Guilty plea to killing woman, her fetus and kids
Deal means Tiffany Hall, 26, will avoid execution,
serve life without parole
Associated Press
June 9, 2008
BELLEVILLE,
Ill. — A woman pleaded guilty Monday to killing her pregnant
friend, the unborn child and the victim's three children in a plea
deal that allowed her to avoid the death penalty.
Tiffany Hall, 26,
pleaded guilty to all five charges against her — four counts of murder
and one count of intentional homicide in the death of the fetus — and
was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Hall struck her
friend Jimella Tunstall, 23, on the head repeatedly with a table leg,
then cut Tunstall's fetus from her womb in a bathtub, prosecutor
Robert Haida said. Tunstall bled to death, Haida said. Hall then
dumped her friend's body in an East St. Louis lot.
Hours later, Hall
told police in Illinois she had given birth to a stillborn child. When
police arrived, she had the dead fetus with her. She refused to be
examined at a hospital.
Three days later,
Hall visited the father of two of Tunstall's children and the unborn
child, Haida said. The father was caring for all the children, Haida
said. Hall told the father that Tunstall wanted her to pick up the
children and Tunstall's vehicle, he told police.
The father told
the officers that was the last time he saw his children, Haida said.
Hall then drowned
the three children — DeMond Tunstall, 7, Ivan Tunstall-Collins 2, and
Jinella Tunstall, 1 — in the same bathtub where she killed their
mother, Haida said.
Story begins to unravel
Authorities said
Hall's story began to unravel on Sept. 21, 2006, about a week after
Tunstall's death, when she told her boyfriend that she killed a
pregnant woman and stole the fetus. He told police.
The bodies of the
three children were found two days later hidden in a washer and dryer
inside the East St. Louis apartment where the children had lived with
their mother.
One of Hall's
attorneys, James Gomric, said he could not speak to a motive or
discuss whether his client had shown remorse. He said Hall had been
mentally fit to stand trial, but she also had unresolved mental health
issues and had an IQ in the mid-70s.
After the
hearing, some of Tunstall's relatives said they had already forgiven
Hall. Sandra Myers, Jimella Tunstall's mother, said taking one life
would not have been justice for losing the lives of others. "I have to
forgive her," she said.
Fetus Thief Pleads Guilty, Dodges Death Penalty
By Charles Montaldo - Crime.about.com
June 9, 2008
An Illinois woman facing two death penalty charges
for killing her pregnant friend, her unborn child and the victim's
three children has entered a guilty plea in a deal that allows her to
avoid the death penalty. Tiffany Hall was sentenced to life in prison
without the possibility of parole.
Hall, 26, pleaded guilty to four counts of murder
and one count of intentional homicide, in the death of the unborn
child of Jimella Tunstall.
Prosecutors said Hall repeatedly struck the
23-year-old Tunstall over the head with a table leg and then cut the
fetus from her womb in a bathtub. Tunstall's autopsy showed that she
bled to death.
Hall dumped Tunstall's body in a vacant lot in East
St. Louis. A few hours later, Hall told Illinois police that she had
given birth to a stillborn child, but she refused to be examined at a
hospital.
Drowned the Three Children
Three days later, Hall told the father of
Tunstall's children that Tunstall wanted her to pick up the children
and Tunstall's car, according to prosecutor Robert Haida. Hall then
drowned the three children in the same bathroom where she killed
Tunstall. She hid their dead bodies in a washer and dryer in the
apartment.
The victims were DeMond Tunstall, 7; Ivan
Tunstall-Collins 2; and Jinella Tunstall, 1.
About a week after Tunstall's death, Hall was
arrested after she admitted to her boyfriend that she had killed her
pregnant friend to steal her unborn baby and the boyfriend contacted
police.
James Gomric, an attorney for Hall, told reporters
that Hall had been found competent to stand trial, but she had an IQ
in the 70s. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that no one who is
mentally retarded can be executed.
