Johnny S. Clarke & Lisa Straub- young Ohio couple murdered

[Aberlin]

Continued telephone conversation between Samuel Williams and Steven Pettaway taken from Lucas County Dockets online dated July 23^rd 2011
under Cameo Pettaway - Motion to reconsider.

SW: man, listen. this is what I'm gonna do. this is what I am gonna do for you all. I'm gonna send all my paperwork home. I'm gonna have my wife pick it up right - I'm gonna down to-night and have her come pick it up tomorrow morning first thing. You cause you know what in the fuck you're looking for. I want you to go through it like I went through it. Read every fucking piece of paper, you hear me?

SP: I've been waiting to see this shit. I want the motion. I want all that stuff, shit.

SW: Nigga I got the whole motion. I got every motion.

SP: I want to see all that shit.

SW: I got the whole Discovery. I'm about to send it home so you can really expose some niggas.

SP: That's the cleanest way to do it.

SW: the main thing is to hold up. we almost there.

SP: Man, we good. you're home man.

To be continued......

Witness elimination/intimidation?

It sounds like they where looking for a very specific person. There's initials all over those discovery documents. He's saying comb through it page by page. They're looking for what equates to a needle in a hay stack.

Someone please refresh my memory. Who did Sam Williams text (I don't believe it was a FB post) threating them not to talk. Something along the lines (not these exact words) "bitch if you talk I'll kill you and blow your house up" Something like that.

I'd shit if that was sent to Alex. What if her response was "I'm no bitch. Watch the news..."

[greenfrog1437]

Does anyone know yet where the Bedford Inn fits into all this? was it a place to rondezvous maybe? ladies of the night place!

Starla, Williams wife was roughly 8 months pregnant at the time, Amy TenEyck was still with Eric Taylor at that time.

who was the driver that night?

Still more witnesses' to take the stand I'm wondering who IC is maybe they'll back up Erik Yingling testimony.

I have to agree with Pico! "God has a plan" Yingling coming forward was the right thing to do - does he qualify for any reward?

Could Williams have been seeing another woman behind Starla's back?

would not suprise me if williams was seeing another woman he is a known cheater ...he was obviously cheating on starla with d.m

[greenfrog1437]

[quote='misshmarie23' pid='271051'
dateline='1343225301']
^^ wouldn't T.W tie A.P (A.G) into this that is her kids dad. what relationship did A.C have with A.P?
[/quotA.c dated a.p for a year or so

Welcome greenfrog1437! Do have any idea how long Alexandra Cousino dated Johnny Clarke ?

I can not recall a.c dating Johnny but I would not doubt. She screwed him because she is a Toledo most known man eater

She has two beautiful daughters by a baby daddy that is now "engaged" to Sam Williams' ex-wife. How bizarre is that?

Yes you are correct with that one.....actually s.w and v.m marriage was on the rocky side through the whole marriage I believe v.m and s.w even considered to get married because she was pregnant with his first son.... S.w always cheated on her and v.m did nothing but work and take care of the house and him.. working two jobs to pull through....

[NightOwl]

[quote='misshmarie23' pid='271051'
dateline='1343225301']
^^ wouldn't T.W tie A.P (A.G) into this that is her kids dad. what relationship did A.C have with A.P?
[/quotA.c dated a.p for a year or so

Welcome greenfrog1437! Do have any idea how long Alexandra Cousino dated Johnny Clarke ?

I can not recall a.c dating Johnny but I would not doubt. She screwed him because she is a Toledo most known man eater

She has two beautiful daughters by a baby daddy that is now "engaged" to Sam Williams' ex-wife. How bizarre is that?

Nathan Popovich! what a tangled nightmare!! I wondered who the mother of his children were, sounds to me Cousino lost custody. Thanks!

[greenfrog1437]

[quote='misshmarie23' pid='271051'
dateline='1343225301']
^^ wouldn't T.W tie A.P (A.G) into this that is her kids dad. what relationship did A.C have with A.P?
[/quotA.c dated a.p for a year or so

Welcome greenfrog1437! Do have any idea how long Alexandra Cousino dated Johnny Clarke ?

I can not recall a.c dating Johnny but I would not doubt. She screwed him because she is a Toledo most known man eater

She has two beautiful daughters by a baby daddy that is now "engaged" to Sam Williams' ex-wife. How bizarre is that?

