As a ghost writer, I have a variety of interests and knowledge and I am excited to be able to finally put together a book collection that shares many of the lessons and talents I've learned. Join me as I set a goal to write three books by blogging them. I'd love to hear your comments, feedback, and suggestions.
It's no secret that I've been a proponent of natural healing for several years. In 2004 I quit taking all of the medication that my doctors insisted I needed. I learned how to control the arthritis pain without numbing it and I learned how to eat to raise my blood sugar and keep it level. Since then, I have also learned how to use food to fight infections and boost my immune system. I'm constantly amazed at how many natural remedies we have available to us and they work far better than any fad juice, pill, or cream I've ever tested.
One of the most interesting studies I have found that support my belief in healing with foods was published in 2004 in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association entitled, "Advanced Glycoxidation End Products in Commonly Consumed Foods." The article stated, "Advanced glycoxidation and products (AGEs), the derivatives of glucose-protein or glucose-lipid interactions, are implicated in the complications of diabetes and aging. The objective of this article was to determine the AGE content of commonly consumed foods and to evaluate the effects of various methods of food preparation on AGE production."
In this study, they tested 250 foods. Of these foods, those that had the highest fat content displayed a higher AGE. Surprisingly, carbs contained the lowest values.
The foods that are high in AGEs are said to age the body faster by contributing to cardiovascular disease and kidney damage. A diet that is high in low-AGE foods contributes to a longer life, according to this study and the editors of Prevention magazine.
An interesting find in this study that has also been reported by the editors of Prevention magazine is that "nutrient composition, temperature, method, and duration of heat application affect AGE generation in foods during cooking." In other words, meats that have been prepared by methods that use high heat such as broiling or frying are higher in AGEs than something like fish that is poached or grilled. Here is a glimpse of their table: (The higher the AGE, the worse it is for your body)
High Foods:
Frankfurter, broiled for 5 minutes = 10,143 AGEs per serving
Chicken breast with skin, breaded and oven-fried for 25 minutes = 8,965 AGEs per serving
Thin crust pizza = 6,825 AGEs per serving
Low Foods:
Canned red kidney beans = 191 AGEs per serving
Raw onion = 36 AGEs per serving
Bran flakes = 10 AGEs per serving
Banana = 9 AGEs per serving
Their final word of advice?
"The new information presented herein can be easily integrated into meal patterns that are consistent with those currently recommended against cardiovascular disease and cancer in the general population. Firstly, reduced intake of AGEs can be achieved by reducing high-AGE sources such as full-fat cheeses, meats, and highly processed foods, and increasing the consumption of fish, grains, low-fat milk products, fruits, and vegetables. These guidelines are features of The Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension....data on meat and meat substitute preparation clearly showed marked differences in the AGE content of food items subjected to low vs high temperature treatment. Consumers can be directed to the time-honored low-AGE-producing culinary techniques of boiling, poaching, and stewing to prepare palatable menu items."
It seems that cooking meat at high temperatures (greater than 250 degrees Celsius) or for longer than an hour and 39 minutes increases the production of carcinogenic compounds that the American Cancer Society warns us against. Lastly, over-processed foods are to be avoided whenever possible. An example given is that Enfamil is found to be one hundred times higher in AGEs than human milk. It is suggested that such high amounts of AGEs consumed at an early age is a cause of the rise of diabetes and auto-immune disorders in children.
When it comes to food and its effects on the human body, I will forever be a student. There are so many medications that can be avoided if only we could learn to resist temptation of processed foods and eat a healthy diet. This is something I work at daily.
I hope this helps you on your path to a healthy lifestyle. Have a blessed day!
Yesterday I published a book that has been in the works for six years. It was actually completed six years ago, but I never did anything with it. I have edited it, updated it, and tested and replaced every resource link or Web site. Whether you have a Web site or not or are tech savvy or not, this book has something to offer everyone. See the back cover details below: Have you ever wanted to start an online business but you're not sure where to begin?
Jody Ortiz is a successful ghost writer who was able to launch her career by learning how the Internet works and how to create her own Web site and marketing plan. She has been creating Web sites since 2003, and has learned several valuable lessons and secrets that she shares with you in this step-by-step guide to starting an online business.
She covers topics such as Beginner's Guide to Web sites; Finding a Host; Ebay; Search Engine Optimization; Coupon Affiliate Accounts; Sales Letters; and more.
This book is a crash course in Internet business and marketing and it provides everything you need to know to get started with your online business today. Order now on Kindle at the link below or order the paperback for just $5.99 plus shipping through Paypal at the "Buy Now" link below.
In one of my classes, I had to write a paper that compared and contrasted something. We were given free reign over our topics. So, of course I chose a topic that has changed my life.
I wrote this paper in about an hour because I was short on time, as usual. Apparently, my APA citation book is outdated. So I received an A-. Oh well, but I thought I would share my paper because it does make some good points and the underlined sections are my teacher's notes. The A- was mostly for my mistakes in citing and because I spent more time arguing against the death penalty than sharing views. ;)
Death Penalty: For or
Against
With the recent shootings of innocent victims in Colorado,
the death penalty debate has once again come to the forefront. Those who oppose
the death penalty cite humanitarian values and statistics of the wrongfully
convicted while those for the death penalty cite archaic good word
Christian
beliefs, such as “An Eye for an Eye.” As Mahatma Gandhi once stated, “An eye
for an eye leaves the whole world blind.”(citation).
Each argument has valid points that can be substantiated
through a specific case. Is it more humane to financially support someone who
has been convicted of a violent crime for the rest of his or her life or to put
that person to death and give closure to the victim’sloved ones?
It is difficult to fully comprehend each side of the
argument until you put yourself in a victim’s shoes. Bud Welch had a close
relationship with his daughter, Julie. They were supposed to meet for lunch on
the day that she was murdered in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. I met Mr.
