Youngest Prison-for-Lifer Held in RobberyTuesday, May 24, 2005
PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. †Lionel Tate , the youngest person in modern U.S. history to be sentenced to life in prison , has been arrested after a pizza delivery man said the teenager pointed a gun at him.
Tate, now 18, was being held early Tuesday at the Broward County Jail on charges of armed robbery and armed burglary with battery. He was serving probation following his release on a guilty plea to second-degree murder in the beating death of a 6-year-old family friend when he was 12.
Tate called in a pizza order Monday from a friend's apartment and pointed a gun at the delivery man when he arrived, said Broward sheriff's spokeswoman Elizabeth Calzadilla-Fiallo. The man dropped the pizzas and called police after returning to the restaurant.
The man returned to the apartment complex with deputies, saw Tate in the area and identified him as the suspect, said Calzadilla-Fiallo. No gun was recovered.
Attorney Richard Rosenbaum, who has represented Tate, told The Associated Press that Tate and his mother called him as he was being arrested. "I heard he jacked a pizza delivery guy, which I can't believe happened," Rosenbaum said. "I'm shocked and appalled."
Tate made headlines when he was charged with first-degree murder in the killing of Tiffany Eunick. He was convicted in 1999 and sent to prison for life without chance of parole. He won a new trial on appeal and went free in January 2004 under a deal that placed him under house arrest for a year followed by probation for 10 years.
Tate first claimed Tiffany was injured whey he imitated wrestling moves that he saw on television. He changed his story years later and said he accidentally killed Tiffany when he jumped on her from a staircase while his mother was baby-sitting the girl. Tate weighed 160 pounds; Tiffany weighed about 50.
He was arrested in September for violating probation by being out of his home overnight after an argument with his mother. A judge added another five years to the 10 years Tate had left on the original probation.
remember lionel tate?
remember lionel tate?
What amazes and annoys me more than anything is that "life imprisonment" seldom means that - I only found out recently that a murderer from my area had been released from a `life sentence` after only 4 years!
remember lionel tate?
the whole case was astounding...his mother was a cop! the DA offered a plea deal and she didn't accept it, very foolish, she should have known better. she was asleep while he beat the little girl to death and shares the blame, she knew he was volatile and left him to watch a 5 year old. he was 12 years old, not wrapped real tight, and the size of an aircraft carrier. so now he has embarked on his life of crime.
remember lionel tate?
Associated Press
Posted June 22 2005, 12:56 PM EDT
FORT LAUDERDALE -- A 13-year-old boy has recanted his statement that convicted killer Lionel Tate, once the youngest American sentenced to life in prison, robbed a pizza delivery man at gunpoint, his lawyer said Wednesday.
Attorney James Lewis said the boy gave a statement to private investigators indicating that a 16-year-old boy actually committed the robbery May 23.
According to a transcript provided by Lewis, the boy said he blamed Tate under pressure from Broward County sheriff's investigators and because the other boy threatened to kill him. According to the transcript, the boy said he had a clear view of the robber, who had shoved him aside in order to commit the crime.
But Broward sheriff's spokesman Jim Leljedal said that new physical evidence linking Tate to the crime will be presented at a court hearing on Thursday morning, and noted that pizza delivery man has not wavered in identifying Tate as the culprit.
"We are confident in our case and we believe that Lionel Tate was responsible for the armed robbery," Leljedal said.
The gun used in the robbery was never found, but three handguns were missing from the home Tate shared with his mother, a Florida Highway Patrol trooper.
Broward Circuit Judge Joel Lazarus scheduled Thursday's hearing to determine if the new evidence warrants Tate's release on bond. The robbery charges could mean Tate, 18, violated his probation stemming from his conviction in the 1999 killing of family friend Tiffany Eunick, 6.
That could mean a life sentence for Tate, who was 12 when the girl was killed. He originally claimed the death was an accident that happened when he tried out some professional wrestling moves on the girl, whom his mother was baby sitting. He was convicted of first-degree murder in 2001 and sentenced to life in prison.
He was released last year after a state appellate court threw out his conviction. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder under a plea agreement and was released.