Nathan Popovich! what a tangled nightmare!! I wondered who the mother of his children were, sounds to me Cousino lost custody. Thanks!

A.c is the babys mother of N.P along with V.M... she lost custody of her daughters i believe her mother took custody of them when she had caught a case that was again dismissed down the line because the father of the children N.P was incarcerated at the time and the girls would go into custody of csb

[soothsayer]

Soothsayer, Mustang has been in Straub's home many times. I asked him about the butt and he explained how the house is laid out. Bottom line it was in the house.

Thank you, OTD.

[Lady Cop]

prosecution rested. could have closings tomorrow! wow.

13abc video report.

http://www.13abc.com/story/19114147/dna-...Id=7543502


It is Day 3 of testimony in the Springfield Township murder trials.

Samuel Williams and Cameo Pettaway are charged with the brutal killings of Lisa Straub and her boyfriend Johnny Clarke a year and a half ago.

13 ABC's Christine Long is covering the Williams capital murder trial.

Wednesday the jury in the Williams trial heard from several experts analyzing cell phone records, as well as DNA evidence from the crime scene.

Out of all the evidence the prosecution is presenting in the murder trail of Samuel Williams, item number 107 took center stage in Judge Dean Mandros' courtroom on Wednesday.

That is the cigarette butt found inside the Straub family home on Longacre Lane in the hallway that leads to the attached garage.

"The DNA profile from the cigarette butt is a mixture consistent with contributions from Samuel Williams and Cameo Pettaway," says Casey Agosti, a forensic scientist with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations.

Statistically Agosti estimates the likelihood that anyone else besides Williams and Pettaway could be a DNA match is one in 546 million.

Defense attorney John Thebes cross examined Agosti and she agreed she cannot say who's DNA was on the cigarette first or when it was placed on the floor inside the Straub home.

Agosti said it is even a "possibility" two people could share a cigarette, throw the butt away, and someone else can pick it up and place it somewhere without the third person's DNA being discovered.

Defense attorneys also raised the question of the quality of the evidence collected when Detective Phil Williams with the Lucas County Sheriff's Office took the stand. Det. Williams took approximately 50 photos at the crime scene that January night in 2011. One of the photos was of that cigarette butt on the floor. Another investigator took a photo of that butt as well. Defense attorneys say the photos show the cigarette butt was moved.

Defense: "You wouldn't know if that's the photograph you took, correct?"

Detective Williams: "Yes."

Defense: "But it's possible that could be the photograph?"

Detective Williams: "I don't believe it is."

No other evidence collected at the scene matches Williams' DNA or fingerprints.

In fact, the defense highlighted a DNA profile which became known as "Unknown Female Number One" by several of the BCI experts which was found on Johnny Clarke's sweat pants and sweatshirt.

"Item 155-3 is a mixture consistent with contributions from Lisa Straub, John S. Clarke, Unknown Female #1, and an unknown individual," says Stacy Violi, a forensic expert with BCI.

Analysts said DNA from the same "Unknown Female Number One" was also found on the duct tape on the ankles of Johnny Clarke.

Williams has pleaded not guilty. He could face the death penalty if convicted.

[NightOwl]

Toledo Blade article on Witness says defendant talked in jail
Scene of couple's killings described, ex-inmate testifies
http://www.toledoblade.com/Courts/2012/0...-jail.html

Upon reading the public comments beneath article I found this comment
how sweet of him to post this, I like!

Anthony Wulf
Hopefully he is found guilty I have a kid by the same girl as sam and everything I've seen and heard over the last 2 years has me convinced he did it and there are a few others close to him who know or were involved
Reply · 1 · Like · Follow Post · 3 hours ago

[NightOwl]

More from Starla's ex on Facebook


AW
Can't wait to see sam Williams crying cause he don't want to be executed... he LL Prolly Piss himself like a little b!+(#...lmao
Share · Sunday at 9:58pm near Sylvania, OH ·

[pfifltrigg]

can't believe they are planning on closing tomorrow. as much as i hate to say it, i agree with others. if i'm a juror at this point in the trial, i have to say "not guilty" based on reasonable doubt. i just don't see how this could have been so royally botched unless they just figured, "this is all we got, and this is all we're gonna get, so, let's just throw a hail mary and hope a jury convicts."

