he did it and why he did it,” Harper said.

That burden means identifying and paying experts, from psychiatrists to brain scan analysts to guides and translators in Haiti, where attorneys or their aides will dig deep into Damas’ past. Education records, medical visits, even a test for pollutants in the tap water at Damas’ childhood home in Haiti may be scrutinized.

“Literally from pre-natal,” said Mills.
Jurors must receive the fullest picture of Damas and his background if they are to judge his life, both attorneys said. In adherence to Florida law, should Damas be convicted, the panel will be asked to weigh mitigating factors presented by defense attorneys against the aggravating factors of the case, such as its brutality and the fact that children were killed. By majority vote, jurors will choose to recommend either death or life in prison. The judge will make the final decision.

The question of mental illness may loom large in the penalty phase. Questions of intent, self-control and awareness of right and wrong could be argued, Harper said.

Orlando will have help in his task. He’ll name a second attorney to aid in the defense, and he may hire or appoint someone to coordinate Damas’ background investigation. But he’ll be faced with difficult decisions of what he needs, how much he can spend and whether he should — or even can — ask for more money.

Public Defender Kathy Smith said that although her office will provide Orlando whatever he needs, a tight budget can’t be ignored. The office worked about 50,000 cases in 2008, she said. Funding is set at a flat rate by the Legislature.
We have to make choices as to where we spend the limited dollars, keeping in mind the Florida Bar requirement, we prepare the mitigating factors,” she said.

When is one test too many? How much should attorneys pay for experts, and of what quality? Damas’ counsel may grapple with such questions.

“I’d say the defense is going to have to fight very, very hard to get the resources to defend this man,” said Harper.

It is a fight that will likely take place on paper, as Damas waits in his jail cell.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.news-press.com/article/20100319/CRIME/100319019/1075/Trial-for-Mesac-Damas-won-t-take-place-until-year-from-now
Trial for Mesac Damas won't take place until year from now

By Denes Husty III • March 19, 2010
9:21 A.M. — The trial for the man charged with killing his wife and five young children in North Naples will be held about a year from now, prosecutors and defense attorneys told the judge this morning.
Mesac Damas is charged with six counts of first degree murder in the death of his wife, Guerline Dieu Damas, 32, and their five children ages ranging from 9 years to 19 months. Damas faces the death penalty if convicted.

Damas, wearing handcuffs and shackles, attended the hearing in his bright orange jail uniform. He appeared to be thinner than when he last appeared in court in December.

Assistant State Attorney Rich Montecalvo estimated that the trial for Damas “can probably take place this time next year. With my experience that would probably be realistic.”

He said that will give enough time for the state attorney’s office to turn over all documents in the case, including medical examiners reports and photographs, to defense attorneys.

Damas’ attorney Deputy Public Defender Michael Orlando said “everything is coming along. The case has gotten off to a productive start.”

Orlando has already taken depositions of the first five sheriff’s deputies who arrived at the scene of the slayings in September.
Collier Circuit Judge Frank Baker scheduled another status hearing for June 18.

“Mr. Damas will be back here in June. I think your attorney would like to hear what we are doing,” Baker told Damas before he left the courtroom.

As Damas was lead from the courtroom a relative shouted Mesac and was told by a bailiff to be quiet.

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http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/apr/28/public-records-Mesac-damas-details-items-vehicle/
Public records released in Damas case offer new details about items retrieved from his vehicle

    * By STEVEN BEARDSLEY
    * Posted April 28, 2010 at 7:28 p.m. , updated April 28, 2010 at 8:29 p.m.
NAPLES — Public records released in the homicide case against Mesac Damas offer a few new details in the discovery of his vehicle at a Miami airport.

Damas, 33, is charged with six counts of first degree murder on allegations he killed his wife, Guerline Damas, 32, and their five children inside the family’s North Naples home. Mesac Damas fled to Haiti before the bodies were found, and he was captured days later. He confessed to a Daily News reporter while in Haiti.

Damas’ GMC Yukon was found parked at the Miami International Airport a day after the bodies were discovered. He pulled a ticket at the parking lot gate at 6:40 a.m. on Friday, Sept. 18, detectives learned, and Damas later boarded a flight for Haiti.
The Yukon was locked, and its keys had been placed behind the gas tank door. Among the items found inside the vehicle were a concealed weapons permit application and empty plastic packaging for duct tape rolls. Blood tests in six locations of the vehicles returned positive.

