Case updates

Hey there, readers. Sorry for the lack of updates, but there wasn't many developments and I was too occupied to find time to post. Now for some updates.

Today is yet another pre-trial hearing. Sources tell a network in Orlando, FL, a Fox affiliate, that plea deals are in the works.

The victim, Victoria "Tori" Lindsay, gave a deposition where the defense team grilled her. From various accounts it did not end well.

An article in The Ledger, a paper local to where the beating took place, gives more details about what led up to the beating and discusses what was said in the victim's deposition.

Victoria Lindsay gave an interview to Good Morning America and Inside Edition recently.

The mother of Mercades Nichols, Christina Garcia, has been commenting in another blog. She posts under her own name. She says among other things that Mercades is ready to be sentenced and does not seek further delay in the trial.

Note: The e-mail address listed in my contact info post is defunct. I will be replacing it soon. Until then, don't send any e-mail as I won't be able to read it.

Mercades' Aug 7 arrest: The affidavit

Bond has been set at $81,500 in the new charges against Mercades Nichols.

The affidavit documents have also been made available with some redactions. This post will list the notable findings in the document.

- Mercades is still unemployed, according to the CAPIAS. Mercades asked a few months ago for her house arrest to be lifted so she could find a job, so apparently she couldn't find one.

- The stalking, harassment, other crime occurred between 10/31/2007 and 03/28/2008.

- Mercades also harassed, stalked, threatened the girlfriend of the victim.

- Mercades tried to run the victim off the road with her car on 3/28/2008 (just two days before the infamous beating of Victoria Lindsay happened!) Brittini Hardcastle was also in the car during the attempted assault with the car.

- Three victims are named in the Polk County Sheriff affidavit (one name is redacted and is presumably Jacob Johns, former boyfriend of Nichols who filed a restraining order against her last fall).

- Mercades contacted someone via the internet and asked him to beat the victim up. She offered the male $50.00 to beat the victim. Mercades gave him $40.00 and said she would give the other $10.00 once the job was complete.

- Mercades sent several text messages to the victim while the restraining order was active. These messages are listed in the affidavit.

- Mercades was arrested on 2/14/2008 for violating the restraining order.

Probable cause (first paragraph only): On 10/31/2007 at approximately 0725 hours the suspect, Mercades Nichols, intentionally and unlawfully battered [redacted] against his will. The suspect and [redacted] were writing notes back and forth while attending class at Mulberry High School. The suspect began making threats to [redacted] in the note advising she was going to have a group of boys beat him up after school. When [redacted] attempted to keep the note to show the school officials the suspect stabbed [redacted] three times in the hand with a pen she had been using to write the note. [redacted] advised the incident did not cause any permanent damage but left several marks where the pen had left ink behind. The incident was reported to school officials but no actions were taken in reference to the incident.

Mercades Nichols back in jail

Mercades Nichols has just been arrested for aggravated stalking, battery, cyberstalking, and assault with a deadly weapon. These charges stem from a case where Mercades allegedly stalked a former boyfriend last fall. At the time of this posting, Mercades remains in the Polk County jail. A bond hearing is set for Friday morning. It is likely that she will be denied bond, because she already posted bond for an existing case.

Christina Garcia, Mercades' mother, says the charges are in retaliation for her filing a lawsuit against Polk County sheriff Grady Judd. The arrest warrant, however, was put out by the Florida State Attorney's Office, and not Grady Judd, according to a spokeswoman for the PCSO.

Christina Garcia to sue Sheriff Judd

The lawyer of Mercades Nichols' mother, Christina Garcia, has served notice of intent to sue Sheriff Grady Judd for defamation. She wants compensation (money) for damages. Both Christina and Mercades are named as claimants. Developing...


Full text of the notice

Today's developments

The pretrial was held today in Bartow, FL. The assailants were not required to appear, but two did. April Cooper and Brittany Mayes appeared

The proceeding lasted about five minutes.

Mayes' mother claims that her daughter did not do anything. Brittany Mayes was in fact the person filming the incident most of the time, and the one who said "seventeen seconds left make it good."

A second pretrial hearing has been set for August 26th.

There are reports circulating that Cara Murphy has received offers from the Oprah Winfrey show. Her attorney claims that she has declined such offers so far.

If/when video of today's pretrial becomes available I will add the link(s) to this post.

Video - News Report Channel 2 (Direct Video Link)

House arrest lifted for Brittany Mayes

It appears that Brittany Mayes has just had her house arrest lifted.