[Adub]

Dang, that was quick. Those jail house calls tell a tale for sure.

Yeah, let's all give give out a loud "Hail Mary".

[misshmarie23]

i feel like these two was involved but they didnt kill them we need to find the unknown i hope they just dont give up on the casse after this.

[DickTracy]

can't believe they are planning on closing tomorrow. as much as i hate to say it, i agree with others. if i'm a juror at this point in the trial, i have to say "not guilty" based on reasonable doubt. i just don't see how this could have been so royally botched unless they just figured, "this is all we got, and this is all we're gonna get, so, let's just throw a hail mary and hope a jury convicts."

-I concur-

[Lady Cop]

unless they just figured, "this is all we got, and this is all we're gonna get, so, let's just throw a hail mary and hope a jury convicts."

well we all know you can't predict a jury, even when it looks obvious like that whore baby killer casey anthony. we don't know the makeup of this jury, what type of people.
the prosecution rested with the cig butt, defense sure isn't going to put crazy voodoo maytee on, so we won't have that to entertain us. i was so looking forward to that!

if they do closing arguments tomorrow, we may well have a verdict friday. a pretty damn speedy trial for 2 murders.

[ZEROSPHERES]

Toledo Blade article on Witness says defendant talked in jail
Scene of couple's killings described, ex-inmate testifies
http://www.toledoblade.com/Courts/2012/0...-jail.html

Owl,
This link and others from the Blade are inaccessible. Can you repost a current link. I wonder also since these articles from the Blade disappear so quickly could LC make an exception and allow you to copy the full article and post it here or in the Clarke facts only thread?

[ZEROSPHERES]

Now when I tried it again it worked. Could be just a busy web address.

[NightOwl]

Toledo Blade article on Witness says defendant talked in jail
Scene of couple's killings described, ex-inmate testifies
http://www.toledoblade.com/Courts/2012/0...-jail.html

Owl,
This link and others from the Blade are inaccessible. Can you repost a current link. I wonder also since these articles from the Blade disappear so quickly could LC make an exception and allow you to copy the full article and post it here or in the Clarke facts only thread?

There was two http's I edited out it should work now.

[Lady Cop]

blade

Samuel Williams wasn't very open about his case with fellow inmates at the Lucas County jail until one night when he shared insight about events inside a Springfield Township home in January, 2011, said a Toledo man who testified Tuesday in Lucas County Pleas Court.

"One of the things [Williams] said was that he'll never forget how the bag made a crinkle noise when Lisa [Straub] breathed in," said Erik Yingling, who was incarcerated at the jail in December, 2011, with Williams. " … They were trying to torture them, for lack of a better word, to try to get Johnny [Clarke] to tell where the safe and money was."

Yingling testified before a jury Tuesday during the second day of testimony in the capital murder case against Williams, 24, of 1626 Kelsey Ave. Williams and co-defendant Cameo Pettaway, 23, are each charged with two counts of aggravated murder and kidnapping and one count of aggravated burglary.

Mr. Pettaway, who was found to be developmentally disabled and thus ineligible for the death penalty, is being tried simultaneously in another courtroom.

The men are charged in the asphyxiation deaths of Clarke, 23, and Ms. Straub, 21. The couple were found bound with duct tape and with bags over their heads in the Longacre Lane home of Ms. Straub's parents, where they lived.

During his testimony, Yingling said Williams was very tight-lipped about his case and never shared any of his paperwork with others in the cell block. He said that only a few times did Williams share information, likely because Yingling had already been sentenced to prison for his case and so was not considered "suspicious."

Yingling testified that Williams told him that he, Mr. Pettaway, and a third man went to the Straub home looking for heroin and cash.

"They did not go there to kill anybody," he testified, saying that he was told that the couple were tied up and that they put a bag over Ms. Straub's head to force Clarke to tell them where the money was hidden.

" … They would asphyxiate her until she passed out and then give her air. The third time, she didn't wake up," Yingling said.

Yingling further testified that Williams said that all they found was "monopoly money" -- cash with former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein depicted on it. He testified that Williams said they didn't take it because they didn't know how to change it into American dollars.