The six victims were found with their throats cut and stab wounds. Guerline Damas was bound in duct tape.

Other documents, apparently found inside the vehicle, offer a peek into Damas’ life. Detectives found direct deposit slips from Miller’s Ale House in Naples, where Damas was a cook. They found letters from Damas’ creditors and his landlord, each requesting he pay off outstanding debts. They also found paperwork relating to his misdemeanor battery case, for which pleaded no contest in June 2009, as well as what appears to be his probation schedule.

Also included in the documents were a pair of worksheets on “economic abuse” and “emotional abuse.” On both worksheets, someone had checked several of the examples, including “Controlling all the finances,” “Insulted or drove away her friends or family” and “Damaged prized possessions.”
Damas was taking a court-ordered anger management class as part of his battery probation.

If convicted, Damas faces the death penalty.
Damas Crime Scene Report  http://media.naplesnews.com/media/static/Damas_crime_scene_report.pdf
Crime Scene Report 1 http://media.naplesnews.com/media/static/Damas_crime_scene_report_1.pdf
Crime Scene Report 2 http://media.naplesnews.com/media/static/Damas_crime_scene_report_2.pdf
Crime Scene Report 3 http://media.naplesnews.com/media/static/Damas_crime_scene_report_3.pdf
Crime Scene Report 4 http://media.naplesnews.com/media/static/Damas_crime_scene_report_4.pdf
Crime Scene Report 5 http://media.naplesnews.com/media/static/Damas_crime_scene_report_5.pdf
Crime Scene Report 6 http://media.naplesnews.com/media/static/Damas_crime_scene_report_6.pdf

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Praying For Justice   

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/may/12/fpl-nch-collier-ems-try-collect-estate-slain-damas/
FPL, NCH, Collier EMS try to collect from estate of slain Damas family
    * By AISLING SWIFT
    * Posted May 12, 2010 at 6:55 p.m. , updated May 13, 2010 at 11:59 a.m
NAPLES — When Mesac Damas fled to Haiti, leaving the bloody bodies of his wife and five children in their North Naples apartment, he left a pile of unpaid bills in his car at the airport.

Seven months later, 33-year-old Damas is in the Collier County jail awaiting trial on six counts of murder as his case wends its way through court. Damas, who confessed he killed them, faces the death penalty if convicted.

But in a separate Collier circuit court case, the bills he left are part of the probate case of his wife, Guerline Dieu Damas.

Among those trying to collect from her estate: Collier County EMS and the Collier County Commission, the NCH Healthcare System and Florida Power & Light.
The 32-year-old woman and her children — Meshach “Zack,” 9; Marven, 6; Maven, 5; Megan, 3; and Morgan, 19 months — were found stabbed in the couple’s Stratford Place apartment on Sept. 17.

“I’m shocked,” Collier Commissioner Donna Fiala said when she learned the county was seeking money from the slain woman’s estate.

“Given that EMS is a public agency funded (in part) by tax dollars, it doesn’t have the discretion to pick and choose which unpaid bills it will attempt to collect,” county government spokesman John Torré said.

In 2008, commissioners passed a resolution allowing EMS to go after debts through probate cases, but giving the county manager the ability to waive rates if an estate has nominal or no assets.
FPL also has a similar policy. After a story about the case was posted at naplesnews.com, FPL spokeswoman Jackie Anderson contacted the Daily News and said the utility company had contacted the estate about the unpaid bills.

"In cases where the family does express a hardship, we do reach out to them and we do make exceptions," Anderson said. "... This particular case is clearly a special situation, and our thoughts and prayers go out to the family that has suffered this terrible loss. We have reached out to the family's representative to discuss their extenuating circumstances."

It’s unknown how much the estate has, or whether it can pay the debts.

Publix spokeswoman Shannon Patten said the retailer cannot comment on whether Guerline Damas, a 13-year employee, had a life insurance policy.
But once her estate pays off those bills, if it isn’t insolvent, her mother, 53-year-old Thelicia Medor of Fort Myers, will get what’s left over.

