Posted on 01/26/2011 2:07:06 PM PST by Cardhu
(CBS) TUCSON - A woman went on trial Tuesday in Arizona accused of gunning down a 9-year-old girl and her father in their own home. The story was overshadowed by news of President Obama's big speech and by the other Arizona shooting which has gripped the nation, but it's no less shocking.
Shawna Forde, the head of a fringe anti-immigration patrol group called Minutemen American Defense, is charged with two counts of first degree murder.
Prosecutors say she organized a raid on the home of Gina Gonzalez and her husband Raul Flores on May 30, 2009. Forde allegedly believed Flores was involved in drug trafficking and that she and her associates would be able to seize cash or drugs in order to help fund their patrol efforts.
According to police, Forde led the raid, shouting order to two male accomplices (who will stand trial in March) during which Raul was shot multiple times and killed. Gina Gonzalez was shot twice, but survived to hear her daughter, Brisenia Flores, plead for her life before being shot twice and killed.
CBS News affiliate KOLD reports that the trial began Tuesday in Tucson with vivid testimony from Gonzalez herself.
"I can hear it happening. I can hear her telling him to 'please don't shoot me,'" said the bereaved mother through tears, recounting the moments before she lost her daughter.
(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...
It’s getting so whatever the story might be, even this one, I look for Democrats manipulating the news to hurt Republicans.
This one seems to be pretty good at making bad news all by herself.
If a child pleading for her life was shot in cold blood, I'll be glad to volunteer as executioner for the murderer. I don't care what their politics are.
This quote from the prosecutor “Forde allegedly believed Flores was involved in drug trafficking and that she and her associates would be able to seize cash or drugs in order to help fund their patrol efforts.” certainly makes the connection germane.
Gee....I wonder where they ever got the idea they could do that?
Why did you post this? The newspaper article presents the story in a way which claims that minuteman groups are responsible for and perpetuated this. If we got the full story, we would undoubtedly see evidence that the women and her cohorts were psychopathic and leftist. Instead, the article draws the false equivalency between lunatics who put down people in their own homes and patriots guarding the border from illegal scum.
“a fringe anti-immigration patrol group called Minutemen”
no bias here
This was clearly the work of a criminal who stole drugs from another criminal and got caught. Nothing to do with Minute Men.
Robbing drug dealers is a common criminal activity. This is just an ingenious excuse for doing it.
I posted it because the connection to the Minutemen themselves seem to acknowledge she was on the fringe element of their group.
“Forde had Gonzalez’s wedding ring and jewelry with her when she was arrested days after the shooting, authorities say. Shortly after her arrest, members of the Minutemen movement disavowed her, saying they did not trust her and that she had stayed on its fringes.”
And since when does anyone have to account themselves to you.
I also remember(not in Pima County) another case along the Arizona border with Mexico where a rancher was shot in his home by Illegal alien Drug dealers around the same time frame or earlier than this case.
That case got the attention of my NRA magazine I get every month but I don't recall the exact time this happened. All I remember is that no charges were filed on that case.
I don't know any details on this case other than the CBS video but I can tell you one thing. If it turns out that Junior( the husband who got killed) was a dealer and was actually killed by his gang, I will never let that FOX Scumbag Geraldo Rivera forget it.
See post #10
That sounds like just plain murder.
I didn’t know the “Minutemen” groups were conducting armed drug raids (sounded like murder to me)... I thought they were trying to secure the border...
/shrugs
Most likely an infiltrator.
"The Arizona Daily Star reports that there have been some discrepancies in the statements Gonzalez has made to investigators - reportedly telling them the woman who invaded her home was a brunette, when Forde is blond. She also claimed that some items of jewelry found in the possession of the suspects had belonged to her, but one bracelet she said was stolen from her home was apparently purchased by a suspect on eBay. "
Apparently the murdered little girl's mother has made some conflicting statements about property stolen in this case. If the prosecutors found the actual wedding ring belonging to the victim's wife in the procession of the suspect, that is one thing. If however the jewelry in question was not the property of the wife and mother of the victims, but actually belonged to the suspects,that is entirely something else.
Let's see this case play out before coming to any conclusions about the veracity of the people involved.
The story is upfront with the fact the home invasion was motivated by a robbery to look for money and drugs, not by politics.
If you or I committed a crime I am sure the Minutemen would no rush in to disavow us unless we had some sort of connection with them.
Most people would be horrified at the cold blooded murder of the little girl - but sadly only a couple of people on here have mentioned that aspect of the crime.
I would like to see your answer. This is a CBS story, not a blog posting from DU or KOS.
“She stayed on its fringes”
I couldn’t be certain that she had no involvement. But again, it sounds as if any involvement was for her own evil purposes.
Actually, robbing and shooting anhyone, even a drug dealer, is murder. As you say, shooting a child is far worse. I think that is understood. The left, of course, will try to use this vile crime to smear conservatives or anyone who wants to do something about illegal immigration.
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