By Antoinette Borbon
The courtroom was packed today awaiting the preliminary conference for David Snyder, who is charged with making explosives, possessing firearms, and endangering the lives of others under the Health and Safety code.
He sat there calm and confident as his defense attorney, Linda Parisi, explained to the court that he was an upstanding citizen with a clean record. She explained to the court that David Snyder has been a good employee and was merely being experimental.
“He was the kind of chemist that was always tinkering and experimenting with things,” Ms. Parisi said.
She went on to ask the judge to lower his bail to 500,000, but Judge Reed declined.
Deputy District Attorney Martha Holzapfel, the prosecuting attorney, talked about the evidence against him.
She told the court they found seven firearms with boxes of ammunition. She talked about all the chemicals found and explained that the defendant had enough stuff to make a terrorist-like attack on the community.
She told the court how the defendant had needle marks on his arms from injecting pharmaceuticals into himself as experimental.
“This is a hobby and he likes to blow things up,” she told Judge David Reed. “He’s not going to be able to stop it just because you told him no.”
Ms. Holzapfel asked the judge to keep him in jail because of the flight risk and potential danger to the public.
After listening to both parties, Judge Reed told Mr. Snyder that he felt he was a danger to society and a possible flight risk and even if this had been just experimental, he needed to understand the seriousness of what he did.
He told the court he was keeping the bail at $2 million. David Snyder looked unaffected. Another hearing will take place in a couple weeks.
An amended criminal complaint has expanded the number of charges Mr. Snyder faces to 17 felonies, which includes four counts of reckless disposal of hazardous waste, two counts of possession of a destructive device or explosive, four counts of possession of materials with intent to make a destructive device, and seven counts of possessing a firearm on university grounds.
Judge Mock Denies Reduction in People v. Parrott
By Catherine McKnight
It has been over three years since Dana Parrott was convicted on one count of child abuse and a second count of aggravated mayhem. On Friday, February 10, Public Defender Tracie Olson offered several reasons to Judge Mock as to why her felony should be reduced to a misdemeanor.
She expressed that Parrott had no prior criminal record and has been on felony probation for three and a half years. Parrott is a registered nurse and Olson states that, in order to renew her license, she cannot have the felony conviction on her file. She went on to describe Parrott’s relationship with her daughter – a victim in this case. They now have a “great relationship” and she has finally come back home after attending college in Florida that Parrott paid for.
However, Judge Mock said he agrees with some of the deputy district attorney’s concerns. The DA, Sarah Finn, reminded the judge of the severity of the case. This was not just child abuse over the span of a week – it was over several months. The evidence in the case was filled with graphic photographs of the children’s bruises and scars. The DA proposed that the only reason she is coming to the court is out of necessity of having a clean record for her license renewal as a registered nurse. She went on to say how very inappropriate it would be to reduce something so serious to a misdemeanor for the wrong reasons.
Judge Mock said that there are pluses in this case, such as the completion of her anger management program as well as a completion of her counseling. He said that his denial to reduce the felony does not mean he would not humor the idea of reduction in the future.
While the case was very serious, it is unclear what would need to change for Judge Mock to reconsider a reduction, besides time. As Olson pointed out, Parrott has been “good” since she has been convicted and has even rekindled a relationship with the person she hurt the most in this case – her daughter.
Parrott did not seem surprised at the judge’s denial, but it leads to questions of whether or not her felony will always be a part of her life. Her daughter seems to have forgiven her, but that does not expunge the abuse she caused her.
Prelim Looks into Gun Incident in Davis
By Vanguard Court Watch Interns
During the Rashad Malone prelim on Friday afternoon, we heard from two key witnesses: Monica Coker and her daughter, Bridget Ashworth. Their testimonies differed with regard to several key points, but most importantly whether or not Mr. Malone had a gun during the incident that occurred on December 22, 2012 in Davis.
Seventeen-year-old Ms. Ashworth testified that she, her baby daughter, and a male friend were asleep when they were awakened by shouting. Mr. Malone, followed by Ms. Coker, allegedly kicked through the door into her room, yelling that everyone was against him.
Next, he brought out a gun, said that everyone was going to die, and put the gun to 22-year-old Markim Ford’s forehead. Ms. Ashworth testified that as soon as her mother saw the gun, she ran out of the house. Mr. Malone then hit Mr. Ford across the temple with the gun before leaving the house.
Ms. Coker, the defendant’s fiancé and mother of Ms. Ashworth, told a somewhat different story. While her daughter insisted that Mr. Coker entered the room immediately after Mr. Malone, Ms. Coker said that she remained behind in her own bedroom for a couple minutes. Ms. Coker allegedly suffers from amnesia brought on by a combination of prescription pain medication and Xanax, but she insisted that she never saw Mr. Malone with a gun.
However, that night she told the neighbors to call the police because a man with a gun was in her home. Furthermore, she said that it was in fact Mr. Ford, who is on probation for first-degree burglary, who had damaged the door to Ms. Ashworth’s room several weeks beforehand. Although he does not live with them, Mr. Malone is the disciplinarian. Ms. Coker implied that her daughter prefers it when Mr. Malone isn’t around, since she can get away with more.
Ultimately, it will be for a jury to decide which account of the incident is more accurate. Since Ms. Ashworth is underage, Mr. Markim Ford has decided to confer with an attorney before testifying on Monday morning the 11th.
DMG in Parrot matter was she placed on probation? Did she successfully complete it? Or is she still on probation & is seeking an early reduction? Is the mayhem “The felony?” (PC 205)
“She told the court how the defendant had needle marks on his arms from injecting pharmaceuticals into himself as experimental. ‘This is a hobby and he likes to blow things up’, she told Judge David Reed. ‘He’s not going to be able to stop it just because you told him no’.”
Which “she” is telling the judge about Mr. Snyder’s “experimental” drug injecting and his uncontrollable compulsion to blow up things? Maybe he needs to be kept away from drug and explosives until he no longer has any withdrawal symptoms.
Did Ms. Parrott’s daughter testify that she’s forgiven her mother and that they now have a “great relationship” or is this just her attorney yakking?
In spite of the horrendous nature of this nurse’s beatings of her daughter–no doubt, felonious–this would seem to be a situation where allowing Ms. Parrott to return to nursing might be the best thing all around. Perhaps she could agree to a much longer supervised probation and continuing counseling while the judge downgrades her crime to a misdemeanor.
Wow, that’s a new tidbit; needle marks from injecting pharmaceuticals into himself? What kind of pharmaceuticals; and did he conduct his explosive experiments at the same time as his self-injection experiments? What a combo.
Hopefully his intent was just to make some snappy customized firecrackers; maybe as something to bring with him as he moved away from Davis (apparently he was planning to move back to Texas?); and nothing more mercenary (e.g. selling explosives on black market for a few extra dollars) or malevolent.