Posted June 22 2005, 12:56 PM EDT
FORT LAUDERDALE -- A 13-year-old boy has recanted his statement that convicted killer Lionel Tate, once the youngest American sentenced to life in prison, robbed a pizza delivery man at gunpoint, his lawyer said Wednesday.
Attorney James Lewis said the boy gave a statement to private investigators indicating that a 16-year-old boy actually committed the robbery May 23.
According to a transcript provided by Lewis, the boy said he blamed Tate under pressure from Broward County sheriff's investigators and because the other boy threatened to kill him. According to the transcript, the boy said he had a clear view of the robber, who had shoved him aside in order to commit the crime.
But Broward sheriff's spokesman Jim Leljedal said that new physical evidence linking Tate to the crime will be presented at a court hearing on Thursday morning, and noted that pizza delivery man has not wavered in identifying Tate as the culprit.
"We are confident in our case and we believe that Lionel Tate was responsible for the armed robbery," Leljedal said.
The gun used in the robbery was never found, but three handguns were missing from the home Tate shared with his mother, a Florida Highway Patrol trooper.
Broward Circuit Judge Joel Lazarus scheduled Thursday's hearing to determine if the new evidence warrants Tate's release on bond. The robbery charges could mean Tate, 18, violated his probation stemming from his conviction in the 1999 killing of family friend Tiffany Eunick, 6.
That could mean a life sentence for Tate, who was 12 when the girl was killed. He originally claimed the death was an accident that happened when he tried out some professional wrestling moves on the girl, whom his mother was baby sitting. He was convicted of first-degree murder in 2001 and sentenced to life in prison.
He was released last year after a state appellate court threw out his conviction. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder under a plea agreement and was released.
Nullius in verba ... ☎||||||||||| ... To Fate I sue, of other means bereft, the only refuge for the wretched left.
When flower power came along I stood for Human Rights, marched around for peace and freedom, had some nooky every night - we took it serious.
Who has a spare two minutes to play in this month's FG Trivia game! ... My other OS is Slackware.
When flower power came along I stood for Human Rights, marched around for peace and freedom, had some nooky every night - we took it serious.
Who has a spare two minutes to play in this month's FG Trivia game! ... My other OS is Slackware.
remember lionel tate?
there was a VOP hearing scheduled for today (violation of probation) which could have sent tate back to prison to serve his entire life term. but it was delayed because he wrote to the judge and threatened suicide. a legal manuver to assure him the possibility of an insanity defense. story here.......
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Lionel Tate Hearing Postponed
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Lionel Tate Hearing Postponed
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robinseggs
- Posts: 876
- Joined: Tue Mar 01, 2005 8:01 am
remember lionel tate?
Has anyone considered the possibility that this was a sex crime? I think he wanted to coerce her into sex or some other sexually motivated act and when she fought it, he was afraid she'd tell his mom. I know the boy was only 12 but that's NOT too young. Especially if someone did it to him. Why hasn't a single report brought up this theory?
Nature laughs Last
remember lionel tate?
FORT LAUDERDALE (AP) -- Convicted child killer Lionel Tate is mentally competent to face a hearing that could send him back to prison for life, a judge ruled Monday after two psychologists testified that Tate appeared to be faking symptoms of mental illness.
Broward County Circuit Judge Joel T. Lazarus set a Feb. 27 hearing to determine whether Tate should return to prison for allegedly violating probation by robbing a pizza delivery man at gunpoint. Tate is on probation for the 1999 killing of a 6-year-old girl his mother was baby-sitting.
Tate's lawyers said at Monday's competency hearing that Tate did not actually write a letter to Lazarus claiming he was "hearing voices" and had considered suicide. The letter was written by an older jail inmate and signed by Tate, the attorneys said.
"It was a desperate attempt by a young man who was being manipulated," said H. Dohn Williams, an assistant public defender. "This was a scheme that was hatched by a true jailhouse lawyer."
Williams didn't know whether Tate or the other inmate, identified as Sanders Hightower, 34, had initiated the letter. Hightower is held in the same Broward County jail as Tate on a variety of charges, including armed kidnapping and robbery, according to the sheriff's office.
The letter caused Lazarus to postpone a scheduled Dec. 5 hearing on whether Tate violated probation by allegedly committing the May pizza robbery.