Welch while volunteering for the Oklahoma Coalition to Abolish the Death
Penalty. This man had lost his daughter to a senseless crime, yet,
he vowed to the family of the man charged with his daughter’s murder to fight
against a penalty of death. According to Mr. Welch, his daughter had said, “…it
was teaching children to hate” (Welch, 2011). After his daughter was murdered,
one would think that she would have a different perspective if she had lived.
However, Mr. Welch was so close to his daughter that he knew her Catholic faith
was strong. He thought that she would not want to punish the loved ones of the
man that had taken her life.
Another aspect of the argument against the death penalty to
take into consideration is the fact that there have been innocent people
convicted of crimes and then later exonerated. To date according to T the
Innocence Project(2012), 297 post-conviction cases
have been overturned due to DNA analysis(The Innocence Project, 2012).
One of the most famous of these cases was included in John Grisham’s book entitled
“The Innocent Man.”. This book
discusses the wrongful conviction of Dennis Fritz and Ron Williamson. Mr.
Williamson was sent to death row and narrowly escaped being put to death on
multiple occasions. Mr. Fritz was given a life sentence. Both were released
from prison after spending 12 years behind bars for a crime they did not
commit. John Grisham stated regarding Barry Scheck from The Innocence Project
accepting the case, “Scheck’s fascination with Dennis’s case was simple: the
police had failed to investigate the last man seen with the victim” (Grisham,
2006, p. 297). Two men behind bars for twelve years and the police bungled the
investigation.
Mr. Williamson died briefly after his release. Mr. Fritz
wrote his own book that describes how he was able to get the attention of the
Innocence Project and he speaks out on behalf of the innocent in prison. Since
2008, he has attended two events that my group hosted to raise awareness
against wrongful convictions.
For those who support the death penalty, I have to wonder if
they have even considered that someone could be put to death, though innocent
of the charges. This would not be a fair comparison without peering into the
other side of the argument. According to a Pew Research study that was
conducted in November of 2011, 53% of those polled said that they supported the
death penalty because it was “appropriate and deserved punishment .
”(page or
paragraph). “Cost of life in prison and overcrowding” (Pew
Research Center, 2011) was the answer for 15% of those polled. Further research
on the Internet revealed that most Web sites credit their personal beliefs in
support of the death penalty to the Bible and Christian values. Last few items
were a bit jumpy
Though it is clear throughout this paper that I tend to side
with those who oppose the death penalty, I have to admit that until 2007 when I
realized not every person is prison is guilty, I supported putting prisoners to
death. Personally, I agreed with the findings of the Pew poll. I shared my
thoughts in my book titled, “The Naked Truth Bound in Scorn.” I (yea r) stated
as follows:
“At the time, I was becoming aware that Raye wasn’t the only
innocent person in prison. This was a tough conclusion for me because I
believed that everyone incarcerated belonged there. I also supported the death
penalty. The idea of ridding the earth of people who posed nothing good for
society was acceptable to me. However, since my eyes were beginning to open to
wrongful convictions, my views were quickly changing…”
(Ortiz,
2010, p. 476)
Now that I have been exposed to the fact that there are
innocent people in prison - some are sitting on death row, waiting for a
miracle to free them or for a sense of peace in their undeserved fate - my view
on the topic has changed. I believe that with the advancement of civilization,
our country’s methods of dealing with punishment for crime should also advance.
If someone is guilty of a crime, lock that person away to suffer. But to put
someone to death, in my opinion, only bloodies more hands and causes more
needless suffering.
References
No dates with APA anymore
Grisham, J.
(2006). The Innocent Man: Murder and
Injustice in a Small Town. New York: Doubleday.
Now you see why I always have to have an editor when I write something. I
think most writers will tell you that it's very difficult to edit your
own work. Hope you all have a super blessed day!
Yesterday on the Free the Innocent Raye Dawn Smith from the Lies group on Facebook, someone posted a comment on the group that was upsetting. I realize that some people are new to the case and they have only heard the stories that the man charged with the two-year-old's rape and murder told while avoiding the death penalty and people believed his stories because they had their own agendas to fill and they wanted Raye in prison. But, now it is 2012 and seven years have passed since the murder of Kelsey Smith Briggs and there has been so much evidence that proves where the stories came from and that they are not true. To say that you have "studied the case" and then still repeat stories that originated from a man charged with the rape and murder of a child is a travesty. For one to claim that they care about the child and then repeat stories from a sick man, is very disheartening to me. Do these people just want to hate someone, or do they care about the truth of what happened to Kelsey? When someone repeats stories told by the man charged with Kelsey's rape and murder, it's like they are slapping the child in the face. They are tainting her memory and ignoring the facts. Why? Why would someone do that to an innocent child?
Let's get into these claims by first finding the root of their origin. There is no argument against the fact that Mike Porter was charged with Kelsey's rape and murder. He was the only person charged with harming Kelsey. He was the only person who could have faced those charges in court. So to make claims that anyone else abused Kelsey is wrong. Let's look at his charges.
Now that it's clear who was charged with the murder and sexual assault of the child...who was the only person charged with harming the child..., let's look at the outcome of those charges.
The following excerpt is from pages 164 to 166 of "The Naked Truth Bound in Scorn."
Charged!
“Truth is like the sun. You can shut it out for a
time, but it ain’t goin away.” ~ Elvis Presley
Kathie and her family
members have admitted that Mike Porter is a “liar,” “monster,” “murderer,” and
“disgusting.” Yet, the focus is always on Raye. Why?
