Added July 20, 2011

Sources:

• San Francisco Chronicle

Added: July 14, 2011
Sources:

• NY Times
• The Justice Center court documents (Pages 108-109)
• Book: The Last Face You’ll Ever See: The Culture of Death Row By Ivan Solotaroff (Page 50)
• Corrections.com
• Nola.com

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA, APPELLEE
v.
ROBERT T. HUGHES, APPELLANT

Appeal from the Judgment of Sentence of the Court of Common Pleas of Chester County, Criminal Division, entered July 31, 1990 at No. 2247-89.

Cappy

The opinion of the court was delivered by: Cappy

OPINION OF THE COURT

JUSTICE CAPPY

This is an automatic direct appeal from two sentences of death imposed upon appellant by the Court of Common Pleas of Chester County following his conviction of two counts of first degree murder and one count each of robbery, possession of instruments of crime, and violation of the Uniform Firearms Act. The charges arose as a result of the shooting deaths of two employees of a McDonald’s restaurant located in Chester County, Pennsylvania, on the morning of January 8, 1989. For the reasons that follow, we affirm the convictions and the judgment of sentence.

Shortly after the murders occurred, appellant was arrested in Delaware which is but a short distance from the scene of the murders. Following his arrest, appellant was extradited to Pennsylvania and incarcerated at Chester County Prison. On petition of defense counsel, a hearing was held on February 10, 1989, to determine appellant’s competency to stand trial. Following the hearing, the court entered an order committing appellant to Norristown State Hospital for evaluation and testing and staying the proceedings pending completion of said evaluation. Ultimately, appellant was found by the court to be competent to stand trial.

On September 28, 1989, a hearing was held on appellant’s motion to suppress certain physical evidence and statements following which the court denied the motion in its entirety. After three days of jury selection, appellant elected to forego a jury trial and instead, entered a nolo contendere plea of “guilty but mentally ill.” The court then gave a lengthy colloquy, informing appellant of all of those rights which he would be relinquishing as well as the elements of the offenses with which he was charged. The court then accepted the plea as tendered.

However, later that same day, both counsel and the court agreed that the proper procedural posture in which appellant could present a defense of “guilty but mentally ill” was a non-jury trial and not a nolo contendere plea. The court again informed appellant of his right to a jury trial whereupon appellant signed the waiver form. The case then proceeded as a bench trial with stipulated facts.

Following the bench trial, appellant was found guilty of the above listed crimes. A separate penalty hearing was held after which the court found, as to each murder, two aggravating circumstances which it determined outweighed the four mitigating circumstances. Thereafter, the trial court heard and denied appellant’s post-trial motions. On July 31, 1990, a formal sentencing hearing was held following which the court imposed two consecutive death sentences as well as a sentence of ten (10) to twenty (20) years on the robbery conviction. This automatic direct appeal followed.

As in all cases in which the death penalty has been imposed, this Court is required to conduct an independent review of the sufficiency of the evidence even where, as here, the defendant has not specifically challenged the conviction on that ground. Commonwealth v. Zettlemoyer, 500 Pa. 16, 454 A.2d 937(1982), cert. denied, 461 U.S. 970, 77 L. Ed. 2d 1327, 103 S. Ct. 2444(1983), reh’g denied, 463 U.S. 1236, 77 L. Ed. 2d 1452, 104 S. Ct. 31(1983). In reviewing the sufficiency of the evidence, we must determine whether the evidence, and all reasonable inferences deducible therefrom, viewed in the light most favorable to the Commonwealth as verdict-winner, are sufficient to establish all the elements of the offense(s) beyond a reasonable doubt. Commonwealth v. Rhodes, 510 Pa. 537, 510 A.2d 1217(1986). As stipulated, the evidence establishes the following:

On January 8, 1989, two employees of the McDonald’s restaurant located in the Parkway Shopping Center in West Goshen Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, were found murdered, each by a single gunshot wound to the head. On that date, at approximately 5:15 a.m., James Jenkins was delivering newspapers at the shopping center when he noticed a blue and white automobile in the parking lot of the McDonald’s restaurant. Upon being shown a photograph of appellant’s car, Mr. Jenkins was of the opinion that the car depicted in the photograph was identical to the one he saw in the parking lot on the day of the murders.