Multiple murder case may be resolved
By Nicholas J.C. Pistor - St. Louis Post-Dispatch
June 6, 2008
BELLEVILLE -- The case against Tiffany Hall, the
East St. Louis woman facing the death penalty for an alleged rampage
that killed her best friend, the friend's fetus and three children,
could come to an abrupt end on Monday.
A court hearing in the case is set for Monday
morning. Robert Haida, the St. Clair County state’s attorney, issued a
statement late this afternoon saying there was an "anticipated
disposition" in the case.
Friday’s announcement signals that the death
penalty may be taken off the table in exchange for a plea deal. Of
course, guilty pleas in death penalty cases are rare.
However, Haida would not comment on the case
outside of his written statement.
In 2006, authorities allege, Hall beat the pregnant
Jimella Tunstall over the head and used scissors to cut her fetus from
her womb. She then left the mother of three to bleed to death in a
bathtub, wrapped her in a shower curtain and dropped her in a weeded
East St. Louis lot.
Several days later, Hall allegedly drowned
Tunstall’s three children in the same bathtub, one by one.
"It’s time to take a bath," Hall called out to the
children before the killings, according to police.
The slain children, who were stuffed into the
washer and dryer of Tunstall's home, were DeMond Tunstall, 7; Ivan
Tunstall-Collins, 2; and 10-month-old Jinella Tunstall. Hall was their
baby sitter and was supposed to be their mother’s best friend.
James Gomric, Hall’s defense attorney, declined to
comment on the case today.
Tiffany Hall Faces 2nd Death Penalty Charge
By Charles Montaldo - Crime.about.com
August 17, 2007
An Illinois woman who already faced the death
penalty for the murder of Jimella Tunstall and her unborn baby is now
facing another death penalty trial for the murder of Tunstall's three
children. Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for Tiffany Hall,
who is accused of drugging the three children with cough syrup,
drowning them and putting them into a washer and dryer.
Hall, 25, was already facing the death penalty for
hitting Tunstall over the head in September 2006, using scissors to
cut the fetus from her womb, wrapping her in a shower curtain and
dumping her body in a vacant lot.
Investigators say Hall was Tunstall's best friend
and her children's babysitter. Several days after killing Tunstall,
Hall told the children it was time to take a bath and drowned them one
at a time in the same bathtub.
According to court records, Hall tried to claim
Tunstall's dead fetus was her own child and made funeral arrangements
for the baby. Her boyfriend came home from the Navy to attend the
services. It was then Hall told her boyfriend that the baby was not
hers.
The boyfriend told police, setting off an
investigation that turned up the body of Tunstall and later the bodies
of the three children in Tunstall's clothes washer and dryer.
A grand jury indicted Hall in October for the
murder of Tunstall and her fetus. She was indicted in April for the
deaths of DeMond Tunstall, 7; Ivan Tunstall-Collins, 2; and Jinella
Tunstall, 10 months. Prosecutors delayed the indictment for the murder
of the children in order to collect more evidence.
Babysitter
Charged With Drowning 3 Kids in Bathtub, Hiding Them in Washing
Machine
FoxNews.com
Friday, April 20,
2007
BELLEVILLE, Ill.
— A baby sitter already accused of killing a pregnant friend was
charged Friday with drowning the woman's three children in a bath tub
and then hiding the bodies in the family's washing machine and dryer.
Grand jurors
indicted Tiffany Hall, 24, on three counts of first-degree murder in
the East St. Louis deaths last September of DeMond Tunstall, 7, Ivan
Tunstall-Collins, 2, and Jinela Tunstall, 1.
Hall admitted she
drowned Ivan Tunstall-Collins and Jinela Tunstall, then found their
brother, DeMond Tunstall, Illinois State Police investigator David
Bivens testified during a coroner's inquest last week.
"She told DeMond
it was time to take a bath, and she drowned him, too," Bivens said.
