Defendant feared harm from his cohorts.Byline: BILL BISHOP The Register-Guard The defense lawyer for the first of five people facing trial in the stabbing stab v. stabbed, stab·bing, stabs v.tr. 1. To pierce or wound with or as if with a pointed weapon. 2. To plunge (a pointed weapon or instrument) into something. 3. , beating and burning of a Eugene man in August asked a jury Wednesday to consider the dangerous company his client was keeping. Michael Ari Peck peck: see English units of measurement. , 18, feared for his life if he didn't help commit the crimes, said his lawyer, Dan Koenig. "My client is surrounded by some crazy people," Koenig told a five-woman, seven-man jury. "He did not have any choice with regard to what he did." The prosecution claims that Peck gave his hunting knife to co-defendants three times on the night of Aug. 27 and early the next morning. They allegedly used it to stab 35-year-old Russell Wade Van Dell 15 times and to slice his throat twice, said Deputy Lane County District Attorney Bob Lane. Police learned the suspects then gathered newspapers and set Van Dell on fire underneath the porch of an abandoned house on Lawrence Street. Eugene firefighters called to the scene found Van Dell, who suffered massive third-degree burns third-degree burns npl → brûlures fpl au troisième degré third-degree burns third npl → Verbrennungen pl dritten Grades in addition to stab injuries. He still cannot walk more than a few steps at a time and suffers ongoing pain and disability from his injuries, a relative said. In opening statements, Lane told the jury that the case will take little more time than the four-hour attack. The incident began, he said, when Van Dell met a woman, April Michaels, 35, and had a few drinks in downtown Eugene. They later joined a group that included Peck, Justin Roy Evert e·vert v. To turn inside out or outward. evert to turn inside out; to turn outward. McKelvey, a 21-year-old Californian who goes by the street name "Casper," and Matthew Wayne Barrett, 19, who goes by the street name "Chameleon chameleon (kəmē`lēən, –mēl`yən), small- to medium-sized lizard of the family Chamaeleonidae. About eighty species are found in sub-Saharan Africa, with a few in S Asia. ." A fifth person, Alexander Edward Alexander Edward (1651 – 16 November 1708) was a Scottish Episcopalian clergyman, who later became a draughtsman, architect and landscape architect. He was a stylistic follower of Sir William Bruce, and planned several gardens in the grand French axial manner. Roy, 17, pleaded guilty earlier to first-degree kidnapping kidnapping, in law, the taking away of a person by force, threat, or deceit, with intent to cause him to be detained against his will. Kidnapping may be done for ransom or for political or other purposes. and is awaiting sentencing. Lane said the assault began after McKelvey bragged about his martial arts This is a list of martial arts, broken down by region and style. African martial arts Eritrea
Peck cooperated with police and even agreed to be videotaped at the crime scene as he explained to investigators what happened, Lane said. Peck's statements will be a major piece of evidence, the prosecutor said. McKelvey and Barrett allegedly asked for Peck's fixed-blade hunting knife three times over a period of more than two hours, Lane said. Peck gave it to them, knowing they were going to harm Van Dell, he said. At least twice they used it to stab Van Dell, returning it to Peck with the blade bent, Lane said. Around 3 a.m., the group decided to burn the house to conceal Van Dell's body. Peck admitted that he helped collect scrap newspaper to start the fire around Van Dell, Lane said. "The defendant calmly describes how he did this," Lane told the jury. But defense attorney Koenig argued that Peck only struck Van Dell lightly on the legs with the baton. Otherwise, Peck had no physical contact with Van Dell, he said. Peck feared what might happen to him if he didn't cooperate with the group, Koenig said. That fear is a legal defense against the crimes, he told jurors. Peck is charged with three counts of attempted aggravated ag·gra·vate tr.v. ag·gra·vat·ed, ag·gra·vat·ing, ag·gra·vates 1. To make worse or more troublesome. 2. To rouse to exasperation or anger; provoke. See Synonyms at annoy. murder for allegedly trying to kill Van Dell to conceal the assault, to conceal the arson arson, at common law, the malicious and willful burning of the house of another. Originally, it was an offense against the security of habitation rather than against property rights. and in the course of kidnapping. Peck also is charged with two counts of first-degree assault and one count each of second-degree assault and first-degree arson. All the charges carry mandatory Measure 11 prison terms that could total as much as 38 years. The trial may conclude today in the courtroom of Lane County Circuit Judge Gregory Foote. |
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