Gabriel Johnson #4 2/16/10 - 2/20/11

[Northern Rose]

Motion to modify bond and or release conditions for Elizabeth Johnson denied by Judge Paul McMurdie.
http://twitter.com/courtpio

[Northern Rose]

Trial date in missing baby case expected to be set Tuesday

A trial date for the Tempe mother of a missing baby is expected to be set by a Maricopa County Superior Court judge on Tuesday. He also will decide whether to dismiss the high-profile case.

During a hearing held in Judge Paul McMurdie’s courtroom on Wednesday, McMurdie set the hearing to determine when the trial of Elizabeth Johnson and Tammi Peters Smith will begin, stemming from a case of Johnson’s missing son, Gabriel, who was last seen Dec. 26 at a motel in San Antonio when she took him there in the midst of a custody battle.

Johnson has both said she killed Gabriel and gave him away to a couple at the motel, according to a court document.

Johnson, 24, who remains incarcerated in Maricopa County’s Estrella jail on a $1.1 million cash bond, is charged with kidnapping, child abuse, custodial interference and conspiracy to commit custodial interference.

Smith, 38, who was interested in adopting Gabriel, is charged with forgery, custodial interference and conspiracy to commit custodial interference.

The trial could begin in May or possibly earlier.

Johnson’s attorneys, Nicholas Alcock and Adam Feldman, also will argue in court to have the case dismissed, contending that Johnson’s Sixth Amendment rights were violated when she was interviewed in a Maricopa County jail by a San Antonio police detective without her attorneys present.

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/local/cop_shop/article_19656642-e224-11df-9439-001cc4c002e0.html

[SuzieQ]

http://www.kpho.com/news/25544541/detail.html

Baby Gabriel's Mother Gets Trial Delayed

POSTED: 6:42 pm MST October 27, 2010
UPDATED: 1:11 pm MST October 28, 2010


Missing Baby Gabriel Johnson's mother and the Scottsdale woman who was trying to adopt him had their trial dates postponed on Wednesday.

The judge was ready to set a trial date but defense teams for both women requested more time to prepare their cases, which delayed the courts again.

Elizabeth Johnson's attorneys last week filed a motion to have all criminal charges against her dropped in the case of her missing son, Gabriel.

Her attorneys said a police interrogation by a San Antonio, Texas, detective in May was unauthorized and might have violated her rights and irreparably damaged her attorney-client relationship.

But with Gabriel still missing, Elizabeth Johnson's grandfather said it is possible Elizabeth could be set free without revealing what she might know about her son's whereabouts.

She told Bob Johnson, her grandfather, that she is hopeful and confident she will be let go, he said.

Bob Johnson also told CBS 5 News that Elizabeth seemed more stable mentally now that she is taking anti-anxiety medicine. But he said she would still rather stay in jail than see Gabriel safely returned to his biological father, Logan McQueary.

CBS 5 News has learned that after the May interrogation, that lasted more than three hours and involved crying, praying, touching and hand-holding, San Antonio Detective Jesse Salame went straight to the Tempe Police Department to debrief local investigators.

A Tempe police spokesman would not confirm who was at that meeting and what time of the night it took place, but it might indicate they knew Salame was with Johnson without her attorney present.

Elizabeth Johnson's attorney, Nick Alcock, said he is preparing federal motions to force Salame to share the recordings of what he learned during the interrogation.

McQueary said he talked with Salame on the phone for more than an hour Monday, and that McQueary told him he was not happy that Salame might have damaged the case against Elizabeth Johnson. But after the call, McQueary said Salame convinced him that the interview with Gabriel's mother was proper.

"I think Alcock is talking it up," McQueary said. "This is all a show because he knows this is the only way she will get out of jail any time soon. We are still looking for Gabe. We don't know what happened to him, and she shouldn't be let out until we know the truth."

[Tracygirl]

Prayer for you sweet baby...

[Sister]

Prayer for you sweet baby...

[Northern Rose]

Baby Gabriel's Mom Waives Court Appearance
Woman Trying To Adopt Missing Boy Also Waives Date


PHOENIX -- The mother of missing baby Gabriel Johnson and the Scottsdale woman who was trying to adopt him waived their scheduled court appearances Tuesday.