At approximately 5:30 a.m. that same morning, an employee of the McDonald’s, Brian Burnette, arrived for work. As he was about to enter the building, he noticed a man standing inside the restaurant waving a gun in the direction of the manager, Jean Reider, who was carrying cash drawers from the safe and placing them on the counter.

Another employee, Brian Titus, also arrived at approximately 5:30 a.m. As he entered a door to the restaurant, he noticed a person lying on the floor in front of a desk that was located next to the safe who was signaling for Titus to leave the restaurant. Titus also observed a person, approximately six feet tall, standing inside the restaurant with arms extended as though holding something in his hand. Both Titus and Burnette then went to a nearby store to call the police.

When the police arrived at the scene, they discovered the bodies of Charles Hegarty and Jean Reider. The body of Charles Hegarty was found in the exact location where Brian Titus had seen someone lying earlier. Jean Reider’s body was found in the corner of a room. The blood stains on the wall indicated that she had been shot while sitting with her legs crossed and curled up. The safe was open and the cash drawers had been taken out and left on the floor. No money was left in the cash drawers except for some rolls of coins. Six crumpled one dollar bills were found next to a dumpster outside the McDonald’s.

At approximately 6:30 a.m. that same morning, Steven Quigley, proprietor of a local towing business, received a telephone call from a man who asked to be picked up at the Abbey Green Motel which is located approximately six tenths of a mile south of the McDonald’s restaurant. The man requested that Quigley tow the man’s blue Plymouth to Jack Wolf’s Sunoco so that it could be repaired. When Quigley asked the man why he did not use Wolf’s tow trucks, the man responded that all of Jack Wolf’s tow trucks were out and unavailable. However, when Quigley drove past Wolf’s Sunoco he observed that all of Wolf’s tow trucks were in, not out as the caller had indicated.

When Quigley arrived at the Abbey Green Motel at approximately 6:50 a.m., appellant appeared from between the buildings. As he walked to Quigley’s truck, appellant was holding his side with his arm as though he was either hiding something or hurt. When Quigley asked appellant where his car was parked, appellant responded that the Birmingham Township police had towed it. Quigley suspected that was not true as he, himself, performed all towing work for the Birmingham Township police. Moreover, Quigley knew that the Abbey Green Motel was not located in Birmingham Township. Nevertheless, Quigley agreed to drive appellant to the Tally Ho Motel in New Castle County, Delaware. Upon their arrival there, appellant paid Quigley the sum of $25.00 in crumpled five dollar bills. Quigley last saw appellant speaking with the desk clerk at the Tally Ho.

After requesting the desk clerk to call a cab for him, appellant then went to an adjacent Wawa Market to purchase a soda. Appellant left the Wawa Market after purchasing the soda, but returned shortly thereafter requesting a paper bag. Appellant then took a cab to the Clemente bus station located in Wilmington, Delaware.

At approximately 8:30 a.m. that same morning, Officers Cottingham and Boyd of the Wilmington Police Department, while on routine patrol, received a radio broadcast dispatching them to the area of the Clemente Bus station to look for a possible fugitive from Pennsylvania who was wanted for an outstanding warrant. The officers arrived at the bus station and after noticing no one in the waiting room area of the station matching the description broadcast over the radio, one of the officers entered the men’s restroom. Once in the restroom, the officer noticed someone matching the description. The officer then exited the restroom and informed his partner that he believed the suspect was in the restroom. They then radioed for backup assistance. As appellant exited the restroom, Officer Boyd asked him his name and after appellant responded in a hostile manner, Officer Boyd explained to appellant that they were looking for a fugitive from Pennsylvania. Appellant remained hostile, refusing to comply with any of the officers’ requests. A struggle ensued during which a .38 revolver fell from appellant’s pocket. As all three struggled to retrieve the gun, Officer Boyd struck appellant with his blackjack. Appellant was eventually transported to a hospital as a result of injuries he incurred during the struggle. Upon his arrest, appellant had in his possession a Wawa bag and a Colt 6 shot revolver.

