Hide Article Text (OCR)
STATE AT A GLANCEMan indicted in slaying of two-year-old girlLUBBOCK, Texas (AP) —The man once entrusted to care for a 2-year-old girl has been charged with her death.Bobby Wayne Willard, 32, was indicted on charges of capital murder and injury to a child on Wednesday. Police arrested him after he reportedon Jan. 22 that Laquinda Dawnyale Calicuitt had an accident in the bathtub.Police documents indicate the girl, who is not his daughter, suffered sexual abuse. The indictment alleges she died of severe head injuries.Willard remained jailed Thursday on $1 million bond.Gloria Calicuitt, a 39-year-old Fort Worth woman, testified last week in a family court hearing that she allowed Willard and his wife to take Laquinda to relatives in Lame-sa, south of Lubbock.Calicuitt, who said she couldn’t afford to care for the toddler, accused Willard of refusing to give up the girl and demanding permanent custody.State law allows a possible death penalty for killings of children 6 years old or younger.Investigator: Routier didn’t deny murdersKERRVTLLE, Texas (AP) — Defense lawyers for Darlie Routier called their final witness Thursday in the Rowlett homemaker’s four-week-long capital murder trial.Austin psychiatrist Richard Coons, who never examinedMrs. Routier, testified that someone traumatized to the point of memory loss might be vulnerable during police questioning.“A person who is seeking to fill in the gaps might entertain what is suggested by a veteran detective,” Coons said under defense questioning.Closing arguments were expected to begin Friday.Prosecutors allege Mrs. Routier, now 27, used a kitchen butcher knife to attack 5-year-old Damon and 6-year-old Devon Routier, then slashed herself to cover the crime.But Mrs. Routier contends an intruder assaulted her and her boys before fleeing through the garage of the family’s suburban home near Dallas.Lawmaker: Protect truth in referencesAUSTIN (AP) — A bill hasbeen filed in the Texas Legislature that would protect an employer from liability when giving a bad job reference for an employee or ex-employee.Rep. Brian McCall, R-Plano, says the bill is needed because employers, fearful of being sued, often are reluctant to provide any more information than “name, rank and serial number” when giving a reference to a prospective employer.McCall’s bill would provide immunity from civil damages to an employer who gives a job reference unless the aggrieved employee or former employee proves the employer knew the information being provided was false.
Newspaper Details
Port Arthur News
Port Arthur, Texas, US
Fri, Jan 31, 1997
Page 4
Full Page
Clipped by
Jared T.
NA, NA 30 May 2023
Other Publications Near Port Arthur, Texas
Port Arthur Community Post
Port Arthur News Community Post
Port Arthur News
Port Arthur Daily News
