Cleveland kidnap accused Castro to plead innocent - lawyers

[muriel_volestrangler]

Source: BBC

The US man accused of imprisoning three women for about a decade in his house in Ohio will plead not guilty to all charges, his lawyers say.

Ariel Castro, aged 52, is charged with four counts of kidnapping and three counts of rape.

The women were abducted at different times and held in Mr Castro's house in Cleveland. One of them escaped earlier this month and raised the alarm.
...
Speaking to the AFP news agency, he added that details of Mr Castro's innocence "will be disclosed as the case progresses".

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-22543247

---

Details of his innocence? What's he going to do, claim they were there of their own free will all that time?

[Scuba]

1. They made him do it by being "too hot".

[maddezmom]

2. Is he going for an insanity defense?

[madokie]

26. Only hope he has

and thats not much of one

[heaven05]

3. he

will not escape justice.

[truebluegreen]

4. Oh puhleese.

fyi: the plea is "not guilty", not "innocent"

[Brother Buzz]

12. DU LBN rules require using the linked headline

That being said, I agree.

[truebluegreen]

15. Ah! Thank you.

btw, my incredulity was aimed at the plea, not you.

[Brother Buzz]

16. Perhaps from a British perspective, there is no difference

[truebluegreen]

21. No, they have the same system we do, more or less

although the Scots add another possibility: Guilty, Not Guilty, and Not Proven for those occasions when the jury thinks the individual is guilty but the prosecution didn't make a sufficiently strong case.

edited to add: it is surprising to me that the Brits are as sloppy in this as we are, unless this was being tailored for an American audience. It is something I wouldn't expect from them.

[maddezmom]

5. Quote by his attorney is offensive

Added Castro's co-counsel, attorney Jaye Schlachet: "He is a human being, but what is offensive is that the women and the media want to demonize this man before they know the whole story, and I think it's unfair and not equitable."

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20700403,00.html

I believe the women know the whole damn story they lived the nightmare for god sake.

[Sheldon Cooper]

9. That's just outrageous.

I can understand if his attorney wants to scold the news media, but to state that the women victims are being "offensive"? Unfuckingbelievable.

[jakeXT]

20. This guy and the whole situation will be studied by future criminologists

....

Despite the inhuman conditions of their captivity, the women did what they could to live with some dignity, police reports indicate. Sometimes Castro brought home groceries instead of fast food and the women would cook. Amanda did her best to educate her daughter as she grew up. In an interview with ABC News Thursday, Nancy Ruiz said that her daughter, Gina DeJesus, taught herself to sew and used swatches of fabric to make clothing.

Castro may even have harbored some sentimental feelings for the women. According to WKYC-TV, police found in the house a suicide note written several years ago. In the note, Castro blames the women for their abduction, noting they got into his car. But he also states that he wished to leave to them his money and possessions.

After all that the women endured, their conditions might have worsened in recent months. Their captor was growing desperate.

In November, Castro was fired from his job with the Cleveland school district, accused of leaving his bus unattended for four hours while he went home. About the same time, members of his band Grupo Kanon said they no longer wanted to play with him.

...
http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2013/05/clevelands_missing_women_a_chi.html#incart_maj-story-1

[Tom Ripley]

34. His bandmates did not like his "Bass Players Get All The Girls" t-shirt

Yes, I am going to hell

[jakeXT]

37. "I Don't Know Why I Kept Looking for Another. I Already Had 2 in My Possession."

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_slatest/2013/05/09/ariel_castro_s_suicide_note_cleveland_media_reports_police_found_letter.html

[historylovr]

22. Are you fucking kidding me? OMG.

It's offensive that the women want to demonize this man? The whole story? Yeah, I'm sure it was all wonderful for the girls, being that man's sex toys and punching bags for ten years. What's offensive is that this piece of dirt still breathes. Good grief. What a piece of work that scumbag attorney is. Ugh. Excuse me while I go vomit.

[tblue]

27. Granted, his lawyer's just doing his job.

The thing has to run its course, of course. But I just can't wait to hear what this plea could possibly be based on.

[marshall]

6. He will probably say that they were willing participants

I'm not sure how he will make that claim, but I think people generally are so repelled by the story that they just don't want to believe anything about it.

[DebJ]

7. That's why the doors were locked (sarcasm) n/t

[skeewee08]

8. And the house boarded up like Ft Knox. n/t

[Auntie Bush]

23. That's why there were handcuffs and chains in the basement.

And the pregnant girl punched herself in the stomach to cause an abortion because she didn't want a baby.