Tate, now 18, was once the youngest person sentenced to life in prison in modern U.S. history for beating and stomping to death 6-year-old Tiffany Eunick, which happened when he was 12. Tate's lawyers initially claimed he was imitating professional wrestling moves when the girl died.
Tate's murder conviction and life sentence were overturned on appeal, leading to a plea deal that had him plead guilty to second-degree murder and the released him on probation.
Two psychologists who examined Tate said he appeared to be feigning mental symptoms and claimed not to have an understanding of basic legal terms such as the difference between guilty and not guilty, the role of a judge and jury and what prosecutors do. At one point, Tate even claimed not to remember his mother's first name.
Psychologist Trudy Block-Garfield said Tate pretended to have hallucinations and frequently fluttered his hands near his ears as if hearing voices. She said his actions were "totally inconsistent" with actual psychosis.
"Aside from the demonstrations designed to make me believe he was psychotic, he was a perfect gentleman," Block-Garfield said. "I believe he well understands the proceedings. I believe he is well capable of understanding what is at stake."
Also Monday, Williams withdrew from the case and was replaced by flamboyant Miami defense lawyer Ellis Rubin, who was hired by Tate's family. Rubin said one of his first efforts will be to "clear the mind-set" that led Tate to listen to a fellow inmate's advice that faking mental illness would improve his prospects.
"It has to be overcome, yes," Rubin said.
The letter purportedly from Tate was written after prosecutors offered him a plea bargain that called for a sentence of between 10 and 30 years in prison in return for a guilty plea in the pizza robbery. Rubin said he had not yet discussed such a deal with prosecutors. Lazarus could return Tate to prison for life if he determines that a probation violation occurred. Tate does not have to be convicted by a jury of the pizza robbery in order for the judge to find a violation.
Broward County Circuit Judge Joel T. Lazarus set a Feb. 27 hearing to determine whether Tate should return to prison for allegedly violating probation by robbing a pizza delivery man at gunpoint. Tate is on probation for the 1999 killing of a 6-year-old girl his mother was baby-sitting.
Tate's lawyers said at Monday's competency hearing that Tate did not actually write a letter to Lazarus claiming he was "hearing voices" and had considered suicide. The letter was written by an older jail inmate and signed by Tate, the attorneys said.
"It was a desperate attempt by a young man who was being manipulated," said H. Dohn Williams, an assistant public defender. "This was a scheme that was hatched by a true jailhouse lawyer."
Williams didn't know whether Tate or the other inmate, identified as Sanders Hightower, 34, had initiated the letter. Hightower is held in the same Broward County jail as Tate on a variety of charges, including armed kidnapping and robbery, according to the sheriff's office.
The letter caused Lazarus to postpone a scheduled Dec. 5 hearing on whether Tate violated probation by allegedly committing the May pizza robbery.
Tate, now 18, was once the youngest person sentenced to life in prison in modern U.S. history for beating and stomping to death 6-year-old Tiffany Eunick, which happened when he was 12. Tate's lawyers initially claimed he was imitating professional wrestling moves when the girl died.
Tate's murder conviction and life sentence were overturned on appeal, leading to a plea deal that had him plead guilty to second-degree murder and the released him on probation.
Two psychologists who examined Tate said he appeared to be feigning mental symptoms and claimed not to have an understanding of basic legal terms such as the difference between guilty and not guilty, the role of a judge and jury and what prosecutors do. At one point, Tate even claimed not to remember his mother's first name.
Psychologist Trudy Block-Garfield said Tate pretended to have hallucinations and frequently fluttered his hands near his ears as if hearing voices. She said his actions were "totally inconsistent" with actual psychosis.
"Aside from the demonstrations designed to make me believe he was psychotic, he was a perfect gentleman," Block-Garfield said. "I believe he well understands the proceedings. I believe he is well capable of understanding what is at stake."
Also Monday, Williams withdrew from the case and was replaced by flamboyant Miami defense lawyer Ellis Rubin, who was hired by Tate's family. Rubin said one of his first efforts will be to "clear the mind-set" that led Tate to listen to a fellow inmate's advice that faking mental illness would improve his prospects.
"It has to be overcome, yes," Rubin said.