Upon examination of the Colt revolver, Officer Cannon of the Wilmington Police Department observed two spent cartridges as well as four live rounds of .38 caliber ammunition. The Wawa bag seized from appellant contained a blue American Bank bag in which was found various papers subsequently determined to have been taken from the McDonald’s restaurant, as well as a sum of money. The Wawa bag contained a second bank bag inside of which was found another sum of money. Six live .38 caliber special ammunition were seized from the right pocket of the jacket appellant was wearing.

While at the hospital, appellant, after having been read his Miranda rights, was advised that he was a suspect in a double homicide and robbery which had occurred at the McDonald’s restaurant to which he responded, “If I knew I was being arrested, it would have been your life.” Appellant also stated that the revolver had been purchased by him at a gun shop in Malvern, Pennsylvania. He claimed, however, that the bullets had been spent at a park. He then told the police that his name was “Tony” and that the money in his possession belonged to him, part of which he claimed to have received from a man by the name of John Rodriguez. Appellant described John Rodriguez as a twenty-five year old Puerto Rican male and claimed that he had previously telephoned Rodriguez to arrange a meeting that morning at the Wawa near the Tally Ho Motel so that Rodriguez could pay appellant the money, in partial satisfaction of a debt. Contrary to appellant’s assertions, however, the records obtained for appellant’s home telephone did not reflect any calls to Rodriguez. Moreover, the clerk who attended to appellant that morning at the Wawa Market did not see any Puerto Rican male in the presence of appellant.

A blue and white Plymouth Vol are was found parked on Cheyney Drive which is located directly south of the Abbey Green Motel. A search warrant was issued for the car and a box of .38 caliber ammunition was recovered from the car. Also found within the car was a sales receipt for the vehicle in the name of Terrence Russo of 99 Concord Meeting Road, Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, that being the same address that appeared when the police ran a driver’s license check under the name of Robert T. Hughes.

It was also determined that the gun which was seized upon appellant’s arrest had been purchased by him just two days prior to the double murder. The record reveals that appellant had originally ordered a Charter Arms .38 caliber short barrel gun from the Malvern Gun Shop, but after having phoned the store several times inquiring about why it was taking so long for his order, appellant appeared at the gun shop on January 3, 1989, decided that he wanted a Colt gun instead and ordered the same. He took delivery of the Colt gun on January 6, 1989 and was, at that time, also supplied with human silhouette targets. He did not have a license to carry a gun.

On January 5, 1989, just three days before the murders, appellant was observed at approximately 4:00 a.m. in a parked car outside a McDonald’s restaurant in Delaware County. When appellant was approached by an off duty police officer, he claimed to be having battery problems. On the evening of January 6, 1989, the manager of a McDonald’s restaurant in Exton, Pennsylvania, received a telephone call from a man who identified himself as an employee of a McDonald’s located in California. The caller then “asked about the opening procedures for McDonald’s in Exton.” N.T. 11/3/89, 140-41. That same evening, an identical call and inquiry was made to a McDonald’s in Downingtown, Pennsylvania. Appellant’s telephone records were obtained pursuant to a search warrant which records revealed that both calls were made from appellant’s home.

As noted previously, it was determined that Charles Hegarty died from a contact gun shot wound to the head. The nature of the wound was consistent with the victim’s head having been on a hard floor at the time he was shot. The other employee, Jean Reider, also died of a gun shot wound to the head. The pathologist opined that Reider had been shot from approximately a foot and one-half to two feet away and that she was shot while sitting in a corner with her head turned to the right.