Elizabeth Johnson, Gabriel's mother, and Tammi Smith will next appear in court Nov. 22, where their court-appointed attorneys will be assigned, according to court documents.

Johnson and Smith are scheduled to go to trial May 9 to face criminal charges in the case of the missing child, who has not been seen since December 2009.

Johnson, of Tempe, is charged with kidnapping and Smith faces charges of forgery and conspiracy to commit custodial interference.

Attorneys for both women estimate each trial will take about three weeks.

http://www.kpho.com/news/25607745/detail.html

[Sister]

Thank you Northern Rose for this update.  I hope they suffer every day.

[Northern Rose]

Johnson, Smith Return to Court in Missing Baby Case (with video)


PHOENIX - It's been almost a year since Gabriel Johnson went missing. On Monday, his mother, Elizabeth Johnson, will be back in court.

Almost a year ago, Elizabeth took her son to San Antonio, Texas. That's where she says she gave the baby away to a couple she didn't know.

Police didn't buy her story because she had previously told the boy's father that she killed their son.

Another woman in court at the same time will be Tammi Smith. She knew Elizabeth and at one time, tried to adopt Gabriel.

Smith is accused of custodial interference and forgery.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/missing-baby-case-court-11222010

[Sister]

Johnson, Smith Return to Court in Missing Baby Case (with video)


PHOENIX - It's been almost a year since Gabriel Johnson went missing. On Monday, his mother, Elizabeth Johnson, will be back in court.

Almost a year ago, Elizabeth took her son to San Antonio, Texas. That's where she says she gave the baby away to a couple she didn't know.

Police didn't buy her story because she had previously told the boy's father that she killed their son.

Another woman in court at the same time will be Tammi Smith. She knew Elizabeth and at one time, tried to adopt Gabriel.

Smith is accused of custodial interference and forgery.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/missing-baby-case-court-11222010

NorthernRose, I hope this trial/hearing actually happens.  It's a toss up which of these women I dislike the most . . .

o/t I love your candle!

[espresso lover]

Elizabeth Johnson's hearing today was reset to 12/9 @ 8:30 before Judge Paul McMurdie.

https://twitter.com/courtpio

[Nut44x4]

reset stall stall reset blah blah blah

[Sister]

was the other witch's reset too?  Are they both on the same day?

[SuzieQ]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/7328241.html

Defense: Adoption talk for missing boy's mom legal
© 2010 The Associated Press
Dec. 7, 2010, 12:29PM
 

PHOENIX — The lawyers of a Scottsdale woman who allegedly discussed adopting the young mother of a baby boy as a way to gain custody of the child say that if the allegations were true, those conversations are legal.

Tammi Smith, 38, wanted to adopt Gabriel Johnson and his 24-year-old mother, Elizabeth Johnson, of Tempe, and also discussed seeking a change of venue in the custody case to Tennessee, Maricopa County prosecutors claim.

Gabriel has been missing since nearly a year ago, on Dec. 26, when he was spotted in San Antonio, Texas, with his mother. Johnson faces charges of kidnapping, child abuse, conspiracy to commit custodial interference and custodial interference.

Smith is accused of bullying the baby's father, Logan McQueary, into giving up his custodial rights, asking the judge in the custody case to help her gain guardianship and providing Johnson legal advice and assistance. She faces charges of conspiracy to commit custodial interference and forgery.

Prosecutors say that Smith's discussions over adopting Johnson as a way to gain custody of the baby may show the lengths she would go to adopt Gabriel. They are also accusing Smith and Johnson of talking about using child-support payments to pressure McQueary into surrendering his parental rights, according to the Arizona Republic.

But Smith's lawyers filed a defense motion Dec. 1 saying that "the discussion of an adult adoption or a change of venue ... cannot be made criminal under a vague conspiracy law."

Plea talks are no longer continuing for Smith, her attorney said. Johnson's motion to dismiss the case has not yet been heard.

A status conference on the case is scheduled for Thursday.