Ms. Straub's father, Jeff, previously testified he'd purchased about $4,500 in Iraqi currency as an investment.

Attorney John Thebes questioned Yingling on his judicial release from prison after serving about one month. Yingling said he was released, placed in work release for 45 days, served time on electronic monitoring, and is currently on four years of probation.

Mr. Thebes further questioned Yingling on the information he provided and how some of it was available by searching the Internet. He said the rest could be obtained from Williams' papers when Williams was in court or during recreation time.

Yingling did not testify during Mr. Pettaway's trial before Judge James Bates. Testifying before both juries was Clarke's father, John P. Clarke, Jr., who forced in the door at the Straub home to find his son's and Ms. Straub's bodies. The elder Clarke stared at both defendants during his testimony.

"His feet were taped. His ankles were taped. … He had a bag over his head," the elder Clarke told a jury of nine women and three men in Williams' trial. "The first thing I thought was that I have to rip this bag off and give him CPR. … I put my hands on his head to turn it and it was stiff as a board."

Taking time to steady himself, he testified about looking for, and eventually finding, his son during the early morning hours of Jan. 31, 2011. He said that after realizing his son was dead, he tore open the bag covering Ms. Straub's face where a "horrible odor of spoiled blood" emitted. "These kids were tortured to death," he said.

During the first day of testimony, several of the victims' acquaintances testified, including Tiffany Williams (unrelated to the defendant), who called Clarke on the night he died and heard him talking to an unknown man, asking who he was and what he was doing. Several of Clarke's friends said that Clarke was known to brag about money when he had it, and other things that he had.

Also testifying in both trials Tuesday was Alexandra Cousino, 22, who said she knew both victims as well as Williams and Mr. Pettaway. Ms. Cousino testified that Williams and Mr. Pettaway "were friends growing up. They hung out a lot." While she also knew Clarke and Ms. Straub, she said she never introduced them to Williams and Mr. Pettaway.

She testified that Ms. Straub bought a "pit bull" puppy from her for $100, but only paid $50. Ms. Cousino and Clarke also had a dispute in January, 2011, over a car she bought from him but ultimately returned to him. She said she was upset about the car and at one point told Clarke she would beat up his girlfriend.

Judge Bates asked her whether she told Williams or Mr. Pettaway about the dispute with Clarke over the car. She said she did not.

Ed Biederstedt, a special agent with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, was on the stand all morning Tuesday in Mr. Pettway's case.

He walked the jury through a series of photographs depicting the Straub home, the victims' bodies on the kitchen floor, and the locations of evidence he collected from the scene.

Mr. Biederstedt said he found a Newport cigarette butt near the door leading from the kitchen to the garage -- a cigarette that prosecutors said in opening statements was found to have the DNA of both Mr. Pettaway and Williams on it.

He showed the jury two broken cell phones, which were found in pieces in the kitchen and living room, as well as Clarke's black wallet which was found on his stomach.

The defense said in opening statements that the scene was not processed appropriately by investigators, which could have tainted the evidence.

Tanisha Madyun, who has a son with Mr. Pettaway, testified that he was living with her in East Toledo from about August, 2010 until February or March of 2011. Williams, she said, was Mr. Pettaway's longtime friend. Ms. Madyun said that both men smoked Newports, and she saw them share a cigarette more than once.

"Cameo would smoke half and give it to Sam, or Sam would smoke half and give it to Cameo," Ms. Madyun said.

Additional witnesses will testify today in both trials.

If Williams is convicted of the charges, his case will then proceed to a second phase during which the jury will determine whether to recommend death as his sentence.

Judge Dean Mandros is presiding over that case.

[Sonny223]

If you are a juror and put everything together as a whole, one can deduct that the 2 perps were indeed involved somehow. With the other DNA at the crime scene that has not been tagged to a person, that is enough reasonable doubt to say, ok, others must be involved. How are these 2 involved? Murder's? That's not 100% yet. Involved yes!!! Murder's ? Well, might need more evidence for a yes. Also it only takes 1 juror to cause a mistrail. 1 out of 12.

[Lady Cop]

even if jury decides yes one or two others were there and involved, maybe even did the hands-on killing, the two on trial would still be guilty of 1^st degree murder if they were parties to it. so we can't give up hope yet.