07/01/2008 MODIFY COND OF PRETRIAL REL STIPULATED MOTION 07/01/2008 GRANTING STIPULATED MOTION TO MODIFY ORDER 07/01/2008 CONDITIONS OF PRE-TRIAL RELEASE 07/01/2008 CONDITION THAT DEFT REMAIN IN RESIDENCE 07/01/2008 EXCEPT FOR CERTAIN CONDITIONS IS LIFTED 07/01/2008 KEITH SPOTO PRESIDING JUDGE

Five more days left until the pre-trial.

Breaking developments - Kayla Hassall

I have just received e-mails from several people telling me that Kayla Hassall's lawyer and the prosecutor have mutually agreed to drop all of her pretrial release restrictions. This means she is allowed on MySpace, there is no house arrest, she can speak about the case, and more. The judge does not have to approve the change it seems if both sides agree to it.

I looked up her name on the Polk County court records search site and I saw this at the end of her case file:

"06/30/2008 PARTIES-JOINT STIPULATION TO AMEND PTR COND"

Her record still show the charges as active, but I'm guessing this is a forecast that her charges will be dropped or at the very least the kidnapping charge will be dropped.

Focus: Zachary James Ashley

Charges (now Nolle Prosequi/dropped):
Felony Kidnapping with intent to terrorize and/or cause bodily injury
Misdemeanor battery

Facts:
17-years old.

Neighbor of Mercades Nichols and Stephen Schumaker.

Alleged to have been a lookout.

Alleged to have notified the girls that they were making too much noise.

Called Mercades to inform her that the police were at her house according to the police report.

Was visibly angry at his bond appearance.

His sister, Crystal, has denied that he was at the incident location during the beating.

His sister claims that Zachary saw the girls arguing in front of the house but thought things "were cool" once the girls went inside the house. She claims that he and Stephen Schumaker then went to a convenience store.

His sister claims to have seen all of the case evidence, including information that hasn't been released to the public, and says that none of it links Zachary or Stephen to the crime.

Analysis and speculation:
Likely knew about the beating after the fact, but not before or during. His failure to report the crime to the police in a prompt and timely manner should not go unnoticed.

Most likely was not a lookout based on statements that have been released.

Links:
His MySpace

Focus: Stephen Thomas Schumaker

Charges (now Nolle Prosequi/dropped):
Felony Kidnapping with intent to terrorize and/or cause bodily injury
Misdemeanor battery

Facts:
18-years old.

A neighbor of Mercades Nichols and Zachary Ashley.

Was alleged to have been a lookout.

Was not seen or heard on the released portions of the video.

Quickly denied involvement shortly after posting bond.

Initially claimed he overheard the girls discussing "jumping" the victim.

Initially claimed he was sitting on the porch of Zachary Ashley's residence during the beating.

Initially claimed he witnessed the victim get into Mercades Nichols' car.

Some of the girls got into a car with him as the driver and he followed Mercades' car.

Initially claimed that Kayla Hassall, Cara Murphy, and April Cooper showed him five different videos of the incident as well as still photos while they were in the car with him.

He changed his story after the interrogation recorder was turned on according to the police report.

Claims after the recorder was turned on that they did not plan the beating in advance.

Family claims that he went to get gas before the beating started, and therefore was not present during the beating.

The surveillance tape of the gas station he claimed to be at was recorded over by the time police tried to obtain it.

Analysis and speculation:
Seemed to be deceptive and evasive to police, which is an indicator of guilt.

Links:
His MySpace (public)

Focus: Cara Lynn Murphy

Charges (now Nolle Prosequi/dropped):
Felony Kidnapping with intent to terrorize and/or cause bodily injury
Misdemeanor battery

Facts:
16-years old.

Seen very briefly in the couch part of the video as the camera turns.

Wearing a red tank top in video.

Slept over at April Cooper's residence after the incident.

Expressed a light amount of remorse in a press conference after her charges were dropped.

Was not seen hitting the victim in the released portions of the video.

She says she did not take the situation seriously because she witnessed acts of violence at school before.

Victim alleges that she at one point held the video device (although she did not film any of the released video).

Analysis and speculation:
Most likely was not part of the planning of the beating.

Most likely did not actively aid in the battery or kidnapping.

Was the least culpable of the six girls.


Links:
Her MySpace
Old MySpace

Focus: Mercades Nicole Nichols

Charges:
Felony Kidnapping with intent to terrorize and/or cause bodily injury
Misdemeanor battery
Tampering with a witness

Facts and background:
17-years old.

Sitting on couch in front of window during the beating.

Was not seen hitting the victim in any of the released video.

Granddaughter of Mary Nichols, who is the owner of the property where the incident occurred.

Alleged to have been the driver of the kidnap car.

Is alleged to be the ringleader of the planning. Her lawyer denies that she was a ringleader.

