Convicted of murder... Sentencing today at 2pm Central time
Mallard found guilty in windshield death case
06/26/2003
By DAVE LEVINTHAL / The Dallas Morning News
FORT WORTH – A Tarrant County jury took less than a hour Thursday to find nurse's aide Chante Mallard guilty of murder in the death of Gregory Biggs, the homeless man she struck with her car and left to die in her shattered windshield.
There was no audible reaction in the courtroom as the guilty verdict was returned. Ms. Mallard, 27, stood between her two defense lawyers, Jeffrey Kearney and Reagan Wynn, before being led into a holding room.
The sentencing phase of her trial will resume at 2 p.m.Thursday.
Ms. Mallard was accused of hitting Mr. Biggs, a former school bus driver and bricklayer, after a night of drinking and taking drugs with a friend in October 2001. The impact of her car threw Mr. Biggs through her windshield and left his body lodged there.
In a panic, Ms. Mallard drove her car to her home and left Mr. Biggs in her garage, where he bled to death, prosecutors said.
"The evidence is overwhelming," prosecutor Christy Jack told jurors during closing arguments. "She took him to her garage, and concealed him from anyone who could render aid."
But defense attorneys argued that Ms. Mallard was not guilty of murder under Texas law for her actions that night.
"If you let your decision be influenced by sympathy, by media coverage, by emotion, your verdict will be forever compromised," Mr. Kearney said. "You cannot convict her if we're going to do this right under the law."
The defense effectively conceded that Ms. Mallard was guilty of failing to render aid to Mr. Biggs. A conviction on a charge of failing to render aid could lead to jail time, but is less severe than the felony murder charge of which Ms. Mallard was convicted.
Judge James R. Wilson explained to the jury before they began deliberations that they had three choices: To acquit Ms. Mallard, to convict her of failing to render aid or to convict her of murder.
Failing to help someone, even a dying person, is not murder as defined by Texas Law, Mr. Kearney said.
He told the jury that one of Ms. Mallard's friends, Clete Jackson, took control of disposing of Mr. Biggs' body after Ms. Mallard called him in a panic. Mr. Jackson is serving prison time for his role in dumping Mr. Biggs' body in a Fort Worth park.
Lead prosecutor Richard Alpert compared that scenario to associates of Hitler arguing that Hitler's minions were responsible for his crimes.
That drew an impassioned response from the defense.
"He's comparing the defense to someone like Hitler!" Mr. Kearney shouted to Judge Wilson as he sprung from his seat. "That's a totally improper comment!"
Judge Wilson sustained Mr. Kearney's objection to Mr. Alpert's comments, but the judge denied Mr. Kearney's subsequent request for a mistrial.
The defense said that prosecutors relied heavily on the testimony Titilesse "T" Caree Fry, who was with Ms. Mallard in the hours immediately before and after she hit Mr. Biggs.
"Miss Fry is a liar, having given false testimony to a grand jury earlier in the case," Mr. Kearney said.
Mr. Alpert argued, however, that defense attorneys were simply frustrated because they were competent, aggressive lawyers with an indefensible client.
Ms. Mallard's actions alone led to Mr. Biggs' death, he said.
"She could have called Clete or she could have called her brother," a Fort Worth firefighter on duty at the time Ms. Mallard hit Mr. Biggs, Mr. Alpert said.
"If you want to dispose of the body, you call Clete," he added.
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