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Attempted voodoo in the first degree

Dear Matthew Alice:

I remember hearing on the news once that in one of those Southern states some men had been charged with attempted murder for hiring a hit man to kill a judge. The hit man was a voodoo practitioner who was supposed to kill the judge by sticking pins into doll or whatever it is that voodooists do. I never heard anything further about this case. I had looked forward to extensive media coverage. Can you find out what happened in this case?

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-- CC, Vista

Another great moment in litigation. It all started early in 1989, when a Mississippi circuit court judge sentenced John Ivy to 40 years in the state pen at Parchman for robbery. That gave John plenty of time to devise the perfect revenge.

John's brother Leroy happened to know the judge's housekeeper, so they set up a three-way phone call with the lady ad asked her to get a picture of her boss and a lock of his hair. The Ivys' plan was to send these to a voodoo practitioner in New Orleans, who would then use the articles to put a curse on the judge. To no one's surprise (except the Ivys', apparently), the housekeeper alerted the judge, then set up a rendezvous with Leroy, handed over the goods, and the Tupelo police snapped the cuffs on him. Both brothers were charged with conspiracy to murder.

Leroy's attorney claimed it was a waste of taxpayers' money to prosecute someone for soliciting a death by voodoo. The DA countered by saying the Ivys' plan was no different from hiring a hit man who couldn't shoot straight; it's not the efficacy of the method, it's the intent of the plotters that matters in conspiracy. The law was on the side of the state. According to Leroy's Tupelo attorney, the brothers pleaded guilty to conspiracy one day before the trial began. In exchange, Leroy's sentence was suspended and he received probation. John's bright idea will cost him a few more years in Parchman.

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Dear Matthew Alice:

I remember hearing on the news once that in one of those Southern states some men had been charged with attempted murder for hiring a hit man to kill a judge. The hit man was a voodoo practitioner who was supposed to kill the judge by sticking pins into doll or whatever it is that voodooists do. I never heard anything further about this case. I had looked forward to extensive media coverage. Can you find out what happened in this case?

Sponsored
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-- CC, Vista

Another great moment in litigation. It all started early in 1989, when a Mississippi circuit court judge sentenced John Ivy to 40 years in the state pen at Parchman for robbery. That gave John plenty of time to devise the perfect revenge.

John's brother Leroy happened to know the judge's housekeeper, so they set up a three-way phone call with the lady ad asked her to get a picture of her boss and a lock of his hair. The Ivys' plan was to send these to a voodoo practitioner in New Orleans, who would then use the articles to put a curse on the judge. To no one's surprise (except the Ivys', apparently), the housekeeper alerted the judge, then set up a rendezvous with Leroy, handed over the goods, and the Tupelo police snapped the cuffs on him. Both brothers were charged with conspiracy to murder.

Leroy's attorney claimed it was a waste of taxpayers' money to prosecute someone for soliciting a death by voodoo. The DA countered by saying the Ivys' plan was no different from hiring a hit man who couldn't shoot straight; it's not the efficacy of the method, it's the intent of the plotters that matters in conspiracy. The law was on the side of the state. According to Leroy's Tupelo attorney, the brothers pleaded guilty to conspiracy one day before the trial began. In exchange, Leroy's sentence was suspended and he received probation. John's bright idea will cost him a few more years in Parchman.

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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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