|
Shooting Of Danny Hansford
Danny Lewis Hansford (March 1, 1960 – May 2, 1981) was killed by his employer, historic preservationist and antiques dealer Jim Williams, at Williams' home in Savannah, Georgia, United States. His death was recounted in John Berendt's 1994 non-fiction book ''Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil'', its 1997 film adaptation, and its 2024 musical stage adaptation. After four trials, Williams was acquitted of Hansford's murder. Early life Danny Hansford was born in 1960 in Savannah, Georgia, to Emily Bannister. He was one of three sons, the others being John and William. Shooting In the early hours of May 2, 1981, Hansford and Jim Williams had an argument at Williams's residence at Mercer House, in Monterey Square, Savannah. According to police statements made by Williams, Hansford had resided in the home for two years and was playing a video game when the argument ensued. During the argument, Hansford, of whom Williams had been a sexual partner for about two years, [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia and the county seat of Chatham County, Georgia, Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the Kingdom of Great Britain, British British America, colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. A strategic port city in the American Revolution and during the American Civil War, Savannah is today an industrial center and an important Atlantic seaport. It is Georgia's Georgia (U.S. state)#Major cities, fifth-most-populous city, with a 2024 estimated population of 148,808. The Savannah metropolitan area, Georgia's List of metropolitan areas in Georgia (U.S. state), third-largest, had an estimated population of 431,589 in 2024. Savannah attracts millions of visitors each year to its cobblestone streets, parks, and notable historic buildings. These include the birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low (founder of the Girl Scou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Savannah Morning News
The ''Savannah Morning News'' is a daily newspaper in Savannah, Georgia. It is published by Gannett. The motto of the paper is "Light of the Coastal Empire and Lowcountry". The paper serves Savannah, its Savannah metropolitan area, metropolitan area, and parts of South Carolina. History William Tappan Thompson, author of the ''Major Jones'' series of humorous stories, along with John McKinney Cooper as publisher and owner, founded the paper on January 15, 1850 as the ''Daily Morning News''. At the end of the American Civil War, Civil War in 1865, John Cooper was pardoned by President Andrew Johnson allowing him to retain ownership of the paper. Its name was changed to the ''Daily News and Herald'', though Thompson remained as editor. Thompson left the paper in 1867 to travel in Europe. In 1868, Thompson returned and the paper was renamed again to ''The Savannah Daily Morning News'' for one edition, then changed to the current name the following day. In 1870, Joel Chandler Harri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reasonable Doubt
Beyond (a) reasonable doubt is a legal standard of proof required to validate a criminal conviction in most adversarial legal systems. It is a higher standard of proof than the standard of balance of probabilities (US English: preponderance of the evidence) commonly used in civil cases, reflecting the principle that in criminal cases the stakes are significantly higher: a person found guilty can be deprived of liberty or, in extreme cases, life itself, in addition to the collateral consequences and social stigma attached to conviction. The prosecution bears the burden of presenting compelling evidence that establishes guilt beyond a reasonable doubt; if the trier of fact is not convinced to that standard, the accused is entitled to an acquittal In common law jurisdictions, an acquittal means that the criminal prosecution has failed to prove that the accused is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt of the charge presented. It certifies that the accused is free from the ch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mistrial
In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, which may occur before a judge, jury, or other designated trier of fact, aims to achieve a resolution to their dispute. Types by finder of fact Where the trial is held before a group of members of the community, it is called a jury trial. Where the trial is held solely before a judge, it is called a bench trial. Hearings before administrative bodies may have many of the features of a trial before a court, but are typically not referred to as trials. An appeal (appellate proceeding) is also generally not deemed a trial, because such proceedings are usually restricted to a review of the evidence presented before the trial court, and do not permit the introduction of new evidence. Types by dispute Criminal A criminal trial is designed t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Defense (law)
In a civil proceeding or criminal prosecution under the common law or under statute, a defendant may raise a defense (or defence) in an effort to avert civil liability or criminal conviction. A defense is put forward by a party to defeat a suit or action brought against the party, and may be based on legal grounds or on factual claims. Besides contesting the accuracy of an allegation made against the defendant in the proceeding, the defendant may also make allegations against the prosecutor or plaintiff or raise a defense, arguing that, even if the allegations against the defendant are true, the defendant is nevertheless not liable. Acceptance of a defense by the court completely exonerates the defendant and not merely mitigates the liability. The defense phase of a trial occurs after the prosecution phase, that is, after the prosecution "rests". Other parts of the defense include the opening and closing arguments and the cross-examination during the prosecution phase. Sin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sonny Seiler
