MANSLAUGHTER??? Geezz, the looney gets outta his car and wastes the man in front of his daughter, and the judge declares it only mansaughter,
A Broward County grand jury today indicted James Wonder on a manslaughter charge instead of murder in the death of a federal customs agent.
Wonder, 65, has been in jail without bond on a premeditated murder charge since Aug. 6.
He is accused of shooting and killing border protection agent Donald Pettit in an Aug. 5 road rage incident in a Pembroke Pines post office parking lot.
Police have said that the two flipped each other the middle finger as they drove and then Wonder pulled into the post office lot.
Police said Pettit, 52, followed and Wonder shot him during a confrontation. Pettit's 12-year-old daughter was in his car and witnessed the shooting, authorities said.
The lesser charge Wonder will face carries a punishment of up to 15 years in prison.
If he had been indicted on second- or first-degree murder, he could have faced up to life in prison or the death penalty.
Wonder's defense attorneys, Frank Maister and Michael Entin, said they weren't surprised their client wasn't charged with murder.
They said they expect their client to be acquitted by a jury. "We're a little bit disappointed that they came back with any indictment at all," said Maister. "We thought that this was absolutely self-defense."
Entin said today's indictment means that Wonder will be eligible for bond. They expected him to bond out as soon as he can.
A search warrant in the case said Wonder admitted to nurses that he had an anger problem and needed counseling.
The nurses told police that Wonder also bragged that whoever killed Pettit was "a professional."
Police were tipped off to Wonder and arrested him at a Davie dialysis center on the murder charge.
the looney gets outta his car and wastes the man in front of his daughter,
You beat me to it!The judge? How are you coming to this conclusion? The judge had nothing to do with it, a grand jury decided what the charge would be.
If you are in a state where the 5th Amendment has not yet been incorporated fully incorporated, e.g. Indiana, the Prosecuting Attorney will alone make the decision of what to accuse you of.
I stand corrected, should have read the article better, so it was grand jury and perhaps agent did overstep the line, still the guy did admit to having a bad anger problem! Is it now accepted by grand jurys to lower charges simply because the fella had an anger '" problem?" Got to be a lot more to this story! I personally would hate t o see it come down to being able to kill someone simply because of anger and then be charged with a lighter charge due to it!
True, and he had his daughter in the car, but was supposedly "on duty".If Petit hadn't followed the guy, he would still be alive.
Doesn't murder usually require some premeditation component, whereas manslaughter doesn't?
Unlawful killings without malice or intent are considered manslaughter.
1 Provocation. This is a killing caused by an event or situation which would probably cause a reasonable person to lose self-control and kill.
2 Heat of Passion. In this situation, the actions of another cause the defendant to act in the heat of the moment, and without reflection. This falls under the provocation heading.
Hard to say anything definitive until the facts are much clearer. However, the grand jury would have heard much more facts than any of us. Grand juries are known for charging more than can really be convicted, not less - in part because there is no defense in front of a grand jury, only a prosecutor. If a grand jury won't authorize higher charges, there is zero chance that there would have been a conviction of higher charges.
I think if you research the original now closed thread, you will find that I said that the most he would be charged/convicted of was manslaughter
Carlos Cabeza-"Two grown men acting like children, Sad. I do think that when the guy pulled over to confront the agent, the intent to harm was there, and he had a gun to back it up. You know what they say..........Old men don't fist fight................"
The AGENT followed the SHOOTER and confronted him...NOT the way you wrote it...I would have had my gun ready, too, if some jerk came after me...
would you have run and dyed your hair afterwards?