Woman, infant murdered; suspect pleads not guilty
Anne Warfield
*and* her 8 month baby? What connects this guy to the murder?
2 articles, both from the Log Cabin Democrat (the 2nd is from Sunday's
paper, 12/29/02)--
Murder suspect pleads not guilty
Defendant in Saltillo case asks for mental evaluation
By SAMANTHA HUSEAS
Log Cabin Staff Writer
The man accused of killing a Saltillo woman and her infant son said
Monday in circuit court that he didn't do it and that he wants a
mental evaluation. He continues to be held at the Faulkner County
Detention Center on no bond.
Christopher Wilson, 28, was formally charged with two counts of
capital murder in the deaths of Pamela Kay Reed, 26, and 8-month-old
Lucas Aaron Reed, all of the Saltillo community.
Pamela Reed's husband, Kenneth, arrived at the Highway 286 home about
6:30 p.m. Friday and found his wife covered in blood in the driveway
and their son's bloody body in the home, according to Faulkner County
Sheriff's Office spokesman Jack Pike. Reed went to a neighbor's house
and that person called police.
Authorities will not release the cause of death, citing an ongoing
investigation. Faulkner County Coroner Patrick Moore would say only
that both died of head injuries.
Pike also would not elaborate on how the victims and suspects knew
each other. The Arkansas State Police is assisting in the
investigation and is refusing to release any information about the
crime, the victims or the crime scene, Pike added.
Deputies were led to Wilson after a call Friday night by someone
complaining of a suspicious person. They found Wilson and he matched
the description the caller gave, Pike said. Wilson was arrested on a
parole violation around 9 p.m. Friday, and was questioned the next day
about the murders. He was arrested on suspicion of the killings about
5:30 p.m. Saturday.
Through Robert Bush, Wilson's court-appointed attorney, the defendant
entered not guilty pleas to both murders on Monday.
Twentieth Judicial District Prosecuting Attorney H.G. Foster asked
Wilson be held without bond because of the type of crime and the fact
that Wilson has probation holds from two other counties. One hold is
for fleeing, Foster added.
Bush did not offer a response to the request and Judge Charles E.
Clawson granted it.
Bush did advise the state that Wilson's competence "may be an issue"
if the case makes it to trial. Considering the seriousness of the
charges, he asked that the state hospital conduct a mental evaluation
on Wilson.
The question of Foster seeking the death penalty in the case was also
discussed.
"The investigation is not totally complete at this point É. We may
indeed seek the death penalty," the prosecutor said.
This comment brought sobs from some in the courtroom.
Wilson had a disheveled appearance while in court. Before being called
before the judge, he sat alone on a bench with his hands cuffed in
front of him. When he first entered the courtroom he smiled and gave a
"thumbs up" to some in the courtroom. After leaving the room to speak
alone with Bush briefly before proceedings began, Wilson returned with
a more somber look.
Other than answering that he understood his rights, Wilson said little
while in court, only shaking his head back and forth when someone in
the courtroom asked if he was guilty as he was escorted back to jail.
Wilson's pretrial was set for May 23 and his trial for the week of
June 3.
(Staff writer Samantha Huseas can be reached by phone at 505-1253 or
e-mail at s...@thecabin.net)
http://thecabin.net/stories/123102/loc_1231020008.shtml
Woman, infant murdered in Saltillo
By BECKY HARRIS
Log Cabin Staff Writer
A Conway hairdresser and her 8-month-old son were found murdered at
their home in the Saltillo community Friday afternoon, authorities
said.
Pamela Kay Martin Sloan Reed, 26, and her son Lucas Aron Reed were
found covered with blood when the husband and father, Kenneth Reed,
28, returned home from work.
Mrs. Reed's body was in the driveway of her home at 566 Highway 286,
and the baby's body was inside the house, said Deputy Jack Pike of the
Faulkner County Sheriff's Office. Both had suffered blunt trauma by an
unknown weapon.
The cause of death has not been determined pending autopsies by the
state crime lab, Pike said.
By 5:30 p.m. Saturday, a suspect, Christopher Wilson, 28, whose
address is also in the Saltillo community on Highway 286, was being
held without bond, and was expected to be charged Monday with two
counts of capital felony murder, subject to the review of the case by
the prosecuting attorney's office, Pike said.
The investigation is continuing by the county coroner's office and the
criminal investigation divisions of the Sheriff's Office and the
Arkansas State Police.
Neighbors and coworkers were shocked and in tears upon hearing of
Reed's death.
The Rev. Michael Collier, pastor of Oak Bowery Baptist Church and a
neighbor of the Reeds, said Pat Martin, Mrs. Reed's mother, was a
faithful member of the church until her death in 2000. She was also a
hairdresser, Collier said.
"This makes no sense at all," Collier said. "It runs through my mind
that we must reach out to those who need someone to love them.
"How many more people are caught up in the tragedy of a wasted life?"
Collier said. "We must pull together as a community and pray for the
families."
Donna VanDalsen, a hairdresser at Wild Hair in downtown Conway, said
she worked with Pam Sloan briefly about three years ago.
"I didn't know anything about her background, but she was well-liked
by her co-workers and customers," VanDalsen said.
(Staff writer Becky Harris can be reached at bha...@thecabin.net or
505-1236.)
http://thecabin.net/stories/122902/loc_1228020004.shtml
--
Anne Warfield
indigoace at goodsol period com
http://www.goodsol.com/cats/
