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

Thomas J. Leggs, Jr. Convicted of Burglary In Ocean City

SNOW HILL -- A Worcester County judge sentenced Thomas J. Leggs Jr. to three years in prison on fourth-degree burglary charges, ending a court case that began months before authorities arrested him in connection with the murder of an 11-year-old Salisbury girl.

Leggs stood accused of breaking into the apartment of a woman who turned him down for an overnight stay after a boozy cab ride home.

Pamela Sima, 24, testified in Circuit Court that Sept. 11, 2009, she awoke at about 4 a.m. to find Leggs standing over her bed -- shirtless, undoing his belt and taking his pants down to his knees.

"After it happened, it really affected my life," she told Judge Thomas C. Groton III prior to Leggs' sentencing. "For the rest of my time there, I slept with a knife by my side and a phone in my hand."

Sima also testified she had rejected his romantic advances on a date one week earlier.

A Worcester County Circuit Court jury deliberated for 20 minutes before reaching a guilty verdict Thursday. The jury found Leggs not guilty on a related charge of property destruction.

Worcester County State's Attorney Joel Todd sought the maximum sentence of three years incarceration on the burglary charge, citing Leggs' criminal record and his being on the Maryland and Delaware sex offender registries.

Sima said she was unaware of any of his criminal history while they were dating. Leggs was not accused of committing any sex offenses against her.

They first met in late August 2009, Sima said, and had gone on at least one dinner date before meeting for drinks Sept. 2 at Pickles Pub. That night, Leggs walked her home.

She later told police the two kissed, but he had come on too strong and was trying to take her clothes off "with me saying no plenty of times."

According to Sima's testimony, a week later they ran into each other at the Cork Bar. Leggs apologized for his behavior. When she flagged a taxi home, Leggs joined her in the car, uninvited.

Once at her house, he asked to stay over, repeatedly telling her that his roommates weren't letting him stay at his place, she testified. She said no, went inside and locked the door behind her.

Hours later, when she found him at her beside, she yelled at him to get out. She heard the front door open and close. But when she got out of bed to make sure he was gone, she found him standing in her living room.

"The fact that he would try to trick her into thinking he had left shows just how criminal his intentions were," Todd said. "The defendant is a dangerous individual. The best the criminal justice system can do is warehouse (him) for as long as we can for the good of the citizens of the state of Maryland."

When Leggs did leave, Sima called 911. Responding police officers found two window screens removed outside the first-floor apartment, one of which was bent out of shape.

A wooden window frame was damaged, police said, as if someone had pried away the screen. They also found scuff marks on the exterior beneath one of the windows. This evidence was the basis for a charge of malicious destruction of property, police said.

A warrant was issued for his arrest Sept. 29. He was arrested Oct. 29, and posted $10,000 bond the same day.

In the courtroom, Leggs wore a lime-green polo shirt, blue pants and black sneakers. He sported a bushy goatee and short-cropped hair. He often turned to comment into the ear of his attorney.

Leggs wore no handcuffs or leg braces of any kind because Todd wanted the jury to decide the case on the facts presented, not on the biases that shackles inevitably bring, he said.

Wicomico County sheriff's deputies escorted Leggs to the Snow Hill courtroom from Salisbury, where he is being held on charges of kidnapping, abusing and killing sixth-grader Sarah Haley Foxwell.

Her family reported her missing Dec. 22. Leggs was arrested Dec. 23. After a search that involved thousands of volunteers, her burned remains were found Dec. 25 in a wooded area by a team of investigators.

Leggs was indicted on murder and sex offense charges in February in Wicomico County, where the killing took place. In May, court officials announced his death penalty trial on those charges will be moved to Cecil County.

Leggs did not testify during Thursday's trial. At sentencing, he declined to make any comments to the judge following the vigorous advice of his attorney, Arch McFadden.

McFadden, in his closing statement, said prosecutors lacked evidence to show that anyone else had been in the house that night.

"Where's the corroborating evidence?" he said. "I submit to you: zero. Were there fingerprints taken? Was there eyewitnesses?"

McFadden -- who declined reporters' requests for comment -- was also critical of a lack of photographic evidence from the scene. He said he would file an immediate appeal.

Ocean City Police Officer Nicole Thornes, who responded to Sima's 911 call, testified that photographs taken at the scene were submitted to the department's forensics unit. However, when prosecutors went to retrieve the photos to be used as evidence, "they were misplaced somehow," according to Todd.

Ocean City Police spokesman Mike Levy said "there could be any number of reasons for that," and any cause would not be clear unless an internal investigation was conducted.

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