The letter purportedly from Tate was written after prosecutors offered him a plea bargain that called for a sentence of between 10 and 30 years in prison in return for a guilty plea in the pizza robbery. Rubin said he had not yet discussed such a deal with prosecutors. Lazarus could return Tate to prison for life if he determines that a probation violation occurred. Tate does not have to be convicted by a jury of the pizza robbery in order for the judge to find a violation.
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The Red One
- Posts: 271
- Joined: Sun Dec 04, 2005 10:54 am
remember lionel tate?
Okay, here's my question. Why is it when someone commits murder they get out of prison, like this Tate kid, and when someone steals cars and gets caught they're in prison for 20 years without parol? It seems to me the less violent the crime the harsher the punishment, the more violent the crime is the easier they get out of the punishment. Where's the justice in that? :-5
To me, I'd rather have my truck stolen as to my kid or family member killed by someone who is supposed to be behind bars that they let go.
To me, I'd rather have my truck stolen as to my kid or family member killed by someone who is supposed to be behind bars that they let go.
remember lionel tate?
Tate again at gates of prison
A Fort Lauderdale judge Friday denied Lionel Tate's motion to toss out his 1999 murder case. The Pembroke Park teenager is facing a return to prison on Wednesday.
Lionel Tate, facing a possible return to prison next week, is banking on another break from the justice system.
A Broward judge Friday denied the young killer's motion to dismiss his original murder indictment but postponed a hearing on his probation revocation until Wednesday to give Tate's attorney a chance to appeal.
Tate's defense attorney, Ellis Rubin, is working to quash the murder indictment that has dogged the teen for seven years.
In 1999, Tate, then 12 years old, pummeled his 6-year-old playmate Tiffany Eunick to death. At age 14, he was tried as an adult and sentenced to life without parole, but an appeals court overturned the conviction and a plea agreement led to his January 2004 release.
Rubin argues Tate's case never should have been transferred to an adult court in the first place, calling Florida's juvenile justice system unconstitutional.
''Children shouldn't be treated like adults with the stroke of a pen,'' said Rubin. `It's about time that somebody did something about it.''
Assistant State Attorney Chuck Morton said Tate's case was handled fairly.
Trouble followed Tate after his release. In September 2004, he admitted to Acting Circuit Court Judge Joel Lazarus that he violated the terms of probation by leaving his home in the middle of the night -- he was under house arrest -- with a pocketknife.
The judge gave him another chance, but tacked on an extra five years to Tate's 10-year probation and issued a clear warning that he would have ''zero tolerance'' for future violations.
In May, the Pembroke Park teen was arrested on charges that he robbed a pizza delivery man at gunpoint.
Last fall, BSO jail officials said Tate broke his jail cell door.
And in December, Tate wrote the judge saying he was hearing voices and wanted to kill himself. He later admitted that he made that up.
If Lazarus believes Tate violated the terms of his probation, he could send Tate away for life -- again. Lazarus is expected to rule Wednesday on whether to revoke Tate's probation.
If an appeals court sides with Rubin and tosses out the murder indictment, his probation would, in effect, be nullified. But, Tate still would face trial on the May robbery.
Tate, dressed in street clothes during Friday's hearing, was quiet. His mother, Kathleen Grossett-Tate, a Florida Highway Patrol trooper, said outside the courtroom that she was hopeful her son might get another chance.
A Fort Lauderdale judge Friday denied Lionel Tate's motion to toss out his 1999 murder case. The Pembroke Park teenager is facing a return to prison on Wednesday.
Lionel Tate, facing a possible return to prison next week, is banking on another break from the justice system.
A Broward judge Friday denied the young killer's motion to dismiss his original murder indictment but postponed a hearing on his probation revocation until Wednesday to give Tate's attorney a chance to appeal.
Tate's defense attorney, Ellis Rubin, is working to quash the murder indictment that has dogged the teen for seven years.
In 1999, Tate, then 12 years old, pummeled his 6-year-old playmate Tiffany Eunick to death. At age 14, he was tried as an adult and sentenced to life without parole, but an appeals court overturned the conviction and a plea agreement led to his January 2004 release.
