SC - Christine Parcell 41, fatally stabbed by concert pianist, Greenville, 13 Oct 2021 *Arrest*

[StarryStarryNight]

I’ve read a lot over the years about how first impressions as well as “looks” matter in various aspects of life and this guy wins that part of the game. The dude just looks like Mr innocent all American.

Agree. Plus add in that he’s a concert pianist and he’s way down on anybody’s list for killers.

 

[caradana]

Fascinating case. Wonder if LE will send the phone to Cellebrite @ Israel. I would.

 

[scriabina]

More info seems to suggest that the victim Christina Parcell was involved in sexual exploitation of minors with her fiancee Post.

"A civil lawsuit against the estate of Christina Parcell and her fiancé, Bradly Post, accuses them of assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence and invasion of privacy that harmed a juvenile relative in Parcell's care.

"The lawsuit, filed on Aug. 23 by Allyson Southerland, the guardian ad litem of the juvenile, claims Parcell and Post engaged in illegal and sexually explicit acts for the purpose of exploiting the juvenile and that they disseminated sexually explicit videos and photographs of the juvenile for personal gain."

Article: Christina Parcell and her fiance accused of sexual exploitation

 

[Skigirl]

I guess it's possible, but anyone can bring a lawsuit. I want to see evidence.

 

[worm]

I guess it's possible, but anyone can bring a lawsuit. I want to see evidence.

Just the accusation can justify murder in some people’s minds. I’d like to see proof tho.

 

[evilwise]

Lots of people want to see that kind of "evidence" which is exactly why it gets suppressed - to protect the victim.

 

[StarryStarryNight]

I know a guardian ad litem is appointed to serve the best interest of a child, but I have never heard of one filing a civil lawsuit.
Is that allowed even?
That just seems outside the scope of their duties to me, but maybe I don’t understand all their duties.

 

[evilwise]

I know a guardian ad litem is appointed to serve the best interest of a child, but I have never heard of one filing a civil lawsuit.
Is that allowed even?
That just seems outside the scope of their duties to me, but maybe I don’t understand all their duties.

One might speculate that, since the prosecutor isn't filing any child abuse charges, the daughter might want to establish that it occurred while she believes it may help Hughes case (and hurting their murder case might be why the prosecutor is delaying the abuse charges against step-dad). One might even go on to speculate about how the daughter might see Hughes and the nature of their relationship.

This entire thing is probably very very messy

 

[StarryStarryNight]

One might speculate that, since the prosecutor isn't filing any child abuse charges, the daughter might want to establish that it occurred while she believes it may help Hughes case (and hurting their murder case might be why the prosecutor is delaying the abuse charges against step-dad). One might even go on to speculate about how the daughter might see Hughes and the nature of their relationship.

This entire thing is probably very very messy

So what you’re saying is this child is being manipulated by adults in an attempt to influence a criminal trial.
If that is so the civil suit should be thrown out immediately and this guardian ad litem kicked out and charges should be brought on those behind it.
It is very messy as you say, but this, in my opinion, should not be tolerated.

 

[momsof3]

I know a guardian ad litem is appointed to serve the best interest of a child, but I have never heard of one filing a civil lawsuit.
Is that allowed even?
That just seems outside the scope of their duties to me, but maybe I don’t understand all their duties.

They are appointed whenever an interest of a child needs protecting. The most common being child-abuse, foster care, adoption, divorce, child custody (family law) situations. Those are all civil, not criminal.

Here, I notice that the civil suit appears to have been filed by the guardian ad litem - at least that is what the article below says. While I understand why some want to see evidence, I will say (I'm an attorney) that a suit filed by a "non-interested" party, like a guardian ad litem, carries a lot more weight than one filed by, say, a minor's parents, who might have a whole slew of other motives.

The guardian ad litem is appointed by a court to be a neutral party whose only responsibility is to protect the interest of the child. The fact that this suit was filed against the estate by a court-appointed attorney leaves me feeling pretty sure there is good evidence as an attorney appointed by the court would be in some serious trouble (along with having no motive) if they filed such a claim without having evidence.

Greer woman and her fiancé accused of sexual exploitation, according to lawsuit

A civil lawsuit against a Greer woman's estate and her fiancé accuses them of assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, more.

www.greenvilleonline.com

ETA - to address @evilwise, there may be enough evidence for a civil trial (preponderance of the evidence) but not enough for a criminal case (beyond a reasonable doubt). Agreed, messy, messy.

