[Foillowup] Man gets 10 years for hiding body in locker
Anne Warfield
Man gets 10 years for hiding body in locker
McNabb indicated he would appeal verdict
October 10, 2003
By ANDY KRAVETZ
of the Journal Star
PEORIA - For hiding his girlfriend's body in a Bloomington storage
locker three days after she died last fall, Bradford McNabb was
sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison.
In arguing for a lengthy prison sentence, prosecutor Dave Gast called
McNabb's actions on Sept. 16, 2002, "incredibly selfish, callous and
heartless," adding McNabb showed no concern for Canosha Butler, a
29-year-old family development case worker, or her family.
Defense attorney Kevin Sullivan countered that his client panicked.
Sullivan argued his client couldn't think clearly because Butler had
died under "his watch." Being on probation at the time, McNabb was
afraid of how things would look, Sullivan continued.
"My client did not think, contemplate or try to reason what he was
doing … this was not a calculated act but one of panic," the attorney
said.
But Associate Judge Jerelyn Maher didn't see it that way. Rather, she
said McNabb's driving more than 40 miles to Bloomington, going through
the process of renting a storage locker and even inquiring about the
types of locks he could use showed "conscious acts" on his part.
McNabb, 27, declined to speak twice during the afternoon hearing. He
did indicate he planned to appeal the verdict and the sentence.
In May, McNabb was found guilty of concealing his girlfriend's death
but innocent of her murder.
Gast and Assistant State's Attorney Deborah Shelby argued at trial
Butler died in the early morning hours of Sept. 16, 2002, after she
was struck in the back of the head, allegedly by McNabb, at the
couple's Sterling Avenue apartment. Later that morning, McNabb hid the
body, which was found four days later.
Sullivan countered Butler died from an overdose of her son's
anti-seizure medication. In the end, it came down to dueling testimony
from three pathologists, two of whom sided with the defense and one
for the prosecution.
With credit for 13 months already in custody and day for day
"good-time" credit, McNabb will likely serve about four years of the
sentence.
McNabb's court appearances aren't over, though. He still faces up to
15 more years in prison when he is sentenced next month for a
revocation of his probation. The four-year term was imposed in 2001
after McNabb pleaded guilty to aggravated discharge of a firearm for
shooting a security guard at a South Peoria bar.
http://pjstar.com/news/local/b108e0sc046.html
--
Anne Warfield
indigoace at goodsol period com
http://www.goodsol.com/cats/
Bo Raxo
"Anne Warfield" <indi...@aolxxx.com> wrote in message
news:3f8708a9...@news.prodigy.net...
> From the Peoria [IL] Journal Star--
>
> Man gets 10 years for hiding body in locker
>
> McNabb indicated he would appeal verdict
>
> October 10, 2003
>
> By ANDY KRAVETZ
> of the Journal Star
>
> PEORIA - For hiding his girlfriend's body in a Bloomington storage
> locker three days after she died last fall, Bradford McNabb was
> sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison.
>
> In May, McNabb was found guilty of concealing his girlfriend's death
> but innocent of her murder.
>
> Gast and Assistant State's Attorney Deborah Shelby argued at trial
> Butler died in the early morning hours of Sept. 16, 2002, after she
> was struck in the back of the head, allegedly by McNabb, at the
> couple's Sterling Avenue apartment. Later that morning, McNabb hid the
> body, which was found four days later.
>
Sounds like the sentence is based not on the crime he was convicted of, but
on the murder that he wasn't convicted of. I mean, ten years?!? People
get less time for a felony assault that puts someone in the hospital. All
he did was mishandle a corpse.
Anne Warfield
<invasio...@thepentagon.removethis.com> wrote:
>Sounds like the sentence is based not on the crime he was convicted of, but
>on the murder that he wasn't convicted of. I mean, ten years?!? People
>get less time for a felony assault that puts someone in the hospital. All
>he did was mishandle a corpse.
I would have to agree. He does have a criminal record, but that
doesn't adequately explain the length of the sentence.