While Federal Bureau of Investigation ballistics experts could not state with certainty that the slugs taken from the victims definitely came from the gun that was seized from appellant, they were able to conclude that the slugs were fired from the same type of gun; same make and model, the number, width, and twists of lands and grooves were the same. Ballistics experts also stated with certainty, that the bullets that were removed from the victims’ heads, the live rounds seized from appellant’s gun, the bullets found in appellant’s jacket pocket and the bullets found in appellant’s car all contained lead from the same homogenous pot.

A former high school classmate of appellant, Darlene Devakow, received a letter from appellant postmarked March 17, 1989, in which appellant confessed to the murders. He claimed that he shot one of the employees because that employee had reached for a gun. He also told her that he could lie to others, but not her and that he had fabricated much of what he told to the psychiatrists and physicians in order to fake insanity. In that letter, appellant told Ms. Devakow that he would call her on March 23, 1989, at 7:05 p.m. Appellant did, indeed, telephone Ms. Devakow on that date and repeated much of what he had written in the letter. He admitted that his motive was robbery and that he knew that he had fooled the psychiatrists and doctors. Because Ms. Devakow would not consent to a recording of the conversation, the Commonwealth obtained prior court approval to intercept that conversation. At trial, the Commonwealth introduced into evidence the transcript prepared from that tape as well as the actual tape.

Clearly, the above facts were sufficient to support appellant’s convictions for two counts of first degree murder and one count each of robbery, possession of instruments of crime and violation of the Uniform Firearms Act. In fact, appellant does not challenge the sufficiency of the evidence of his convictions. Having concluded that the evidence was sufficient to support the convictions, we shall now address appellant’s particular claims of error.

Source: PA Find-a-Case, Tip provided by Cheryl

The State Patrol says it could be weeks before they determine who was at fault in a collision between an ambulance and a car in Renton on Wednesday that killed a 64-year-old woman and seriously injured her granddaughter.

Myong Sun Mun of Seattle was driving her 1999 Honda Accord out of a McDonald’s restaurant parking lot when an ambulance struck her on the driver’s side. She died instantly; her 7-year-old granddaughter is in serious condition at Harborview Medical Center, said Kristin Foley, a spokeswoman.

Investigators said it could be weeks before they determine who was at fault. There are conflicting reports on whether the ambulance had its siren on, in addition to its emergency lights.

At 4:15 p.m., Mun drove out of the fast-food restaurant lot on the east side of Benson Road, across two lanes and into the left-turn lane, headed south. The ambulance was traveling northbound and entered the center turn lane to get past heavy traffic when the vehicles collided.

“Traffic stopped for her so that she could go into the left-turn lane,” State Patrol Sgt. Kirk Merrill said. “That is exactly where the ambulance was on a run.”

Upon impact, Mun’s car crossed all southbound lanes and fell 10 feet down an embankment into a parking lot, skidded 20 feet, then struck another vehicle.

The 24-year-old driver of the ambulance, Jacob Peery, was taking a heart-attack patient to Valley Medical Center and told investigators he had his siren and lights on. Another ambulance brought the patient to the hospital after the crash.

Ambulances are authorized to drive over the speed limit and run red lights and stop signs while responding to an emergency, but it must be done in a safe manner, according to the State Patrol.

“Lights and sirens do not relieve the driver from the duty to drive with regard for the safety of others,” Merrill said. “They must respond cautiously.”

Jay Davidson, owner of Tri-Med, the ambulance company, said the driver had his lights and sirens on, but he doesn’t know how fast he was traveling.

His company also is investigating.

“Everyone is pretty shaken up,” Davidson said.

Mun lived in the Seattle area for about 30 years and often took care of her three grandchildren, said her niece Carolyn Keum of Renton.

“We don’t really know how this happened,” Keum said. “She was just going to McDonald’s.”

Turkish prosecutors said Friday they were seeking attempted murder charges against two former McDonald’s employees who they say locked a 10-year-old girl in a freezer for trying to sell tissues at a burger outlet.

