Date set for Gary Black’s third trial

Joplin Metro

Discussion

February 4, 2010

Anonymous The Joplin Globe Thu Feb 04, 2010, 08:39 PM CST

By Jeff Lehr

jlehr@joplinglobe.com

The third capital-murder trial of Gary W. Black is scheduled to start Aug. 2 in Joplin if the defendant’s objections to his medical care while in jail do not delay proceedings further.

Black, 54, has been twice convicted of first-degree murder in the 1998 stabbing death of 28-year-old college student Jason O. Johnson in downtown Joplin and twice given the death penalty. Both convictions were overturned, with the Missouri Supreme Court ruling in 2007 that he should have been allowed to act as his own attorney at the second trial.

Trial date

At a hearing this week, Circuit Judge David Mouton designated Aug. 2 for the first day of testimony in Black’s third trial in Jasper County Circuit Court. Jurors will be selected in Cass County on July 29-30 and brought to Joplin to hear the case. The jury will be sequestered throughout the trial, which is anticipated to last about five days.

Black no longer wishes to represent himself at his third trial. Joplin attorney William Fleischaker was appointed as his trial counsel last year at the defendant’s request.

Before setting dates for the trial and a number of remaining pre-trial hearings, the judge closed this week’s hearing at the request of the defense for a discussion of matters related to Black’s health. Mouton subsequently overruled a motion the defense had filed seeking to compel “proper medical treatment” of the defendant at the Jasper County Jail or a return of him to the care and custody of the Fulton State Hospital for the duration of his pre-trial period.

The motion stated that Black suffered medical emergencies related to his diabetes and high blood pressure in January, February and June of last year while incarcerated at the jail. He underwent a court-ordered mental-health examination at Fulton State Hospital between October and December 2009, and was diagnosed with hypertension and diabetes mellitus type II, according to the motion.

When he was discharged from the hospital and sent back to the jail, he was given medical orders to remain on a diabetic diet and various medications, which Black maintains he has been denied at the jail. The motion states that jail staff has refused to provide much of the prescribed medication or has given it to him at the wrong time of day.

Before the judge closed the hearing this week, Prosecutor Dean Dankelson and Assistant Prosecutor Norman Rouse argued that the motion was not a matter for a criminal proceeding. They said the defendant has other avenues through the courts to lodge such a complaint.

“There is nothing in the findings (of Black’s mental-health exam last year) that would warrant sending the defendant to Fulton,” Dankelson told the court. “He does not have a mental disease or defect.”

Black and his attorney withdrew a request at the hearing for a second mental-health examination by a psychiatrist of his own choosing, a right he has under court rules.

Fatal intersection

Gary Black is accused of pursuing Jason Johnson on Oct. 2, 1998, to Fifth Street and Joplin Avenue, and stabbing him in the neck as Johnson sat in a pickup truck at a stop light.

Testimony at Black’s first two trials concerned an encounter Johnson had with Black’s girlfriend inside a convenience store on East Fourth Street minutes before the stabbing. Witnesses testified that Johnson had brushed up against the woman and apologized, but Black apparently took umbrage over the matter.

Text Only

Joplin Metro

Longtime Democrat dies at 81
Sapp, 81, died Thursday. Funeral services were Monday at the First Presbyterian Church of Joplin. A longtime Jasper County Democratic committeewoman and volunteer, Sapp for years was secretary to the county’s central committee.

August 9, 2010 1 Photo
Motivational speaker offers free marriage course
Presented by Mark Gungor, the course is being offered free to the community. The event is being held to aid in tornado relief.

January 12, 2012
District sends faculty, administrators on site visits
With the design phase of several buildings in Joplin Schools ending in May, the district has sent 66 administration, faculty, parents and community members on site visits to 22 schools and two technology company headquarters across the country.

January 11, 2012
Mural depicting Joplin High School dedicated
A four-paneled mural depicting the recent history of Joplin High School was dedicated at the Memorial 9th- and 10th-grade Center Tuesday morning. The mural will be moved to the new high school when it is completed in 2014.

January 10, 2012 4 Photos
Carl Junction chamber creating new committees
The Carl Junction Chamber of Commerce is kicking off three new committees this week with meetings scheduled Tuesday and Wednesday.

January 9, 2012
Body of missing Joplin man found
The body of a missing Joplin man was discovered this afternoon inside his home in the Royal Heights neighborhood of Joplin.

January 3, 2012
Wildcat Glades nature center receives $50,000 grant
The Wildcat Glades Conservation & Audubon Center has received a $50,000 TogetherGreen Innovation Grant, which is being provided through an alliance between the National Audubon Society and Toyota.

October 21, 2011
Joplin shooting victim’s name released
The Joplin Police Department today released the name of a woman fatally shot in her home early Thursday and acknowledged that the shooting was reported as a suicide attempt.

October 21, 2011
Barry Manilow to deliver donated instruments
Singer-songwriter Barry Manilow will visit Joplin next week to donate more than $300,000 in musical instruments to replace those lost during the May 22 tornado.

October 21, 2011
Extreme Makeover releases names of families
"Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" has released more details about the build in the 2400 block of Connor Avenue, including the names of the seven families. They are:

October 19, 2011
More Joplin Metro Headlines

Water company cites reconnections

Joplin Metro

Search Results

Discussion

Date set for Gary Black’s third trial

Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr wants the city to distribute weather radios to all Joplin homes that don’t have one. That’s 11,000 radios. Do you think that’s a good use of $300,440?

Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr wants the city to distribute weather radios to all Joplin homes that don’t have one. That’s 11,000 radios. Do you think that’s a good use of $300,440?

Site Map

Contact Us