A coroner's jury
ruled the deaths of the children, their mother, Jimella Tunstall, and
her fetus to be homicides.
Hall, already
charged in the deaths of Tunstall and her fetus, could face the death
penalty if convicted. She has pleaded not guilty in those deaths and
remained jailed Friday on $5 million bond.
During the
coroner's inquest last week, Bivens testified that Hall admitted
beating the pregnant Tunstall over the head with a table leg, then
cutting her fetus from the womb in a bathtub, where she later drowned
Tunstall's three children.
"The senseless
taking of the lives of defenseless children must be answered with
appropriate punishment," St. Clair County's State's Attorney Robert
Haida said Friday.
Panel rules homicide in fetus slaying
By
Jim Suhr, Associated Press Writer - USAToday.com
April 11, 2007
BELLEVILLE, Ill. — A baby sitter charged with
murder clubbed a pregnant woman in the head repeatedly with a table
leg, then cut her fetus from the womb in a bathtub where she later
drowned the victim's three young children, an investigator testified
Wednesday.
The grisly details in the
September slayings of Jimella Tunstall and her family were revealed at
a hearing where a coroner's jury, after a few minutes of
deliberations, concluded the deaths were homicides.
Tiffany Hall, 24, has been
charged with first-degree murder and faces a possible death sentence
in the death of Tunstall and with intentional homicide of an unborn
child — Tunstall's 7-month-old fetus.
She has pleaded not guilty and
remains jailed on $5 million bond. She has not been charged in the
drownings of the children, ages 7, 2 and 1, although authorities have
said she confessed and led them to the bodies. Prosecutor Robert Haida
has said those deaths eventually will be presented to a grand jury for
possible charges.
Illinois State Police
investigator David Bivens told the coroner's jury that Hall "had been
thinking about taking the baby for some time" from Tunstall before
going through with it.
Bivens said Hall confessed on
videotape that she hit Tunstall twice over the head with a table leg
in Hall's mother's East St. Louis house Sept. 15, then bound the
woman's hands and feet with duct tape.
When Tunstall tried to wriggle
free, Bivens said, Hall hit her again and taped the woman's mouth shut
before apparently dragging the unconscious woman to the bathtub. Hall
used a scissor-like implement to cut open the woman's womb and remove
the fetus, Bivens said. The coroner's jury ruled Tunstall bled to
death.
The body of Tunstall was first
hidden by Hall in a plastic container in the basement, then dragged
outside into high weeds behind the house where it was found, Bivens
said.
Later that day, Bivens said,
Hall summoned police to an East St. Louis park — just blocks from
where Tunstall's body later was found — saying she had given birth to
a stillborn child after she said she had been sexually attacked in St.
Louis.
At a hospital, Bivens said,
Hall refused to let doctors examine her.
Tunstall's body had not been
found by Sept. 18, when her children were last seen alive with Hall.
According to Bivens, Hall
admitted she drowned 2-year-old Ivan Tunstall-Collins and 1-year-old
Jinela Tunstall in the same bathtub where their mother had been slain,
then found their 7-year-old brother, DeMond Tunstall.
"She told DeMond it was time to
take a bath, and she drowned him, too," Bivens said.
During the baby's Sept. 21
funeral, Bivens testified, Hall confessed to her boyfriend that the
baby wasn't his and that she had killed the mother to get it. The
boyfriend notified police, who found Tunstall's body and arrested
Hall.
The bodies of the children were
found in the washer and dryer of Tunstall's apartment, after Hall
reportedly directed police there. They had searched the apartment
earlier but did not look in the washer and dryer.
A relative of Tunstall's told
reporters through tears after Bivens' testimony that she feels sorry
for Hall and does not believe the death penalty should be in play.
"I just think she should be in
prison the rest of her life to think about what she did," said Regina
Kizer, a cousin of Tunstall's. "God's gonna have the upper hand."