“A small girl staying in a deep freeze for even half an hour could be a cause of death,” the state-run Anatolian news agency quoted the Istanbul prosecutors as saying.

“We would like to convey our deep sorrow stemming from this incident, which took place on August 21, once more to the public,” McDonald’s Turkey General Manager Peter Rodwell told reporters in Istanbul.

A judiciary spokesman contacted by Reuters confirmed the contents of the writ and the charge that two staff at the McDonald’s restaurant put Leyla Alkis in a cold storage cabinet, apparently to discourage her from selling packs of tissues to customers around the restaurant.

“That is the testimony of witnesses, that is what they saw,” the official said.

The judiciary spokesman said the writ had been sent to prosecutors in the city who work on serious crime cases and were expected to use it as the basis for a formal charge sheet, probably next week.

The writ asked for between eight and 15 years in jail for the manager and an employee of the McDonald’s restaurant in the Beylikduzu suburb of Istanbul.

Some poor families in Istanbul send their children onto the streets to earn money selling tissues and gum or by cleaning shoes.

The girl was freed when concerned customers confronted staff and made them release her. McDonalds’ Rodwell refused to go into the details of the event, saying a legal process was under way.

“From our perspective the alleged incident that occurred is unacceptable from a humanitarian perspective as well as from that of McDonald’s principles,” he said.

“The people in question are no longer under our employment as they behaved clearly in a manner that is contradictory to McDonald’s procedures and McDonald’s policies.”

Rodwell refused to comment on a possible damages claim by the Alkis family.

Under recent Istanbul city regulations, Leyla’s father could also face charges for sending his daughter out to work on the streets. But prosecutors rarely pursue such cases.

McDonald’s employs 4,120 people at outlets in many of Turkey’s major cities.

Prosecutors in Istanbul are seeking charges of attempted murder against two former employees of the fast-food chain, McDonalds, who allegedly locked a 10-year-old girl in a freezer compartment.

The girl, Leyla Alkis, had been trying to sell small packets of paper tissues to customers in the McDonalds restaurant.

Witnesses who were in the McDonalds restaurant when the incident took place have testified that two members of staff locked the little girl in a cold-storage compartment.

She was released only after customers intervened.

A writ issued by state prosecutors said that even half an hour in a deep freeze could have caused Leyla Alkis’s death.

McDonalds has already dismissed the two members of staff, including the manager of the restaurant. The company described the incident as “totally unacceptable”.

A spokesman refused to comment on a possible claim for damages from the Alkis family, who could themselves be facing legal action for sending their 10-year-old daughter out to work.

DALLAS (NNPA)—State Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) and the Greater Dallas Crime Commission have collaborated with the Dallas Police Department to announce a $10,000 increase in the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the Aug. 6, 2002, death of Christopher Gipson, who worked at a McDonald’s restaurant in Oak Cliff.

Recently, McDonald’s officials informed West that the company also will contribute an additional $10,000 to the reward fund. Combined with the first reward posted by Schepps Dairy, this raises the total reward available for information that leads to the successful prosecution of Gipson’s killers to $35,000.

Gipson, 17, was fatally shot when two robbers entered McDonald’s Red Bird Lane location at around 10:00 p.m. and, without warning, opened fire. He would have been a senior at Irving High School this year. It was his first after-school job and he had just cashed his first paycheck.

“This was a senseless tragedy” said West “This young man was attempting to do the things that society says a person should do to better himself, only to have his life snatched from him and his loved ones. This was a violent and thuggish act. We know that these thugs are amongst us.

Three months after the slaying, Dallas police have made no arrests in the case.
“At this point, we have gone through just hundreds and hundreds of clues and information,” said Sgt. Ross Salverino of the Dallas Police Department. “We are just about the same place we were the night this offense occurred. There were a lot of good people who gave a lot of information, unfortunately, all that checked out turned up to be negative.”

Ryder Scott, chair of the Dallas Crime Commission, pointed out that Gipson’s murderers had their faces covered.
“It’s important that we have continuing information on this case because of the masks that were worn,” said Scott.