___

Information from: The Arizona Republic, http://www.azcentral.com


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[iluvmua]

Source: Baby Gabriel's Mom Confessed Twice
Johnson Confession Reportedly Came During Jail Interview
Pat McReynolds, CBS 5 News

POSTED: 1:30 pm MST December 7, 2010
UPDATED: 5:02 pm MST December 8, 2010

63% are OUTRAGED | Comments (1)
PHOENIX -- A source close to the missing Baby Gabriel investigation has told CBS 5 News that his mother, Elizabeth Johnson, confessed to a San Antonio, Texas, detective in May she killed her son.

That confession came during an unauthorized meeting between Johnson and the detective in the Estrella Jail in Phoenix, a meeting of which her attorney was unaware.

Because the meeting was unauthorized, it is not admissible in court unless there is a ruling otherwise.

Detective John Salame of the San Antonio Police Department might have been just moments away from learning the location of Gabriel Johnson's body when one of Johnson's attorneys appeared and ended the meeting, the source said.

The child known as Baby Gabriel was last seen in Dec. 26, 2009. He vanished shortly after his mother took him to Texas.

Johnson, in a text message to the boy's father, Logan McQueary, in December 2009, confessed to killing the boy, but later recanted after she was in custody.

Salame, the source told CBS 5 News, said Johnson confessed the second time during the three-hour jail meeting. But before she could tell him where she hid the body, one of Johnson's attorneys learned of the interview and put an end to it.

Citing damage that interview did to the trust between him and his client, Johnson's lead attorney, Nick Alcock, left the case.

In other developments Tuesday, Tammi Smith, the Scottsdale woman who tried to adopt Gabriel before Elizabeth Johnson fled to Texas, reportedly tried to adopt Elizabeth Johnson as a means to gain custody of the child, according to court papers filed by Smith's attorney.

The state alleges she tried that and other ploys to gain custody without the father's consent, but eventually learned that was not legally possible.

In court papers, Smith's attorney argues that exploring the possibility of adoption was not illegal and doesn't prove a conspiracy.

McQueary said, "Tammi (smith) is just trying to wiggle her way out of this like she always has."

Despite Johnson's alleged confession, McQueary said he maintains his belief that Gabriel is still alive.

[SuzieQ]

http://www.kpho.com/valleynews/26078410/detail.html

Texas Cop To Be Called In Baby Gabriel Case
Elizabeth Johnson A No-Show At Hearing

POSTED: 11:13 am MST December 9, 2010
UPDATED: 2:31 pm MST December 9, 2010

PHOENIX -- A judge paved the way for attorneys to interview the San Antonio police officer to whom Elizabeth Johnson reportedly confessed to killing her son Gabriel.

The mother of missing baby Gabriel Johnson did not appear at the status hearing on her case in a Phoenix courtroom Thursday. The judge said he and the attorneys received a seven-page letter from her, but did not release details.

Gabriel was last seen with his mother on Dec. 26, 2009, in San Antonio, Texas. Johnson has pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnapping, child abuse, and custodial interference.

Police do not know whether the boy is alive. Tempe police say Johnson originally claimed she killed the baby and later said she gave the child to a couple in San Antonio.

A source close to the baby Gabriel investigation said Elizabeth Johnson confessed to killing her son to San Antonio Detective John Salame.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Paul McMurdie granted the prosecuting attorney's the motion to depose Salame. The next status hearing on the case is set for Jan. 24.

The confession came during an unauthorized meeting between Johnson and Salame in the Estrella Jail in Phoenix, a meeting of which her attorney was unaware, according to the source.

Because the meeting was unauthorized, it is not admissible in court unless there is a ruling otherwise.

In other recent developments, Tammi Smith, the Scottsdale woman who tried to adopt Gabriel before Johnson fled to Texas, reportedly tried to adopt Johnson, 24, as a means to gain custody of the child, according to court papers filed by Smith's attorney.

The state alleges she tried adopting Johnson and other ploys to gain custody without the father's consent, but eventually learned that was not legally possible.

Johnson is set to go on trial May 9 in Judge Paul McMurdie's courtroom.

[bananas]

I was watching NG tonight and at the beginning, they said Gabriel's mother Elizabeth confessed to killing Gabriel.  Is it true or is this just another big lead in on NG?  I haven't watched the ending to see yet.  Since I don't see anyone else posting about this, I am assuming it isn't even true.