Is the voice saying "don't hit the shelf" in the video.

Her bond was posted by a staff person of the Dr. Phil television show.

Has prior run-ins with the law, including allegations of violence, but nothing that was put on her record aside from civil infractions for traffic offenses.

Had a miscarriage at the age of 16.

Has had an unstable upbringing.


Analysis and speculation:
If it can be proven that she was in fact the driver of the kidnap car, she will face prison time. It seems unlikely she will try for a plea deal or cooperate with prosecutors due to the combative tone of her lawyer, Jamez Holz, who fully intends to take this to trial.

She likely has anger management issues stemming from feelings of abandonment. Her father apparently left her life at the behest of his new significant other. This may also explain her apparent vindictive and manipulative nature. Her mother, Christina Garcia, alleges in her MySpace page that Mercades' father once punched Mercades in the jaw.

She appears to have been close at one point with Brittini Hardcastle. There are a couple photos of them together on her MySpace page, and also a shout out in her blog.

Links:
Her MySpace (public)

Focus: Kayla Marie Hassall

Charges:
Felony Kidnapping with intent to terrorize and/or cause bodily injury
Misdemeanor battery

Facts:
15-years old.

Wearing a blue top in the video.

Was not seen hitting the victim in any of the released videos.

Was a cheerleader at Mulberry High School.

Gave a deposition with the State Attorney's Office on June 11.

Was with Mercades Nichols on the day of the arrests according to the police report.

Gave Talisa Lindsay, the victim's step-mother, sarcasm and excuses when confronted about the video according to the police report.

Analysis:
Will cut a deal and testify against the others. Has already begun to cooperate with the prosecution.

Deposition Summary:
On June 11, Kayla discussed the case with prosecutors in a deposition.

She claims Stephen Schumaker and Zachary Ashley were NOT lookouts. She claims she was able to see the porch from the window and that nobody was there.

She claims there was no plan to post the video to YouTube or MySpace.

She claims Brittni Hardcastle requested a copy of the video. She claims she did not oblige such a request.

She expresses remorse for the incident, and says she would "sit down with" and/or "write a letter to" the victim if she were allowed (pre-trial conditions currently forbid her from doing so).

She claims she feared being hit by Brittini Hardcastle, and that is why she did not help the victim. Kayla can however be seen getting in the face of the victim and yelling at her in the video.

She says only one device was used to capture the incident on video: her mother's phone.

She admits that capturing the incident on video escalated the situation.

She says she was mad about the news coverage and claims to have received death threats.

She claims April Cooper contacted her saying she had told police that she had not seen the victim for a month, and instructed Kayla to do the same. Kayla claims that she refused to oblige April's demand.

She claims that when Mercades Nichols was driving her and the other girls to the house prior to the incident Mercades made negative remarks about the victim and was looking for a way to make her stop staying with her.

She claims she and the victim were involved in a spat in school over a boy. Kayla references a "Demarcus" in the video while yelling at the victim.

Links:
Her MySpace

Focus: April Nicole Cooper

Charges:
Felony Kidnapping with intent to terrorize and/or cause bodily injury
Misdemeanor battery

Facts:
15-years old (recently turned 15).
Wearing a red t-shirt in the video.
Second-most violent of the assailants.
Slammed the victim's head into a wall.
Has had altercations with the victim's sister, Kelsie.
Hit the victim on at least three separate occasions.
Has past school truancies on record.
Has indications of violent tendencies on an old MySpace profile.
Is/was close friends with Brittany Mayes
Waited in the bedroom for the victim to arrive.

Analysis:
Will get incarcerated, but likely will not go to state prison. The judge will likely send her to an alternate facility or county jail because of her age. Normally, felons are sent to state prison.

Did not appear to want to or intend to imprison the victim like Brittini Hardcastle did. She told the victim to leave after the initial beating on the bed.

Showed a disturbing lack of remorse during her bond hearing, struggling to hold back laughter. This indicates that she does not truly understand what mess she has gotten herself into.

Her main issue with the victim appeared to be alleged pejorative comments made about her on MySpace and other venues.

She appeared to have been set off when Hardcastle said the word "Elmer" after the victim demanded they name a person she copulated with.


Questions:
What caused her obvious anger management issues?
Is this her first time using violence?
Is she young enough to be rehabilitated?
Did she play a role in the planning/conspiracy?

Links:
Her MySpace
Old MySpace #1 (Public)
Old MySpace #2
Support page run by family

Focus: Brittany Nicole Mayes

Charges:
Felony Kidnapping with intent to terrorize and/or cause bodily injury
Misdemeanor battery
Tampering with a witness

Facts:
17-years old.