Salverino said that with two suspects involved, it’s very likely that at least one of them has discussed their crime with someone.

“It’s highly unusual for two people in a crime to keep it quiet,” said Salverino. “We’re hoping, at this point, that the large reward will motivate someone who knows who was involved in this crime to step forward.”

Soon after the murder/robbery, Schepps Dairy, a McDonald’s supplier, posted a $15,000 reward through CrimeStoppers. West, the Greater Dallas Crime Commission and McDonald’s are enlisting the support of business, civic organizations and the public in helping to solve this senseless and horrendous crime.

“This is about Christopher Gipson, but it’s also about us all,” West continued. “It’s about our way of life that we in a free society have grown accustomed to, about the right for law-abiding citizens of having the right to come and go as they please.”

West said Gipson represents all youth who seek part-time work as a way to start fulfilling their dreams. “There was no struggle, no exchange of words or arguments,” said West. “Christopher never had a chance.”
“I appreciate the Greater Dallas Crime Commission stepping up and making available resources that may help find the persons responsible for this vicious crime,” said West. “I am also very pleased that McDonald’s has chosen to join this effort. I commend them for the cooperation and assistance they have provided law enforcement throughout the investigation of this senseless and brutal crime. I challenge other members of the business community to step forward in the effort to ensure that our neighborhoods are safe from acts of what I will categorize as domestic terrorism.”

“We must do everything in our power to make sure that the Christopher Gipson murder is solved and that we send the message that this type of activity will not be tolerated in this community,” West said. “Once—not if—we find them, we must make sure that they receive due process and never commit these types of crimes again.”

A 13-year-old Vancouver boy is dead and a 14-year-old is in custody after a Saturday night brawl turned deadly.

Police said Sunday the fight occurred over a girl, and that victim Chris Poeung wasn’t even directly involved.

“It was a school yard type fight outside of the school and weapons came out and tragically we have a 13-year old boy dead and a 14-year old in custody that’s facing charges of manslaughter,” said Const. Tim Fanning of the Vancouver Police Service.

“It was a very tragic day yesterday, and hearts go out to all involved in this case, both the victim’s family and suspect’s family … it’s a horrible event to see happen.”

About 10 people were involved in the fight and another 30 were present. Virtually all were between the ages of 13 and 15, making them too young to hold a driver’s licence.

A knife got pulled, and four teens ended up being stabbed. Three remain in hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Cathy Le, Chris’s girlfriend, told CTV Vancouver that she was there with him, and that everything happened really quickly.

I turned around to see him there was a blood on the heart side, he looked at us, gave us a grin and he fell,” she said.

“I just started crying and called 911.”

Police arrived quickly. They sealed off the parking lot and began interviewing witnesses. A few blocks away, they arrested two suspects who were riding a bus.

Poeung, in Grade 7, attended a different school than the suspect.

Cathy said Chris was a very nice guy who was easy to talk to. “It’s so hard to believe. I feel like it’s still a dream, a dream, I’ll wake up tomorrow and he’ll be there,” she said.

VANCOUVER – Blinds drawn and windows shut against the sunshine, the family of a 13-year-old student fatally stabbed over the weekend sat on their living room floor Tuesday morning, wordless in their private grief.

The death of Chrisna Poeung, a popular and athletic Grade 7 student, manifested itself in sharp contrast among his peers.

Groups of students from around east Vancouver gathered at a parking lot at Main and Terminal — between Science World and McDonald’s — to set up a makeshift memorial where the teen was fatally injured.

Flowers lay piled over concrete tiles, penned with notes commemorating Poeung. Friends wrapped police tape around their arms and ankles, a badge of their allegiance to him.

“I was standing next to Chris when it happened,” said Huy Ho, 14, a Grade 8 student at Churchill secondary. “I was just walking and suddenly they were throwing punches.”

Ho said it wasn’t a premeditated fight between gangs.