Frank W. "Sonny" Seiler (February 20, 1933 – August 28, 2023) was an American trial attorney from Savannah, Georgia, who had a leading role in the true-crime book ''Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil''. He was the owner of the University of Georgia Bulldogs live mascots Uga, a series of successively numbered English bulldogs. Early life Seiler graduated in 1950 from the Porter Military Academy, now the Porter-Gaud School, in Charleston, South Carolina. He earned his bachelor's and law degrees from the University of Georgia (1956 and 1958), where he was a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity and the Gridiron Secret Society and a founder of the Order of the Greek Horsemen. Career Seiler practiced law in Savannah, where he was a senior partner at Bouhan Falligant LLP. In 1973 he served as president of the State Bar of Georgia. He was featured in the true-crime book ''Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil'' as the lawyer who defended antiques dealer Jim Williams in a mu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spencer Lawton
Spencer Lawton Jr. (July 19, 1943 – November 13, 2024) was an American attorney. He was district attorney for Chatham County, Georgia, between 1981 and 2008, and for the Eastern Judicial Circuit. He was known for serving as the prosecutor of preservationist James Arthur Williams in his trial for the alleged murder of Danny Hansford. Early life Lawton was born on July 19, 1943 in Detroit, Michigan to Spencer Lawton Sr. (1918–1999) and Sarah "Sally" Parker (1919–2017). He was their eldest son. After being raised in Savannah, Georgia, Lawton moved with his family to Atlanta. He graduated from Woodberry Forest School in Orange, Virginia. He began at the University of Georgia School of Law (UGA) in 1961. He served in the U.S. Air Force between 1962 and 1966, studying at Tulane University and graduating with a science degree. He returned to UGA and graduated in 1971, after which he began working for Lawton, Simple and Chamblee, a firm begun by his great-grandfather. Lega ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Life In Prison
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment under which the convicted individual is to remain incarcerated for the rest of their natural life (or until pardoned or commuted to a fixed term). Crimes that result in life imprisonment are considered extremely serious and usually violent. Examples of these crimes are murder, torture, terrorism, child abuse resulting in death, rape, espionage, treason, illegal drug trade, human trafficking, severe fraud and financial crimes, aggravated property damage, arson, hate crime, kidnapping, burglary, robbery, theft, piracy, aircraft hijacking, and genocide. Common law murder is a crime for which life imprisonment is mandatory in several countries, including some states of the United States and Canada. Life imprisonment (as a maximum term) can also be imposed, in certain countries, for traffic offences causing death. Life imprisonment is not used in all countries; Portugal was the first country to abolish life imprisonment, in 1894, an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobby Lee Cook
Bobby Lee Cook (February 12, 1927 – February 19, 2021) was an American defense attorney from Summerville, Georgia, in Chattooga County.Curriden, Mark:Bobby Lee Cook, ABA Journal. March 2009. Accessed July 8, 2011. He had practiced law since the late 1940s, and is known for combining a sharp legal mind with a folksy demeanor. He had represented a wide variety of clients, from rural Southerners to international businessmen and corporations. He was reputed to have been the inspiration for the television series '' Matlock'' main character Ben Matlock, which starred Andy Griffith as a Georgia attorney. Early life and education Cook was born in 1927 in Lyerly, Georgia. He attended Vanderbilt University Law School in Nashville, Tennessee. He practiced law in Summerville with the Cook & Connelly law firm. Career Cook had been a defense attorney for over 65 years. He recalled a time of racial prejudice when African Americans were "required to sit in the balcony of old courtrooms". H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bonaventure Cemetery
Bonaventure Cemetery is a rural cemetery located on a scenic bluff of the Wilmington River, southeast of downtown Savannah, Georgia. The cemetery's prominence grew when it was featured in the 1994 novel '' Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil'' by John Berendt, and in the subsequent movie, directed by Clint Eastwood, based on the book. It is the largest of the city's municipal cemeteries, containing nearly . The entrance to the cemetery is located at 330 Bonaventure Road. Immediately inside the gates is the large and ornate Gaston Tomb, built in memory of William Gaston, a prominent merchant. History The cemetery is located on the former site of Bonaventure Plantation, originally owned by Colonel John Mullryne. On March 10, 1846, Commodore Josiah Tattnall III sold the plantation and its private cemetery to Peter Wiltberger.''Ease and Elegance, Madeira and Murder: The Social Life of Savannah's City Hotel'', Malcolm Bell, Jr. (1992), p. 572 The first burials took pla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greenwich Cemetery (Savannah, Georgia)
Greenwich Cemetery is a rural cemetery located on a scenic bluff of the Wilmington River, east of Savannah, Georgia. It stands on the site of the former Greenwich Plantation and became an addition to Bonaventure Cemetery (itself on the former grounds of Bonaventure Plantation) in 1933,Greenwich Cemetery Park – EMC Engineering, Inc. and it is the newest of the city's four municipal cemeteries. The entrance to the cemetery, located at 330 Bonaventure Road, is shared with Bonaventure Cemetery. Immediately inside the gates is the large and ornate Gaston Tomb of William Ga ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
