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Sat 19 Apr, 2003 08:34 am
Authorities charge teens with killing relatives in blaze
By Denise Lavoie, Associated Press, 4/19/2003 01:51
BROCKTON, Mass. (AP) The teenagers at first seemed to be lucky survivors of a fire that killed the parents of one of them.
But investigators quickly uncovered a far different scenario, as a search turned up plastic bottles of gasoline in the home, a note with a detailed plan for setting the fire, and accelerant on the floor of the victims' bedroom.
On Friday, a day after the early morning blaze, Judge Richard D. Savignano ordered Frances Choy, 17, and her nephew, Kenneth Choy, 16, held without bail after authorities charged them with murder and arson in a plot to kill Ching ''Jimmy'' Choy and Anne Trinh-Choy, then collect insurance money.
Automatic innocent pleas were entered in Brockton District Court on behalf of both defendants on the murder charges. An innocent plea was also entered for Frances Choy on an arson charge; Kenneth Choy faced an arson charge at a closed hearing in juvenile court.
Authorities said the victims the parents of Frances Choy and grandparents of Kenneth were ''burned alive,'' in the blaze, which Kenneth told authorities Frances started by pouring gasoline on the floor, wall and couch in the room directly below her sleeping parents.
The teenagers initially denied knowing anything about the cause of the fire, and were even hailed as heroes for calling the fire department, but in a later interview Kenneth Choy allegedly acknowledged filling containers with gasoline. Authorities said he told police his aunt lit the blaze.
After police searched the home, they found a 20-point plan for setting the fire that included the instructions, ''Fire up grandpa's room. Pour gas inside of grandpa's room,'' that were from a conversation Kenneth Choy had with Frances.
Kenneth Choy told police that on the day of the fire, he woke up, went downstairs to the basement and found Frances pouring gasoline. ''She stated to him, 'It's time to do this,''' Assistant District Attorney Frank Middleton Jr. said.
After he returned to his own bedroom, he heard the ''whoosh'' of fire, Middleton said.
''He heard his grandmother scream, `Frances, there's a fire. Frances, there's a fire,' several times,'' Middleton said.
He said his aunt wanted money and to escape from her parents so she could live with her boyfriend.
''Kenneth Choy said she wanted to `get her freedom from her father, who she stated was a tyrant,''' Middleton said.
Kenneth told police that Frances had to handle numerous household chores because her parents were in poor health, according to Middleton. She had also promised him she would give him $10,000 from the insurance money she expected to collect.
Frances Choy's attorney, Joseph Krowski, described Kenneth's accounts as ''some pretty self-serving statements'' and said he would not ''presume that these statements are accurate.''
Kenneth Choy's attorney, Frank Spillane, said the boy had moved to this country from Hong Kong several years ago after his father committed suicide.
A pretrial hearing was scheduled for May 16.
Boston Globe Online
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© Copyright 2003 The New York Times Company
I think the defense would try to present the suspects mentally insane. There is no other way to avoid conviction and severe punishment, up to death penalty (if the latter thing exists in this particular State of the USA ).
I don't know enough about this criminal case to agrre to steissd's suggestions, but in general, a defense lawyer has a double function in the investigation phase of the criminal process: to assist the suspect in gathering exonerating evidence and to protect him from violations of his rights at the hands of law-enforcement personnel.
I hope, the defense will act in this way.
It is scary to live among people, who would burn to death loving family members for profit. The grandmother's last words were warning the one who killed her about the fire...
It seems the law enforcement has all the evidence they need, including the words of the murderers.
I think steissd is right. Only an insanity plea could save them. Another disgusting crime, IMO.
http://www.mcall.com/news/local/allentown/all-b1_5homicide-rapr18,0,3275934.story?coll=all%2Dnewslocalallentown%2Dhed
Here is an account of another murder by a teenager with a badly flawed soul. The cases are similiar both because of the ages of the murderers and by their monumental feelings of entitlement. In the Boston case, she wanted money. In the Allentown murder, he felt he deserved to inflict suffering (Of course, this is a simplistic motive).
Neither teenager seemed to realize that technical know-how and common sense would make it inevitable that Murder Would Out.
Neither of them thought of themselves as captured criminals--just clever criminals.
Oh, Brave New World that hadst such people in it.
Of course, murder is a henious crime--whatever the circumstances.
Teenage criminals are often more cruel and remorseless than the adult ones. They merely do not value human life; in the situation where an adult robber will only threaten with weapon, a kid may open fire.
Kids who are hurting, wanting to hurt back. In the Boston case, both kids have suffered from emotional and possibly physical abuse. Why? Who knows. However, the two teens never had the happy childhoods of other kids.
Very sad. Hopefully, the Jury will have compassion on these teens.
I'd work in the courts, to get the two kids off.
They need good lawyers. Will they get them?
No they won't. Why? Too poor.
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