Would love your thoughts, please comment. He knew that Holik had been trying to sell her home. Patrick Anthony Russo, 44, was a paying subscriber to Necrobabes.com, a Web site that offers "erotic horror for adults" by providing staged photos and video of usually nude women appearing to. At trial, appellant asserted that the witnesses, after learning of the homicide, overreacted in their trial descriptions of their encounters with appellant. Patrick Anthony RUSSO, Appellant, v. The STATE of Texas, Appellee. Proof of robbery committed as an afterthought and unrelated to the murder is not sufficient evidence of capital murder. See Photos. Police found a fully clothed body. On November 16, 2001, Diane missed her plan for getting work done; every last bit of her partners couldnt contact her; from that point onward, they asked the police for a check. Though the death case murder is still a mystery. Whether to admit an out-of-court statement under an exception to the hearsay rule is committed to the trial court's discretion. All the evidence must be considered, whether rightly or wrongly admitted. We will not make appellant's argument for him on an issue that he has not chosen to present. Also known as Tony A Russo. Dateline Episode Trailer: After the Storm | Dateline NBC, When a beautiful woman is strangled to death in her large upscale Austin, Texas home, police look at the men in the victims life, while also considering that a stranger may have killed her. 10. The officials had shown up at Dianes home, who was tracked down dead on the main floor in one of the rooms. At the conclusion of the hearing, appellant was permitted to wait and view the completed transcription of the court reporter's record of the hearing and then make objections. The warrant was executed. This ring, and a necklace she routinely wore, a brown box containing expensive pieces of jewelry, and a spare house key were determined to be missing. The verdict may not be overturned unless it is irrational or unsupported by proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Brady Mills, the supervising criminalist at the Department of Public Safety (DPS) laboratory in Austin, extracted DNA from a swab of the victim's left hand. The court pointed out that in a search for records and documents, innocuous records must be examined to determine whether they fall in the category of those papers covered by the search warrant. Id. This is true, but the hypothetical scenario propounded by the State to Dr. Coons did not include any reference to robbery. Medina v. State, 7 S.W.3d 633, 643 (Tex.Crim.App.1999). Some witnesses testified that they were nervous or uncomfortable during and after the encounters and testified about remaining on a cell phone, staying away from appellant, staying at the front door, going to a place where they could be heard if they screamed, or calling the police or family members after the encounter. Your IP: There was no sign of a sexual assault. About 30 percent of Darringtons roughly 1,800 total inmates are serving sentences of 40 or more years, state data shows. In a subsequent search of Russo's home on June 18, 2003, done with a warrant, police seized a personal computer. The trial court specifically overruled the Rule 403 objections to other witnesses but deferred any ruling on the witness Paige Quinluin until trial.13 It appears that the trial court also overruled the later objection that certain witnesses overreacted in describing their encounters with appellant. When both the legal and factual sufficiency of the evidence are challenged, the reviewing court must first review the evidence under the legal sufficiency standard. The email address cannot be subscribed. He then inquired whether there was a husband or boyfriend with whom he could deal. P. 34.6. At one point, Cranford's son awakened and she moved him to the family room. In the absence of the jury, the trial court conducted a hearing on Barajas's testimony and made its rulings. Hickson's testimony thus falls within the present sense impression exception to the hearsay rule. This court found no abuse of discretion in the admission, pointing out that the complained-of evidence was offered to show the victim's state of mind on July 10, some two weeks before her disappearance, as to her intent to continue her relationship with Fain. Id. Evid. The prosecution said of Patrick, Hes a predator, skilled at deceit and cunning and finding watering holes of potential victims. As per prison records, he remains incarcerated at the Thomas Goree Unit in Huntsville, Texas. Evid. Patrick Anthony Russo, 82. There was evidence that appellant's wife inquired about property in Bastrop County. Her fiance, who was in Houston, was quickly ruled out. Her daughter awakened and screamed. A spare front door key with a ribbon was missing from the doorknob of a ground floor door. She had been tied up and strangled, an autopsy report confirmed. Reviewing courts are not fact finders. Some of these exhibits were introduced into evidence. >> we said his name came up in an investigation in austin and told his wife these things will happen from time to time because he is a convict and out on parole and not to worry that he would be back in a Sept. 23, 2016. