Blogger's Note

     I just wanted to take a quick moment to share: this photo I took during the Ken Bluew trial, (posted on day 205), of the Saginaw County Medical Examiner demonstrating how he believed former Buena Vista Police Officer Ken Bluew strangled Jennifer Webb on the then-Saginaw County prosecutor placed an honorable mention in the MPPA's Best of 2012 general news category. A few people I work with and others from different areas of the state for MLive did really well. If you'd like to see the winners you can find them here!

Day 324/365

     After working late last night/day 323 I covered the opening arguments in an alleged armed robbery trial, with the defendant being charged with eleven felonies. He's a 20 year-old being accused of shooting another person during a botched robbery. I'm starting to see a theme here...

Day 256/365

     My last assignment today was the sentencing of a woman who was recently convicted of embezzlement. She ran a funeral home in Bay County and reportedly embezzled over $400,000 from her customers. She got the maximum sentencing possible today, with a minimum of seven years to a maximum of twenty in prison, along with having to pay over $460,000 in restitution. A number of the victim's family members made statements on their behalf, saying everything from, "I feel sorry for you," to, "You're pathetic," to, "You're evil incarnate." The convicted woman, Erica C. Kaznowski, showed absolutely no emotion throughout the entire sentencing, even as she looked into the eyes of an 86 year-old woman who cried as she stated what dire straits she, her husband, and their adult children are in now that the money set aside for their funeral arrangements is completely gone. To see the article, you can find it on MLive here.

Day 205/365

     Today's post is a two-for-one from the Ken Bluew trial. The Saginaw County Medical Examiner testified today, stating that Jennifer Webb died from being in a choke hold, and not from hanging herself with an extension cord from the roof rack of her car. The Saginaw County Prosecutor asked him to demonstrate what he meant by a choke hold, and thus the gem that is today's top photo was born. The bottom one is Bluew watching the medical examiner walk down off of the stand and out of the courtroom, (or, at least, that's what it looked like to me). Since where I'm allowed to sit in the courtroom is behind Bluew and to his left, most of my shots of him are him in profile like this photo, but I still liked this one even if it's been overdone a bit by now. If you'd like to see more photos or articles from today's coverage, you can find them on MLive here.

Day 204/365

     This afternoon had me covering the Ken Bluew trial again, (the, currently suspended, police officer accused of strangling the woman who was pregnant with his child, then hanging her from the roof rack of her car with an extension cord to make it look like a suicide). The whole afternoon I was there was filled with the playing of a video of two Michigan State Police officers interviewing Bluew the morning after the woman, Jennifer Webb, was found. For the first two hours of the footage, Bluew said there was no way he could be the father of Webb's unborn child because they had never had sex. It wasn't until almost the very end of the tape that Bluew finally said that they had slept together, so there was a possibility of him being the father. Full coverage from today's proceedings, as well as the rest of the trial, can be found on MLive here.

Day 191/365

     Today was an interesting day, to say the least. I took pictures of a thrift store in Saginaw this morning, one that sells everything from clothes and jewelry to food and fishing bait. The quirkiest thing they sell, in my opinion, is neon green nightcrawlers, so of course I had to post a photo. After the thrift store I covered the afternoon proceedings of the second day of Ken Bluew's murder trial. I had a bit of a mini stare down with Bluew when his trial went on break. The judge, jury, and some of the observers had left to the courtroom for the short recess, and Bluew had turned around to face friends and family of his that had come to support him. As he was talking to them, I took some photos since it was my only chance to get his full face today, as he wouldn't be taking the stand today and would have his back to me the entire time. He did not look too pleased with the fact that I was taking his picture, and every time I pointed the camera at hime he made sure to look away, so unfortunately I don't have any photos of the major league glare he seemed to be directing my way. Either way, today you get a double feature of worms and Ken Bluew! By clicking on the photos you can view them larger, and to see more pictures from Bluew's trial and links to articles on the proceedings you can go on MLive here. 

Day 190/365

     Today I covered the beginning of a murder trial in Saginaw. A, (currently suspended), police officer is accused of strangling his girlfriend who was eight months pregnant with his son at the time of her death. Kenneth Bluew, pictured above on the right, took longer than usual to respond to a routine roll call over police radio during a night shift. His friend and fellow officer went to look for him, and ended up stumbling upon what appeared to be an abandoned vehicle. After the officer got out of his car, Bluew suddenly appeared with his patrol car parked in the distance. Bluew proceeded to ask his fellow officer how he wanted to process the car, as if there had been a call on it, which there hadn't been. When they both checked out the car, they found pregnant Jennifer Webb hanging from the roof rack with an extension cord around her neck; an apparent suicide. 

     Bluew never acknowledged that he knew the deceased, not until later when another officer found her license. Shortly after that the officer also found Webb's phone, with recent calls between Bluew and herself. After another officer spoke to Webb's family and found out that she had not appeared to be suicidal, but ecstatic towards the prospect of soon being a mother, and that Bluew was in fact the father of the unborn child, Bluew was then considered a major suspect. Fast forward to today, and Bluew is now charged with first-degree premeditated murder, (a mandatory life sentence without possibility of parole if found guilty), and is also charged with assaulting a pregnant individual intentionally causing miscarriage or stillbirth of a fetus or embryo, as well as two counts of possessing a firearm during the commission of a felony.

If you'd like, you can see more photos from today as well as find links to current articles surrounding the case on MLive here.

Day 170/365

     I got to shoot my first court case today; it was the sentencing for a man who was found guilty of assault with a dangerous weapon and assault causing great bodily harm less than murder.

     

    In June of 2011 Brandon Carbeno and Chene Swarthout got into an argument over parking arrangements while leaving a concert in Bay City. After a heated exchange, Swarthout returned to his car to leave. 

     Carbeno also went back to his car, but instead of getting in and driving away, he pulled a baseball bat out of his trunk and went back for Swarthout. Carbeno beat Swarthout so badly that he was in a coma for almost two weeks after the incident, and to this day suffers significant brain damage. 

     All because of an argument started over a parking spot, two men's lives, as well as two families' lives, are forever changed for the worse.

       If you'd like to read the article from today's sentencing, or if you'd like to see the other photos I took from the proceedings today, you can find them on MLive here.