Just after 5 p.m., the group was walking to McDonald’s from the SkyTrain station when they encountered two young men.

A fight broke out about a girl, Ho said, and Poeung stepped in to help a friend out.

It happened quickly, he said.

“I saw Chris fall over. I didn’t see the knife,” said Ho. “I ran over to push the guy off Chris. [The suspect] started running away. I walked with my arm around Chris for a bit and then he fell over.”

Ho said Poeung’s white shirt was soaked in blood, but at first he thought his friend was okay.

“He smiled,” said Ho, adding Poeung was laughing. “Then he fell over.”

He said at that point there was a lot of screaming from one of the girls in the group.

“I couldn’t stand the blood. It was rushing out like water,” Ho said. “I went to help my other friend that was stabbed.”

Poeung died a few hours later in hospital. Three other boys were treated for non-life-threatening injuries.

Ho shook his head and quietly added: “I should have taken one of the stabs.”

With that, he pulled out his iPod to listen to a tribute song — Rest in Peace Chris Poeung — performed by Emcee Majic, and posted online at Vancouver Xchange.

Police arrested a 14-year-old, who appeared in court Tuesday, charged with second-degree murder.

Phillipe Bui, 16, a Grade 10 student from Guildford Park, said the fight wasn’t planned.

“It just happened out of nowhere,” said Bui. He said it’s uncommon for his friends to carry weapons or fight.

Another friend, Mike Dinh, 15, said Poeung wasn’t a fighter.

“He was scared to skip school — that’s how good of a kid he was.”

David Wu, 13, a Grade 7 student from Grenfell elementary, said Poeung’s death had left him at a loss for words.

“I’m really sad. I’m speechless. I didn’t expect this to happen to him,” said Wu. “Right now, it’s so hard to go to school.”

And Vicky Palomino, 14, said she considered Poeung someone who touched a lot of people. “He always wanted to help people,” said Palomino, shaking her head.

Outside Poeung’s parent’s east Vancouver home, his brother Chanty, 26, spoke briefly. He said he lived in Calgary and hadn’t seen his younger brother in years. He was planning to visit in June and get reacquainted, but missed his chance.

“It’s just so sad,” he said.

His sister Kuntan, 23, stepped outside to add: “We’re just trying to cope.”

Poeung was closest to his sister Savannara, she said.

“I’m just really upset right now,” she said, tears in her eyes, standing in the doorway of her home. “I can’t say any more than that.”

At nearby Mount Pleasant elementary, students and staff mourned Poeung — an outgoing and well-liked student — and the flag flew at half-mast. Three young girls walked out of the principal’s office carrying stuffed animals, visibly upset.

“He was a nice little boy, very popular,” said school principal Steve Agabob, sitting in his office. “A natural leader.”

Students who knew Poeung were getting help with their grief, he said.

“Some are very sad, very tearful and very emotional. Some are reacting as kids react and they don’t know where to put it,” Agabob said. “It’s the full gamut. It really is.”

Jackie Farquhar, a critical incident coordinator for the Vancouver school district, was at the school early Tuesday along with five counsellors. They spoke with teachers, students and offered one-on-one counselling if needed, she said.

“It is important that we are available to [students],” said Farquhar. “We listen to what students have to say, we’re acknowledging their feelings.”

In addition to working with the students at Mount Pleasant, Farquhar said she sent out an e-mail to other school counsellors around Vancouver as a reminder that some of their students may have witnessed the attack and need assistance.

“It just rips you apart to see this,” Agabob said. “This is a very safe school. There are not a lot of fights.”

He said the incident was unusual. “There are skirmishes but they’re just one on one, they’re fighting over a swing seat or who gets to the water fountain first and that sort of thing.”

Poeung’s family has close ties to the school, he said. His younger brother is a student in Grade 1. “It’s a beautiful family,” Agabob said. “It’s just devastating.”

The school will hold a memorial for the family when they are ready, he said.

A 40-year-old woman has been crushed to death in a food processing machine at a factory that supplies McDonald’s in the US,Associated Press has reported.