A message seeking comment was
left Wednesday with James Gomric, one of Hall's attorneys. Hall was
not in the courtroom Wednesday.
Death Penalty Sought in Fetus Theft
By
Jim Suhr, Associated Press Writer
Thursday, February 01, 2007
BELLEVILLE, Ill. —
A prosecutor said Thursday he will seek the death penalty against a
woman accused of cutting a fetus from a friend's womb, killing both.
Authorities say Tiffany Hall, 24,
also confessed to killing her friend's three children, and St. Clair
County State's Attorney Robert Haida said he is preparing a case on
those deaths for a grand jury.
Hall is charged with first-degree
murder in the September death of 23-year-old Jimella Tunstall and of
intentional homicide of an unborn child _ Tunstall's fetus, which was
at 7 months' gestation. Authorities have not publicly discussed a
motive, and Hall has pleaded not guilty.
Tunstall's children _ ages 7, 2
and 1 _ were drowned and their bodies found in a washer and dryer at
their family's apartment in East St. Louis two days after their
mother's body turned up in a weedy lot. Hall has not been charged in
those deaths.
Haida wouldn't say exactly when he
plans to present the drownings case to the grand jury. He has declined
publicly to name Hall as a suspect in those deaths.
But investigators have said Hall,
who used to baby-sit for the children, admitted to drowning them.
In the killings of Tunstall and
her fetus, Haida called the death penalty "the appropriate course of
action." The slayings, he said, were "cold, calculated and
premeditated."
"Any time you're talking about the
ultimate punishment, it's something we take very seriously," Haida
said.
Illinois executions have been at a
standstill since 2000, when then-Gov. George Ryan imposed a moratorium
on capital punishment. Gov. Rod Blagojevich has kept the moratorium in
place.
(SUBS graf 6 to correct that
investigators have said Hall admitted to drowning children, sted Haida
said.)
Woman Charged in Murder of
Mother, Fetus
By Charles Montaldo -
Crime.about.com
September 25, 2006
A 24-year-old Illinois woman was charged Saturday
with first-degree murder in the deaths of her pregnant friend and the
unborn child police believe that she cut from the slain woman's womb.
Late Saturday, authorities found the bodies of the slain mother's
three other children in a washer and dryer in a housing project
apartment.
Tiffany Hall was charged with the death of her
long-time friend, Jimella Tunstall, 23. The two grew up together and
attended the same schools. Hall frequently baby-sat Tunstall's
children, relatives said.
Police first became involved in the case when Hall
told police in Frank Holten Park in East St. Louis that she had gone
into labor and gave birth to a stillborn child. At the hospital, the
baby showed now signs of trauma and Hall would not let doctors examine
her. A later autopsy failed to determine a cause of death for the
baby.
A funeral was held for the baby Thursday at which
Hall confessed to her boyfriend that she had killed the baby's mother.
She was arrested after he reported the confession to police.
An autopsy of
Tunstall revealed that she bled to death from a abdominal wound caused
by what the coroner believed was scissors. Investigators believe that
the seven-months-pregnant Tunstall was knocked unconscious before her
fetus was removed from her womb.
The arrest of Hall prompted an intensive search for
Tunstall's other children -- DeMond Tunstall, 7, Ivan
Tunstall-Collins, 2, and Jinela Tunstall, 1 -- who were last seen with
Tiffany Hall.
Two days after beginning the citywide search for
the missing children, police received a tip and found their bodies at
the John DeShields public housing complex.
Hall is being held on $5 million bail. No one has
been charged yet in the deaths of the three children.
UPDATE: Authorities said that Tiffany Hall
has confessed to drowning the three children of her best friend
Jimella Tunstall, returning them to their apartment complex and hiding
their bodies in a washer and dryer. An autopsy confirmed the children
were drowned.
Kids of woman slain in fetus
theft found dead
3 children went missing after mom,
fetus found slain; baby sitter charged
Msnbc.msn.com
September 24, 2006
EAST ST.
