Posted on
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Pinkerton KFC Trial Begins Monday
By KENNETH DEAN
Staff Writ
Mixed emotions are plentiful in a 24-year-old murder case as citizens and victims’ family members prepare to follow the trial of the first of two Tyler cousins accused of mass murder.
The capital murder trial of Romeo Pinkerton, 49, is slated to begin early Monday morning with opening arguments from prosecutors and defense attorneys. The trial is expected to last between four and six weeks and is being held in New Boston in the Bowie County Courthouse.
New Boston is about 112 miles northeast of Tyler.
THE MURDERS
Pinkerton and his cousin, Darnell Hartsfield, are accused of abducting five people from a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant in Kilgore on Sept. 23, 1983, and killing them.
Staff Writ
Mixed emotions are plentiful in a 24-year-old murder case as citizens and victims’ family members prepare to follow the trial of the first of two Tyler cousins accused of mass murder.
The capital murder trial of Romeo Pinkerton, 49, is slated to begin early Monday morning with opening arguments from prosecutors and defense attorneys. The trial is expected to last between four and six weeks and is being held in New Boston in the Bowie County Courthouse.
New Boston is about 112 miles northeast of Tyler.
THE MURDERS
Pinkerton and his cousin, Darnell Hartsfield, are accused of abducting five people from a Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant in Kilgore on Sept. 23, 1983, and killing them.
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The murders, which have gone unsolved for almost a quarter century, unfolded when a family member of one of the employees called Kilgore police stating something was wrong. There were no employees at the popular eatery, there were signs of a struggle and blood was visible.
Police across East Texas scoured the area looking for the missing, but the next morning an oilfield worker found the bodies of Mary Tyler, 37; Opie Ann Hughes, 39; Joey Johnson, 20; David Maxwell, 20; and Monte Landers, 19. The victims had all been shot at least twice — “execution-style.”
At the scene, three of the bodies were positioned with their heads resting on crossed arms — each with two gunshots to the head.
Mrs. Hughes appeared to have been shot in the back as she tried to flee, and Johnson was shot in the abdomen.
The Tyler Paper report, the day after the bodies were found, stated Mrs. Hughes was clutching a clod of dirt and grass in one hand and her own hair in the other. Her body was approximately 20 yards from the others.
Johnson was on his side and appeared to have attempted to get up after being shot. The victims’ pockets were all turned inside out, and their identification was missing.
SKEPTICISM
Now, despite the prosecution team, led by Texas Attorney General Prosecutor Lisa Tanner, stating they have DNA proving the two cousins were responsible for the crimes, some citizens say they are skeptical at best.
“After all of these years I guess I want to keep an open mind, but if these are the guys, then why did it take so long?” asked Jerry Rieger, manger of Driller Pawn and Jewelry. “I just think it’s somewhat surprising (prosecutors) suddenly have someone after this length of time.”
Standing on the sidewalk in downtown Kilgore on Friday afternoon, Rieger said he remembered when Jimmy Earl Mankins was touted as the one responsible for the crime.
“Hey, (prosecutors) said they had all this evidence showing he did it and then the fingernail turned out to not even be his,” he said. “I guess you can say I’m skeptical.”
Mankins was indicted on five counts of capital murder, but DNA testing cleared him and his record was expunged.
“This may bring comfort for the families, but we need it to be the right people,” he said.
At Buck’s Barber Shop and Hair Styling around the corner, Donald Buck said he has listened to theories on the case for 24 years.
“A lot of my clients are retired law officers, and most say this should have been solved long ago,” he said as he gave what he described as the “World’s Greatest Haircut.”
Stopping with his clippers buzzing in his hand, he thought a moment, then added, “I personally think this should have been over long ago. It has been so long since the crimes that I don’t know what to think.”
FINALITY
While some express doubt in the state’s case, others hope the trial will be the beginning of the end of a horrific nightmare that started two decades ago.
“How can one describe something that they’ve wanted to happen for 24 years,” Mary Tyler’s stepdaughter Denise Maynard told the newspaper last week.
Ms. Maynard, who has communicated with the newspaper via e-mail for several months, said she was 9 years old when her “mom” was killed.
