Deadly Charm: The Story of a Deaf Serial Killer

23. February 1985: The Riley Murder Trial

23 February 1985: The Riley Murder Trial There is no such thing as justice, in or out of court. Clarence Darrow Patrick McCullough, once again confined to the Anne Arundel County jail, awaited trial on first- and second-degree murder charges for the death of Clinton Riley. The trial, which began more than four years after Riley’s death, generated extensive press coverage from local and national newspapers , including the Washington Post, the Baltimore Sun, and the Annapolis Evening Capital. Throughout the hearing, the courtroom was filled with press and spectators. Riley’s widow and several of his friends were present, as was Brent Toleman, Patrick’s foster parent, along with some of Patrick’s friends and acquaintances. No one from Patrick’s family was present, except for his aging grandmother. Judge Raymond G. Thieme Jr., a highly respected Maryland jurist, presided over the case. Born in Baltimore, Judge Thieme had attended Loyola College and the University of Maryland Law School. He had served as assistant state’s attorney, and later as state’s attorney for Anne Arundel County, and as an associate Maryland district court judge. At the time of the 164 trial, he was circuit administrative judge for Maryland’s Fifth Judicial District, which encompassed Anne Arundel, Carroll, and Howard Counties. Judge Thieme, aware of the complex legal issues involved in the trial of a deaf defendant, took special care in handling the sensitive legal and human factors that might affect Patrick’s case. For example, three sign language interpreters were present and working throughout the trial: Carol Pace, who worked with the defense; John Ennis, who interpreted to Patrick the court testimony and also interpreted Patrick’s sign language into English for the judge and the court; and Richard White, who interpreted for the prosecution. Early in the prosecution’s case, Assistant State’s Attorney George Lantzas presented expert evidence indicating that Riley had been stabbed at least twice and bludgeoned with two different weapons. The cause of death was stated as a blow to the head. On the second day of the trial, the prosecution called its main witness, Marian Escalante. Patrick’s defense attorney, Stephen Harris, objected immediately to Marian’s right to testify . He argued that she was not fluent in sign language, that Patrick’s speech was often unintelligible, and that because he read at about a third-grade level, communication in writing between them was primitive and unreliable. Harris, knowing that Marian’s testimony would undermine Patrick’s plea of self-defense, made a strong case for it to be suppressed and not presented to the jury. Judge Thieme responded to Harris’s motion by sending the jury from the courtroom and listening to Marian’s testimony privately. She reported, “He wasn’t this Charles Manson who was screwy all the time. He could be so tender and loving. I didn’t think he was capable of murder—it seemed so farfetched .” Based on what he heard from her, the judge addressed what was to be the deciding issue in the trial, namely that she would be allowed to testify on the following day. Deadly Charm 165 166 McCay Vernon and Marie Vernon On day three of the trial, tensions ran high in the courtroom . Marian Escalante was about to take her oath and assume the witness chair when, without warning, Patrick rose dramatically from his seat next to his attorney and began a tearfilled confession. The courtroom interpreters struggled to translate his signed words, his garbled syntax, and his guttural speech, all masked by his deep sobbing. This translation was a gargantuan task, since sign language involves not just the hands, but the facial expressions and the entire body. But Patrick’s emotion was so intense and so vivid that even those in the courtroom who did not understand sign language felt his despair and grief. A wave of shock and pity swept over the spectators as they listened to Patrick’s remorseful confession, in which he repeated almost verbatim the information he had given Marian about his fight with Clint Riley. Asked to write a description of what he had done after he realized Riley was dead, Patrick gave the following written account: I looked at him and he not moving. Then I begin cry. I liked Clint, but he hurt me. Then I put body in van. I drive to woods near where my brother live in...