Death penalty sought in KC serial killer case

[clasione]

By JOE LAMBE http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/11101206.htm

The Kansas City Star

Jackson County prosecutors today filed court papers to seek the death penalty against a Kansas City man charged with strangling three girls and nine women.

The action against Lorenzo J. Gilyard, accused of being the state's most prolific serial killer, sets the stage for a groundbreaking trial. It means prosecutors will ask jurors to convict a man and recommend execution based solely on DNA evidence.

That is the first such case in Missouri and Kansas and possibly the first of its kind nationwide, said Jackson County Prosecutor Mike Sanders.

The victims were killed between 1977 and 1993. Gilyard, 54, was charged last year after DNA found on their bodies matched that from blood collected from him in a past investigation.

Sanders announced the death penalty action at a courthouse press conference with about 20 family members of victims standing behind him. Some family members wore badges with a red ribbon, a gold heart and a picture of a lost loved one.

Dawn Knox, daughter of Catherine Barry, said she was a teenager when her mother was murdered in 1986. Her family supports the prosecutor's decision, she said. “We are all looking forward to trial; we're finally going to get closure.”

Gilyard had pleaded not guilty. Defense lawyer Burt Haigh said, “We are disappointed in Mr. Sander's decision (to seek death) but we will continue to fight to protect Mr. Gilyard's rights.”

The case will now be assigned to one of three public defender death penalty teams.

Sanders said he decided to seek death Wednesday after a 10-month review of the case by committees within his office.

He said the office is likely to seek death in other DNA evidence cases. He called the Gilyard case “an indication of what is to come” as DNA leads to more convictions.

His office will soon make a decision on seeking the death penalty against Terry Blair, a Kansas City man charged with eight counts of first-degree murder for a series of killings along the Prospect Avenue corridor.

[drsbanerji]

The horrific murders deserve every condemnation, but I feel that our knowledge of genetic structure and the ultra-fine detection capability of DNA testing would prevent jurors from awarding death. There could be changes between 2 similar looking helix coils that we are not yet resourced to see. Some infinitesmial piece of defendent tissue residue on victims could have a plausible explanation that excludes cold-blooded murder. I wonder if a lie-detector test would serve a useful purpose in this case.