Rogersville, TN – A former bodybuilder, convicted of strangling his 16-year-old foster son, was sentenced Thursday to 5 years in prison. Kenneth Taylor was convicted in October of voluntary manslaughter and aggravated assault for the attack which led to the death of Jordan Kaleb Shelton. Judge John Dugger, of the 3rd Judicial District in Hawkins County, noted Taylor’s history of criminal conduct, anger issues, and “abnormal strength” in making the decision. Taylor remains free on bond, pending the results of a January motion for a re-trial.

–In Session Staff

Rogersville, TN– It was a Thanksgiving weekend, but what should have been a quiet and joyous night at home turned deadly.  After sending his 16-year-old foster son to his room for sneaking a smoke, Kenneth Taylor found that Jordan Shelton had disobeyed him by leaving his room. A scuffle ensued in which Jordan allegedly pushed Taylor down the hallway. Taylor responded by wrestling the 16-year-old face down onto the ground in a stranglehold in an effort to restrain him. The violent confrontation resulted in the teenager's death, and Taylor charged with first-degree murder and aggravated child abuse. Now a jury must decide if the foster dad's brand of discipline constitutes murder. Watch In Session this week for trial coverage of Tennessee v. Taylor.

Savannah, TN – A jury in Hardin County, Tennessee Wednesday found a nurse not guilty of killing her husband by giving him a drug for diabetics.  Sharron Chason was acquitted of first-degree murder. She was also found not guilty of all the lesser charges brought by the prosecution. Jurors deliberated for just over an hour before delivering their verdict.

–In Session Staff

Savannah, TN - A jury late Wednesday began deliberating the murder case of Sherron Chason, a registered nurse accused of killing her husband with a fatal dose of a diabetes drug. Earlier Wednesday, defense attorney Daniel Warlick asked the judge to acquit his client, claiming the prosecution had failed to present sufficient evidence that Chason was responsible for her husband's death.  That motion was denied and the trial continued with closing arguments and instructions to the jury.

–In Session Staff

Savannah, TN – Tuesday’s testimony in the Sharron Chason murder trial shifted the focus primarily to the professionals – including the medical personnel who played some part in the drama surrounding her husband’s death. Jurors heard testimony from Jeannie Walker, a registered nurse at the Jackson-Madison County E.R. She told the Court that she first encountered Sharron Chason shortly after Freddie arrived at the hospital. Walker testified that Sharron didn’t ask how her husband was doing, instead she reportedly said, “I’m his wife, and I’m in b-- mode; that’s the only way I can cope.” But Walker also testified she saw Sharron crying outside his hospital room several days later.

The most significant medical witness of the day was Dr. Joseph Peters, Freddie Chason’s primary care physician. He testified that he saw Freddie on a fairly regular basis, beginning in 2002 for severe high blood pressure. Peters said he last saw Chason in March of 2008, for blood work weeks before his death. In addition to his high blood pressure, Chason had other ailments, such as a serious weight problem and possible sleep apnea. But Dr. Peters’ medical records also indicate another health condition: borderline diabetes.

Much has been made prior to the trial of the fact that Sharron Chason supposedly sold her husband’s battery business while he was still on life support… something that could theoretically be seen as an act of greed. But Mark McIntosh, a longtime friend of Freddie’s – and someone who also worked in the battery business – testified that he and his boss actually came up with the idea of the sale in order to keep the business going.

–Michael Christian, In Session producer

Savannah, TN - The trial of a nurse charged with the first-degree murder of her husband began Monday in the small town of Savannah, Tennessee. Prosecutors contend that 55-year-old Sharron Chason killed her 52-year-old husband Freddie by giving him a dosage of a drug designed to lower blood sugar in diabetics (a disease the prosecution contends the victim did not have). As a result, the victim’s blood sugar level dropped so low that he went into a coma, and he ultimately died after being removed from life support. Jury selection in this trial was very brief. In less than an hour and a half, prosecutors and defense attorneys selected a jury of seven men and seven women to hear the case.

The prosecution’s case is built on circumstantial evidence, and a few prosecution witnesses reported activities on the part of the defendant that might, in retrospect, seem suspicious. Susan and Grant Dale recalled being asked by Sharron Chason to remove a vomit- and urine-soaked mattress from Freddie’s bedroom; the mattress was subsequently burned. And Anita Hindmon, another of the victim’s many friends, recalled a conversation she had with the defendant only a day or two after Freddie he had been taken to the hospital. “She said, ‘Well, Freddie is a dead person, and he’s not going to come out of the hospital alive.’ ”

The most interesting witness of the day was Polly Darnell, Freddie’s maternal aunt. Within a few days after he was taken to the hospital, according to this witness, Mrs. Chason had already decided to remove her husband from any life support systems. The cross-examination of Ms. Darnell by defense attorney Dan Warlick got quite contentious at times – especially when Warlick inferred that Darnell might have an ulterior motive for wanting to see her nephew’s widow go to prison. Darnell’s family has filed a civil suit against Sharron Chason for any inheritance she might gain from her husband’s death. 