Among evidence against Mike
Porter was a report on the contents of his computers. The report showed that on
one of the computers numerous pornographic images were found with many of the
pictures displaying acts of anal sex (an act that investigators and the
district attorney reportedly believe that Mike Porter committed on Kelsey while
Raye was picking his daughter up from school). Pornographic videos of anal sex
were also found. Among the pornographic pictures were several pictures labeled
with Mike Porter’s name and they featured an erect penis. One picture, in
particular, showed semen in the palm of a hand and had a baby bib on the floor
in the background.
On May 16, 2005, less than
a month after Mike Porter married Raye, “pdaddy_44” was his alleged chosen
screen name in several Yahoo chat sessions with an unidentified person in which
graphic language was used and his avatar was a picture of an erect penis with
the picture labeled “Mikecock.”
The same e-mail address
that was used in some e-mail conversations with Kathie was also used to sign
into AOL in online sessions during which the Web address www.-porno.com was
typed directly into the search bar. This would not be the only pornographic
site he reportedly visited. Some Web sites had the name “teen” in them as well
as “sex,” and he made multiple visits: 979; 740; 447; 424; 102; 60; and 15. In
addition to porn, Kathie’s Web site featuring Kelsey’s picture along with plans
to hold rallies and write letters to ensure that Raye was charged was visited
on 711 occasions.
Aside from the evidence
linking Mike Porter to Kelsey’s alleged sexual assault and murder, witnesses
state that Mike Porter appeared to be guilty at the hospital immediately following
Kelsey’s death. Among other eyewitness accounts, Mike Porter was reportedly
seen by a police officer pounding his fist into a vehicle and yelling, “She’ll
never forgive me! She’ll never forgive me!”
Though eyewitness reports
and evidence verify that the correct charges were filed against Mike Porter
(sexual assault and murder), he was supported by Kathie and her family members
within days of Kelsey’s death with e-mails and letters claiming that Raye had
murdered Kelsey and that Mike Porter was only guilty of “not protecting” Kelsey.
The charges against him reflected the fact that investigators and the district
attorney clearly did not agree with their point of view. However, this damaging
evidence against Mike Porter was not presented at Raye’s trial.
Now let's look at pages 213 to 223 of "The Naked Truth Bound in Scorn" and discover what happened next to the man charged with the murder and sexual assault of a two-year-old child.
At the
conclusion of the preliminary hearing, Porter was bound over for trial for the
crimes of murder in the first degree and sexual abuse of a child. His trial was
eventually set for February 2007. It was during this time that the attorney for
Porter learned that Porter had corresponded with the Briggs after Kelsey’s
death…Just five days before Porter was set to go to trial on first-degree
murder and sexual assault charges he reached a plea agreement with Smothermon
and pled guilty to enabling child abuse and received a 30-year sentence…The
plea bargain meant no one would ever be prosecuted for Kelsey’s murder and that
Kelsey’s probable real killer, Michael Porter, had escaped justice for her
death.
Following Raye
Dawn’s trial, Smothermon was interviewed by KOKH FOX 25 concerning his decision
to put Porter on the stand. Smothermon had this to say, “It was a decision I
made against the advice of some other people that were trying the case with me.
There was a great deal of risk putting him on the stand because it put the face
of the monster in front of the jury. He’s such a huge part of the evidence in
the case I thought it improper for me to not present him to the jury.”
Smothermon was certainly right when he said it involved “a great deal of risk”
to put Porter on the stand. In doing so, Smothermon knowingly and directly
violated Rule 3.3 of the Oklahoma Rules of Professional Conduct and Disciplinary
Rule 7-102(A)(4), which provides that a lawyer shall not “knowingly use”
perjured testimony or false evidence…He also violated Raye Dawn’s constitutional
right to due process under Article II, sec 7 of the Oklahoma Constitution and
the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution…Where perjured
testimony is crucial to a jury’s decision, the resulting conviction is
fundamentally unfair and must be set aside…
Porter’s story
the day of the murder is simply not plausible. Our consulting experts have
advised that the story Porter told on the stand at Raye Dawn’s trial simply
does not comport with medical science. Smothermon allowed Porter to testify to
a series of events on October 11, 2005, that Smothermon knew were absolutely
false…Porter testified that it struck him how quiet the house was that day
after Raye Dawn left. We seek to prove that the internal injuries Kelsey suffered
on October 11 are very symptomatic. Porter’s story has no support. If Kelsey
had supposedly sustained these injuries before Porter arrive home, as Porter
claimed in his testimony, the house would have been anything but quiet. Kelsey
would have been curled up in a fetal position. She would not have wanted to
move, and she would have been crying and screaming. Abdominal trauma is
immediately symptomatic from the moment of injury. Contrary to Porter’s
testimony, Kelsey would not have been in the other room sleeping if she had
suffered these injures at the hand of Raye Dawn before Porter got home. Rather,
there would have been a marked change in her condition that would have been
evident to any care giver. Kelsey, who was verbal at the time, would have been
crying, screaming and saying, “I’m hurt” or “My tummy hurts.” She would have
been complaining of pain. Clearly, the house would not have been quiet as
Porter asserted in his testimony at trial. He had exclusive control and custody
when he murdered Kelsey, and no one else was present in the house.
[Ms. B] from
Comprehensive Home Based Services testified at trial that she was at the home
with Raye Dawn and Kelsey on October 11, 2005 from 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. Kelsey
had a purple bruise on her cheek, a band-aid on one finger and the little toe
on her right foot was red and sore. Ms. [B] testified that when she left the
house that day Kelsey was alive and Raye Dawn and Kelsey were sitting on the
front porch playing with a turtle. It was after Ms. [B] left that Kelsey had an
accident and urinated in her panties before her nap. Raye Dawn put Kelsey to
bed wearing only a long black biker T-shirt with no panties or pull-ups on. The
two laid down to take a nap together around 2:00 p.m. Porter testified that he
left work around 2:35 or 2:40 p.m. and got home around 2:45 p.m. [He told
investigators that he left work between 2:15 and 2:30 p.m.] He came home, and
Raye Dawn woke up. Porter said Raye Dawn offered to go pick up his
daughter…from school. Raye Dawn leaves the house and tells him to take care of
her baby. It is at this point that Porter claims he went out to the garage to
clean some tires but decides not to and comes back inside the house. After
coming back inside the house, he claims he rounded up the laundry in the house,
cleaned the kitchen counter and made himself some water. It is here where he
says he noticed how quiet the house was. He testified he walked around the sofa
to turn on the television and heard a noise from the bedroom—a noise he
describes as an exhale, a guttural sound, an unnatural sound. He testified that
he ran into the bedroom and saw that Kelsey was blue and was not breathing.
