04-19-2012, 06:56 AM
In March 2012, the Tennessee Attorney General's Office stepped in to ask the state Court of Criminal Appeals to hold off on the new trials for the Christian-Newsom defendants. That Appeals Court has not issued an opinion on the issue as yet, but Knox County prosecutors are gearing up for retrials scheduled to begin in June 2012. All four defendants remain behind bars as they await their next day in court. Judge Blackwood announced he will try the cases in Knox County, but select jurors from faraway counties who have not been tainted by the years of publicity. In the meantime, Lemaricus Davidson pled guilty to a robbery that took place in a Knoxville Pizza Hut on January 8, 2007 — just a day after the killings. He received a sentence of eight years for the robbery — that time will not be added to whatever punishment he is meted in his murder/rape retrial. The sentences will run concurrently.
While the families of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom must get set to relive the tragic events again and again in a series of retrials, supporters were able to remember the loss in a positive way. On March 26, 2012, the Chris Newsom Memorial Baseball Tournament was held at Halls Community Park in Knoxville. Proceeds from gate fees and t-shirt sales were put into a scholarship fund in Newsom's name to provide scholarships for graduating seniors of Halls High School, Newsom's alma mater.
While the families of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom must get set to relive the tragic events again and again in a series of retrials, supporters were able to remember the loss in a positive way. On March 26, 2012, the Chris Newsom Memorial Baseball Tournament was held at Halls Community Park in Knoxville. Proceeds from gate fees and t-shirt sales were put into a scholarship fund in Newsom's name to provide scholarships for graduating seniors of Halls High School, Newsom's alma mater.