Murder trial interrupted when two women fight in courthouse bathroom
Maurice Berry's murder trial was interrupted Thursday when two women loudly fought in a nearby bathroom.
Berry, 22, of Hammond, is on trial in Lake Superior Court in Crown Point this week for killing a bystander, Javier 'Campa' Olvera, 49, at an East Chicago gas station and wounding Maurice Garrett — the intended target who had dated Berry's longtime on-and-off girlfriend after they broke up.
As Det. James Nielsen was wrapping his testimony, a screaming match erupted outside the courtroom.
The two women also had children with Berry. One was there to testify for both the prosecution and defense. A man, who said he was her brother, was trying to calm her down for several minutes.
The other, who was pregnant, at one point appeared to yell she would fight and 'shoot' the other woman.
Later, she apologized.
Both women were arrested. They said the other attacked them. Police couldn't see from a video who started the brief fight in the bathroom.
Both are expected to be charged with battery.
Afterward, Judge Natalie Bokota rejected defense lawyer Susan Severtson's bid for a mistrial.
East Chicago Police responded around 8 p.m. March 30, 2024, to a BP gas station, 4502 Indianapolis Blvd. Olvera was lying on the ground, shot multiple times.
Surveillance video showed Berry pull up in a black Chevy Trailblazer, then go inside holding a concealed object in his hand.
Olvera was already in line. The other man — who was later wounded — walked inside and 'looked at Berry.' On camera, the man and Berry appeared to exchange words.
Berry shot at the man. Olvera dropped to the floor 'immediately.'
mcolias@post-trib.com
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Former Centrica chief Laidlaw in frame to chair embattled BP
Sam Laidlaw, the former boss of Centrica, is among the candidates being considered as the next chairman of BP, Britain's besieged oil and gas exploration giant. Sky News has learnt that Mr Laidlaw is being considered by BP board members as a potential successor to Helge Lund, who announced in April that he would step down. BP's chair search comes with the £62bn oil major in a state of crisis, as industry predators circle and the pace of its strategic transformation being interrogated by shareholders. Elliott Management, the activist investor, snapped up a multibillion pound stake in BP earlier this year and is pushing its chief executive, Murray Auchincloss, to accelerate spending cuts and ditch a string of renewable energy commitments. Mr Lund's departure will come after nearly a quarter of BP's shareholders opposed his re-election at its annual meeting in April - an unusually large protest given that his intention to step down had already been announced. BP's senior independent director - the Aviva chief executive Amanda Blanc - is said to be moving "at pace" to complete the recruitment process. A number of prominent candidates are understood to be in discussions with headhunters advising BP on the search. Mr Laidlaw would be a logical choice to take the role, having transformed Centrica, the owner of British Gas, during his tenure, which ended in 2014. Since then, he has had a long stint - which recently concluded - on the board of miner Rio Tinto, which has been fending off activist calls to abandon its London listing. He also established, and then sold, Neptune Energy, an oil company which was acquired by Italy's Eni for nearly £4bn in 2023. Last December, Mr Laidlaw was appointed chairman of AWE, the government-owned body which oversees Britain's nuclear weapons capability. He also has strong family connections to BP, with his father, Christopher Laidlaw, having served as its deputy chairman during a long business career. One person close to BP said the younger Mr Laidlaw had been approached about chairing the company during its previous recruitment process but had ruled himself out because of his Neptune Energy role. The status of his engagement with BP's search was unclear on Saturday. Another person said to have been approached is Ken MacKenzie, who recently retired as chairman of the mining giant BHP. Mr MacKenzie headed BHP during a period when Elliott held a stake in the company, and is said to have a good working relationship with the investor. Shares in BP have continued their downward trajectory over the last year, having fallen by nearly a fifth during that period. The company's valuation slump is reported to have drawn renewed interest in a possible takeover bid, with rivals Shell and ExxonMobil among those said to have "run the numbers" in recent months. Reports of such interest have not elicited any formal response, suggesting that any deal is conceptual at this stage. BP is racing to sell assets including Castrol, its lubricants division, which could command a price of about $8bn. This weekend, BP declined to comment, while Mr Laidlaw could not be reached for comment.
