TN - Sherry Cooper, 36, murdered at her Johnson City home, 7 May 2009

[CCmakes3]

Police: Johnson City teen accused of murder, sexually abusing corpse killed mom over shopping trip (clothes for dance)


By Becky Campbell
Press Staff Writer
bcampbell@johnsoncitypress.com


Vivid details from the statement Codey Miller gave police about how he allegedly strangled his mother to death and later had sex with her corpse last year were part of a suppression hearing in Johnson City Juvenile Court on Thursday.

Miller, 18, told a police investigator he was mad at his mother because she had not bought him clothes for a school dance, and that’s what caused him to kill her.
....
“He told me he was pissed off at his mom because she didn’t want to go to Walmart,” to get the new clothes, Johnson City Police Investigator Joe Harrah testified.

He said Miller told him he went to the couch where his mother was lying, took off his belt, put it around her neck and cinched it tight.

“He said she started struggling and asked why he was doing this and he told her to hush,” Harrah said. After Cooper couldn’t talk anymore, she mouthed the word, “Why?” and Miller told her, “ ’Cause you pissed me off,” Harrah testified.

Harrah said Miller told him when his mother passed out he took the belt off her and put it back in his shorts and went back to bed.
.....

In the end, Juvenile Judge Sharon Green denied Kelly’s motion to suppress Miller’s statement.

“There is just no evidence before the court that would lead the court to believe there was coercive police activity,” Green said.

Green also denied a defense motion asking for bond to allow Miller to go live with his grandparents.


more here

http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/News/article.php?ID=73325

WHAT??? The grandparents actually WANT him??? They'd actually PAY MONEY to bond him out of jail & come live with them???

Wow....I guess they'd better be prepared to be overly-indulgent and give him whatever he wants, after what mom got for not hopping off the couch and taking his a$$ to Walmart. I'm glad bond was denied but I can't imagine what's going through the grandparents' heads!

 

[CCmakes3]

A friend might know his password and logged on. It happens all the time. But, I agree, he should NOT be out.

Good point, Missizzy....maybe he gave his lawyer the password so he could log on and change it to "private" so the prosecution can't look at it.

 

[Linda7NJ]

WHAT??? The grandparents actually WANT him??? They'd actually PAY MONEY to bond him out of jail & come live with them???

Wow....I guess they'd better be prepared to be overly-indulgent and give him whatever he wants, after what mom got for not hopping off the couch and taking his a$$ to Walmart. I'm glad bond was denied but I can't imagine what's going through the grandparents' heads!

It was the other guy...and the other guy planted his DNA! Or maybe they think if they just love him enough they can fix him.

 

[CCmakes3]

It was the other guy...and the other guy planted his DNA! Or maybe they think if they just love him enough they can fix him.

I'd be curious to know if that's a common consensus among family and friends....has anyone spoken out in his defense? I saw a comment on one of the linked articles saying something like if people knew the situation in this home, they wouldn't be surprised that this happened. That seemed an odd comment to me....shouldn't matricide and necrophilia always come as a surprise in civilized society, regardless of family dynamics??

 

[believe09]

I'd be curious to know if that's a common consensus among family and friends....has anyone spoken out in his defense? I saw a comment on one of the linked articles saying something like if people knew the situation in this home, they wouldn't be surprised that this happened. That seemed an odd comment to me....shouldn't matricide and necrophilia always come as a surprise in civilized society, regardless of family dynamics??

You may not have meant this as funny, but I had to laugh...yes necrophilia and matricide should be a surprise. The fact that the child put her in a garbage can and wheeled her out the door should be a shock, as I am sure it was to the arresting officers.

 

[kbl8201]

im sure if ted bundy had a myspace page he wouldnt have made himself look bad either.

there is no way they can try this kid as a juvenile...........basically he'd get 2 yars in juvy hall. try him as an adult and throw away the key.

 

[oceanblueeyes]

What is bone chilling to me is the trivial stupid motives why these youthful offenders kill their family members. It is scary as hell because it takes nothing to set them off and into a murderous rage.

imo

 

[CCmakes3]

http://www.timesnews.net/article.php?id=9013774

There are a couple of comments on this article that have a distinct tone of "blaming the victim:"

"Does anyone think he was actually born with the intentions to do what he did? Yes this was a horrible act but remember, there are two sides to every story. What happened to provoke the child to do what he did?"

and this one:

"From what I understand from those around this case there is a great deal the public doesn't know about this case and it's background. As horrible as this act is there were many many factors leading in this direction. The entire situation taken in its entirety is truly sad. There are many who are sickened, as I am, but not surprised."

I just find these comments so disturbing, particularly the first one, which makes a point of referring to this freak as a "child." I almost had to laugh when I read the phrase "there are two sides to every story." WTH????? Even if the mother was so abusive that the "child" felt he had no choice but to kill her, he certainly didn't have to gratify himself with her corpse after the fact!

And as for the second commenter, who seems to imply that he knows something about this family and was "not surprised".....can you imagine hearing this gruesome tale about anyone you know and thinking, "Oh yeah, I saw that coming!" WTF are these idiots talking about??? It would be laughable if it weren't so profoundly disturbing!

 

[CCmakes3]

I am wondering if her son and the 36 year old were lovers?

To be honest, this thought crossed my mind too. I also wondered if it might be a drug dealer/buyer relationship. Maybe he sold the kid some "bad $hit" that may have fueled this abhorrant behavior, and helped him dispose of the body because he felt partially responsible.