...Michael Christian, In Session Producer

Savannah, TN – Sharron Chason, a registered nurse, is accused of giving her husband a fatal dose of a diabetes medication. Freddie Chason had no prescription for the drug that killed him. Sharron Chason denies killing her husband of more than 20 years, despite what the State calls her suspicious behavior around the time of his death. This case is entirely circumstantial, and the most critical question is whether Freddie Chason’s death was even a homicide. The state’s medical examiner, who performed the autopsy, can’t even say the death was a crime. Yet prosecutors are asking 12 jurors to find Sharron Chason guilty of first-degree murder. Tune into In Session for live coverage of this murder trial.

Six-year-old Rashaad Daise had only attended his new elementary school for about two weeks, but was already known as “a wanderer.” And, one morning last fall, little Rashaad took his backpack and wandered right out of the school’s gates, heading down a barren, desert-like street in North Las Vegas. Laurinda Drake, who’d just picked up her son from the same school, spotted the boy and stopped; he told her he felt sick, and was on his way home.

Rashaad remained in Drake’s care for almost two hours before she and her friend Elaine Clermont brought him to the school district offices where police were waiting – along with television crews, alerted by Clermont.

Clermont and Drake say they were simply trying to help Rashaad and ensure his safety, but the State sees it differently, alleging the women used the child to make a point about poor security at the school. They were both charged with first-degree kidnapping, among other things, but Laurinda Drake was acquitted in May of this year. Elaine Clermont now takes her seat in the defendant’s chair – facing a potential life sentence if convicted. Tune in to In Session this week for coverage of her trial.

Next on In Session: The death of a pet in the remote hills of Tennessee leads directly to the shooting death of its owner - and a murder charge against the victim's neighbor. But was John Collett acting in self-defense when he shot Bruce Greer five times? That's the question a jury must decide in this trial. Tune into In Session for opening statements starting Monday.

Ft. Myers, Florida–Jurors on Tuesday found a Fort Myers man guilty of murdering his estranged wife and mother-in-law. Juan Mendez Jr. was convicted of two counts of second-degree murder for the stabbing deaths of Whitney Mendez and her mother in July 2006.

Jurors deliberated for just about 90 minutes to arrive at their unanimous decision. As they entered a silent courtroom, the six-member panel looked straight ahead without any visible emotion as they took their seats.

Judge Mark Steinbeck spoke with family and friends on both sides of the courtroom a moment earlier, warning them that a lack of restraint could result in a contempt of court charge.

The courtroom was still when the jury foreperson passed the verdict sheet to the clerk and the guilty verdicts were announced. While the jury was still seated, family members of Juan Mendez, including his mother, left the courtroom. The father of the defendant stayed seated, crying, putting his face in his hands. Family members of the victim were jubilant but silent.

Earlier in the day, closing arguments began with assistant state attorney Cynthia Ross telling jurors to remember testimony of the defendant's demeanor the day the bodies of his wife and mother-in-law were found in their home. She asked the jury to recall that Mendez displayed no concern to law enforcement, saying "he doesn't ask what was inside."

She described the continued stabbing of Whitney Mendez, in her bedroom, as she lay on the floor by her bed and that it could only be from someone who had hate, spite, and an evil intent toward the victims, and that person could only be Juan Mendez.

Defense attorneys Nicole Malick and Jay Brizel attacked the credibility of the investigation and the credibility of the prosecution's witnesses who were working at Denny's the nights of July 21 and 22, 2006. They emphasized the DNA that was not consistent solely with Juan Mendez, and questioned why other people in the victims' lives were not even investigated.

Chief assistant state attorney Randall McGruther gave the rebuttal close for the prosecution which focused on common sense. He emphasized events beginning late Friday July 21, 2006, when a worker for Florida's Department of Children and Families told Juan he could not see his son that weekend.

Referring to testimony that the DNA found on the broken knife handle was consistent with the defendant or his son, McGruther urged jurors to use their common sense: "a 2-year old didn't have strength to bend a knife like this."

Over the course of five days, prosecutors called 23 witnesses. The defense called one witness, and the defendant chose not to testify.

Juan Mendez faces up to life in prison when he is sentenced on February 22, 2010.

–Jean Casarez, In Session correspondent