Probate cases are public and required under Florida law, unless the person who died set up a living trust. Despite probate cases being public, what’s in her estate may never be detailed — only the bills that were sent in.

When someone dies intestate, without a will, a legal notice is published in a newspaper alerting creditors to the death and giving them three months to submit unpaid bills.

A legal ad about Guerline Damas’ death was first published April 9, then again on April 16. Creditors have until July 9 to submit “statements of claims.”

FPL was the first to submit two, one for $67.48 and another for $45.96.
NCH Health Care System submitted one statement of claims listing three separate bills. Two match baby Morgan’s birth on Feb. 9, 2008, and Guerline’s care a day earlier: $1,902.15 and $1,515.46. Another was a $150 bill from April 28, 2009. The Daily News attempted to get a comment from a legal affairs coordinator and also another representative of NCH.

Collier County EMS and the County Commission submitted two bills, one for $755 that matches the birth of Megan on March 21, 2006, and another $654.42 bill for service on Oct. 3, 2008.

Florida’s probate laws have evolved since they were first set in 1845, but their aim has remained the same: To tie up the affairs of a decedent and ensure assets pass to the right heirs.

Damas’ brother, Edson Dieu, is the personal representative of her estate. Neither he nor his lawyer, Carl Westman of Naples, the estate’s agent, could be reached for comment. Other relatives also couldn’t be reached.
Once Westman reviews which are valid claims against the estate, he will determine if he wants to contest any. A creditor then would have to sue to recoup the debt. If there aren’t enough assets in the estate to pay debts, the estate is insolvent.

Under Florida probate law, Westman must pay expenses in a certain order, which are listed as eight classes. The costs and expenses of the administration, compensation of the personal representative, Dieu, and Westman’s fees fall under Class 1.

The next class is reasonable funeral, interment and grave marker expenses, but the state’s Crime Victim Compensation Program — which receives $50 for every convict sentenced statewide — paid $36,000 for the caskets and Oct. 3 funeral, the maximum of $6,000 per person.

Reasonable and necessary medical and hospital expenses are Class 4, but those involve a person’s last 60 days. The Damas bills appear to fall under the last class, claims not cited in the other classes.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.marconews.com/news/2010/jun/18/skinny-accused-killer-mesac-damas-shows-court-80-p/
VIDEO/PHOTOS: Accused killer Mesac Damas shows up in court 80 pounds lighter

    * Posted June 18, 2010 at 10:05 a.m.
NAPLES — Suspected killer Mesac Damas never uttered a word, but his brief appearance in a courtroom on Friday spoke volumes.

Stooped, distracted and substantially thinner, Damas’ health, both mental and physical, appeared questionable.

“He’s just not eating like somebody normally would do, to sustain themselves,” Assistant Public Defender Mike Orlando said after the hearing, a status conference intended to gauge progress in the case.
Damas has lost 80 pounds since his September 2009 arrest, Orlando said, and the Naples jail has shared its concerns with the attorney.

The suspect also struggles in conversations about the case, he added.

“I can’t say he has a total grasp of the situation,” Orlando said
The 33-year-old former cook is suspected in the 2009 slayings of his wife, Guerline Damas, 32, and the couple’s five children. They were Morgan, 19 months; Megan, 3; Marven, 5; Maven, 6; and Zack, 9. Damas confessed to a Daily News reporter days after the killings; authorities say he’s confessed to them multiple times.

If convicted, he faces the death penalty.

The Collier County Sheriff’s Office declined to comment on Damas’ health or eating habits, citing federal privacy laws.

Damas was dressed in an orange coverall and flip-flops, and he wore shackles around his hands and ankles. He pressed his hands together and held them before his waist, as if in prayer, and he appeared to acknowledge someone in the gallery.
He remained quiet during the hearing, his head stooped, and he gently rocked in his seat.

A Damas family member attended the hearing, as did eight relatives of Guerline Damas. Clad in the same white T-shirt, which has a picture of the victims on the front and reads “Dieu Angels,” they sat quietly in the gallery. Dieu was Guerline Damas’ maiden name.

A woman from the local domestic abuse shelter was also present in the courtroom. Guerline Damas stayed at the shelter in the past.