Porter alleges that he tried to resuscitate Kelsey by asking her what was
wrong.
Next, he went
into the kitchen and called Gayla. The first person Porter calls is Gayla
Smith, Raye Dawn’s mother. He doesn’t call the police. He doesn’t call 911. He
calls the child’s grandmother. Gayla told Porter to call 911. Porter said he
called 911 after talking to Gayla. Porter said he next placed Kelsey on the
kitchen counter and tried to give her CPR. But it is what Porter does next that
is truly remarkable and very significant. He says that he takes a pull-up that
is sitting on the counter and puts it on Kelsey because he doesn’t want anyone to
see her like that. Picture that for a moment. There is a 2 ½ year-old child
lying on the kitchen counter in a long T-shirt that her mother put on her after
she had an accident and urinated in her panties before her nap. The child is
reportedly not breathing, and what does Porter do but place a diaper on her. [A
diaper that Raye states was in a bathroom closet and not on the counter as he
claimed.] He placed the diaper on her because he had sexually assaulted her and
he didn’t want the paramedics to see the evidence. Porter told OSBI
investigators that he circled the living room with Kelsey in his arms. He was
circling the living room because he had done this terrible thing and he was
trying to figure out what to do. Porter claims that he did not call 911 immediately
because he “didn’t want to believe how bad it was.” Gayla arrived shortly after
and took Kelsey.
Gayla testified
at trial that Porter called her that day between 3:10 and 3:15 p.m. and said
something was wrong with Kelsey. Gayla said that Kelsey squeezed her hand just
before she handed her to the responders. The EMT’s were dispatched to the house
at 3:16 p.m. That gave Porter almost 30 minutes alone with Kelsey—sufficient
time to murder and, perhaps, sexually assault her. [Mr. J], one of the EMT’s
testified that Raye Dawn was not at the house when he arrived. Raye Dawn did
not arrive at the house with Porter’s daughter until after Gayla and the
paramedics arrived. [Mr. J.] also claimed that the child’s body temper-ature
was still warm to the touch. When the OSBI came back into the house to investigate
the water in the kitchen sink was running. Most likely, Porter left the water
running when he put Kelsey on the kitchen island to clean her off after he
murdered and sexually assaulted her.
Porter’s actions
in the days following Kelsey’s murder are certainly indicative of guilt. At the
hospital, Raye Dawn wanted an autopsy performed because she wanted to know what
happened to her daughter. Porter, on the other hand, objected to an autopsy
being performed. [Mr. P], who has been a minister for 35 years, testified that
he was called to the hospital in Prague on October 11. He observed Porter
throwing himself against the wall and shouting…[Mr. P] thought Porter was
overreacting and it bothered him that Porter was not comforting Raye Dawn.
While Raye Dawn rocked Kelsey, Porter was in the hall yelling out, “Oh, my
God!” [Mr. P] said that Porter blamed himself and said, “I hope I wasn’t too
rough with her.” [Mr. P] thought Porter was feeling a tremendous amount of
guilt. Officer Morrison, a Prague Police Officer, testified that Porter said,
“She’s never going to forgive me,” while pacing back and forth outside the
hospital. Morrison testified that Porter then fell to the ground and was
staring up at the sky, but he was not unconscious. Porter was taken inside the
hospital on a stretcher complaining of chest pains. The physician’s assistant
testified that she checked Porter for injuries and cleared him. According to
[the physician’s assistant] Porter did not console Raye Dawn.
That night at
the house Porter ate a good meal while Raye Dawn refused to eat. One or two
days after Kelsey’s death, Porter faked a suicide attempt with a bottle of
[Tylenol]. Raye Dawn’s sister found 12-13 pills under the bed. Rachelle Smith testified
that Porter got a gun out of the night stand and threatened to commit suicide.
[Raye’s cousin] testified that she took Porter to the hospital in Prague after
his suicide attempt with the Tylenol, but Porter refused to go inside because
Kelsey had died there. [Raye’s cousin] talked him into going to the hospital in
Shawnee. She dropped him off and went to pick up Rachelle, and when they
returned to the Shawnee Hospital the hospital informed them that no one under
Porter’s name had ever checked into that hospital. When Porter was being
questioned by OSBI investigators about the case he almost passed out. Porter
told investigators the he had never seen Raye Dawn beat Kelsey or ever lose
control with Kelsey. When asked by investigators whether Raye Dawn could beat
Kelsey until she was dead, Porter said, “Never, never. She would never hurt
her.” The agents asked him this over and over again, and Porter always gave the
same answer. His words exculpated Raye Dawn, but his demeanor and behavior
incriminated himself…
Porter testified
under oath before Judge Key that Raye Dawn was a fit parent. Five days before
he was set to go to trial for first-degree murder and sexual assault, he pled
to enabling child abuse against his wife, in contradiction to his sworn testimony,
his voluntary statements to law enforcement officers, and his written
statements. Porter admitted at trial that he left his own children alone with
Raye Dawn. Rachelle Smith testified that Raye Dawn took care of Porter’s kids
five days a week while Porter was away at work. Further, [Ms. B], the CHBS
worker, testified that it was not unusual for Raye Dawn to be alone with
Porter’s children. Presumably, if Raye Dawn was an abuser of her own child,
Porter would not have left his children alone with her.