[MuffyBee]

I was watching NG tonight and at the beginning, they said Gabriel's mother Elizabeth confessed to killing Gabriel.  Is it true or is this just another big lead in on NG?  I haven't watched the ending to see yet.  Since I don't see anyone else posting about this, I am assuming it isn't even true.

There are two posts with an article citing a source saying Elizabeth confessed twice to a detective that she killed Gabriel, but that it was inadmissible. Both articles are posted here, just above your post, bananas. There's another article I read that said the Elizabeth was close to telling where she left the body, but was stopped when her attorney showed up.  I will have to see if I can find the article.  This information has just been put out there, so I think that's why it's being discussed only very recently.


http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/Admission-of-guilt-reported-in-baby-s-death-869422.php
Admission of guilt reported in baby's death
December 9, 2010

The mother charged with kidnapping her 8-month-old son — last seen alive here almost a year ago — admitted to a San Antonio police detective that she killed him, a Phoenix TV station has reported.

Detective Jesse Salame interviewed Elizabeth Johnson, 24, with two guards present at Maricopa County Estrella Jail in Phoenix on May 10, her attorneys have said.

During that interview, which Salame reportedly recorded, Johnson said she killed her son Gabriel, the TV station reported.

SAPD refused to comment on the alleged confession.

“The details of that interview are part of the investigative case file,” SAPD spokesman Sgt. Chris Benavides said in an e-mailed statement. “Therefore, the details cannot be discussed.”

Johnson's defense attorneys Adam Feldman and Nick Alcock used the interview as a basis for a motion to dismiss the Arizona charges against the young mother, which include child abuse, kidnapping, attempted custodial interference and custodial interference.

Court settings to hear the motion have been postponed as Feldman and Alcock withdrew from the case this fall.

Johnson has not been charged in Bexar County, where officials and volunteers combed through 4,260 tons of trash at the Tessman Road Landfill for 14 days in February after Johnson reportedly sent a text message to Gabriel's father, Logan McQueary, saying she had killed their child and discarded his body.

McQueary was granted custody of Gabriel on Dec. 17, but Johnson took her son, then 8 months old, to San Antonio, where he last was seen Dec. 26. Johnson then traveled to Florida, where she was arrested Dec. 30.

The Maricopa County attorney's office and Tempe Police Department invited Salame, an 11-year SAPD veteran, to interview an informant at the Estrella Jail, the defense motion states, but that interview was unproductive.

The motion alleges Salame then interviewed Johnson, who was on psychotropic medication, for several hours without the presence of her lawyers.

During the interview, the motion claims, Salame was able to convince Johnson that Alcock and Feldman weren't concerned with her well-being or her legal defense and caused her relationship with her lawyers to deteriorate.

SAPD Chief William McManus has said the allegations made about Salame were unsubstantiated and would be answered in court, but declined to comment further.

Feldman found out about the interview while it was taking place and stopped it, Alcock said Wednesday by phone.

Johnson filed a motion to change counsel Sept. 27, and last week attorney Marci Kratter became her lead defense attorney.

Kratter, who said Wednesday she “has no idea what's going on,” confirmed she will represent Johnson at a status conference on the case scheduled for Thursday. She declined further comment.

“The only person who really knows what happened in that meeting was Detective Salame,” Alcock said. “He wasn't on drugs.”

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2010/12/09/Babys-mom-allegedly-admits-killing-him/UPI-87961291921031/
(Audio at link)
Baby's mom allegedly admits killing him
December 9 , 2010
PHOENIX, Dec. 9 (UPI) -- A woman charged with kidnapping her 8-month-old son admitted to a San Antonio detective she killed the baby to get back at his father, a recording indicates.

Elizabeth Johnson, 24, confessed from jail in Phoenix May 10 to Detective Jesse Salame, with two guards present, that she killed Gabriel, KSAZ-TV, Phoenix, said.

The station played an audio recording Salame said was the part of the recorded interview containing the alleged confession.

"I wanted to hurt (Gabriel's father, Logan McQueary)," the recording said. "That was the only thing I could do. I also blamed him for me giving away my baby. I wanted to do it on my own. I blamed him for everything -- ruining my life. He brought me down and took everything from me."

San Antonio police officials would not comment on the recording, saying the interview's details were "part of the investigative case file," the San Antonio Express-News said.

