[89][90], Davidson was also indicted for the Pizza Hut robbery committed the day after the murders. On Thursday, the pair presented surprise evidence suggesting that Boyd knew about the slayings because he was there at the Chipman Street house when the couple were being held captive and brutalized. Sutton testified. [47][48][49] Christian was also anally and vaginally raped. Those who committed this crime were unjust in doing so, and they should pay the penalty. 14. [I]t's a crazy world these days! Boyd's cousin, Kevin Armstrong, who is the brother of another cousin whose testimony implicated Boyd in the slayings, reluctantly testified that Boyd called him to come to Lightfoot's apartment on the night of Jan. 9. A beautiful, young couple carjacked and after hours (longer for Channon) of torture, repeated rapes of both, then brutally murdered. He said that Davidson told him that his brother, Letalvis "Rome" Cobbins, and buddy, George "G" Thomas, gang-raped Christian. 4. Boyd's account of his visit to the house on Sunday also proved replete with contradictions. He faces death if convicted. He also called the crime "the most horrible" murder case he had seen. [1][2][3] Four males and one female were arrested, charged, and convicted in the case. ul.searchbrowse li {margin:0 0 5%; font-size:0.75em; /* 12/16 */ } [19][20][125][126][127][128][129] He later tried to distance himself from the house, however, saying Davidson actually met him on the front porch. He also admitted that Boyd later called him, asking Armstrong to give the pair a ride "down west.". She recalled crime-scene footage on an 11 p.m. newscast but insisted she paid it no mind. Reportedly, the men blindfolded and gagged Newsom. [85] Judge Richard Baumgartner allowed Thomas and Cobbins to be tried by juries from Davidson County (which includes Nashville). He saw a 4Runner in front of the house with its porch lights on. In the interview with Knoxville Police Department Investigators Patty Tipton and Greg McKnight, Boyd insisted everything he knew about the fatal carjacking came from Davidson. At around 8:00 pm, Christian's friend went to the party, and Christian stayed behind and waited for Newsom to pick her up. On Saturday, January 6, 2007, Channon and Chris planned to have dinner together and then spend the . By Jamie Satterfield of the Knoxville News Sentinel. [46][47][72] In addition to the sperm found on Christian's body, Davidson's sperm was found on Christian's jeans while Cobbins' sperm was found on her camisole, sweater, and jeans. 168.119.37.100 Others, including journalists, disagreed with this assertion. The victims families notified authorities the next day about the missing couple. Despite that she allowed the two to stay in her apartment while she went to Atlanta. "They weren't able to carjack them, so they ordered them to drive," Boyd said in the statement. She agreed because she wanted to retrieve make-up and perfume she said she'd left behind. Get True Crime Diva's blog posts delivered to your inbox! The medical examiner testified at trial that there was evidence that Christian slowly suffocated to death. Both of them were raped, tortured, and murdered. [100], On December 8, 2009, George Thomas was found guilty on multiple counts. That afternoon, Christian went to a friend's apartment to get ready. [3][49][55] Prosecutors believe that Coleman held Christian captive while the male offenders were murdering Newsom. He was also convicted on charges of carjacking, robbery, and kidnapping. Their vehicle had been carjacked. Thanks to lobbying from the families of the victims, two new laws were introduced in 2014 as a result of the case: Murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom, Last edited on 28 February 2023, at 09:34, Pellissippi State Technical Community College, Federal Correctional Institution, Yazoo City, Federal Correctional Institution in Yazoo City, Mississippi, Federal Correctional Institution, Beckley, "Grand jury presentment in Christian/Newsom case", "5 things to know about the Christian-Newsom torture slayings", "Murders of Christopher Newsom and Channon Christian", "Transcript: Davidson says he told Christian he would 'make sure she got out', "10 years later: Remembering Christian-Newsom", "Fifth person charged in gruesome 2007 murders of young Knoxville couple", "Fourth suspect arrested in corpse-burning case", "4 death sentences for LeMaricus Davidson in Christian-Newsom murders", "Lemaricus Davidson gets 80 more years in torture-slaying case", "Cobbins convicted of first-degree murder", "Torture-slayings trial, Day 9: Victims' families: Jury 'let us down' with Letalvis Cobbins verdict", "The verdicts in the George Thomas trial", "George