 

[StarryStarryNight]

They are appointed whenever an interest of a child needs protecting. The most common being child-abuse, foster care, adoption, divorce, child custody (family law) situations. Those are all civil, not criminal.

Here, I notice that the civil suit appears to have been filed by the guardian ad litem - at least that is what the article below says. While I understand why some want to see evidence, I will say (I'm an attorney) that a suit filed by a "non-interested" party, like a guardian ad litem, carries a lot more weight than one filed by, say, a minor's parents, who might have a whole slew of other motives.

The guardian ad litem is appointed by a court to be a neutral party whose only responsibility is to protect the interest of the child. The fact that this suit was filed against the estate by a court-appointed attorney leaves me feeling pretty sure there is good evidence as an attorney appointed by the court would be in some serious trouble (along with having no motive) if they filed such a claim without having evidence.

Greer woman and her fiancé accused of sexual exploitation, according to lawsuit

A civil lawsuit against a Greer woman's estate and her fiancé accuses them of assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, more.

www.greenvilleonline.com

ETA - to address @evilwise, there may be enough evidence for a civil trial (preponderance of the evidence) but not enough for a criminal case (beyond a reasonable doubt). Agreed, messy, messy.

Thanks so much for this! I feel a little better about it all now.

 

[Skigirl]

Lots of people want to see that kind of "evidence" which is exactly why it gets suppressed - to protect the victim.

Ermn, it eventually comes out, that's how the justice system works. JMO.

 

[Skigirl]

They are appointed whenever an interest of a child needs protecting. The most common being child-abuse, foster care, adoption, divorce, child custody (family law) situations. Those are all civil, not criminal.

Here, I notice that the civil suit appears to have been filed by the guardian ad litem - at least that is what the article below says. While I understand why some want to see evidence, I will say (I'm an attorney) that a suit filed by a "non-interested" party, like a guardian ad litem, carries a lot more weight than one filed by, say, a minor's parents, who might have a whole slew of other motives.

The guardian ad litem is appointed by a court to be a neutral party whose only responsibility is to protect the interest of the child. The fact that this suit was filed against the estate by a court-appointed attorney leaves me feeling pretty sure there is good evidence as an attorney appointed by the court would be in some serious trouble (along with having no motive) if they filed such a claim without having evidence.

Greer woman and her fiancé accused of sexual exploitation, according to lawsuit

A civil lawsuit against a Greer woman's estate and her fiancé accuses them of assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, more.

www.greenvilleonline.com

ETA - to address @evilwise, there may be enough evidence for a civil trial (preponderance of the evidence) but not enough for a criminal case (beyond a reasonable doubt). Agreed, messy, messy.

I agree that this is extremely messy, especially since children are extremely, extremely susceptible to false memories. There are literally hundreds upon hundreds of studies showing it to be so. Perhaps there is physical evidence that the mom was involved, but again -- the standard of a preponderance of the evidence when the woman isn't here to defend herself does not give me a lot of confidence. What I wonder is if that's exactly the situation that was desired - she has been silenced and is unable to defend herself.

JMO, but my area of expertise when I was an academic researcher was human memory.

 

[abstr]

I thought that Officer selection was based on higher education level. I’m not sure how exactly it’s done.

In order to go to OTS or OCS (depending on the branch the name is slightly different) you much have a Bachelor's degree.

 

[evilwise]

So what you’re saying is this child is being manipulated by adults in an attempt to influence a criminal trial.
If that is so the civil suit should be thrown out immediately and this guardian ad litem kicked out and charges should be brought on those behind it.
It is very messy as you say, but this, in my opinion, should not be tolerated.

I'm saying I think it's likely the daughter has feelings for Hughes and/or just to be allowed to live with her dad and is insisting that she get to legally record her statements asap but it might also just be as simple as wanting her pound of flesh from her abuser

I agree that this is extremely messy, especially since children are extremely, extremely susceptible to false memories. There are literally hundreds upon hundreds of studies showing it to be so. Perhaps there is physical evidence that the mom was involved, but again -- the standard of a preponderance of the evidence when the woman isn't here to defend herself does not give me a lot of confidence. What I wonder is if that's exactly the situation that was desired - she has been silenced and is unable to defend herself.

JMO, but my area of expertise when I was an academic researcher was human memory.