The key to all
of this miscarriage of justice is that Porter met with Kathie Briggs less than
90 days after Kelsey’s death. Kathie Briggs had a face-to-face meeting with
Porter, the man accused of murdering her granddaughter. Moreover, Porter and
Kathie Briggs corresponded by e-mail at least a dozen times after he was
charged with Kelsey’s murder. Kathie Briggs is a person who has made it her
mission in life to ruin Raye Dawn. Kathie writes on her Web site that she was
just using Porter for information. Undoubtedly, information to use in her quest
against Raye Dawn.
[The e-mails
between Mike Porter and Kathie Briggs and her daughters had not been read by
Raye’s new attorney at the time of this motion. They are included in later
chapters in this book and the language is clear—she wanted Raye Dawn charged
with murder and she didn’t care what it took.]
Kathie Briggs
has an insatiable habit to draw attention to herself, to create drama in which
she is the leading lady. Ironically, it was the tragic death of an innocent
child that brought a form of emotional and psychic gratification to Ms. Briggs
to be the center of attention. Kathie Briggs is too real to be fictional, even
for a William Faulkner novel, and Lance Briggs hoped for a financial windfall
from his child’s death. Both Porter and Kathie Briggs had something to gain by
meeting and corresponding—Porter got the plea deal of a lifetime and Kathie
Briggs got lies to assist her in her conspiracy against Raye Dawn.
Among the most
telling facts is Porter’s own 7-year-old daughter’s statements that she made
about her father to her school counselor on October 17, 2005. [Porter’s
daughter] told [the counselor] that she heard Kelsey getting a spanking
upstairs, and when she looked inside the doorway she found her father spanking
Kelsey “real hard.” [Porter’s daughter] said her father spanked Kelsey so hard
it left her bottom “real red.” [Porter’s daughter] said her dad spanked Kelsey
until she threw up. [Porter’s daughter] added that when people were around her dad,
he was nice to Kelsey. But, when no one was looking her dad would be mean to
Kelsey. [Porter’s daughter] also told the school counselor that she saw her dad
hit Kelsey’s head up against a brick wall outside on the house. [Porter’s
daughter] told [the counselor] that Kelsey would cry for Raye Dawn and would
crawl to Raye Dawn and cling to her legs.
Mr. Smothermon
iterated a number of times throughout the trial that he believed Michael Porter
murdered Kelsey and the he believed Porter was lying on the witness stand.
Richard Smothermon violated his ethical duty as a lawyer—an officer of the
court—by calling Michael Porter as a witness against Raye Dawn…Worse, he
proclaimed that he didn’t believe him when he [Porter] denied murdering Kelsey
and thought he was the murderer. Mr. Smothermon apparently did not notice the
inconsistency in his statements (or perhaps he did) for if he believed Porter
killed Kelsey, then how was it possible that Raye Dawn could enable his
homicidal tendencies for a child already under supervision of DHS, subject to
unannounced home visits from caseworkers, and the intrusion and curiosity of
the Briggs family. For Kelsey to die, it had to be a sudden and forceful
outburst. As such, Raye Dawn’s conviction should be set aside and she should be
granted a new trial. See Hall v. State, 1982 OK CR 141, 650 P.2d 893, 896-99.
“The knowing use of false or misleading evidence important to the prosecution’s
case in chief violates the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.” See
Omalza v. State, OK CR 80, 911 P.2d 286, 307. Porter’s testimony was not only
misleading it was entirely false. Raye Dawn was not home when Porter murdered
Kelsey. Porter had exclusive control and custody of Kelsey at that time. He was
alone with Kelsey in the house for almost 30 minutes. Moreover, as evidenced
above, his story simply is not supported by any medical science or teaching.
Porter’s accusations that Raye Dawn was the abuser are an absolute fraud to
give Smothermon and the Briggs and to escape life in prison or a death
sentence.
On June 15,
2005, Porter testified under oath that Raye Dawn was a fit parent. Porter
testified at trial that the first incident of abuse he witnessed by Raye Dawn
toward Kelsey was in January 2005. Yet, five months after January he testifies
under oath before Judge Key that Raye Dawn is a fit parent. He leaves his own
children with Raye Dawn five days a week while he is away at work after January
2005. His own 7-year-old daughter identified him as the abuser, not Raye Dawn.
Further, Mr. Smothermon improperly admitted on the record in open court
numerous times that he did not believe Michael Porter, and he believed Michael
Porter to be Kelsey’s murderer and the person who sexually assaulted her.
Certainly, Porter’s testimony was damaging to Raye Dawn and was material to the
jury returning a guilty verdict. He was the only witness that testified that he
had seen Raye Dawn abuse Kelsey. “When the prosecutor knows or should know that
its case includes perjured testimony, a resulting conviction ‘is fundamentally
unfair, and must be set aside if there is any reasonable likelihood that the
false testimony could have affected the judgment of the jury.’” See Gates v.
State, 1988 OK CR 77, 754 P.2d 882, 886. See also Binsz v. State, 1984 OK CR 28,
675 P.2d 448, 450 (failure of the prosecutor to correct the testimony of the
witness which he knew to be false denied the defendant due process of law in
violation of the Fourteenth Amendment). “A lie is a lie, no matter what its
subject, and, if it is any way relevant to the case, the district attorney had
the responsibility and duty to correct what he knows to be false and elicit the
truth.” See also Mooney v. Holohan, 294 U.S. 103, 112, 55 S.Ct. 340, 342, 79
L.Ed. 791 (1935) (prosecutor’s deliberate use of perjured testimony to obtain a
conviction violates due process and denies the defendant a fair trial)…
To summarize, Mike Porter took a plea deal just days before he was set to go to trial and within days of the report from his computers being released. His plea of 30 years is 10 times the state's average plea. Why take a 30-year plea if he had any chance of proving his innocence?