The woman, who has not been named, was an employee at the Golden State Foods factory in the City of Industry, a suburb in eastern Los Angeles.

Police believe her death was accidental.

No further details were immediately available, authorities said.

Golden State Foods is a major supplier for McDonald’s restaurants in the US, with the company’s website claiming to have developed the sauce for the Big Mac in the 1960s

Monterey County sheriff’s deputies this morning arrested an 18-year-old suspected gang member believed to have fired a gunshot into a McDonald’s restaurant in Prunedale on Sunday.No one was injured in the shooting, which took place Sunday at about 9:10 p.m., though there were nine people inside therestaurant at the time, the sheriff’s office said.The shooting allegedly occurred after Alexander Javier Jasso, of Prunedale, and a juvenile male from Royal Oaks argued with two other men at theMcDonald’s.All four males reportedly taunted and swore at each other and flashed gang signs, the sheriff’s office said.Jasso and the boy then drove to the front of the restaurant and Jasso allegedly fired a single shot into the restaurant at the two men, before driving off, according to the sheriff’s office.A search warrant of the two suspects’ homes uncovered gang materials, marijuana and drug paraphernalia, lewd photographs, ammunition and a 32-caliber semiautomatic handgun believed to have been used in the shooting, the sheriff’s office said.Both suspects subsequently confessed to the crime, the sheriff’s office said.Jasso was booked into Monterey County Jail on nine counts of attempted murder, shooting into an occupied dwelling, conspiracy, participation in a criminal street gang, possession of lewd material and child endangerment.The juvenile suspect was lodged at juvenile hall for participation in a criminal street gang, conspiracy and shooting into an occupied dwelling.

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The murder of a 16-year-old catering student in a McDonald’s restaurant was nothing short of a revenge “execution”, an Old Bailey judge said yesterday.

Judge Michael Coombe said Danny Westmacott was the victim of a “cowardly and vicious murder” carried out “by way of execution”, and he condemned the wall of silence which had surrounded the investigation into the stabbing.

He urged a change in the law to empower courts to mete out “condign” or deserved punishments to young witnesses to crimes who refuse to co- operate with police and the courts.

The judge ordered Noel Sayles, 16, and Jason Honeyghon, 17, who had both denied the murder, to be detained at Her Majesty’s pleasure for the murder.

The teenager was stabbed in revenge after winning a fight over “a stupid little incident” at a McDonald’s restaurant in Edmonton, north London, in February last year. A children’s party was in progress – and youngsters were forced “to witness that savage murder”, said Judge Coombe.

Danny Westmacott, a student, was a regular visitor to McDonald’s restaurant in Edmonton. On the night of the murder, another teenage customer, Noel Sayles, had the impression Danny and his friend were staring at him and the two girls he was with.

“It was one of those stupid little incidents which probably occurs 100 times a day all over the country,” said David Calvert-Smith QC, prosecuting.

A fight broke out between the two in which Danny wrestled the other boy to the ground and began kicking him. After the fight was broken up, Sayles decided on revenge, Mr Calvert-Smith said.

Sayles, then 15, telephoned a friend and when he returned to the girls he was heard to say “watch when my brethren bring the borrer”, which translated to “watch what happens when my friends bring the knife”.

Sayles returned to the restaurant with three others. He and Jason Honeyghon “went straight up to the two boys and attacked them. They knew who to attack,” Mr Calvert-Smith said.

Danny was fatally stabbed in the back.

8 February 1996
Edmonton, London

A fight broke out between Noel Sayles, a 15 year old Negro, and Daniel Westmacott outside the local McDonalds. Neither had any weapons and Sayles came off second best. Sayles returned with two friends to take revenge, entering the eatery armed with bottles and a knife. Sayles fatally stabbed Westmacott. There were other customers in the McDonalds at the time, including a party of young children. Jason Honeyghon was freed on appeal and Sayles has had his sentence reduced to 11 years.