At what age should a victim's testimony be considered credible, in your expert opinion? Because for the last ten years or so, courts have been taking victim testimony very, very seriously even without direct physical evidence.

 

[StarryStarryNight]

LE is investigating Parcell’s boyfriend’s ties to CSAM. All of that and any possible connection to her is going to come out. It may all be true but the lawsuit, at this time, just feels forced to me and a little sketchy.

 

[Deerrun]

foxcarolina has a report about what the state thinks that phone holds. No idea why my text is slanted, I must have hit something in error.

I just googled and found this recent report and came here.

So Mello and Hughes have a closer relationship than I first thought. Hughes cleaned his home and was on his visitors list in jail.

I believe LE wants Mello more than Hughes or at least as much. I believe LE would be more likely to give ZH a deal if he would cooperate but so far Hughes is standing firm. Admirable or stupid? I say the latter.

I have to catch up on the daughter. Is she still with the Aunt?? Will keep reading. Glad there's many of you still following.

 

[Deerrun]

@scriabina thanks for posting this article with your insight. I missed it and it helped answer questions I had regarding the minor(s)

Greer woman and her fiancé accused of sexual exploitation, according to lawsuit

A civil lawsuit against a Greer woman's estate and her fiancé accuses them of assault and battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress, more.

www.greenvilleonline.com

 

[worm]

Even tho upstate SC has a church on every corner, pervert crimes are anything but rare. I follow my local jail log and there’s always a collection of these offenses. However, if this pans out to have any truth I fully expect a defense will put the victim on trial. No matter how disgusted people are by these things, I hope we don’t get into considering revenge justice ok. If this lady was involved in these crimes then I hardly think the punishment fit with this brutal murder.

 

[Skigirl]

I'm saying I think it's likely the daughter has feelings for Hughes and/or just to be allowed to live with her dad and is insisting that she get to legally record her statements asap but it might also just be as simple as wanting her pound of flesh from her abuser


At what age should a victim's testimony be considered credible, in your expert opinion? Because for the last ten years or so, courts have been taking victim testimony very, very seriously even without direct physical evidence.

Childrens' testimony is very susceptible to the types of questions asked, by whom they are asked, what is said to them, etc. In my expert opinion (and it is more than an opinion, there are thousands of studies that bear this out), the frontal lobes are not fully developed until the early twenties, the frontal lobes are very important for human memory, memory is not always reliable in any age group, and is very dependent on the types of questions asked, what is suggested to the witness, etc. I will also note that the father absconded to another country with the child and who knows what was or was not said during that period away.

There are many expert witnesses that could be brought to bear on how accurate or inaccurate the information is, based on those factors. I do not know whether there is testimony from a child in this case, or how it was elicited, but I would guess none of us do. I simply note that the problem exists and that there are decades worth of research that bears that out.

Some example scholarly articles on the topic:

Emotional content of true and false memories - PubMed

Many people believe that emotional memories (including those that arise in therapy) are particularly likely to represent true events because of their emotional content. But is emotional content a reliable indicator of memory accuracy? The current research assessed the emotional content of...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Is there touch in the game of Twister? The effects of innocuous touch and suggestive questions on children's eyewitness memory - PubMed

Preschool children (ages 48-70 months, N = 48) experienced 2 to-be-remembered events (i.e., the games Twister and Shapes) that included either innocuous bodily touch or no touch. Participants were interviewed 7 days later and asked direct ("Did Amy kiss you?") or suggestive "tag" questions ("Amy...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Children's eyewitness reports after exposure to misinformation from parents - PubMed

This study examined how misleading suggestions from parents influenced children's eyewitness reports. Children (3 to 8 years old) participated in science demonstrations, listened to their parents read a story that described experienced and nonexperienced events, and subsequently discussed the...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The fallibility of memory in judicial processes: lessons from the past and their modern consequences - PubMed

The capability of adult and child witnesses to accurately recollect events from the past and provide reliable testimony has been hotly debated for more than 100 years. Prominent legal cases of the 1980s and 1990s sparked lengthy debates and important research questions surrounding the...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Memory distortion and false memory creation - PubMed

The 1990s have brought to public attention thousands of cases that began when a grown-up daughter or son walked into a therapist's office seeking help for depression, low self-esteem, or any of a number of life's problems. Many of these cases grew to involve memories of childhood sexual abuse...

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Creating false memories - PubMed

Creating false memories

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16483115/