Thomas gets life without parole for Christian-Newsom murders", "Coleman gets 53 years; judge rejects innocent defense", "Newsoms thank George Thomas for testifying against Eric Boyd as judge approves reduced sentence", "LIST: Here's what Eric Boyd was found guilty of in deaths of Channon Christian & Chris Newsom", "Special judge grants new trials for torture-slaying defendants, cites Baumgartner's conduct", New trial dates set for Channon Christian/Chris Newsom defendants in Knoxville, "Tennessee Supreme Court overturns new trial rulings in Christian-Newsom murders", "Judge sentences Vanessa Coleman to 35 years", "Judge's order ensures George Thomas will die in prison for 2007 torture-slayings", "Christopher Newsom and Channon Christian Brutally Murdered As the Nation Looks on", "Critics say news media ignoring Knoxville couple slaying", "Media criticized in slayings with racial overtone", "Time no cure for pain in torture slayings of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom", "From rage to restoration, murder victim's father finds faith", "Christian, Newsom memorialized with scholarships", "The Last Suspect: 'I've Always Had a Mother's Instinct That He Was The One Who Murdered My Son', "Judge warns victim's family about comments to defense attorneys", "Timeline of the Channon Christian-Christopher Newsom murders", "TENN. MAN FACING FOUND GUILTY OF 36 CHARGES IN HORRIFIC 2007 KIDNAPPING, RAPE AND MURDER OF YOUNG COUPLE", "In torture slaying trial, each side interprets evidence differently", "Consent argued in torture-slaying trial", "Graphic details emerge in Christian-Newsom killings", "Christian-Newsom Torture Murder Case: Attending Vanessa Coleman's Retrial", "Horror of Christian/Newsom killings in focus: What happened on Chipman Street", "Guilty again: New trial, similar outcome for Coleman in slaying", "Young Couple, Gruesome Murder, Was it A Hate Crime? The men tied Christian up with bed sheets andforced her into large trash bags, ultimately suffocating her. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. The baffling disappearance of Jordan Alexander Holling. Channon Gail Christian, 21, and Hugh Christopher Newsom, Jr., 23, were from Knoxville, Tennessee. His sentence ends in May 2053. [48][53][54][57] Her injuries were consistent with being raped with an object. Boyd later returned without the male victim. Baumgartner ruled that Thomas' phone calls from the jailhouse to his acquaintances were admissible as evidence. Jamie Satterfield is an award-winning journalist specializing in the law and crime. The following night, she had another date, this one ending in sex, she testified. In her initial trial, Coleman was acquitted of all charges in the murder of Christian's boyfriend, Christopher Newsom. She left, but not before he gave her a bag of clothing and a ring. She said she and her friends convinced Davidson to leave by agreeing to drop him off at Ridgebrook Apartments off Western Avenue, where Boyd lived with his mother. On May 17, 2013, the retrial of George Thomas (with a jury empaneled in Nashville) ended in a verdict of guilty on all 38 counts. A jury imposed two sentences of death on the defendant after convicting him of multiple counts of first degree murder, especially aggravated robbery, especially aggravated . Theassailantsset fire to the scene. [17] Eric Boyd was convicted at the federal level and sentenced to 18 years in federal prison for being an accessory after the fact to carjacking. [13][97] On August 26, Cobbins was sentenced to life without parole. After high school, he attended Pellissippi State Technical Community College and became a carpenter. In the wake of the murders, a Knox County Grand Jury handed down multiple indictments in the case. [71][72] Christian's body was stashed in five large trash bags. "We know from our investigation that the people charged in this case were friends with white people, socialized with white people, dated white people. The Newsoms hope . Tipton and McKnight pressed him for an alibi. [37] They then decided to attack the couple. "I said, 'Is Vanessa in there?' Davidson also used Newsom's cellphone and was seen wearing Newsom's shoes. CHRIS NEWSOM OBITUARY. They are what they are. In the early morning hours of January 7, 2007, Channon Christian, 21, and her boyfriend, Christopher Newsom, 23, were carjacked by three black males who took the young couple to a house on Chipman Street in Knoxville, TN, where the group tortured and killed them. Chris and Channon were kidnapped and driven to 2316 Chipman Street where they were forced into the home at gunpoint. Browse 5,356 autopsy stock photos and images available, or search for autopsy table or autopsy reports to find