LOUIS, Ill. — Three young children were found dead Saturday,
hours after a woman was charged with killing their pregnant mother and
her fetus in a grisly attack in which her womb was cut open,
authorities said.
The two boys,
ages 7 and 2, and their 1-year-old sister were found together in an
apartment in the East St. Louis public housing complex where their
mother lived, Illinois State Police Capt. Craig Koehler said.
The kids were
last seen Monday with family friend Tiffany Hall, 24, now charged with
first-degree murder in the death of their mother. Hall is also charged
with intentional homicide of an unborn child, said St. Clair County
State’s Attorney Robert Haida.
Not charged in kids’ deaths
Koehler declined
to say whether Hall was suspected in the children’s deaths. The cause
of their deaths had not been determined and autopsies would be
performed Sunday, he said.
The body of their
mother, Jimella Tunstall, 23, was found last week in a weedy East St.
Louis lot.
An autopsy showed
Tunstall bled to death after sustaining an abdominal wound caused by a
sharp object, believed to be scissors, said Ace Hart, a deputy St.
Clair County coroner.
Hart said he
believes Tunstall, who was seven months pregnant, was knocked
unconscious before her fetus was removed during a slaying he called
“very graphic and very brutal."
‘A very emotional time’
Hall, jailed on
$5 million bond, will likely be arraigned Monday on the two charges,
each carrying a 20 to 60 years or life in prison, Haida said. The
murder count could be punishable by the death penalty.
The bodies of
DeMond Tunstall, 7, Ivan Tunstall-Collins, 2, and Jinela Tunstall, 1,
were found in an apartment at the John DeShields public housing
complex.
Authorities said
a lead directed them to check the apartment, which had not been
searched previously. They declined to release more information.
“Anytime you have
three deceased children, it’s a very emotional time,” Koehler said
late Saturday as he fought back tears. “All these investigators have
worked tirelessly with one outcome in mind — to find these children
alive."
Officials suspect
Tunstall was slain on or about Sept. 15, Haida said.
The same day,
Hall summoned police to the Frank Holten park, saying she had gone
into labor, Hart said. The dead baby, taken to a hospital, showed no
signs of trauma, and an autopsy the next day failed to pinpoint a
cause of death, he said.
Conflicting stories about
baby
Hall would not
let doctors at the hospital examine her and offered conflicting
reasons for why she went into labor, alternately saying she had
consensual sex and was raped, Hart said.
Authorities say
Hall acknowledged to her boyfriend during the baby’s funeral Thursday
that the child wasn’t his, and that she had killed the mother to get
it. The boyfriend, reportedly a sailor home on leave, told police, who
arrested his girlfriend hours later, investigators said.
DNA tests should
determine definitively whether the baby was the one Tunstall was
carrying, Hart said.
The baby was
buried Thursday as Taylor Horn after a funeral arranged by L. King
Funeral Chapel, whose president said Hall called minutes after the
service was to start, asking if she could reschedule for a different
day so more relatives could attend. At the time, Levi King said, only
two relatives were there.
The woman showed
up two hours late, ultimately signing an affidavit for the funeral
home stating that the child was hers, King said.
The East St.
Louis case is the second recent case in the area involving babies.
Shannon Torrez,
36, of Lonedell, Mo. — south of St. Louis, about an hour’s drive from
here — is accused of slashing a young mother’s throat and kidnapping
her baby on Sept. 15. The baby was returned unharmed Tuesday, the same
day Torrez was arrested.
Also in Missouri,
Lisa Montgomery will stand trial April 30 on charges of snatching a
baby from the womb of Bobbie Jo Stinnett at her Skidmore, Mo., home in
2004. The baby survived.
Police Charge Illinois Woman
With Killing Mother, Cutting Out Her Fetus
Saturday, September
23, 2006
Associated Press
EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. — A
woman was charged Saturday in the deaths of a pregnant friend and the
fetus authorities believe she cut out from the slain woman's womb
after knocking the victim unconscious.
