Post by CCADP on Apr 16, 2006 14:48:13 GMT -5
Williams indicted in women's deaths.
Full Text: COPYRIGHT 2006 The Charlotte Observer
Byline: Mike Donila
Apr. 12--A grand jury Tuesday indicted Union County resident Scott Wilson Williams in the brutal killings of three women whose bodies were found over a nine-year span in North Carolina and South Carolina.
The indictments, which happened Monday and were made public Tuesday, charge Williams with three counts of first-degree murder; one count of first degree sexual offense; five counts of first degree kidnapping; and one count of first degree rape.
He also was indicted on a new charge of robbery with a dangerous weapon.
The next move in the case will be for a superior court judge to hear a request by the media to unseal search warrants in the case, said Bob Trobich, Williams' attorney.
Then, he said, he expects a hearing to seek the death penalty. After that, Williams will have an arraignment in which he'll enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. It's possible during that time, however, that prosecutors could offer Williams a plea deal that would prevent trying the case in court.
His attorney said it's too soon to discuss a defense strategy.
Williams, 42, was arrested March 9 at his Clontz Long Road house in northern Union County.
He is accused of killing Sharon House Pressley, Christina Parker and Sharon Stone between 1997 and February of this year. Authorities said he attacked other women in 1995 and 2000, but both survived.
The new charge says he stole a silver colored ring with a pink stone from Parker while he carried a .25-caliber pistol, the indictment said. The indictment didn't say how investigators gained the information.
Williams made a first court appearance April 5 at which he was officially appointed an attorney. State law gives the district attorney 30 days from the first appearance to file the paperwork to seek the death penalty. District Attorney Michael Parker said he'll likely seek it.
Williams, who is being held without bond, was taken last week from the Union County Jail to Central Prison in Raleigh for safekeeping, said Sheriff's spokesman Brett Vines.
Investigators have said little about the case, other than that four of the victims lived a "high-risk lifestyle" that involved drugs and in some cases some prostitution, and that Williams was a part of that lifestyle. They say three of the women were killed with a gun and then mutilated. The 1995 victim who survived an attack and didn't live the high-risk lifestyle was raped, investigators say. Another victim was attacked in 2000 but escaped, authorities said.
Judges twice now have allowed prosecutors to seal search warrants, including one at Williams' home, that detail what authorities have discovered.
The Observer, news partner WCNC, The Associated Press and WCCB-TV have asked the court to unseal the search warrants and make them public. A hearing to discuss the warrants has been set for April 17.
To see more of The Charlotte Observer, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to www.charlotte.com.
Copyright (c) 2006, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.
Full Text: COPYRIGHT 2006 The Charlotte Observer
Byline: Mike Donila
Apr. 12--A grand jury Tuesday indicted Union County resident Scott Wilson Williams in the brutal killings of three women whose bodies were found over a nine-year span in North Carolina and South Carolina.
The indictments, which happened Monday and were made public Tuesday, charge Williams with three counts of first-degree murder; one count of first degree sexual offense; five counts of first degree kidnapping; and one count of first degree rape.
He also was indicted on a new charge of robbery with a dangerous weapon.
The next move in the case will be for a superior court judge to hear a request by the media to unseal search warrants in the case, said Bob Trobich, Williams' attorney.
Then, he said, he expects a hearing to seek the death penalty. After that, Williams will have an arraignment in which he'll enter a plea of guilty or not guilty. It's possible during that time, however, that prosecutors could offer Williams a plea deal that would prevent trying the case in court.
His attorney said it's too soon to discuss a defense strategy.
Williams, 42, was arrested March 9 at his Clontz Long Road house in northern Union County.
He is accused of killing Sharon House Pressley, Christina Parker and Sharon Stone between 1997 and February of this year. Authorities said he attacked other women in 1995 and 2000, but both survived.
The new charge says he stole a silver colored ring with a pink stone from Parker while he carried a .25-caliber pistol, the indictment said. The indictment didn't say how investigators gained the information.
Williams made a first court appearance April 5 at which he was officially appointed an attorney. State law gives the district attorney 30 days from the first appearance to file the paperwork to seek the death penalty. District Attorney Michael Parker said he'll likely seek it.
Williams, who is being held without bond, was taken last week from the Union County Jail to Central Prison in Raleigh for safekeeping, said Sheriff's spokesman Brett Vines.
Investigators have said little about the case, other than that four of the victims lived a "high-risk lifestyle" that involved drugs and in some cases some prostitution, and that Williams was a part of that lifestyle. They say three of the women were killed with a gun and then mutilated. The 1995 victim who survived an attack and didn't live the high-risk lifestyle was raped, investigators say. Another victim was attacked in 2000 but escaped, authorities said.
Judges twice now have allowed prosecutors to seal search warrants, including one at Williams' home, that detail what authorities have discovered.
The Observer, news partner WCNC, The Associated Press and WCCB-TV have asked the court to unseal the search warrants and make them public. A hearing to discuss the warrants has been set for April 17.
To see more of The Charlotte Observer, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to www.charlotte.com.
Copyright (c) 2006, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.