I wasn’t sure whether or not Stanley Dishon would go to trial for murdering his niece, Jessica, back in 1999. As you recall me previously mentioning, this all occurred in my hometown of Shepherdsville, Kentucky. A couple days ago, the prosecution and defense reached an agreement; in return for Stanley Dishon submitting an Alford plea to manslaughter, the trial will be altogether forfeited. What is an Alford plea, you ask? (Hey, look, my college classes are coming in handy.)
Basically, an Alford plea is an alternative to pleading guilty, not guilty, or no contest. An Alford plea is the acknowledgement that the prosecution has enough evidence to convict you beyond a reasonable doubt. You can maintain your innocence, but for all intents and purposes, it is essentially a guilty plea without the actual admittance of guilt. It is the same plea the West Memphis Three wore forced to take. By submitting an Alford plea, you may be able to avoid the harshest punishment. Alford pleas work in favor of the prosecution sometimes because it saves the state money, and in this case, it puts an old case to rest; the media doesn’t get to keep dragging the public and the family through the emotional ringer of a trial.
Stanley will be eligible for parole in 16 years.
As for his motive? Word is that he was molesting Jessica and had been doing it for years. Considering his previous convictions, this wouldn’t be too surprising. The story goes that Jessica was threatening to tell, and Stanley attacked her in her yard.
Fifteen years in the making, y’all. Time to close the book on this one and pray the family can find some peace. I can’t imagine what her parents have been through, but to find the murderer is a member of your own family? It’s sickening.
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Stanley Dishon, who raped, tortured, and murdered his own young niece is eligible for parole after only sixteen years?!…I do NOT want to just “turn the page” on this because a lousy 16 years for the agony this piece of human filth forced
on this innocent girl is hardly “Justice,’. I do hope that, at very least, he’s denied parole and is made to serve EVERY day of his lousy 20 year sentence
This was a total miscarriage of justice!
0 years for this
is eligible for
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Totalement d accord avec ce commentaire. Ce monstre inhumain mériterait la peine capitale entre autres pqu il avait déjà violé et sodomise ses propres enfants. C est incompréhensible d autant plus que les parents sont brisées à vie. C est de l injustice totale
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I was friends of Craig Ickes and Melissa Thompson. Both were brutally murdered in Sheperdsville ky July 20 2016. Melissa was shot, then left in the home and the home was burned. She was unrecognizable. Craig’s body was found shot and thrown in a creek not far from the house a few days later.
I grew up in Pa with Craig Ickes and had visited his ky home. I often go on line to see if there has been any recent findings in the case..nothing. It has been over 3 years and there has been absolutely nothing updated on this case. Due to the brutality of this crime, it may be worth a look from you
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Hi Susan, thanks for the comment. I will definitely look further into this. I’ve been gone from Shepherdsville for a long time, but I go back to visit every once in a while. I somehow missed this news story!
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Why did the prosecution even allow this deal? After a crime like that he should have at the very least been sentenced to life without parole…it appears they had the evidence to convict without a deal.
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