Another claim made was "Kelsey died a slow death" and the person claimed that this was stated by the medical examiner. That claim is simply untrue. In the excerpt above, we see that Kelsey would have been curled up in a fetal position and crying...not laying on her back as both Raye and Mike described to investigators after Kelsey's death. The following excerpt is from pages 325 and 326 of "The Naked Truth Bound in Scorn":
Mike Porter was arrested
within days of Kelsey’s murder. After the discovery was made that Kelsey’s
death wasn’t the result of a seizure, as the maternal family had been led to believe
by Mike Porter himself, the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation conducted
interviews of both Mike Porter and Raye simultaneously and in separate rooms.
Mike Porter had been acting
guilty with multiple phone calls to the medical examiner’s office the day after
Kelsey’s death, demanding the results of the autopsy. He was reportedly upset
that the autopsy would be thorough. At one point, the person he spoke with at
the ME’s office quit answering any questions, noting that only the person
guilty of or charged with the crime would behave in the way that Mike Porter
had on that day. Also, according to witnesses, Mike Porter pretended to attempt
suicide on two occasions: first with a gun that he “overlooked” in a drawer he
opened and then slammed shut when he threatened to shoot himself, and then with
a full bottle of Tylenol he supposedly swallowed that was later found. He acted
equally suspicious during his interrogation.
Now let's look at page 364 of "The Naked Truth Bound in Scorn."
Steve then told Porter, “The problem we’re running
into is with the report that the medical examiner has given. It appears…well,
it doesn’t appear; it’s a fact that there were some internal injuries that
Kelsey had that absolutely cannot be caused by chest compressions. They were
abdominal injuries that were inflicted on Kelsey to the point of where they
were so significant that Kelsey would have been in the fetal position right
after that happened, okay.” A medical examiner from Colorado also stated
that Kelsey would have been in a fetal position and screaming from pain until
she passed out just moments before her death. The medical reports did not
correlate with the story that Porter was trying to sell to the investigators.
Steve further added, “The injuries were probably
caused during a very short time period, okay. Now…and the injuries would have
absolutely put Kelsey, like I said, in a fetal position where the pain would
have been so significant that she wouldn’t have been able to handle it and
still be functional.”
Porter claimed he didn’t understand. Steve added, “There
was bruising, a significant amount of bruising that they found underneath the
skin, so it was…the bruising hadn’t made it to the outer layer of the skin yet.
What we have to try to determine here, Mike, is what happened to Kelsey, okay.”
Raye was later
told by an investigator that Kelsey also had a bruise on her bottom like
someone was “holding it open.”
This excerpt is from page 104 of "Bashboard Bullies":
Within the contents of the letter, and among other
misleading statements, this anonymous person claimed that the injuries
inflicted upon Kelsey would have allowed her to live for several minutes. Not
true. Investigators as well as the medical examiners stated that with a four
inch tear in her pancreas Kelsey would have been curled up in a ball and screaming
immediately after the injury from the pain. She would have remained in a fetal
position, screaming and crying until the point that she passed out, which would
have been moments before her death. Both Mike Porter and Raye told
investigators that when Raye left the home, Kelsey was on her back asleep. Mike
Porter told the investigators one story and the Briggs another. Yet the Briggs family
continues to defend him. Why?
The next claim was that Mike Porter wasn't with Kelsey very long on the day she was raped and murdered. This is from page III of "Bashboard Bullies":
We know that Kelsey’s mom left Kelsey home alone with her
stepfather, Mike Porter, between 2:30 pm and 2:45 pm. Mike Porter did not make
his first call for “help” until 3:09 pm. Mike Porter’s story that you will see
him repeat throughout “anonymous” postings on the bashboards were aimed to
condition the public to believe that he was alone with Kelsey for only fifteen
minutes. He repeatedly posted this story to set a precedence that he did not
have enough time to sexually assault Kelsey. His plan worked because his
version of the events were repeated by certain members of the media, and are
still repeated to this day.
Let's look at pages 90 and 91 of "Bashboard Bullies."
It was still January 1st and the conversation
continued with Mike Porter defending Lance.
but he knows it is a lie – he knows he didn’t hit her over
french fries…If she truly didn’t hurt Kelsey then she would be working with you
– But her driving force is her hate for your family…I would love to know what
your insight from the OSBI is. I do know that they very much WANT it to be Michael
that did this, that was obvious from day one – of course they do not want to
admit that they could be wrong…Insight from the DA would be great too – but I
would be wary of anything the OSBI tells you, they’ve been very dishonest so
far. The fact is, if there was CONCLUSIVE evidence that Michael did this, then
they NEVER would have set a bond for him, much less reduced it. They are
attempting to build a circumstantial case against Michael, and the DA has
admitted as much. But my question is why? Why pick him? Because he was there?
Why was he there? Why was he left there with Kelsey? Could he really have done
everything they say in 15 minutes or less?
This attempt at Porter’s 15-minute precedent was still being
repeated, though it did not correlate with the known facts. To this day, it is
repeated as fact even though it is not. Nineteen minutes would have been the
minimum amount of time he was alone with Kelsey with 39 minutes as the maximum.
No one can confirm the exact amount of time because when Porter arrived at his home
and woke Raye, she did not look at the clock. Porter told her that he would
arrive at 2:45 pm, but he claims he left work at 2:30 pm, which he admitted to
investigators that his place of business was less than five minutes from his
home. Questions have arisen of whether he was actually at work that day because
a witness for him stated he was not.