Rubin argues Tate's case never should have been transferred to an adult court in the first place, calling Florida's juvenile justice system unconstitutional.
''Children shouldn't be treated like adults with the stroke of a pen,'' said Rubin. `It's about time that somebody did something about it.''
Assistant State Attorney Chuck Morton said Tate's case was handled fairly.
Trouble followed Tate after his release. In September 2004, he admitted to Acting Circuit Court Judge Joel Lazarus that he violated the terms of probation by leaving his home in the middle of the night -- he was under house arrest -- with a pocketknife.
The judge gave him another chance, but tacked on an extra five years to Tate's 10-year probation and issued a clear warning that he would have ''zero tolerance'' for future violations.
In May, the Pembroke Park teen was arrested on charges that he robbed a pizza delivery man at gunpoint.
Last fall, BSO jail officials said Tate broke his jail cell door.
And in December, Tate wrote the judge saying he was hearing voices and wanted to kill himself. He later admitted that he made that up.
If Lazarus believes Tate violated the terms of his probation, he could send Tate away for life -- again. Lazarus is expected to rule Wednesday on whether to revoke Tate's probation.
If an appeals court sides with Rubin and tosses out the murder indictment, his probation would, in effect, be nullified. But, Tate still would face trial on the May robbery.
Tate, dressed in street clothes during Friday's hearing, was quiet. His mother, Kathleen Grossett-Tate, a Florida Highway Patrol trooper, said outside the courtroom that she was hopeful her son might get another chance.
remember lionel tate?
Posted on Wed, Mar. 01, 2006
Lionel Tate pleads guilty to armed robbery
Lionel Tate pleaded guilty Wednesday to the armed robbery of a pizza delivery man last spring, which could net him up to 30 years in prison but spare him a possible life sentence for violating probation in the 1999 killing of a young girl.
Tate, once the youngest person in modern U.S. history to receive a life prison sentence, said ''Yes, sir'' when asked if he would plead guilty to the robbery by Broward County Circuit Judge Joel T. Lazarus, who scheduled sentencing for April 3. Tate could receive between 10 and 30 years in prison, Lazarus said.
Tate also admitted that he had violated probation by possessing a gun during the May 23 robbery and that he had violated the law by doing so. Lazarus said that any sentence he imposes for those violations would run concurrently with the robbery sentence.
The guilty plea is the latest twist in the long-running case of Tate, who was convicted of killing 6-year-old Tiffany Eunick when he was only 12.
Tate, now 19, did not have to be convicted of the crime for Lazarus to decide he must go to prison, but the guilty plea settles that matter.
Tate came to national attention after the 1999 murder of Tiffany, a family friend, at his mother's Pembroke Park home. The boy's lawyers initially claimed that Tiffany, who suffered skull fractures and a lacerated liver, was accidentally killed when Tate imitated pro wrestling moves he'd seen on TV.
He was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in 2001, but an appeals court in 2004 tossed out the conviction and sentence after ruling that it wasn't clear Tate understood what was happening to him. He then pleaded guilty to second-degree murder as part of a deal with prosecutors and was sentenced to 10 years' probation.
Lazarus added five more years to the probation term after Tate was arrested in September 2004 for carrying a knife with a four-inch blade. The judge warned Tate then that he had ''zero tolerance'' for future violations.
But police say it didn't take long for Tate to find trouble again.
On May 23, Tate called Domino's Pizza from a friend's apartment and ordered four pizzas. A friend later told police that Tate, armed with a revolver, hid behind the apartment door when delivery man Walter Gallardo arrived with the order.
When Gallardo saw the gun, he dropped the pizzas and ran. Gallardo has positively identified Tate as the perpetrator and Tate's fingerprints were found on the pizza boxes.
Tate was also suspected in the theft of weapons from his mother, Florida Highway Patrol trooper Kathleen Grossett-Tate.
Lionel Tate pleads guilty to armed robbery
Lionel Tate pleaded guilty Wednesday to the armed robbery of a pizza delivery man last spring, which could net him up to 30 years in prison but spare him a possible life sentence for violating probation in the 1999 killing of a young girl.