 

[Lovejac]

http://www.tricities.com/news/article_056e79ec-95a5-56cd-b8f3-f79dfc8fded7.html?mode=jqm

A teen accused of killing his mother and then having sex with her dead body is now in adult jail. According to Johnson City Juvenile Court Administrator Diane Cupp, police moved Codey Miller from the Juvenile Detention Center to the Washington County Detention Center Thursday. Miller turned 18 earlier in the week.

According to Johnson City police, Miller killed his mother Sherry Cooper in May 2009. Although the teen is now in adult jail, he won’t find out whether or not he will be tried as an adult until March 11th when he is due back in juvenile

 

[Lovejac]

still trying to find information about his trial

A key piece of evidence was thrown out of a Johnson City teenager’s first-degree murder case because a judge essentially said he was bullied into confessing he killed his mother.

Read more: Judge tosses confession from teen accused of killing mom, having sex with corpse | Johnson City Press http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/article/96320#ixzz2wl0k0Exo
Follow us: @JCPress on Twitter | JohnsonCityPress on Facebook

 

[colette]

No trial, charges dismissed.
All charges against Miller — felony murder, first-degree murder and abuse of a corpse — were dismissed by Assistant District Attorney Dennis Brooks. Miller had been free on $100,000 bond since December 2011 and was accused of killing his mother, 36-year-old Sherry Cooper in May 2009. But as the case progressed through the system, Brooks said he became less and less confident about being able to obtain a conviction.

Really good article. There was another person involved, the co-defendant who had some issues:
The allegations from Shelby County involved a female who was living with him, sleeping on a blowup mattress in the living room who woke up and her hands were taped up and tied with rope, Brooks said.

So if he would do that, maybe he was the real killer? Weird case.

http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/art...used-of-killing-mother-having-sex-with-corpse

 

[Lovejac]

No trial, charges dismissed.
All charges against Miller — felony murder, first-degree murder and abuse of a corpse — were dismissed by Assistant District Attorney Dennis Brooks. Miller had been free on $100,000 bond since December 2011 and was accused of killing his mother, 36-year-old Sherry Cooper in May 2009. But as the case progressed through the system, Brooks said he became less and less confident about being able to obtain a conviction.

Really good article. There was another person involved, the co-defendant who had some issues:
The allegations from Shelby County involved a female who was living with him, sleeping on a blowup mattress in the living room who woke up and her hands were taped up and tied with rope, Brooks said.

So if he would do that, maybe he was the real killer? Weird case.


http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/art...used-of-killing-mother-having-sex-with-corpse

WOW! Thanks for finding this and posting. I'm off to read........

 

[jellybeanz]

No trial, charges dismissed.
All charges against Miller — felony murder, first-degree murder and abuse of a corpse — were dismissed by Assistant District Attorney Dennis Brooks. Miller had been free on $100,000 bond since December 2011 and was accused of killing his mother, 36-year-old Sherry Cooper in May 2009. But as the case progressed through the system, Brooks said he became less and less confident about being able to obtain a conviction.

Really good article. There was another person involved, the co-defendant who had some issues:
The allegations from Shelby County involved a female who was living with him, sleeping on a blowup mattress in the living room who woke up and her hands were taped up and tied with rope, Brooks said.

So if he would do that, maybe he was the real killer? Weird case.

http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/art...used-of-killing-mother-having-sex-with-corpse

So this guy confessed in police custody but the Judge deemed it excessive questioning, so threw it out?

I would hope that police interview in its entirety is available for anyone who wants to see it.

 

[Linda7NJ]

No trial, charges dismissed.

All charges against Miller — felony murder, first-degree murder and abuse of a corpse — were dismissed by Assistant District Attorney Dennis Brooks. Miller had been free on $100,000 bond since December 2011 and was accused of killing his mother, 36-year-old Sherry Cooper in May 2009. But as the case progressed through the system, Brooks said he became less and less confident about being able to obtain a conviction.



Really good article. There was another person involved, the co-defendant who had some issues:

The allegations from Shelby County involved a female who was living with him, sleeping on a blowup mattress in the living room who woke up and her hands were taped up and tied with rope, Brooks said.



So if he would do that, maybe he was the real killer? Weird case.



http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/art...used-of-killing-mother-having-sex-with-corpse

How scary!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[colette]

So this guy confessed in police custody but the Judge deemed it excessive questioning, so threw it out?

I would hope that police interview in its entirety is available for anyone who wants to see it.

“I’ve never seen an interrogation like this in all my years as a judge or as an attorney. There is no human being in the world who can read this statement and know what Codey Miller’s involvement is,” Cupp said.

“It’s like two 10-year-olds arguing over a toy,” Cupp said at one point.
“It’s absolutely incredible to me. It’s mind boggling when I see that exchange,” he said.
Harrah repeatedly accused Miller of lying and told him “you shift your eyes, that’s a sign you’re lying.”
Miller told the investigator over and over that “I just want to go home. When can I go home?”
Harrah told Miller he could leave if he told the truth, to which the teen said he was telling the truth.

Cupp said he also relied on mental and educational evaluations of Miller that showed he has borderline mental retardation.

Read more: Judge tosses confession from teen accused of killing mom, having sex with corpse | Johnson City Press http://www.johnsoncitypress.com/article/96320#ixzz2woBm9HHs
Follow us: @JCPress on Twitter | JohnsonCityPress on Facebook

 

[wendybtn]

But little boys generally do not grow up with respect for women when they are raised w/o a father and watch mom go through guys, year in, year out. JMO.