East Texas

By KENNETH DEAN
Staff Writer

NEW BOSTON - With one murder conviction in the infamous Kentucky Fried Chicken murder case behind her, Texas Attorney General Prosecutor Lisa Tanner said Tuesday it is back to work on finishing what she started.

"I have a few things out west to take care of, but since I was assigned this case it has been priority number one and will remain so," she told the Tyler Morning Telegraph in the Bowie County courtroom that served as the home for the capital murder case against 49-year-old Romeo Pinkerton for the past two weeks.

He was standing trial for the Sept. 23, 1983 abductions and slayings of Mary Tyler, 37; Opie Ann Hughes, 39; Joey Johnson, 20; David Maxwell, 20; and Monte Landers, 19.

Pinkerton, who could have faced the death penalty for capital murder if the jury would have found him guilty in the Rusk County murders, entered a guilty plea to five lesser counts of murder Monday evening and was sentenced to five concurrent life terms in prison.

Another part of the plea bargain was that there was no affirmation of a deadly weapon used in the crimes.

Pinkerton's cousin, Darnell Hartsfield, still awaits trial in the case. Hartsfield was convicted in 2005 of aggravated perjury for lying to a Rusk County grand jury about the case.

In a setting much lighter than the emotionally charged courtroom in Henderson a day before, Tanner and her prosecution team of attorney general prosecutor Laura Popps and Rusk County District Attorney Michael Jimerson hugged family members of the victims and spoke to other media representatives in regards to the case.

However, the attorneys declined specific comments on the case, except to say they believed that justice had been served.

Tanner was not the only one promising the families of five murder victims to push forward with justice. State District Judge Clay Gossett had just released jury of seven men and eight women, when he said there would be a few days of rest before holding a series of meetings with Hartsfield's attorneys to discuss a possible location to hold his trial and a date.

Earlier Tuesday morning, the jurors listened to Gossett as he told them that Pinkerton had pleaded guilty to five counts of murder and received five life sentences Monday for his admitted role in the KFC murders of Sept. 23, 1983.

"I gave you a memo on Thursday that we wouldn't be here on Monday, and I did that so you could plan otherwise," he said.

Gossett told the jurors that the defense and prosecution had been working on a deal, but he had to keep that information from them in case Pinkerton backed out of pleading guilty.

"I speak for everyone in this courtroom because I know how they feel, and we all appreciate the sacrifices that you have gave, the time away from your families and your patience in this proceeding."

Gossett told jurors they could not discuss their opinions on guilt or innocence in the case due to gag order and the case still pending against Hartsfield.

Despite the relief of Pinkerton admitting his role in the murders, the families say they have another trial to go before putting the nightmare that has haunted them for the past two decades to rest forever.

Tanner and her team must now focus their attention on Hartsfield and prepare for a trial, which could be moved west of Tyler.

Those close to the case said they cannot guess if Hartsfield will plead as his cousin did, but Gossett said there was no stipulation in Pinkerton's agreement to testify against the other defendant.

Prosecutors are also faced in learning the identity of a third person present at the murder scene; the person they contend sexually assaulted one of the victims.

Neither Pinkerton's nor Hartsfield's DNA matched the semen stains found in the woman's clothing in 2003, after being tested with new technology, not available in 1983.

There have been rumors that the third party may be deceased, and investigators have said they have tested 161 people in a variety of ways in an effort to match the DNA.

The state has said the two cousins' DNA was found in the KFC and the evidence has been in the hands of the Texas Department of Public Safety Lab in Garland, since days after the slayings.

Tanner would not discuss the third person or the upcoming case, citing a gag order still in effect. The families said they have some measure of justice and believe there is light at the end of the dark tunnel they have been subjected to for so many years.

The family members attending Tuesday's proceedings stiffened when the judge was asked if or when Pinkerton would be eligible for parole.

Gossett said Pinkerton's sentencing under the 1983 guidelines allows him to be eligible for parole in 15 years. However he replied to a direct question, "I'm eligible to win the lottery, but will I?"

The families relaxed as Gossett continued stating he believed anyone involved would do everything possible to assure Pinkerton would never leave the confines of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice unit where he is sent to serve his sentences.

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