Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - Crime Alert 04.11.24

Episode Date: April 10, 2024

Man executed in L.A. restaurant. K9 Midnight safely returns toddler to his parents.  For more crime and justice news go to crimeonline.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Crime Alert, I'm Nancy Grace. Breaking crime news now. Sidney Morris sits down for lunch at L.A.'s Fixin' Soul Kitchen. As he gets his food, Philip Clark walks into the restaurant and shoots Morris in the back of the head. During the panic, Clark hops in Santana Kelly's waiting car and the two drive off. The next day, Santana Kelly's waiting car and the two drive off. The next day, Santana Kelly sets the car on fire to cover their tracks.

It all turns out that Clark and Kelly have reportedly been tracking Sidney Morris for a week. Nancy Morris was the coordinator of equity and diversity at Cal State Northridge and was studying to become a lawyer at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. There is no known motive behind the killing as of yet, but police have said Clark and Kelly are acquaintances and may be affiliated with a gang. Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon said at a press conference, quote, the brazenness of this shooting is alarming and my office is fully committed to bringing accountability to those responsible for this heinous crime. to work. Midnight sniffs straight to the top and then comforts him on the walk back home. Midnight is rewarded with lots of pets for the boy's grateful mom and hopefully a treat for all his

good work. More crime and justice news after this. Now with the latest crime and justice breaking news, Crime Online's John Limley. We begin in Oklahoma as a judge has now determined that a death row inmate is unfit to be executed for his role in the 1999 murders of a woman and her adult son. Here's Sydney Sumner with Crime Online. Judge Michael Hogan of Pittsburgh County delivered an order in the case of 61-year-old James Ryder. Hogan made his decision in the wake of a competency hearing during which two specialists testifying on behalf of Ryder's defense said that the man has schizophrenia-related psychotic disorder. According to Oklahoma law, if a prisoner is incapable of rationally comprehending why they are being executed or that their execution is about to take place, they are mentally incompetent to be executed. In testimony provided by a state expert, Ryder is competent to comprehend the reason behind his impending

execution and to make a reasonable and sufficient decision about it. Ryder received a death sentence for the 1999 beating death of 70-year-old Daly Hallam and a life sentence without the possibility of parole for the shotgun murder of her 38-year-old son, Sam Hallam. Court documents reveal that Ryder spent several months in 1998 living on the Hallams' Pittsburgh County farm, watching over their house and horses while they were away. After he moved out, he began arguing with the family over some of his belongings. Ryder's secure incarceration until his competency is restored is being handled by the Department of Corrections and the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, this in accordance with state law.

California Governor Gavin Newsom says that the city of Oakland and the surrounding freeways will be receiving hundreds of high-tech surveillance cameras in an effort to combat crime. Once again, Crime Online, Sidney Sumner. The California Highway Patrol has hired Flock Safety to install 480 cameras that can recognize and monitor vehicles by license plate type, color, and even decals and bumper stickers, according to a news release from Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom. Authorities will receive real-time alerts about suspicious

vehicles from the cameras. The technology's detractors claim it violates privacy and will increase police mistreatment of already disenfranchised areas. But Newsom claims that the surveillance network will provide law enforcement with the means, quote, to effectively combat criminal activity and hold perpetrators accountable, building safer, stronger communities for all Californians. He added that state attorneys and CHP officers have been dispatched to support Oakland in its anti-crime campaign. Statewide, public safety issues, particularly retail theft, remain a concern, compelling even liberal city officials to support more policing. Oakland, a city of about 400,000 people located across the bay from San Francisco,

has seen an increase in crime, while other large California towns have seen a decline. For the first time in its 75-year history, In-N-Out Burger closed its single restaurant location in Oakland as a result of auto break-ins, property damage, theft, and robbery. In recent days, the CEOs of Oakland's four largest employers, Kaiser Permanente, Clorox, Blue Shield of California, and Pacific Gas & Electric, have announced plans to collaborate on a $10 million security program aimed at enhancing public safety and safeguarding staff members. According to the governor's announcement, about 300 of the cameras would be placed on municipal streets, with the remaining cameras being placed on adjacent state highways. Newsom's office added that video will

be kept for 28 days and will not be shared with anyone outside of California law enforcement. Thanks, John. Robert Conner's daughter swings by his 20-acre Claremont, North Carolina property when she can't reach him nearly a week. She finds her dad's truck parked in an unusual spot. His dachshund dog, rusty, frantic, and hungry. Her dad's mailbox stuffed full, 14 voicemails on his answer machine. Robert's revolver also missing. Robert Connor last seen by friend John Dixon at the boxcar grill six days before. Dixon had no idea where Robert could have gone. Cops searched Robert's property, an adjacent creek, and a nearby pond, finding nothing. Robert Connor, 62, now missing nearly 21 years. If you have info on Robert Connor, call Catawba County, North Carolina Sheriffs, 828-465-8301.

For the latest crime and justice news, go to CrimeOnline.com. With this crime alert, I'm Nancy Grace. This is an iHeart Podcast.