The operator of the camera/camera device in the two released video segments.

No unsealed criminal history prior to this case in Polk County.

Can be heard exclaiming "Oooh, yeah baby yeah" several times on both released video segments and "17 seconds left make it good."

Was the only one visibly crying at the bond hearing.

Was not bonded out until two days after the other girls were bonded out of the Polk County jail.

Was one of the defendants in the vehicle that Tori was allegedly forced into.

Tori alleged that Mayes hit her five times at one point, although this is not seen on the two released video segments.

Analysis:
Will likely turn state's witness against the other defendants. As she was in the car with Mercades, Brittini, and Tori, her testimony to corroborate the kidnapping and tampering with a witness charges would be crucial.

Would face a lighter sentence if convicted because she showed the largest amount of remorse initially.

The prosecutor will likely try to use the comments she made in the video to try and paint her as ruthless and sadistic.

Questions:
Why does she seemingly express extreme pleasure whenever Tori is assaulted?
Why did she dislike Tori so much that she was willing to actively participate in her victimization?
Is the remorse that she showed genuine?
Does she regret her part in victimizing Tori?

Links:
Her MySpace
Old MySpace (Public)
Old MySpace #2 (Public)
Old MySpace #3 (Public)
Her photobucket

Focus: Brittini Marshelle Hardcastle

Charges:
Felony Kidnapping with intent to terrorize and/or cause bodily injury
Misdemeanor battery
Tampering with a witness

Facts:
17-years old

Is being represented by a public defender, as opposed to a private attorney

Once lived in Perry County, Kentucky

Can be seen in the video locking the front door when the lights are off.

Has a sister, Elizabeth Hardcastle, in Kentucky

Is the most violent assailant in the beating

Is the one wearing the pink pants in the video

Physically blocked the front door and held onto the doorknob while telling the victim: "No, you're not leaving."

Took a final still photograph (click here to see it) after the beating while Tori was packing her belongings

Her father has a lengthy criminal record (click here to see information on his most recent arrest)
She herself has no unsealed criminal records prior to this beating

Currently lives with her mother in her grandfather's, Charles Platt's, residence (the residence is listed in his name only)

House arrest lifted on June 26th.

Speculation:
Re-established contact with Mercades Nichols after a long absence just seven days before the beating took place. Click here to see a comment she posted on Mercades' MySpace page just seven days before the beating took place asking "what's new."

Analysis:
Was very stonefaced most of the time at her bond hearing. Did show some emotion (pursing of lips and closing eyes) when the judge said she was setting bond at $30,000

Will likely face actual prison time if convicted of all the charges.

Questions:
Does she have a tendency to commit violence?

How severe is her anger management problem?

Why did she harbor so much ill feeling toward the victim?

Was this her first time assaulting and battering someone?

Was she typically a bully, or was she someone who was bullied?

She has several abandoned MySpace accounts, why did she constantly register new ones?

Why did she care so much about who Tori was allegedly dating?

Did she intimidate and/or manipulate the other assailants into participating?

Links:
Current MySpace Account
Old MySpace #1
Old MySpace #2
Old MySpace #3
Newer photos of Brittini taken after the beating and posted on the MySpace of her boyfriend's mother

(Note that for some reason she registers her MySpace accounts under BRITTNI and not BRITTINI)

Source materials

The source materials of the case released thus far.

Video segment #1, second in chronological order of the event

Video segment #2, first in chronological order of the event

Initial press release by the Polk County Sheriff's Office (PDF)

Police interview with the victim, Victoria Lindsay, 2 April 2008

Second police interview with the victim, 7 April 2008

Police interview with witness Christine Dorsett, 8 April 2008

Bond hearing, 11 April 2008

Family of the assailants at bond hearing, 11 April 2008

Kayla Hassall deposition with prosecutors, 11 June 2008

Written statements by the victim and some assailants, 31 March 2008

911 call from the victim just after the beating

13 page police report, 14 April 2008

Photos of the victim after the beating, including the one taken by Brittini Hardcastle

State Attorney's Office affidavits charging the assailants as adults

Police affidavits charging the assailants as juveniles

Introduction

This blog will be updated regularly with information about the YouTube beating case in which six girls and two boys allegedly participated or were an accomplice to a beating and kidnapping of 16-year old Victoria "Tori" Lindsay on 30 March, 2008. This will also serve as an information clearinghouse and I will sometimes give my analysis of aspects of the case.

If you know anyone involved in this case and would like to pass along some information you can contact me at tracingthemotive [at] hushmail [dot] com. I will keep things off the record if requested, and note that I will independently verify information before I blog about it. I am interested in hearing from people on both sides of this case, or even neutral people who know information about the case.