Tiffany Hall, 24, was
charged as authorities implored the public for help in their search
for the victim's two sons, ages 7 and 2, and 1-year-old daughter.
Authorities say they were last seen with Hall on Monday, three days
before she was taken into custody.
Hall, who was jailed on $5
million bond, faces charges of first-degree murder and intentional
homicide of an unborn child in the death of 23-year-old Jimella
Tunstall, said St. Clair County State's Attorney Robert Haida.
Relatives of both women
told media outlets the two grew up together and attended alternative
schools. The woman in custody often baby-sat Tunstall's children, and
Tunstall never expressed worry about leaving them in her care, the St.
Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
An autopsy showed Tunstall
bled to death after sustaining an abdominal wound caused by a sharp
object, believed to be scissors, said Ace Hart, a deputy St. Clair
County coroner.
Hart said he believes
Tunstall was knocked unconscious before her baby, seven months into
gestation, was removed during a slaying he called "very graphic and
very brutal."
Officials were optimistic
about the prospects of finding the children unharmed. Illinois State
Police Capt. Craig Koehler said authorities will not end the search
until the children are found.
"We have no evidence that
leads us to believe they're dead," he said, adding two or three
additional sites will be searched in and around East St. Louis on
Sunday.
"These children are from
East St. Louis," said Police Chief James Mister. "They know how to
survive."
Koehler and Mister refused
to publicly discuss the evidence or possible statements Hall has made
to investigators. Authorities have also refused to reveal how the
women knew each other, or whether Hall's alleged confession came
before Tunstall's body was found.
Hall will likely be
arraigned Monday on the charges, each carrying a 20 to 60 years or
life in prison, Haida said. The murder count could be punishable by
the death penalty.
"It's way too early to
talk about that," Haida said. "Obviously, it's a very devastating
situation for the families, but we're hopeful for a positive outcome
in the return of the three children."
The charges came a day
after a meticulous scouring of the 1,100-acre Frank Holten State Park,
just blocks from where Tunstall's body was found. Investigators would
not say what led them to believe the children were there.
Officials suspect Tunstall
was slain on or about Sept. 15, Haida said.
The same day, Hall
summoned police to the Frank Holten park, saying she had gone into
labor, Hart said. The dead baby, taken to a hospital, showed no signs
of trauma, and an autopsy the next day failed to pinpoint a cause of
death, he said.
Hall would not let doctors
at the hospital examine her and offered conflicting reasons for why
she went into labor, alternately saying she had consensual sex and was
raped, Hart said.
Authorities say Hall
acknowledged to her boyfriend during the baby's funeral Thursday that
the child wasn't his, and that she killed the mother. The boyfriend
told police, who arrested his girlfriend hours later, investigators
said.
DNA tests should determine
definitively whether the baby was the one Tunstall was carrying, Hart
said.
The baby was buried
Thursday as Taylor Horn after a funeral arranged by L. King Funeral
Chapel, whose president said Hall called minutes after the service was
to start, asking if she could reschedule for a different day so more
relatives could attend. At the time, Levi King said, only two
relatives were there.
The woman showed up two
hours late, ultimately signing an affidavit for the funeral home
stating that the child was hers, King said.
The East St. Louis case is
the second recent case in the area involving babies.
Shannon Torrez, 36, of
Lonedell, Mo. — south of St. Louis, about an hour's drive from here —
is accused of slashing a young mother's throat and kidnapping her baby
on Sept. 15. The baby was returned unharmed Tuesday, the same day
Torrez was arrested.
Also in Missouri, Lisa
Montgomery will stand trial April 30 on charges of snatching a baby
from the womb of Bobbie Jo Stinnett at her Skidmore, Mo., home in
2004. The baby survived.