The hearing, in front of Collier Circuit Judge Franklin Baker, found that both sides were making progress in the case. Assistant State Attorney Richard Montecalvo said his office is deposing law enforcement officers and crime scene technicians who worked the scene. Orlando said he’s receiving discovery as it becomes available.
Orlando is leaving the Defender’s office in July and handing the case over to Kathleen Fitzgeorge, a transition that may cause a few minor delays in the case, he told Baker. Fitzgeorge, a homicide defender out of Fort Myers, will be assisted by public defenders Neil McLoughlin and Connie Kelley.

Fitzgeorge sat down with Orlando and Damas last week, Orlando told Baker.

Due to the case’s complexity, and prosecutors’ pursuit of the death penalty, it will likely be years before Damas goes to trial. He was originally born in Haiti, and Orlando expects public defenders or their experts will travel to the nation for research into the suspect’s background, a process yet to begin.

They will search for ‘mitigating factors,’ or clues into Damas’ history that may explain his behavior to jurors weighing his life during a penalty phase.

Baker set the next status conference for Aug. 13.
Friday’s hearing was delayed after power in the courtroom died, moments after Damas entered the room. The lights flickered and went down, and the court recording system, required for the hearing, lost power. Baker delayed the hearing 20 minutes until the system rebooted.


(insert hanging monkey here)

[MuffyBee]

http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/aug/13/mesac-damas-execution-hearing/
WATCH THE VIDEO: 'Throw the switch': Mesac Damas begs to be executed during hearing
August 13, 2010

NAPLES — An outspoken and defiant Mesac Damas asked a judge to “throw the switch” in his death penalty case so he could join his slain family.

The 34-year-old self-confessed killer was wheeled into the courtroom in a restraint chair for a brief appearance at a status hearing on Friday. He sang a Christian hymn loudly as he entered before settling down at the request of Collier Circuit Judge Franklin Baker.

Damas told Baker he was upset over being forced into orange coveralls in a holding cell outside the courtroom when he preferred to wear a jail-issued padded jacket for the appearance. Damas is on suicide watch in the Naples Jail Center.

“If they’re going to treat me like an animal, I’m going to come up like an animal,” he later told Baker.

Sixteen deputies were present in the courtroom, many of them standing by Damas’ reclined chair and the defense table. Others stood in the courtroom gallery, where family members of Guerline Dieu Damas, the suspect’s slain wife, were present.

Damas is accused of killing Dieu and their five children at their North Naples home last September, stabbing them and cutting their throats. He fled to Haiti, was captured and confessed to a Daily News reporter as he was being escorted to the airport for extradition. He faces six counts of first degree murder, and the state has filed for the death penalty.

Through much of Friday’s hearing, Damas’ head was tilted upwards toward the ceiling, and his eyes were closed. When he asked to speak with Baker at one point, the judge and attorneys advised him against doing so.

Damas continued, eventually telling Baker he wanted to join his family, and he suggested he was ready to be executed. He noted that a year had passed since the deaths, and he said he wanted to wait no longer.

“Whoever’s in charge of this, make the call,” he said. “Whoever can make the decision, throw the switch.”

Baker dismissed him from the courtroom, and Damas was rolled out singing.

It was Damas’ first appearance with his new defense team, lead by Deputy Public Defender Kathleen Fitzgeorge and assisted by defenders Neil McLoughlin and Connie Kelley. Damas’ previous attorney, Michael Orlando, left the Public Defender’s Office in July to open a private practice.

Baker appointed a second psychological evaluation for Damas during the hearing, and he gauged the progress of each side.

Assistant State Attorney Richard Montecalvo estimated a summer or fall trial was possible, an assessment he later told reporters was “optimistic” given the breadth of the case. Defense attorneys said they would not be ready by spring.

The prosecution has named 97 witnesses, nine of whom are out of town and three of whom are out of the country. Few have been deposed thus far.

The defense, meanwhile, is beginning what promises to be a lengthy investigation into Damas’ past, searching for signs of mental illness or other issues that speak to his alleged crime. The investigation is almost certain to take them to Haiti, where Damas was born and raised.

Any mitigating factors will be presented during a penalty phase of the trial, which would follow a guilty verdict in any of the homicide counts. Jurors in a penalty phase are asked to recommend a life sentence or the death penalty for a suspect. A judge is required to give great weight to the recommendation when sentencing.