The exact amount of time he was alone with Kelsey does not
matter. It is still more than enough time to rape a child. As well, Porter knew
he could build doubt in Shirica’s mind about his presumed guilt. The following
day she answered him.
The following excerpt is from page 321 of "Bashboard Bullies":
The next “anonymous” person pushes the fifteen-minute
precedent once again in an effort to spin the odds in Mike Porter’s favor.
Posted by “Anonymous” August 23, 2006 @ 3:34 PM - I used to
let my babies run naked sometimes when they had diaper rash. It airs it out and
helps it heal. I tend to believe Porter’s statement about putting the pull up
on Kelsey so the EMT’s wouldn’t see her naked. This man only had 15 minutes to
do all of this to Kelsey. If he had hurt her, I don’t see him being sane enough
to be able to PLAN putting a pull up on her. Especially knowing she didn’t have
one on before.
From pages 98 and 99 of "Bashboard Bullies":
Mike Porter quickly replied.
…THAT SELFISH BITCH!!! the news about the DA is
discouraging. I guess the most discouraging thing is it is hard to believe
anything that the DA says anymore. For the last month it has been next week,
next week, next week. Now he has everything he said he was waiting on, the OSBI
report, the ME report, and he still stalls. If anything the ME report only
makes it more obvious to me that Raye DAwn is guilty. How could I have done all
that in 12-15 minutes??
Mike Porter had told investigators that he had done laundry,
washed dishes, and that he went to the garage to possibly remove tires he was
hoping to sell. He also claimed that he turned off the upstairs lights.
Porter’s known characteristics and the fact that the laundry had not been
touched lent to the fact that his claims were untrue. He was merely building an
alibi for himself. When he mentioned “all that,” he was referring to the
numerous chores and activities he said he had done after Raye left the house so
that people would question how he could have done “all that” as well as the
sexual assault and murder of Kelsey. Without an alibi, he fabricated one, but
he was not thorough enough in his thought process to ensure that his story
matched what could be found in his home.
The point I am trying to make is that by repeating this defense that was created by a man who was trying to avoid the death penalty is dishonoring the case and Kelsey's memory.
A claim that is continually made is that "Raye lied." I have repeatedly asked for proof of this and I haven't seen it except for in Mike Porter's own words. Let's look.
From page 119 of "Bashboard Bullies":
Mike Porter replied, calling Raye a “murder suspect.” This
allegation was ruled out within days of Kelsey’s death.
conversation with attorney was not hopeful. Bottom line is
this – Richard [the district attorney] knows who the single biggest source of
information is. Richard has made NO attempt to talk to this person. Richard is
placing weight on Raye Dawn’s testimony when she is the other murder suspect.
Better lawyers than him feel he is looking for a way out of arresting her. No
good attorney would attempt to prosecute a murder case withour hearing all sides.
Feelings were echoed of if [the district attorney] had any information he
needed verified there is one source to have that done, whether it is info on Michael
or Raye Dawn. Raye Dawn has had her chance to tell the truth, and she obviously
has not done that or she would have been arrested. The feeling is that by
placing the burden of proof back on “anonymous” tipsters, the buck is being
prepared to be passed. The DA has put himself in this position. The truth will
be told but I am afraid that our desire to believe that the DA is genuinely
concerned with prosecuting the correct party may be in vain. If he was
interested he would contact the proper parties and arrange it. It is HIS job to
do this. Michael WILL tell the truth, but he will not be allowed to take the
first step. If Richard wants to know the truth about Kelsey he will either file
charges or contact the proper people.
All you have to do is read the emails between Kelsey's paternal grandmother and Mike Porter to see who accused Raye of lying. You can read them here: http://www.rayedawnsmith.com/emails.htm
When Kelsey’s mother,
Raye Dawn, discovered her pregnancy, she attempted to shield this child from
the chaos of the Briggs family. In the end, it was Kathie, not the father, who
pushed for paternity testing. Originally, Lance didn’t want anything more than
standard visitation. He didn’t push for custody; he didn’t show up for hearings
and he even reportedly told people that he hoped the baby wasn’t his so he
could move on with his life. These are not the actions of a loving father and
certainly not the wonderful man he’s been portrayed as. Lance even admittedly
lied to authorities regarding his military movements to avoid suspicion.
Also, one of Raye's long-time supporters put together this video to show the lies that she uncovered in the case.
The OCCY reported this as their final conclusion on what went wrong in the case:
The following was posted on another site by a potential juror in this
case who signed Raye Dawn's petition and emailed Raye Dawn's family
immediately following the trial.
I was called for jury duty but not one of the
final 12; however, I attended every day because when I found out what
the case was about, I had to know what really happened. You see I am
vehement when it comes to child abuse and must admit the first 2 days of
the trial, (I previously knew nothing of the case nor any of the people
concerned on either side....I do not get OK Cy area news where I live) I
just had to see what a vile and horrible person Raye Dawn must be and
how could she???? Well let me tell you, by the 3rd day of the trial
after listening and observing families on both sides and seeing the
arrogance and hearing Mike Porter's testimony (he wanted RD to suffer as
he was by going to prison).
I saw and heard all the evidence presented on both sides as well as
having the opportunity to mingle outside during breaks with those who
were in the courtroom....namely Lance Briggs and his "supporters" ..I
saw by his actions each day as he flirted with all the pretty girls and
buddied up to the reporters while he strutted around trying to impress
anyone who was dumb enough to fall for his act, that he definitely was
not there out of love and concern for his darling Kelsey....he could
have cared less...
