Leggs Sentenced To Life In Prison

From WBOC NEWS

Tuesday  March 29, 2011

ELKTON, Md.- A plea deal has been reached in the case against a man accused of kidnapping and murdering an 11-year-old Salisbury girl.

Thomas J. Leggs Jr., 31, of Salisbury, appearing in Cecil County Circuit Court on Tuesday morning, admitted his guilt in Sarah Haley Foxwell's death.

"I am guilty," Leggs told the court multiple times, as he took responsibility for his crimes.

Under the terms of the plea deal, Leggs received two life sentences without parole: one for first-degree murder and the other for first-degree sexual offense. He was also given 30 years in prison for kidnapping and 20 years for burglary. All sentences are to be served consecutively.

In a statement to Sarah's family, Leggs said there was no excuse for his "monstrous act." He also said he was thankful Sarah's family spared his life, and that he will spend the rest of his life doing "whatever is necessary" to make sure a crime such as the one he committed is never again perpetrated against another child. Leggs also apologized that because of his actions, Sarah would never see adulthood.

At a press conference held outside the courthouse after the judicial proceedings, Wicomico County State's Attorney Matthew Maciarello - whose office prosecuted the case - said the decision to no longer seek the death penalty against Leggs was largely made out of respect for Sarah's family.

"The Foxwell family has told me that they do not want a lifetime of anguish and appeals, due to the extreme stress, havoc and grief the death of Sarah has caused them and their need to begin healing from this horrible, despicable crime," Maciarello said.

"And because they wished to protect Sarah's sister, a 7-year-old material witness in the case, they have unanimously requested that we withdraw our notice to seek the death penalty in consideration for the plea agreement placed on the record today."

Maciarello also noted that the history of the death penalty in Maryland indicates that it would be highly unlikely that Leggs would be ever executed.

Davis Ruark, who served as a special prosecutor in the case, said that due to the magnitude of the crimes committed against Sarah, it was his personal opinion that Leggs deserved to be put to death. Despite having to withdraw the death penalty against Leggs in order to work out a plea agreement, Ruark said he still believed justice was served in this case.

"Yes, to the extent that the family's wishes were honored, justice was served in this case," Ruark said. When asked if he believed a compromise had been made with a convicted child killer, Ruark replied, "It's not a compromise. He will never come out of prison alive."

Also at the press conference, Sarah's mother Jennifer Foxwell said that now that her daughter's killer is going to prison for the rest of his life, her family can have closure.

"Thank you all so much for giving up your Christmas of '09 to bring our baby home," she said. "We now have closure and we can all move on- including the community."

According to court records, on Dec. 23, 2009 Leggs kidnapped and killed Sarah. After a massive three-day search that involved hundreds of police officers and civilians, Sarah's burned body was found in a wooded area of Wicomico County on Christmas Day of 2009.

Authorities have said that Leggs- a convicted sex offender in Maryland and Delaware- had dated Sarah's aunt for a short time several months before the girl's kidnapping and death. 

As part of the plea deal, which spared him a possible death sentence, Leggs agreed to give investigators additional details about the kidnapping and murder of Sarah.

Source; WBOC News http://www.wboc.com/story/14341664/plea-deal-reached-in-leggs-murder-casehttp://www.wboc.com/story/14341664/plea-deal-reached-in-leggs-murder-case

Eliminate Option Of A Death Sentence? Cruel?

ELKTON, Md. -- Attorneys for the Salisbury man charged in the murder of 11-year-old Sarah Foxwell have filed a request to eliminate the option of a death sentence.

The motion is one of several death penalty-related requests filed by defense counsel for 31-year-old Thomas James Leggs Jr. The requests will be heard in Cecil County Circuit Court during a three-day hearing scheduled to begin Wednesday.

Defense attorneys for Leggs argue the court should rule against the state's intent to seek the death penalty because execution methods authorized in Maryland "constitute cruel and unusual punishment and violates evolving standards of decency."

"There is a plethora of evidence to demonstrate that Maryland's lethal injection method, and the correctional policies and procedures governing it, present grave risk of needlessly inflicting a painful, torturous, lingering death," wrote Katy C. O'Donnell, division chief of the aggravated homicide division of the public defender's office, and Kay Beehler, an assistant public defender.

The motion also states that execution procedures used by the department of corrections violate state regulations. O'Donnell and Beehler state the Maryland Court of Appeals previously rejected the execution procedures and the state's continued use violates the Maryland Administrative Procedures Act.

Leggs, a registered sex offender in Maryland and Delaware, was taken into police custody and charged with burglary and kidnapping shortly after Foxwell's relatives reported her missing on Dec. 22, 2009.

More than 3,000 volunteers reported to Arthur W. Perdue Stadium on Christmas Day to help authorities search for the missing girl. Her burned remains were located in a wooded area later the same day.

At the time of his arrest, Leggs had been released from the Worcester County Detention Center on bond from burglary and malicious destruction of property charges. A woman reported he had allegedly broken into her home in September. He was convicted on the burglary charge and sentenced to three years in prison.

A Wicomico County grand jury indicted him on murder, burglary, sex offense and kidnapping charges in February 2010.

After the state filed a notice of its intent to seek the death penalty, the case was moved to Cecil County Circuit Court and Judge J. Frederick K. Price, a retired administrative judge for the 2nd Judicial Circuit, was assigned to the case

www.delawareonline.com

"Needlessly inflicting a painful, torturous, lingering death"????? HA!! Think about what that poor child had to endure for the remainder of her short life! Who cares how painful death may be for Thomas Leggs, Jr. I would certainly hope it would be a painful and torturous as possible!