“I was 9 when it happened; and to this day when I think of that day (Sept. 23, 1983) I feel overwhelmed with emotions; to lose a mom the way we did that night is very hard,” she said.
During the past few months, Ms. Maynard and other family members have expressed concerns about the trial and feelings ranging from relief to anxiety.
Ms. Maynard shared a poem she wrote about the last time she saw Mrs. Tyler and her feelings about the murders. Her last memory was watching the woman’s car pull away from the house. One line of the poem reads, “The night came and we said good night, the last thing I remember is the disappearance of your car headlights.”
Ms. Maynard said she never forgot her stepmother and she hopes Pinkerton’s trial will bring some closure to all the family members and friends of the victims.
“I feel relieved that the trial is starting, and hoping it will be over soon, with justice being served,” she said. “One part of our lives has been on hold for so long, it’ll be hard to believe it’s finally over.”
Police across East Texas scoured the area looking for the missing, but the next morning an oilfield worker found the bodies of Mary Tyler, 37; Opie Ann Hughes, 39; Joey Johnson, 20; David Maxwell, 20; and Monte Landers, 19. The victims had all been shot at least twice — “execution-style.”
At the scene, three of the bodies were positioned with their heads resting on crossed arms — each with two gunshots to the head.
Mrs. Hughes appeared to have been shot in the back as she tried to flee, and Johnson was shot in the abdomen.
The Tyler Paper report, the day after the bodies were found, stated Mrs. Hughes was clutching a clod of dirt and grass in one hand and her own hair in the other. Her body was approximately 20 yards from the others.
Johnson was on his side and appeared to have attempted to get up after being shot. The victims’ pockets were all turned inside out, and their identification was missing.
SKEPTICISM
Now, despite the prosecution team, led by Texas Attorney General Prosecutor Lisa Tanner, stating they have DNA proving the two cousins were responsible for the crimes, some citizens say they are skeptical at best.
“After all of these years I guess I want to keep an open mind, but if these are the guys, then why did it take so long?” asked Jerry Rieger, manger of Driller Pawn and Jewelry. “I just think it’s somewhat surprising (prosecutors) suddenly have someone after this length of time.”
Standing on the sidewalk in downtown Kilgore on Friday afternoon, Rieger said he remembered when Jimmy Earl Mankins was touted as the one responsible for the crime.
“Hey, (prosecutors) said they had all this evidence showing he did it and then the fingernail turned out to not even be his,” he said. “I guess you can say I’m skeptical.”
Mankins was indicted on five counts of capital murder, but DNA testing cleared him and his record was expunged.
“This may bring comfort for the families, but we need it to be the right people,” he said.
At Buck’s Barber Shop and Hair Styling around the corner, Donald Buck said he has listened to theories on the case for 24 years.
“A lot of my clients are retired law officers, and most say this should have been solved long ago,” he said as he gave what he described as the “World’s Greatest Haircut.”
Stopping with his clippers buzzing in his hand, he thought a moment, then added, “I personally think this should have been over long ago. It has been so long since the crimes that I don’t know what to think.”
FINALITY
While some express doubt in the state’s case, others hope the trial will be the beginning of the end of a horrific nightmare that started two decades ago.
“How can one describe something that they’ve wanted to happen for 24 years,” Mary Tyler’s stepdaughter Denise Maynard told the newspaper last week.
Ms. Maynard, who has communicated with the newspaper via e-mail for several months, said she was 9 years old when her “mom” was killed.
“I was 9 when it happened; and to this day when I think of that day (Sept. 23, 1983) I feel overwhelmed with emotions; to lose a mom the way we did that night is very hard,” she said.
During the past few months, Ms. Maynard and other family members have expressed concerns about the trial and feelings ranging from relief to anxiety.
Ms. Maynard shared a poem she wrote about the last time she saw Mrs. Tyler and her feelings about the murders. Her last memory was watching the woman’s car pull away from the house. One line of the poem reads, “The night came and we said good night, the last thing I remember is the disappearance of your car headlights.”
Ms. Maynard said she never forgot her stepmother and she hopes Pinkerton’s trial will bring some closure to all the family members and friends of the victims.
“I feel relieved that the trial is starting, and hoping it will be over soon, with justice being served,” she said. “One part of our lives has been on hold for so long, it’ll be hard to believe it’s finally over.”
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