Post by Shuftin on Jan 5, 2007 11:18:34 GMT -5
January 5, 2007
BY RUTHANN ROBINSON
CROWN POINT | A former Gary police detective pleaded guilty Thursday afternoon to reckless homicide in the July 2003 beating death of his lover.
Fred McKinney, 53, admitted he killed Michelle Avery after a night of sex in his police department office.
Originally charged with involuntary manslaughter and reckless homicide, McKinney's trial was scheduled to begin Jan. 22. Instead, Lake Criminal Court Judge Salvador Vasquez will sentence McKinney March 30.
McKinney and Avery had been lovers for 10 years and spent the night of July 8, 2003, in his Internal Affairs office at the Gary Police Station, according to the probable cause affidavit filed in February 2004.
McKinney, a 22-year veteran of the police department, then carried an unconscious Avery into her home, where she died hours later after never regaining consciousness.
An autopsy revealed Avery died of hemorrhages from blunt force trauma, acute pulmonary edema and respiratory failure.
Gary homicide detectives began their investigation when Avery's family called emergency medical personnel to her house at 371 Harrison St. after checking on her at 7:30 a.m. on July 9, 2003, and finding her not breathing. Emergency workers couldn't get a pulse and called the coroner.
Deputy Coroner Paul Castro found Avery on the couch. She was damp and her face was bruised and swollen. Investigators checked the caller ID on the phone and discovered McKinney had called just after midnight on July 9, 2003. Detectives found Avery's car parked in front of the Internal Affairs Division office at 527 Washington St.
Avery's son told police McKinney called and said he was bringing the son's mother home and to be ready to help get her out of the car, the affidavit states. Avery's son asked his cousin to help him carry her into the house. McKinney did not help, except to hold the door open.
McKinney told them Avery was sleeping, and he couldn't wake her. They said McKinney "seemed shaken" and "was trying to keep his cool." Neither noticed any injuries to Avery, who suffered from sickle cell anemia.
It wasn't until the second interview with detectives when they told McKinney of the autopsy results that he mentioned anything to explain her injuries. McKinney said the victim hit her head on the floor and that he tried intermittently for several hours to wake her by gently slapping her, the report states.
At one point, McKinney said he grabbed her shoulders and shook her. When he poured water on her, McKinney said, Avery tried to wipe it off but never awoke.
nwitimes.com/articles/2007/01/05/news/top_news/0d3c69ac5c0c925d8625725a0002aaba.txt
BY RUTHANN ROBINSON
CROWN POINT | A former Gary police detective pleaded guilty Thursday afternoon to reckless homicide in the July 2003 beating death of his lover.
Fred McKinney, 53, admitted he killed Michelle Avery after a night of sex in his police department office.
Originally charged with involuntary manslaughter and reckless homicide, McKinney's trial was scheduled to begin Jan. 22. Instead, Lake Criminal Court Judge Salvador Vasquez will sentence McKinney March 30.
McKinney and Avery had been lovers for 10 years and spent the night of July 8, 2003, in his Internal Affairs office at the Gary Police Station, according to the probable cause affidavit filed in February 2004.
McKinney, a 22-year veteran of the police department, then carried an unconscious Avery into her home, where she died hours later after never regaining consciousness.
An autopsy revealed Avery died of hemorrhages from blunt force trauma, acute pulmonary edema and respiratory failure.
Gary homicide detectives began their investigation when Avery's family called emergency medical personnel to her house at 371 Harrison St. after checking on her at 7:30 a.m. on July 9, 2003, and finding her not breathing. Emergency workers couldn't get a pulse and called the coroner.
Deputy Coroner Paul Castro found Avery on the couch. She was damp and her face was bruised and swollen. Investigators checked the caller ID on the phone and discovered McKinney had called just after midnight on July 9, 2003. Detectives found Avery's car parked in front of the Internal Affairs Division office at 527 Washington St.
Avery's son told police McKinney called and said he was bringing the son's mother home and to be ready to help get her out of the car, the affidavit states. Avery's son asked his cousin to help him carry her into the house. McKinney did not help, except to hold the door open.
McKinney told them Avery was sleeping, and he couldn't wake her. They said McKinney "seemed shaken" and "was trying to keep his cool." Neither noticed any injuries to Avery, who suffered from sickle cell anemia.
It wasn't until the second interview with detectives when they told McKinney of the autopsy results that he mentioned anything to explain her injuries. McKinney said the victim hit her head on the floor and that he tried intermittently for several hours to wake her by gently slapping her, the report states.
At one point, McKinney said he grabbed her shoulders and shook her. When he poured water on her, McKinney said, Avery tried to wipe it off but never awoke.
nwitimes.com/articles/2007/01/05/news/top_news/0d3c69ac5c0c925d8625725a0002aaba.txt