Damas is alleged to have confessed multiple times to authorities. Montecalvo said the statements don’t necessarily make for an easy trial.

“It’s never a cake walk,” he said. “Never.”

Damas’ outbursts raise an issue for Baker, who must balance the defendant’s right to be in the courtroom with the judge’s ability to conduct the hearing. He noted that issues surrounding Damas’ presence could come back in future appeals, should the defendant be convicted.

Baker also said that if Damas wanted to come to court in the padded jacket, he should be allowed to do so.

The greater concern for Damas may fall on his attorneys, who must now defend a man who claims he wants to die. His behavior in jail has suggested a disregard for his health, at the least. Damas has refused to eat at times and lost considerable weight since his September 2009 arrest.

Fitzgeorge said she wasn’t aware of any specific suicide attempts, and she couldn’t say if her client was truly trying to kill himself.

“I don’t know his intent, I can tell you that,” she said.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.news-press.com/article/20100813/CRIME/100813012/Judge-orders-mental-evaluation-for-Damas
Judge orders mental evaluation for accused family killer Mesac Damas
August 13, 2010

A Collier circuit judge this morning ordered a new mental evaluation for an accused family killer who came into the courtroom singing hymns, quoting scripture and saying he wants to be with his slain wife and children.

Because of the new request, volumes of documents and hundreds of potential witnesses, prosecutors estimated their case against Mesac Damas won’t go to trial until next summer or fall.

“I’m going to see my Lord ... there will be no more tears. I’m going to be with Jesus,” Mesac Damas sang as he was wheeled into the courtroom in a special restraining chair.

Damas has been on suicide watch since he was booked into the Collier County Jail following the killings of his wife and five young children last September.

Damas, charged with six counts of first-degree murder, faces the death penalty if convicted.

He told Collier Circuit Judge Frank Baker that he’s growing impatient with the proceedings and wishes to be with his family.

“It’s been almost a year. My wife and children, I want to be with them. Throw the switch. I’m going to meet my Lord Jesus,” Damas ranted.

Damas, appearing gaunt and sporting a scruffy beard, also complained that jail guards changed him from the wrap-around blanket he wears in suicide watch, to a regular jail uniform for court.

“They treat me like an animal. Why do they want me to dress up?” he asked.

Based on his actions, the court should order a mental evaluation for Damas, his public defenders requested.

Baker said he would order a new evaluation to supplement the one he ordered for Damas a year ago.

[Sister]

Killing one's family is enough to make you insane, if you weren't already.  His every wish should be the command IMO.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/sep/18/mesac-damas-death-sentence-wants-die-court-system/
POLL Confessed killer Mesac Damas wants to die, so should court system let him?

    * By STEVEN BEARDSLEY
    * Naples Daily News
    * Posted September 18, 2010 at 3:15 p.m.
COLLIER COUNTY — At the time, Randy Schoenwetter knew what he wanted.

Charged with first-degree murder and facing the death penalty for the fatal stabbings of a 10-year-old Brevard County girl and her father, the 21-year-old Schoenwetter penned a confession letter to the judge. He asked to change his plea to guilty, a move his lawyer advised against.

“I’m disregarding that advice ... Yes, I did it, indeed,” Schoenwetter said in a 2003 hearing.
The judge accepted his plea, and jurors recommended Schoenwetter be executed. He remains on Death Row today, although he’s attempted to appeal his sentence, unsuccessfully.

Defendants like Schoenwetter are known in the criminal justice world as “volunteers,” individuals who plead guilty to a capital crime, accept a death penalty sentence and, in many cases, waive future appeals.

They are controversial — some call the ability to volunteer and waive appeals “state-assisted suicide” — and, like many capital defendants, they are likely to be mentally ill. Many appear to change their minds with time.
At first glance, self-confessed killer Mesac Damas would seem a potential volunteer. Accused of slaying his wife, Guerline Damas, 32, and their five young children a year ago, he confessed his guilt publicly and is said to have confessed to detectives. He’s also said that he’d like to be executed.

