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Overcast ~ River stage: 25.78 Rising Sunday, July 5, 2009 |
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Cape man convicted of blinding man with acidThursday, January 8, 2009A Cape Girardeau resident charged with blinding another man by throwing a chemical in his face was convicted Tuesday during a bench trial before Cape Girardeau County Circuit Judge William L. Syler, according to Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle. Marzell Davis, 50, of 514 S. Middle St., Unit B, was convicted of felony assault, which carries a range of punishment from one day to one year in the county jail, a prison sentence of up to seven years, a fine up to $5,000 or any combination of those. James Dennis, the victim, was the first to testify at the trial Tuesday, Swingle said. Dennis told Syler that Davis had tossed a cup of sulfuric acid in his face Sept. 15, 2007, at a residence in south Cape Girardeau. Once he'd arrived at the residence, Dennis testified, he realized his friend had only brought him along in anticipation of a physical altercation with Davis. Shortly after Davis and his friend arrived, Davis left to go into the kitchen of the residence, and returned with blue plastic party cups. Davis raised his cup as if to take a sip, then suddenly lunged and threw the contents in Dennis' face, Dennis testified. Dennis was treated at Saint Francis Medical Center, but ultimately had the damaged eye removed at a St. Louis medical facility, Swingle said. During Dennis' testimony, he admitted he had not informed police immediately of his injury because he intended to track down Davis and kill him himself to settle the score, Swingle said. "It certainly was a different kind of victim impact statement," Swingle said. Dennis testified he went to the police after he failed to find Davis, who went by the street name "Bingo-Bango." He also testified he still intended to kill Davis one day, Swingle said. During Dennis' testimony, Davis decided to plead guilty to the charge without waiting to hear from further witnesses, entering an "open plea," meaning either side is free to make recommendations concerning sentencing. A detective was prepared to present evidence that Dennis was able to pick Davis from a photo lineup as his attacker and that testing done by the Missouri State Highway Patrol Crime Lab confirmed the presence of sulfuric acid on clothing Dennis wore during the attack. 388-3635 Comments  Note: The nature of the Internet makes it impractical for our staff to review every comment. If you feel that a comment is offensive, please Login or Create an account first, and then you will be able to flag a comment as objectionable. Please also note that those who post comments on semissourian.com may do so using a screen name, which may or may not reflect a website user's actual name. Readers should be careful not to assign comments to real people who may have names similar to screen names. Refrain from obscenity in your comments, and to keep discussions civil, don't say anything in a way your grandmother would be ashamed to read.
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"He also testified he still intended to kill Davis one day ..."
That should turn out well!
if he still wants to kill that man he needs to be in a witness protection program. Plus the guy who did it needs to be in a prison for a while isn't that a threat to do bodily harm a class a misdemenaor
I am amazed that a felony for blinding a man with acid carries such a light sentence. A self-defense fist fight carries 10 to 30 years, but then again it depends on who the "so called victim" is.
Anyone dare want to make a comparison with the Ziegler Rib's dog case and this case? This guy, to me, is way worse than Ziegler; of course, he only took away the human victim's eyesight. Perspective.
If he still want to kill Marzell Davis, 50, of 514 S. Middle St., Unit B, he should be hard to find!
Picked him out of a photo lineup, huh? How ironic.
And kids, let this be a lesson to you. Don't give yourself a goofy street name because it might still be with you when you're 50.
I'm really confused, he's blind...but picked him out of a line-up? He's blind...how could he even see to..nevermind.
Why was a line-up necessary if he knew who did it? One day to a year in prison......pretty specific. Is this guy a chemist or what??? Who has sulfuric acid just laying around the house. How about an eye for an eye and we say screw the trial and prison sentences? If there's just going to be further violence why not take care of this situation now? Make them cell-mates, the winner gets to....stay in jail.