Tate, once the youngest person in modern U.S. history to receive a life prison sentence, said ''Yes, sir'' when asked if he would plead guilty to the robbery by Broward County Circuit Judge Joel T. Lazarus, who scheduled sentencing for April 3. Tate could receive between 10 and 30 years in prison, Lazarus said.
Tate also admitted that he had violated probation by possessing a gun during the May 23 robbery and that he had violated the law by doing so. Lazarus said that any sentence he imposes for those violations would run concurrently with the robbery sentence.
The guilty plea is the latest twist in the long-running case of Tate, who was convicted of killing 6-year-old Tiffany Eunick when he was only 12.
Tate, now 19, did not have to be convicted of the crime for Lazarus to decide he must go to prison, but the guilty plea settles that matter.
Tate came to national attention after the 1999 murder of Tiffany, a family friend, at his mother's Pembroke Park home. The boy's lawyers initially claimed that Tiffany, who suffered skull fractures and a lacerated liver, was accidentally killed when Tate imitated pro wrestling moves he'd seen on TV.
He was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in 2001, but an appeals court in 2004 tossed out the conviction and sentence after ruling that it wasn't clear Tate understood what was happening to him. He then pleaded guilty to second-degree murder as part of a deal with prosecutors and was sentenced to 10 years' probation.
Lazarus added five more years to the probation term after Tate was arrested in September 2004 for carrying a knife with a four-inch blade. The judge warned Tate then that he had ''zero tolerance'' for future violations.
But police say it didn't take long for Tate to find trouble again.
On May 23, Tate called Domino's Pizza from a friend's apartment and ordered four pizzas. A friend later told police that Tate, armed with a revolver, hid behind the apartment door when delivery man Walter Gallardo arrived with the order.
When Gallardo saw the gun, he dropped the pizzas and ran. Gallardo has positively identified Tate as the perpetrator and Tate's fingerprints were found on the pizza boxes.
Tate was also suspected in the theft of weapons from his mother, Florida Highway Patrol trooper Kathleen Grossett-Tate.
remember lionel tate?
Lionel Tate Seeks to Withdraw Guilty Plea...........this jackass is his own worst enemy.
remember lionel tate?
Fla. -- Newly released documents said Lionel Tate's mother has been orally reprimanded for not reporting to her supervisors at the Florida Highway Patrol that her service weapon had been taken from her home.
The internal investigation found that Kathleen Grossett-Tate didn't follow proper procedure in 2005.
Records show the nine-year FHP veteran learned the weapon was missing when it was found at her son's friend's house.
Grossett-Tate said she never reported it because she didn't know who took the weapon. so what????
A telephone message left for Grossett-Tate's attorney this morning wasn't immediately returned.
However, the documents said Grossett-Tate did act properly when she reported the gun missing after her son was arrested in May for robbing a pizza delivery man. The service weapon was one of three guns discovered missing when deputies searched her home. it's not like she had a choice!
Tate was 12 when he became the youngest person in modern times to get a life sentence in America for killing a playmate.
An appeals court overturned the conviction in 2004.
Tate was on probation for the killing when he was arrested for robbing the pizza delivery man. i do not believe her for one second.you KNOW where your service weapons are.
The internal investigation found that Kathleen Grossett-Tate didn't follow proper procedure in 2005.
Records show the nine-year FHP veteran learned the weapon was missing when it was found at her son's friend's house.
Grossett-Tate said she never reported it because she didn't know who took the weapon. so what????
A telephone message left for Grossett-Tate's attorney this morning wasn't immediately returned.
However, the documents said Grossett-Tate did act properly when she reported the gun missing after her son was arrested in May for robbing a pizza delivery man. The service weapon was one of three guns discovered missing when deputies searched her home. it's not like she had a choice!
Tate was 12 when he became the youngest person in modern times to get a life sentence in America for killing a playmate.
An appeals court overturned the conviction in 2004.
Tate was on probation for the killing when he was arrested for robbing the pizza delivery man. i do not believe her for one second.you KNOW where your service weapons are.
remember lionel tate?
Lionel Tate declared competent to stand trial
A judge declared convicted child killer Lionel Tate competent to handle court proceedings and said Tate's defense attorney, Ellis Rubin, could resign from the case after the lawyer said that Tate would not listen to his legal advice and refused to meet with him.