Mistress: David Harris said he had open marriage - mistress testifies in Clara Harris murder trial

Houston Chronicle ^ | February 4, 2003 | By ALLAN TURNER

[MeekOneGOP]

fyi...

[NativeNewYorker]

he and Clara Harris had an open marriage

I have an open marriage.

My mail is opened. My wallet is opened...

[Dog Gone]

There's no question that she did it, and there's no question it was not an accident. It was murder. This is not a hard case.

The question of whether she was acting in a "sudden passion" or whether there were other mitigating factors only applies to the penalty portion of the case, AFTER she's been found guilty of murder. We don't have second degree murder in Texas. It's murder or capital murder, and capital murder doesn't apply here.

The defense attorney is deliberately trying to blur that distinction so that the jury will find that she's not guilty of murder, and the judge should not let him get away with it.

[LADY J]

Are there any pictures of the mistress available?

[Dog Gone]

She's on the right.

[Bonaparte]

Here's the cast of characters (from Texas Monthly, Nov 1, 2002) --

(top left to right) Clara Harris / David Harris
Chuck Knight / Julie Knight
Steve Wells / Laurie Wells
Steve Bridges / Gail Bridges

[LADY J]

"She's on the right."

He should have been an eye doctor - not a dentist.

[wiseone]

i say she'l get off,PMS,or any absurd feminist defence

any bets?

[Dog Gone]

Well, she doesn't do much for me, but maybe she has a nice smile.

[Bonaparte]

LOL! He sure knows how to pick them. I wonder how Bridges feels, knowing she got this fool killed.

His wife gives new meaning to the Dickensian phrase, "You must be firm with the boy, Clara." This woman smacked into him, throwing him in the air and hitting him again before he even hit the ground. Then she spun the car around and ran over him twice. Incredibly, the judge lets her roam the community on $30,000 bail (which she could easily afford to skip out on).

[LADY J]

"Here's the cast of characters (from Texas Monthly, Nov 1, 2002)"

Thanks for the pix. Makes it more interesting to see who we are reading about. Nothing in our local papers - so this is much appreciated.

[Dog Gone]

She claims it was an accident. Perhaps the most stupid defense to running over your husband and then doing victory laps ever devised as a legal defense in world history...

[dix]

I agree mostly with what you’ve said about the case. I’m not clear though about why this is not a capital case. I presume the reason is she did not plan to kill him ahead of time. That’s plausible for her first lap, but what about the two victory laps she took after the first one? I think her lawyer probably is shooting for manslaughter.

[LADY J]

Any comments from Bridge's husband about this?

Think he'll get a divorce or run over her with an SUV??

[LADY J]

"That’s plausible for her first lap, but what about the two victory laps she took after the first one?"

Should be the quote of the day!

I mispelled her name and called her Bridge instead of Bridges! That was a typo. *S*

[Dog Gone]

I’m not clear though about why this is not a capital case.

For all of Texas's tough reputation, capital murder (which means murder for which you may receive the death penalty) is fairly restrictive. It's not the equivalent of First Degree murder in some other states, or even premeditated murder. It's restricted to murder in connection with another specific crime, or multiple murders. Simply killing your spouse doesn't qualify.

[Dog Gone]

Her husband had already divorced Bridges before this incident, so he's a player only for the sensational side of all this.

[Bonaparte]

Oh, there's plenty of comment from Bridges' husband. He's filed for full custody of their children, so he can keep them in Louisiana, far from their mother's antics. Everybody in this sorry affair seems to be filing against everybody else. David Harris' first wife and mother of his kids, including the girl who was in the car with Clara when the murder occured, filed in federal court to freeze David's estate so Clara can't benefit from the proceeds of her wrongdoing.

Gail Bridges and Julie Knight are both completely off their rockers. Here they are in wigs on the Sally show not even one week after the murder --

Episode -- "My Husband Spies On Me"

[Dog Gone]

That appearance on the show was WAY before the murder by Clara Harris.