Prosecutors in California reportedly are investigating
whether two lawyers, charged in an unusual murder, sexually
abused the dogs which killed their neighbor. The story came out
only days after controversial Princeton University bioethicist
and euthanasia advocate Peter Singer caused a stir with an
Internet magazine article suggesting a rethinking of the taboo
on sex between man and beast.
Majorie Knoller and Robert Noel are charged in connection with
the dog-mauling death of their neighbor. Prosecutors allege they
let their new-breed mastiffs loose to pounce on 98-pound Diane
Whipple and bite her to death.
The dogs are of a new breed, the Presa Canario, that combines
the bone-breaking bite of a pit bull with the bigger frame of a
mastiff. In court papers filed in San Francisco, Knoller and
Noel are said to be under investigation for having sex with the
dogs.
An affidavit from a guard at the prison holding the lawyers'
adoptive son said officers seized legal mail that discusses
"sexual activity between Noel, Knoller and the dog Bane," which
was exterminated soon after its leading role in the slaying of
Whipple. The prison guard also reported that he "discovered
communications between Noel and Knoller and (the imprisoned son)
that described sexual activities ... and included photos and
drawings of dogs."
Case Updates
Owner of killer dog to be released
By Kim Curtis
Associated Press
San Jose (California) Mercury News, Local News, page 3B
September 11, 2003
The man reviled for blaming dog mauling victim Diane Whipple
for her own death is expected to be released from prison
Friday after serving little more than half his four-year
sentence, but he won't be returning to San Francisco.
Robert Noel, whose behavior was called "despicable'' by the
judge who sentenced him to prison, had been sentenced to
four years for involuntary manslaughter in the 2001 death of
neighbor Whipple.
He and his wife, Marjorie Knoller, were convicted in March
2002. Whipple, 33, was attacked in the hallway of their
apartment building by the couple's two mammoth Presa
Canarios.
Noel suggested Whipple brought the attack on herself by
taking steroids or wearing perfume that attracted the dogs.
Knoller said Whipple could have avoided injury simply by
shutting her apartment door.
The trial judge was outraged by the couple's behavior.
"Their conduct from the time they got the dogs to the weeks
after Diane Whipple's death was despicable," Superior Court
Judge James Warren said, calling the dogs "a canine time
bomb that would, at some inevitable time, explode with
disastrous consequences".
Knoller, 48, has refused to work during her incarceration at
Valley State Prison for Women in Chowchilla, and won't be
released until early March, the San Francisco District
Attorney's ofice said Wednesday.
Knoller originally was convicted of second-degree murder but
that conviction was tossed out by a judge. She also received
a four-year sentence for involuntary manslaughter.
Noel, 62, who served most of his sentence in Oregon because
of his past experience as a lawyer representing inmates and
prison guards in California, was transferred last week to
High Desert State Prison in Susanville. He's been separated
from the general population at his own request, according to
Margot Bach, spokeswoman for the State Corrections
Department.
While prisoners are typically released to the county in
which they committed their crimes, Noel will not be returned
to San Francisco and instead will be sent to Solano County,
Bach said.
Noel will also be considered a high-control parolee, which
means he will need to check in with his parole officer at
least four times each month, Bach said. He will be on parole
at least three years.
Michael Cardoza, who represents Sharon Smith, Whipple's
former partner, said Smith is shocked that Noel's release is
imminent.
"She certainly feels that its not commensurate with the
crime that was committed," Cardoza said.
Smith is about to give birth to her first child. She and her
new partner have left San Francisco but still live in the
Bay Area, Cardoza said.
Wrongful-death suits filed by Smith and by Whipple's mother
against the owners and managers of Whipple's apartment
building were settled in December 2002 for an undisclosed
sum. Smith's suit cleared a legal hurdle when a San
Francisco judge allowed it to proceed, despite the fact that
Whipple and Smith were not married. Under state law,
same-sex couples cannot marry.
http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/6744374.htm |
| |
| Knoller was found guilty of causing
the death of Diane Whipple by not being in control of a
(known) vicious dog. She was sentenced to 4 years in jail.
She will be eligible for parole next year. |
| |
References
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