GAG ORDER SET IN ABUSE CASE.Byline: Stacy Brown Daily News Staff Writer The judge in the preliminary hearing of a Canyon Country couple charged with torturing their newborn imposed a gag order A court order to gag or bind an unruly defendant or remove her or him from the courtroom in order to prevent further interruptions in a trial. In a trial with a great deal of notoriety, a court order directed to attorneys and witnesses not to discuss the case with the media—such Friday, preventing attorneys and witnesses from speaking publicly about the case. The hearing will continue Wednesday to determine whether Sheila Sue Jackman, 31, and Carl John Oliveri, 37, will stand trial on charges of torture, child abuse and mayhem mayhem (mā`hĕm, mā`əm), in common law, the crime of willfully injuring a person so as to diminish his or her capacity for self-defense. . The couple has pleaded not guilty. On Thursday, Jackman testified that she saw her husband hold a pillow over the face of her 3-week-old son, Justin. The infant suffered irreparable ir·rep·a·ra·ble adj. Impossible to repair, rectify, or amend: irreparable harm; irreparable damages. [Middle English, from Old French, from Latin brain damage from abuse, investigators said. Jackman's family accused the media, the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County District Attorney's Office and the Sheriff's Department of unfair treatment. Judge Norris M. Goodwin said testimony was misrepresented in the case by the newspapers but refused to comment further. ``Because of this I am imposing a gag order, no one is allowed to speak (publicly),'' Goodwin said. Oliveri, whose request to be placed in protective custody An arrangement whereby a person is safeguarded by law enforcement authorities in a location other than the person's home because his or her safety is seriously threatened. was granted Thursday by Goodwin, did not appear in court Friday for the scheduled conclusion of the preliminary hearing. Goodwin, who cited a conflict in his own schedule, said Oliveri refused to attend the proceedings. The judge did not elaborate. Jackman's stepfather step·fa·ther n. The husband of one's mother and not one's natural father. stepfather Noun a man who has married one's mother after the death or divorce of one's father Noun 1. , Ronald Gregory Sr., who wrote a notebook-size letter to the district attorney, the Sheriff's Department, the Daily News and other agencies declaring Jackman's innocence, said the family has been the subject of death threats since the proceedings began. |
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