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. pet.). Please try again. Therefore, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in admitting this testimony under Rule 803(1). Holik's death story has been highlighted on the episode of Dateline. 01:57 Dateline After the Storm Part 10 The suspect is charged with murder, six months after Diane was killed. Appellant overlooks the fact that at no time did he advance any relevancy objection at trial as required. Another search warrant was issued on November 18, 2003, expressly authorizing the search of the necrobabes.com computer file. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. The Diane Holik cases also inspired the Investigation Discoverys show Motives And Murders: Cracking The Case. A jewelry box, a key string, and a necklace that had been attached to a charm were missing. Id. In assaying all the evidence under the Jackson standard of review, a reviewing court must consider all evidence, rightly or wrongly admitted, that the trier of fact was permitted to consider. That search was not abandoned in favor of an investigation into "Necrobabes.com.". Lucien Joseph Parker, Tommy Quinones, and Raymond Ramirez, members of the prison seminary's first graduating class, line up inside the Darrington prison chapel to receive their diplomas. There was no objection to this latter statement which was Barajas's opinion, not a present sense impression exception to the hearsay rule. She put the phone down, but later returned and told Barajas that her rings were back on. The conversation eventually concluded about 1:30 p.m. Robert Hebner and his wife were neighbors and friends of Holik. ref'd). Lang v. State, 698 S.W.2d 735, 736 (Tex.App.-El Paso 1985, no. Holik's body was found face down on the floor in an upstairs guest bedroom. Do you value our journalism? This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. Patrick Anthony Advocate & Principal Partner at Honeste Vivere Attorneys Ilala Honeste Vivere Attorneys, +2 more Law school of Tanzania, +2 more PATRICK ANTHONY 3 TIMES NATIONAL AWARD. In his sixth point of error, appellant contends that [t]he trial judge erred in failing to suppress evidence from the illegal search and seizure of the contents of appellant's computer. The point of error is broadly stated and based only on a claimed violation of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Patrick Anthony. Holik's wrist bore indentations showing discernible redness, indicating that her heart was still beating when the wrists were bound. Russo is currently serving a life-sentence for the murder of Diane Holik. Tex. 7. Rector was then requested by a prosecutor to conduct a more thorough search to look for Internet activity related to real estate. P. 33.1, we observe that appellant did not object on the basis of Rule 404(b), under which the State gave notice and offered the exhibits of which appellant now complains. Texas Rules of Evidence 803 provides a number of exceptions to the hearsay rule, including the present sense impression and state of mind exceptions here involved. We find no such motion or pretrial ruling thereon. At the pretrial hearing, appellant's trial counsel told the trial court that he first wanted to hear the testimony of Detective Roy Rector, the forensic computer expert, and then tailor his motion to suppress accordingly. The local police arrived at the home at 6300 Pathfinder Drive, where they found the body of a white female who was identified as 42-year-old Diane Holik. He confirmed with a billing company that Russo had been a member of Necrobabes.com and had viewed Web pages there dealing with manual and ligature strangulation. In his first point of error, appellant challenges the legal sufficiency of the evidence to establish [that] appellant committed murder in the course of robbery.. If the appellate record reveals criteria reasonably conducive to a risk that the probative value of the tendered evidence is substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice, then the trial court acted irrationally in admitting the evidence and abused its discretion. Tex.R. Proc. Russo claims the court violated his right to due process including admitting evidence beyond the scope of the search warrant (nude photos from necrobabes which were not found on his computer), among other