more great stock photos and pictures. His body would later be wrapped up in a comforter, doused in gasoline and set afire.. autopsy later revealed that Christopher Newsom had been shot three times, once on the right side of the head, once on the right side of the neck, and once in the back. Rallied in violation of channon autopsy report or the comments. Sutton testified that she suspected Davidson when she learned that Newsom's body had been discovered beside railroad tracks within sight of the Chipman Street house. They had only been dating for a few months, but they were . [25][118] In 2015, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals upheld Thomas's conviction. Christian suffered extensive hemorrhaging to her head and groin. On the night of January 6, 2007, two assailants carjacked Channon Christian, 21, and her boyfriend, Christopher Newsom, 23. Newsom and Christian were later found brutally carjacked, raped . Davidson asked if he and Boyd could stay the night at her apartment. We and the Newsoms have lost our . Christian's parents requested help from law enforcement but were told that they would have to search themselves. After the Bledsoe County Correctional Complex in Pikeville opened in 2012, they were transferred to that facility. [61][75] Cobbins gave a statement to investigators claiming that he, Davidson, and Boyd drove to an apartment complex for someone to meet a girl. Coleman was convicted of facilitation only in the rape . His bare and muddy feet indicated that he had walked barefoot to the area where he was killed. [113] Following Blackwood's recusal, Senior Judge Walter Kurtz was named to oversee the retrials and the decisions to grant them. "One down. The eRumor tells of the horrific kidnapping, torture, and murder of Christopher Newsom and his girlfriend Channon Christian from Knoxville, Tennessee. This Actress's Murder Changed Stalking Laws, 40 People Heard Kitty Genovese Being Murdered, Facts About The Murder Of Channon Christian And Chris Newsom. The items from Christian's SUV were shoved into trash bags. He was sexually assaulted and forced to walk barefoot to the railroad tracks, where the thugs shot him in the neck and back. She didn't know (Davidson) was laying beside me," Sutton testified. ul.searchbrowse li a {color:#676767; text-decoration:none; } Prosecutors conceded Baumgartner had been impaired during Coleman's trial but appealed the decision to retry Davidson, Cobbins, and Thomas. Christopher Newsomwasa former baseball standout. Stickers Christian kept on the outside windows had been removed. The decision to hold retrials for them was affirmed in a two to one decision by the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals on April 13. He had been shot three times; the killers delivered the final shot execution-style. "[53] Prosecutors believe that Christian was tied to a chair and orally raped by Davidson and Cobbins. ul.searchbrowse li a:hover {color:#676767; border-bottom: 1px dotted #676767}, Photos: 37th Tennessee Homecoming brings history to life, Photos: Hurricane Matthew evacuees find shelter in Knoxville, Photos: Church Street United Methodist celebrates bicentennial, Photos: school coupon book kick off celebration, Photos: Bristol in anticipation for Battle at Bristol, Photos: Olive Garden provides meal for West Hills Fire Station No. A. He said he was scared. On Jan. 9, 2007, fingerprints in the car led to a house at 2316 Chipman St. A body was found, but not immediately identified. Follow us for a shocking dose of real life. "I asked him (Davidson) if he had anything on him as far as a weapon," she said. He had been beaten, raped, and shot. Click to reveal They reported she never showed up at her friend's party on the night of January 6, 2007, and it wasn't like her to not answer her phone. [5] Thomas is incarcerated at the Northeast Correctional Complex. Letalvis Cobbins followed them. Evil at Sea: The Disappearance of Amy Bradley. Manage Settings They were last seen at the Washington Ridge Apartments. [95][96], On August 25, 2009, Letalvis Cobbins was found guilty of the murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom. "As soon as I reached the bathroom door, (Davidson) grabbed me and said, 'What are you doing?'" Christian was then hog-tied and covered with several bags before she was placed in a disposal bin, where she slowly suffocated to death, Mileusnic-Polchan testified. That's all he'd say.". Upon searching the premises, police found Christian and determined the attacks against Christian and Newsom occurred in the house. Wearing Newsom 's cellphone and was seen wearing Newsom 's cellphone and was seen Newsom! 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