[marshall]

25. He has to come up with something

I know the evidence is huge against him. But he is supposedly going to plead innocent, and I was speculating as to what on earth he can pull out of his ass as justification for his plea. I guess he could say somebody else forced him to do it. But the most available excuse he can give is that the women themselves wanted to live in bondage. I think it's totally bogus, but what else can he say?

[sofa king]

35. Maybe poisoning the jury pool?

Maybe this defense attorney thinks that keeping the case in the news--and antagonizing the public at large in the process--might be the way to steer the case away from hanging judges and hostile districts--and perhaps to get the case tossed on a technicality a decade down the road.

But I'll tell you what I really think. I think the defendant is a control-freak asshole straight to the bone, and he is controlling the hell out of the shittiest lawyer in town, because that's what he does.

[LisaL]

24. Considering one of the victims was 14 when kidnapped, how could anybody think this defense

could possibly work? She couldn't legally consent even if she wanted to (not that I believe for a second she was a willing participant).

[Posteritatis]

29. I have a feeling I'm gonna dislike his defense attorney pretty hard by the end of the trial. (nt)

[Randomthought]

10. The statement that spooked me

"Craig Weintraub, another defence lawyer, told WKYC-TV that his client "loves dearly'' the child he fathered with 27-year-old Amanda Berry - one of the three alleged kidnap victims."

I wonder what would have happen to that little girl after she had grown into a teenager. I don't think that monster is capable of love.

I do think he should have a defense but these attorneys seem to be drinking funny kool-aid.

[maxsolomon]

18. Defense attorneys have to say shit like that

It's their job to cast doubt, to mitigate unassailable facts.

And, in this case, he probably does "love" his daughter. He's a sadist, a narcissist and a sociopath, so it would make a sick kind of sense. In fact, it was probably that "love" that led to him letting his guard and security protocols down enough for Berry to escape.

They could say he was an angel sent from above, it won't change the facts. He's going away forever.

[arcane1]

28. Makes one wonder about his other daughter's motive for trying to kill her baby n/t

[TheMadMonk]

11. This is the ambulace chaser who argued that holding Castro without bail...

...would be an inhumane deprivation of liberty.

[ReRe]

13. Pleads innocent with $8 Million bail?

"His lawyers say."

(Yeah, like they kidnapped him. They flagged him down. They were all hookers. Like, they could have left anytime they wanted to. Yadda, yadda, yadda. )

Bam! GUILTY.

[lark]

14. But, but, it was consensual - so he will claim.

AFter all, everyone knows you can't produce children from rape.

[get the red out]

17. Well, he won't get the death penalty then

Because once he does get it, he can very easily appeal with a justifiable claim of being given the shittiest of legal representation.

[Brother Buzz]

19. I wonder if OJ has been sending him crib notes

[JI7]

30. i don't understand why the lawyers are making these statements in public

i understand why he would have a legal defense and how they would try to do as much for him in court.

but do these statements in public really help any ? and then the thing about wanting to move the trial somewhere else ? do they think it's just a local case or something ?

[ck4829]

31. Comes down to "You guys don't know the WHOLE story!!1!"

I have no doubt in my mind that he will spend the rest of his life in a prison cell, and he should, but I want to hear the demented defense he cooks up.

[Yo_Mama]

32. I am sure the negotiations will follow later

Life is his best outcome, and his lawyers will attempt to get that sentence. Until final charges are decided, they can't let him plead guilty.

But he is not exactly going to be able to assert his innocence at trial.

[WeekendWarrior]

33. EVERYONE PLEADS NOT GUILTY

Every time there's a high profile case, there's always the headline OBVIOUSLY GUILTY PERSON PLEADS NOT GUILTY!!!

The thing these articles never tell you is that EVERY defendant pleads not guilty. In many cases a judge will require the defendant to plead not guilty to avoid the appearance of impropriety. I've sat in court and actually seen a defendant try to plead guilty, only to have the judge enter a plea of not guilty FOR him, and instruct him that he can always change his plea in the future, but he needs time to fully discuss his case with his attorney so that he understands all the possible ramifications of a guilty plea.

Stories like this exist only to inflame the public and are much ado about absolutely nothing.

[Art_from_Ark]

36. In the Colorado theater shooting case, it was the judge who entered a not guilty plea

which, according to CNN, is a standard procedure, at least in Colorado.

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/03/12/justice/colorado-theater-shooting

[siligut]

38. Criminals have the ability to rationalize horrendous behavior

While his plea may be the result of just disagreeing with the charges, it may also reflect his judgement of himself. He no doubt holds himself to a different standard than other people, he is you know, special.