McQueary's lawyer said he couldn't understand why no homicide charges have been filed against Johnson since the interview took place, KSAZ said.

Johnson's lawyers petitioned Thursday for Johnson's kidnapping charges to be dropped because, they said, Salame flew to Phoenix to interview Johnson without their consent.

Officials and volunteers in San Antonio combed through 4,260 tons of trash at a landfill for 14 days in February after Johnson reportedly sent a text message to McQueary saying she had killed their child and discarded his body.

McQueary was granted custody of Gabriel Dec. 17, but Johnson took Gabriel to San Antonio, where he last was seen Dec. 26. Johnson then traveled to Florida, where she was arrested Dec. 30.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/tx/7332667.html
Another twist in case of missing Arizona child
December 9, 2010

EMPE, Ariz. — The new lawyer for the mother of a missing Arizona child wants a San Antonio policeman to testify in the case.

The East Valley Tribune says a Maricopa County Superior Court judge granted the request by Elizabeth Johnson's attorney Daniel Raynak during a hearing Thursday to sign an out-of-state subpoena for Detective Jesus Salame.

Johnson's previous lawyers claim Salame interviewed Johnson at a downtown Phoenix jail in May without her legal counsel present. That prompted them to contend that Johnson's Sixth Amendment rights were violated and the case should be dismissed.

The 24-year-old Johnson has pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnapping, child abuse and custodial interference in the disappearance of her son Gabriel, who was 8 months old when he was last seen a year ago in San Antonio.

Authorities don't know whether the boy is alive. Tempe police say Johnson originally claimed she killed the baby and later said she gave the child to a couple in San Antonio.

Johnson was arrested in late December in Florida without the child. She has been jailed on a $1.1 million cash bond since January on charges of kidnapping, child abuse and custodial interference in connection to the disappearance of her son.

She was found competent to stand trial in September. Prosecutors say Johnson's trial is scheduled to begin May 9.

[MuffyBee]

http://www.ahwatukee.com/news/valley_and_state/article_9bd053f9-1c6a-5b9e-a9ac-0c271698602a.html
Attorney for mom of missing 'Baby Gabriel' wants Texas detective to testify
December 9, 2010

The new attorney for the Tempe mother of missing ‘Baby Gabriel' Johnson is seeking a court order from Texas to require a San Antonio police detective to testify regarding an interview he had with Elizabeth Johnson.

Whether or not a Texas court will allow the detective to provide information during both an active homicide and missing persons investigation within its jurisdiction, remains to be seen.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Paul McMurdie granted the request by Johnson's attorney, Daniel Raynak, during a hearing Thursday to sign an out-of-state subpoena for Detective Jesus Salame.

Salame interviewed Johnson, 24, at the Maricopa County Jail in May without her legal counsel present. That prompted her attorneys, Nick Alcock and Adam Feldman, to contend that her Sixth Amendment rights were violated and that the case should be dismissed.

In mid-December of last year, Johnson drove to San Antonio with Gabriel, then 8 months old, in the midst of a custody battle with Logan McQueary, 25, of Gilbert, her estranged boyfriend and father of the boy. Gabriel was last seen at a San Antonio motel on Dec. 26, and the following day, Johnson told McQueary during a phone call and via text message that she killed him and threw his body in a dumpster.

When she was arrested in Miami, Fla. three days later without her son, she told an FBI agent that she gave Gabriel to a couple at the motel a day after she met them at a park in San Antonio, according to court records.

Since early January, Johnson has been incarcerated in the Maricopa County Estrella Jail on a $1.1 million cash bond on charges of kidnapping, child abuse and custodial interference in connection to the disappearance of her son.

A trial date is tentatively scheduled to begin in early May on her charges

[MuffyBee]

http://www.kpho.com/valleynews/26078410/detail.html
Texas Cop To Be Called In Baby Gabriel Case
Elizabeth Johnson A No-Show At Hearing
December 9, 2010

PHOENIX -- A judge paved the way for attorneys to interview the San Antonio police officer to whom Elizabeth Johnson reportedly confessed to killing her son Gabriel.

The mother of missing baby Gabriel Johnson did not appear at the status hearing on her case in a Phoenix courtroom Thursday. The judge said he and the attorneys received a seven-page letter from her, but did not release details.
(snip)