things. The house was listed with a realtor for $435,000, and there was a for sale sign in the front yard. See United States v. Mitchell, 145 F.3d 572, 576 (3d Cir.1998); accord United States v. Ruiz, 249 F.3d 643, 646 (7th Cir.2001). Holik's last known telephone conversation occurred at 3:30 p.m. on November 15, 2001, and her computer had been shut down at 3:59 p.m. the same day. Cranford invited him into the house. On appeal, Russo raised two issues that are relevant to Police Blotter: First, he claimed that the police exceeded their computer-search authorization given in the June 18 search warrant, and second, he said the Necrobabes.com excerpts should not have been admitted as evidence. All persons inherit mitochondrial DNA from their mothers-so maternal relatives have the same M-DNA. Nelson examined seven hairs recovered from the victim's home. According to the records, Tony Russo made some long-memories criminal history; he was captured on different occasions for attacking ladies. 5. Anthony Russo. The Texas Court of Appeals rejected those arguments and left his sentence intact. As appellant acknowledged, this was a Web site which is open to any user of the Internet. State's Exhibits 623 through 724 were copies of images and stories that Detective Rector, with a lab computer, recreated from the Web site necrobabes.com using information from the Internet history of appellant's computer as to when appellant accessed the Web site. 03-04-00344-CR. The rationale for the present sense impression exception to the hearsay rule is that (1) the report at the moment of the thing then seen or heard is safe from any error from defect of memory of the declarant, and (2) there is little or no time for a calculated misstatement. 20. 37, 205.15 Detective Roy Rector, a forensic computer examiner with the Austin Police Department, first made a copy of the computer's hard drive, which is protocol for forensic computer examination. Later, he parsed out of that history the part associated with necrobabes.com detailing appellant's activity with it. Holik's wrists had been bound, and there were marks around her neck indicating strangulation by ligature, meaning a garrote such as a cord or rope. Appellant's wife, Janet, was a school teacher for the Smithville Independent School District. 2737, 49 L.Ed.2d 627 (1976). Carey is factually distinguishable. at 95-96 (citing Kearney v. Commonwealth, 4 Va.App. Another trial exhibit included his AOL search for "asphyx" (which is hardly the first time that searches have been used as evidence in criminal cases). Although it is not clear, it appears that appellant is limiting his point of error to certain witnesses apart from all homeowners and realtors whose testimony was not objectable or to which there was no objection. Some DNA evidence found on a green towel in Holik's home also pointed to Russo. By | On December 12, 2021 03:47 AM "Tony Russo" whose real name is Patrick Anthony Russo has been confirmed that he brutally murdered Diane Holik at her Home. In the other portion of the point of error, appellant complains of the testimony of thirteen female homeowners and realtors, relying upon Rule 403. Holik explained why she was late in calling Barajas and added: This guy just left. Holik said that she planned to meet with the man and his wife the following Saturday to show her house. See Medina v. State, 7 S.W.3d 633, 643 (Tex.Crim.App.1999). at 680; see also Saldivar v. State, 980 S.W.2d 475, 495 (Tex.App.-Houston [14th Dist.] 19.03(a)(2) (West Supp.2006). The essence of appellant's complaint is that the police exceeded the scope of the search under the June 18 warrant when the police "used" information that they learned from the computer's Internet history to "discover private information on appellant's computer.". The defendant in Carey was arrested for the sale of drugs and consented to the seizure of his computer system. The court further found that even though there may have been less invasive ways of conducting the search, the resolution of the suppression issue does not turn on whether [the officer] conducted the most technically advanced search possible, but on whether the search was reasonable. Gray, 78 F.Supp.2d at 529 n. 8. About a week after the murder, Patrick was brought in for questioning. The jury may accept or reject all or any part of any witness's testimony, Jones v. State, 984 S.W.2d 254, 258 (Tex.Crim.App.1998), and resolve any conflicts in the evidence. Holiks wrists had been bound, and there were marks around her neck indicating strangulation by ligature, meaning a garrote such as a cord or rope. Follow along as LaDonna and Alecia share the heartbreaking details of how Patrick Anthony Russo's fetish played into Diane Holik's murder. Prosecutors said Russo posed as someone looking to buy a home to get into Diane Holik's house in November 2001. at 1271, the detective began to browse through the file directories in Carey's computer and stumbled across a JPG file18 and opened it. We do not reach the second point of error claiming legal insufficiency of the evidence to establish that the murder occurred in the course of a kidnapping. While the title appeared suspiciously suggestive and implicitly of a sexual nature, it did not appear to be criminal or of an incriminating character in and of itself. Russo claims his counsel was ineffective. Heres what you need to know about Russo. 