But Raye Dawn was a quiet, scared, nervous girl whose family was
steadfastly standing beside her...quietly remaining out of sight rather
than jumping in front of the cameras and reporters hungry for news. By
the end of the 4th day, I knew in my heart that any grandmother that
would put her "beloved" grandchild (I have 3) through the turmoil and
pulling back and forth that KB put Kelsey through could not have been
truly concerned about the child. I saw proof that the timeline of dates
showed Kelsey was with her aunt at the zoo when the first leg was
fractured and with g'ma KB when the second one mysteriously came up
showing a fracture also. I saw the evidence and testimonies of how while
in DHS custody, Kelsey reacted during visits with RD by running to her
and hugging her and played happily with her during their visits. When
her g'ma Kathie came to visit, she hid and kicked, bit her and ran from
her trying to get away.....those actions spoke multitudes to me...what
would you come away with after reviewing that? Of course RD didn't want
to admit that she might be carrying Lance's second child...after all he
had killed the first one with a punch to her pregnant belly! Would you
want him to know? DHS was in the home as well as CASA and CHUBS
observing RD and Kelsey regularly during the investigations....they
never saw any indications of abuse by RD to Kelsey...rather a loving
mother trying desperately to keep a jealous grandmother from taking her
child away because she had rejected the abusive father of that child. RD
had her hands full trying to do anything she could to do whatever was
asked of her to keep Kelsey.
When handsome Michael Porter came alone she was vulnerable and saw him
as a knight in shining armor who could help
Name deleted | 09.02.07 - 8:22 pm | #
Following is an example of how Kelsey's paternal grandmother has fed bits of the twisted
information and opinion to her followers to turn them against people she
doesn't like such as Raye Dawn and Judge Key. It also shows how the public was mislead from the beginning to think that Kelsey's father was in a "war zone" during the time the allegations of abuse were being reported to DHS and at the time of Kelsey's death. Additionally, for Kelsey's paternal grandmother to suggest that
Raye Dawn used something to sexually abuse Kelsey is sick! But, it does validate the fact that Kelsey was sexually assaulted. At the time
she made this post, the child porn on Mike Porter's computer had been
discovered and she posted on her forum that she believed he was guilty
of the original charges (murder and sexual assault), yet she still
worked at casting blame on Raye Dawn. Also, she states that DNA was not found, as described in the second autopsy, there was nothing left of the tissue to test and the first medical examiner never even looked for DNA.
kjbriggs
Kelsey's Grandma
Posts: 1,029
Group: Super Moderators
Joined: Nov 2005
Status: Offline
Reputation:
Post: #6
RE: Confused about info
I have not read Craig Key's book, nor do I plan to in the near future.
If he states I used the words Mike Porter was a victim of circumstance
he is a liar...point blank. I have never stated that to the police or
any other agency for that matter.
The second autopsy did show signs of sexual abuse, but no DNA was found.
That doesn't say that Raye wasn't using an object and hurting Kelsey
herself. I am not suggesting that is the case, the fact is we will never
know. I knew very little about the signs of sexual abuse before Kelsey
was murdered. I have since taken a class and done some research. If a
mother bathed her child and knew she was being watched for abuse she
should be looking for any and every sign possible. If that mother felt
it was the paternal family and they were no longer in the picture and
injuries kept happening then she should have looked in Porter's
direction or in the mirror.
As for the unauthorized visit with Raye Dawn. In our court papers it
states we can make up visits if necessary and agreeable to both parties.
Yes, it is true I wanted to inform Lance of Kelsey's condition myself. I
felt it would be better coming from family and not a stranger. Not long
after it was explained the legal reasons they needed it DHS was provided
with his contact information . In hindsight I realize I should have just
given it to them when we finally got it. In fact we did not have that
information for several days ourselves. Until you have a family member
in a war zone you have no way of knowing how you would have handled the
situation yourself. We have learned a lot of leasons through this
tragedy. If we could only do a few things differently now. Hindsight is
a valuable tool.
________________________________________Thank you,
Kathie
As further proof of who is deceptive and lied:
The following was posted by Acornhoek on our forum:
Under Briggs Family Statement
Shirica said, "The intent of the emails were to
lure him out by trying to gain his confidence and trust and then using
that to gain somekind of understanding into the mind of this murderer."
That both says the Briggs felt and feel MP is the murderer.
Interesting.............
There seems to have been much "luring" and "drawing out" too.
In an email to Michael Porter Shirica said, Sometimes there are things written
on the website or blog by us that may seem anti-Mike and she [Kathie]
does not want you to assume that automatically means any of us think
Mike is guilty of Murder, it is sometimes necessary to say such things
to try to get a reaction out of people to get them to talk, more
specifically, to draw out Raye and her family.
and in an email to Porter, Kathie said, I am sure you know who all I am
interested in, but mostly Gayla or any family member
I hope that I have clearly illustrated the fact that the false stories that are being told originated with a man who was building a defense for himself with the help of Kelsey's paternal family so that he would not have to face the death penalty. It saddens me when I see people repeating his version of the events as fact. If only those who choose to attack Raye and her supporters would take the time to review the available evidence and not made up stories before lighting their torches.
In the following logs, you will see what DHS was able to observe during supervised visits with Kelsey Smith-Briggs and her mom and her paternal grandmother.
According to these logs, Kelsey was lovable and cooperative while with Raye, but not while with her paternal grandmother. Please read:
If you have heard about this case but you have not yet looked into the other side of the story, please take the time to review the facts. They can be found on my blog, in my books listed below, and on Raye's Web sites at www.thetruthaboutkelsey.com and www.rayedawnsmith.com.
It's no secret that I've been a proponent of natural healing for several years. In 2004 I quit taking all of the medication that my doctors insisted I needed. I learned how to control the arthritis pain without numbing it and I learned how to eat to raise my blood sugar and keep it level. Since then, I have also learned how to use food to fight infections and boost my immune system. I'm constantly amazed at how many natural remedies we have available to us and they work far better than any fad juice, pill, or cream I've ever tested.
and "The Naked Truth Bound in Scorn" The Naked Truth Bound in Scorn
