Criminal Law Stories

A loud thud. A suspicious blood stain. Miles of ocean in every direction. Maureen Smith, George's Mother says her son boarded a Royal Caribbean Cruise Ship with his wife Jennifer Hagel Smith and he never got off. On June 29th 2005, Connecticut Newlyweds George Allen Smith and Jennifer Allen Smith arrived in Barcelona Spain. That night they set sail on an 11 day honeymoon cruise. During an evening they sort of went their separate ways. Ship records showed George used his key card to enter his room that morning. According to the cruise line, security personnel escorted Jennifer back to their suite at 4:48 AM.

It was the largest Art theft in US history. And it took just 81 minutes. It happened at the Isabella Gardner Museum. It might have been the perfect time to commit a crime in Boston. It was the early morning hours after Saint Patrick's day. That's when two men dressed as police officers showed up at the Gardner Museum near Boston's Fenway Park. It was 1:24 AM on March 18th 1990. The two phony policeman buzzed the intercom. They claimed to be investigating a disturbance on the ground. The guards took the bait and let them in. The security were then taken to the basement and tied up and put at opposite ends of the basement. The thieves now had free reign of the museum and they seemed to know exactly what they wanted. They stole 13 pieces of precious art including Rembrandt's Storm Of The Sea Of Galilee which is a significant piece because it is the only known seascape of Rembrandt'. They also stole Ramier's The Concert which represent 1 of only 32 pieces done by Ramier.

A Woman with no enemies. A suspicious fire. One dead body and no suspects. In 2003 Vanessa Johnson was living her dream. The 39 year old was a newlywed with her own business. She was a very happy outgoing person according to her sister. While being a very helpful person, when she wanted something in life she went out and got it. On February 8th, Vanessa left her home in Rockville Maryland at 10:00 AM for her second hand clothing store also located in Rockville Maryland. The post office is right next door to her shop. A postal employee was coming back from his route and he noticed fire coming from the consignment shop. Firefighters came and got in and started extinguishing the fire and found Vanessa's body in the back of the store. Her body was partially burned and she had been stabbed 14 times. Police said that Vanessa put up a big fight but she was stabbed so many times that she was simply overcome.

It's a real life James Bond story. A tale of international intrigue. A teacup full of poison and one dead spy. Alexander Litvineko was a former KGB agent and later an agent of the FSB which was the successor of the KGB in Russia. After 12 years in service to his country, Litvineko experienced a crisis of conscience. He became an outspoken opponent of the Putin and the intelligence agency. In a 1998 press conference he accused his bosses of the FSB publicly, including Vladimir Putin, of ordering the assassination of Russian businessmen for their own financial gain. This did not sit well with his bosses as one might imagine and for all intents and purposes that was the end of his career. Putin went on to become president of Russia in 1999. Litvineko fled to England in 2000. Then on the night of November 1st 2006, Litvineko fell ill. On November 3rd he went to the hospital.

At 21 he was dubbed the Rock and Roll King of the Southwest. At 22 he was called the next Elvis Presley and Buddy Holly all rolled up into one. At 23 he was dead. Bobby and his Brother Randy moved to Los Angeles in 1965 with his band The Bobby Fuller Four. Their greatest hit thus far was "I Fought The Law". On July 18th, 1966 in Hollywood California, Lorain Fuller discovered the lifeless body of her son Bobby face down in the front seat of her 1962 Oldsmobile. His head was under the steering wheel and rigor mortise had already set in. There was a gas can found near Bobby's head and most of the contents had been poured over his body and into his mouth. His face was blood red and swollen. Normally when you find someone with unexplained injuries it raises the question of the involvement of another person. However, Detectives failed to tape off the crime scene or dust for fingerprints.

This was the first time that terrorism had struck into American homes. The nation's trust in it's favorite painkiller was about to be destroyed. On September 29th, 1982 a girl whose name was Mary Kellerman from Chicago, and who was 12 years old at the time, complained to her parents, who were in their bedroom, that she wasn't feeling well. Her parents gave the girl an extra strength Tylenol capsule and sent her back to bed. By lunchtime she was dead. The same day a woman, who was 27 at the time and from the nearby town of Winfield Illinois, took two Tylenol capsules to relieve a headache. Within hours she too was dead. A 27 year old suburban Chicago man was the next victim. He was followed quickly by his 19 year old wife and 25 year old brother. The three members of the family all took capsules from the exact same Tylenol bottle.

Two young people in their twenties out to see the world. Two sleeping bags leading to a heinous double homicide. In 2004, at the Rock N Water Christian camp in Colona California, Lindsay Cutshall and Jason Allen were spending the lazy days of summer working as counselors for the Bible school camp. Jason was 25 and a Bible college graduate from Michigan. Lindsay was a 22 year old Pastors daughter from Ohio. They were in love and engaged to be married that fall. Six weeks after they had met, Jason asked Lindsay's father for her hand in marriage. After Lindsay's father got to know Jason better he realized he was the right man for Lindsay. Their work at the camp was winding down on Friday, August 13th and Jason and Lindsay got in their car for a weekend getaway to see some of the sights of Northern California before going home to be married. They never made it to the alter.

He created an entire genre of music. He was called the John Lennon of Rap. And like Lennon he was taken down by a gunman's bullet. He was a father, a husband, and a Legend in his own time. Jam Master Jay was born Jason Mizel in Queens New York in 1965. He first achieved fame in 1986 when he manned the turntables of Run DMC's tune titled "Walk This Way", which was a huge crossover hit. After the rise of Run DMC, Jay became a record producer of Rap who was revered bt all. He always stayed very close to his roots. He wasn't one of these guys who has big success and then leaves the neighborhood and you never see him again, he was a man of the people right there in the mix. He was also one of the strongest voices against violence in the rap culture. He was seen as a peacemaker to most but apparently not to all. On the night of October 30th 2002, Jay was in his recording studio with a couple of friends. Then there was knock on the door and two gunman burst in. Both were armed with handguns.

A trip to the Mall. An innocent request that ended in a gruesome murder. The murder of that little boy struck the American Heart like no other. The issue of missing children has never been the same since. On July 27th 1981, Revey Walsh took her six year old son Adam to a Hollywood Florida Mall. Adam asked if he could watch two little boys play video games. Video games were brand new and the latest fad at the time. It was the last time his Mother saw him alive. When Revey returned to the toy department Adam was nowhere to be found. No one helped Revey look for Adam and she was told her to go to customer service. She called the police immediately but it took them forever to respond. John Walsh left his office and knew something was terribly wrong. 50 police officers and a hundred volunteers were summoned out to scour every square inch of Hollywood, Florida in with boats, cars, and in helicopters within hours. However Adam was nowhere to be found and it appeared he had been kidnapped in plain sight.

Paul Burrell, Princess Diana's Butler, stood accused of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of her personal items after her death. Paul was the man Diana called her rock. Nobody knew the Princess better. He was there when her marriage broke up and he was the Butler who served the Royal lovers but who said nothing. He must have known intimate details of the Royal couples lives, even what bedrooms were used. His arrest was a shock to the Royal set. Was it the case of a man who had gone too far or a man who was falsely accused? Read on and find out.