1801, 114 L.Ed.2d 297 (1991). 1 A jury found appellant guilty of capital murder. Many of the homeowner-witnesses were able to identify appellant as the man who came to their homes, wanting to see the house or a floor plan, saying that he would be a cash buyer, having just sold a ranch, rejecting the idea of contacting a realtor, and frequently saying that he would return with his wife on the weekend. According to witnesses, Patrick Anthony Russo, 40, claimed he could pay cash for the home. pet.). A state jury found Russo guilty of capital murder, and he was given a life sentence. While the police turned to independent sources to determine the nature of necrobabes.com, the State argues that the search of the computer for home sales in the Austin area-the object of the June 18th search warrant-continued as evidenced by exhibits later introduced into evidence without objection. In his eighth point of error, appellant contends that the trial judge erred in the admission of a hearsay statement. Appellant's brief, however, relates to several statements by the witness Cynthia Barajas. It is not an element of any crime, but evidence of motive is generally admissible because it is relevant as a circumstance tending to prove guilt. Zimmerman v. State, 860 S.W.2d 89, 93 (Tex.Crim.App.1993). ref'd); 1 Steven Goode, Olin Guy Wellborn, III & M. Michael Sharlot, Texas Practice: Guide to the Texas Rules of Evidence 401.3 (2d ed.2002). The car plates were traced back to 38-year-old Tony Russo, aka Patrick Anthony Russo, a church worker and music director with a rap sheet dating back to the 1990s. Penal Code Ann. Moreover, a hair test has taken from a towel, and swabs from Dianes hand matched Tonys DNA.Finally, Tony has asserted as a killer and sent him for a lifetime in jail. Russo claimed he could afford to buy the $450,000 house even though he had less than $2,000 in his bank account. Appellant then asked several times when Cranford's husband would be home. All these witnesses, except Bob Reynolds, were women. The reliance is misplaced. Evid. After having been first interviewed by Austin police officers, appellant discussed the matter with Pastor Fox, telling Fox that some jewelry was stolen in the offense, but the police had not communicated that information to appellant. See Murray v. United States, 487 U.S. 533, 541-44, 108 S.Ct. So, Diane was looking to sell her home and move to Houston, Texas, where he lived. Now, his relationship is perfect. Furthermore, a hair sample taken from a towel found at the scene and swabs from Dianes hand matched Patricks DNA. The prosecutor noted that the Internet history made reference to a "Necrobabes.com. 404(b). By some measures, troublemaking is declining inside Darrington. ref'd), the court held that proof of murder coupled with evidence of a contemporaneous theft from the victim is enough to enable a jury to rationally conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that the murder occurred during the course of a robbery and that the accused had the intent to rob at the time of the murder. Keeping in mind the particular facts of the instant case, we find no violation of the Fourth Amendment. The search ceased, and a second warrant was obtained to search for child pornography. The proponent of evidence usually has the original burden of showing that it is relevant and admissible. Moreover, there was evidence that at the time of the murder, appellant was in dire financial straits. You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. The trial court was careful to eliminate images of unrelated sexual activity and nudity, leaving only those images showing ligature and manual strangulation of women and other items pertinent to this circumstantial evidence case where a woman was strangled in her own home. 17. Rector examined the computer with a program called Encase, which is designed to recover any data located on a hard drive, whether it is an active computer file or a previously deleted file. As earlier noted in the discussion of the fifth point of error, a general relevancy objection does not preserve an extraneous-offense claim under Rule 404(b) of the Texas Rules of Evidence.