Washington Post
2 days ago
- Washington Post
Putin says he won't allow Russia to fall into recession amid gloomy economy
ST. PETERSBURG — Speaking Friday at an economic forum once set up to court Western companies and showcase Russia as a lucrative investment destination, President Vladimir Putin declared that stagnation and recession in the economy would not be allowed after experts and high-ranking officials warned of a slowdown. The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, which just over a decade ago hosted energy giants such as BP and Total and announced billion-dollar deals like the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, has had a sparse attendance from Western investors this year. It is an indication of the drastic transformation the Russian has undergone since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 as it has shifted to war-footing and Western companies have left in droves.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
FTSE 100 LIVE: Markets volatile as Trump leaves G7 early amid further Iran-Israel strikes
The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) and European stocks tipped lower on Tuesday, erasing the previous session's gains, as conflict continues between Iran and Israel. Meanwhile, oil prices rose. President Donald Trump cut short his G7 Summit in order to assess the US's position on the Middle East conflict. Trump has reportedly asked the National Security Council to convene to consider next steps. Reports coming out of Israel and Iran this morning show the two countries continuing to launch missiles at each other. Diplomatic sources in Iran have reportedly pushed for a ceasefire, but Israeli PM Netanyahu said on Monday his country was 'not backing down' from eliminating Iran's nuclear programme. London's premier index fell 0.6% shortly after the opening bell. Among the top risers in the index were oil majors BP (BP.L) and Shell (SHEL.L). The DAX (^GDAXI) in Germany dipped 1.5% ahead of the ZEW economic confidence reading. The CAC 40 (^FCHI) in Paris lost 1.2% and the pan-European STOXX 600 (^STOXX) declined 1.1%. Brent crude (BZ=F) prices rose more than 1%, past the $74 a barrel mark. West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) gained 1.2% to trade up to $72.64. President Trump has signed an executive order to reduce tariffs on UK cars being shipped to the US, a key part of the Transatlantic trade deal hammered out earlier this year. The agreement, struck following weeks of talks, includes a 10% levy on most UK goods, including cars, and did not address the expected removal of charges on steel imports. It was the first deal agreed by the White House since trump declared the US would renegotiate tariffs with its trading partners. US stock futures fell with investors on edge as Israel and Iran continued to trade strikes against a backdrop of shifting US trade policy and stubborn interest rates. Futures attached to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) fell 0.4%. Futures attached to the benchmark S&P 500 (ES=F) sank 0.3% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) stumbled 0.4%. On Monday evening, Trump called for the evacuation of Iran's capital city, Tehran, as Israel pledged to continue attacking the country. "Iran should have signed the 'deal' I told them to sign," the president wrote on Truth Social. "IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON," he continued, closing with, "everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!" Read more on Yahoo Finance Hello from London. Lucy Harley-McKeown here. Today on the economic slate: Japan's interest rate decision Germany's ZEW economic confidence survey US retail sales First-half results from Ashtead (AHT.L) and RWS (RWJ1.F) We'll also be looking ahead to various central bank meetings later in the week. Let's get to it. President Trump has signed an executive order to reduce tariffs on UK cars being shipped to the US, a key part of the Transatlantic trade deal hammered out earlier this year. The agreement, struck following weeks of talks, includes a 10% levy on most UK goods, including cars, and did not address the expected removal of charges on steel imports. It was the first deal agreed by the White House since trump declared the US would renegotiate tariffs with its trading partners. US stock futures fell with investors on edge as Israel and Iran continued to trade strikes against a backdrop of shifting US trade policy and stubborn interest rates. Futures attached to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) fell 0.4%. Futures attached to the benchmark S&P 500 (ES=F) sank 0.3% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) stumbled 0.4%. On Monday evening, Trump called for the evacuation of Iran's capital city, Tehran, as Israel pledged to continue attacking the country. "Iran should have signed the 'deal' I told them to sign," the president wrote on Truth Social. "IRAN CAN NOT HAVE A NUCLEAR WEAPON," he continued, closing with, "everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!" Read more on Yahoo Finance Hello from London. Lucy Harley-McKeown here. Today on the economic slate: Japan's interest rate decision Germany's ZEW economic confidence survey US retail sales First-half results from Ashtead (AHT.L) and RWS (RWJ1.F) We'll also be looking ahead to various central bank meetings later in the week. Let's get to it.