As his death penalty case proceeds, whether Damas, 34, is allowed to change his plea depends not only on whether he wants to do so, but whether his attorneys and the judge believe his choice is made rationally.
You have an obligation to delve into that issue and make sure he really is capable of making that decision,” noted Stephen K. Harper, co-coordinator of the Capital Litigation Unit at the Miami-Dade Public Defender’s Office.

Legally, a defendant’s competence is the only consideration when he wants to change his plea, the U.S. Supreme Court has held. Yet the accepted standard, that a defendant show an understanding of the consequences of the decision, can be confusing.

For example, someone who is mentally ill can be deemed competent to waive their rights, so long as they understand what they are giving up and what can possibly happen to them.
Anybody who wants to die, most people would say is making an irrational choice,” Fort Myers criminal defense attorney David Brener said. “That’s not the question. The question is if he’s fully apprised of the consequences and if he’s making the choice because of his mental illness or in spite of it.”

Damas’ case appears to rest at this juncture. Collier Circuit Judge Franklin Baker has ordered two psychological evaluations in his case and Damas’ competency — be it to stand trial or to waive his rights — has yet to be determined.

Should he be deemed competent, Damas’ suicidal motivation can’t be taken into consideration if he decides to plead guilty. The prosecution, then, can technically assist in his suicide.

[trimmonthelake]

http://www.naplesnews.com/news/2010/sep/18/mesac-guerline-damas-murder-five-kids-year-ago/
Year after slayings of Guerline Damas, five kids, relatives ask ‘did it really, really happen?’

    * By STEVEN BEARDSLEY
    * Naples Daily News
    * Posted September 18, 2010 at 1:22 p.m.

COLLIER COUNTY — It was a Sunday morning ritual as regular as the sunrise.

Guerline Damas, waking early to cook breakfast for her family, would phone her older sister, Netty Fleury, busy in her own kitchen.

“Hey sis, what are you doing?” she’d begin. “Whatcha’ cooking?”

It’s been more than a year since Fleury, 44, heard that voice, but she still awaits the call, still keeps her sister’s number in her phone. In the back of her mind, Damas and the five children are alive. They were never killed. Their bodies aren’t buried in a cemetery off Vanderbilt Beach Road.
I still call her name. We still sometimes talk and call the kids’ names,” Fleury said of her surviving family. “It’s hard. I cannot explain ... I mean, is it true? Can something like that really, really happen?”

A year after the worst homicide in Collier County history, the answers come no easier. As self-confessed killer Mesac Damas demands to be executed, survivors can only grieve for those never given a choice.

“No one can deserve that. No one can explain that,” said Marie Aimee, a friend of Guerline Damas.

It’s a pain shared by Mesac Damas’ family members, who lost five grandchildren and a daughter-in-law in the killings. The death penalty looms over another loved one.
We are all waiting, suffering,” Jean Damas, 54, the suspect’s father, told his son during a rare phone call recorded in the Naples Jail Center. “I have tears in my eyes, until I die, until I die, you understand.”

Jean Damas declined to comment at length for this story, although he responded when asked if he was close to the chlidren.

“They were my grandchildren,” he said. “Of course, I love them. I miss them.”
Deputies discovered the bodies on Sept. 19, 2009, inside the family’s North Naples home. Guerline Damas, 32, was found downstairs, bound in duct tape and electrical cord, her hands behind her back, her feet crammed into a waste basket.

The body of the oldest child, Meshach “Zack” Damas, 9, was discovered alone in an upstairs bedroom. An adjacent bedroom held the bodies of the other four children: Maven, 6; Marven, 5; Megan, 3; and Morgan, 19 months.
All six victims died when their throats were cut, an autopsy determined.

The one person missing was Mesac Damas, now 34, the father of the children and husband to Guerline Damas. He had a record of domestic violence and a reputation for violent jealousy.

He had fled and driven to Miami, where he caught a flight to his native Haiti. Discovered and arrested in Port-au-Prince three days later, Damas was returned to his adopted country in shackles. Prosecutors charged him with six counts of premeditated murder and filed for the death penalty.

Fleury and her family arranged the funeral and buried their loved ones a week later, a feat that still amazes her
I didn’t know I had that much strength,” she said.

Once the vault lids were lowered over the caskets, the reporters and photographers departed and Fleury’s family turned inward.