Page 6 - ARUBA TODAY

A6 U.S. NEWS
Thursday 20 april 2017

Nevada woman accused of faking son’s death to raise money

SCOTT SONNER tive services. An additional FundMe site she labeled
Associated Press charge of child abuse was her son’s “Bucket List” that
RENO, Nev. (AP) — A Ne- lodged against Morrison her “world fell apart” when
vada woman accused because “the information she learned “my baby”
of falsely claiming her I have is that Mom falsely had leukemia, accord-
10-year-old son had a ter- told him he was dying of ing to her posting that has
minal illness and died so leukemia,” Carson City since been taken down.
she could solicit gifts and Assistant District Attorney Her son “made a list of
money from sympathizers Melanie Brantingham said things he wants to do be-
told the boy during the al- in an interview. fore he gets (too) sick, now
leged scam that he was Morrison was jailed for lack it’s my job to help him do
dying from leukemia, a of $20,000 bail and a pub- just that,” Morrison wrote.
prosecutor said Wednes- lic defense lawyer was ap- “But I’m a single mom to
day. pointed to represent her. three other kids and work.
Victoria Morrison, 31, spent Nevada State Public De- So please if you have a
months faking the boy’s ill- fender Karin Kreizenbeck, spare dollar help me help
ness and then his death — who oversees the defense my son wishes and dreams
complete with a fictitious lawyers, said her office had come true.”
memorial service, authori- no comment on the case. The alleged scam esca-
ties said as she made her If convicted of both charg- lated over the last month
first court appearance fol- es, Morrison faces up to as “Morrison informed ev-
lowing her arrest last week. 20 years in prison and a eryone, primarily through
Gifts to Morrison and her $10,000 fine. social media, that her son
son included a shopping Furlong said Morrison’s son had died and his body had
spree with emergency This photo released by the Carson City Sheriff’s Office shows had been diagnosed with been cremated,” Furlong
Victoria Morrison. The Nevada woman is facing felony fraud
responders in Nevada’s charges and had her four children taken away by child pro- a treatable childhood ill- said.A fake memorial ser-
Carson City, a helicopter tective services after investigators discovered she had spent ness more than a year ago. vice was held earlier this
ride for the boy, gift cards months faking her son’s terminal illness and then his death in an “But she used embellished month, he said. Investiga-
and cash, according to effort to raise money online. medical information to tors have no other suspects
a criminal complaint filed (Carson City Sheriff’s Office via AP) convince the child, the now but are trying to deter-
Wednesday. Carson City schools and the public that mine if other people were
Sheriff Kenny Furlong said She was originally charged Furlong said. The boy and he was terminally ill,” Fur- involved or knew the boy
Morrison also raised about with obtaining money by Morrison’s three other chil- long said. He said the boy was alive while his mother
$2,000 through GoFund- false pretenses after her ar- dren were placed in the missed school for months. was claiming he had died,
Me’s social media site rest last Friday at a motel, custody of state protec- Morrison wrote on the Go- Furlong said.q

Judge: No new sex assault trial for prep school graduate

HOLLY RAMER endangerment, as well as conviction to the state Su- trial and not attempting to tion is not committing a
Associated Press using a computer to lure preme Court is pending. further damage the cred- computer uses crime,” the
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — the girl for sex, a felony that “The court finds and rules ibility of the girl and sev- judge wrote, “whereas he
A New Hampshire prep requires him to register as that the defendant’s trial eral of Labrie’s friends who would be committing that
school graduate convict- a sex offender for life. Lab- team was comprised of testified. He also argued crime if he engaged in the
ed of sexually assaulting a rie, now 21, was sentenced highly experienced and he should not have been same conduct by using a
classmate was denied a to a year in jail but has re- prepared defense attor- charged with or convicted public terminal at an off-
new trial Wednesday by mained free while he ap- neys, who, overall, made of using a computer to lure campus Internet Cafe or
a judge who called some pealed his conviction and reasonable strategic and the girl for sex because he his own off-campus com-
of his claims of ineffective sought a new trial based tactical decisions through- exchanged messages with puter.” Smukler also con-
counsel absurd and almost on ineffective counsel. A out the trial,” Judge Larry the girl through the school’s cluded that the school’s
frivolous. Owen Labrie of Merrimack County Supe- Smukler wrote in his ruling. intranet, not the wider inter- intranet falls within the defi-
Tunbridge, Vermont, was rior Court judge denied He said one of Labrie’s net as the law specifies. nition of “online service,” as
acquitted in 2015 of raping his request for a new trial claims “borders on frivolity” “Under the defen- specified in the law.
a 15-year-old classmate the Wednesday, two months and remarked on the “ab- dant’s interpretation, an Labrie’s current defense
previous year as part of Se- after hearing conflicting surdity” of another. anonymous 40-year-old attorney, Robin Melone,
nior Salute, a game of sex- testimony about whether Labrie argued that his de- who uses a campus termi- said she respectfully dis-
ual conquest at St. Paul’s defense lawyers were de- fense team erred in several nal to solicit a 12-year-old agrees with the judge’s or-
School in Concord. He was railing the case or making ways, including not chal- child of a St. Paul’s School der and plans to vigorously
convicted of misdemeanor reasonable strategic deci- lenging the felony com- staff member to engage in pursue options for further
sexual assault and child sions. An appeal of Labrie’s puter charge during the an act of sexual penetra- appeals.q