 Christopher Harris was arrested and charged by
authorities on Oct. 1. Jason was arrested and charged on
Oct. 7.Christopher Harris
appeared before Judge Thomas M. Harris (no relation) at 1:35 p.m., with
Jason appearing at 2:10 p.m.. Both brothers were advised by Judge
Harris that a grand jury had returned a bill of indictment against
both of them in the slayings.
Each of the brothers, through their attorneys,
waived a reading of the charges. Both pleaded "not guilty" to all
charges.
The judge advised the brothers that they are
facing 68-count indictments that include counts of first- degree
murder of five Gee family members as well as attempted murder
against the Gee family infant, with Jason having an additional three
counts added for obstruction of justice.
In the cases of both brothers, 57 of the counts
pertain to the murder of a specific Gee family member, with the other
counts including charges of home invasion, armed robbery,
residential burglary; and attempted forcible felony, criminal sexual
assault.
In counts 60 and 62 of the bill, a tire
iron was mentioned as a weapon used against the family.
On the burglary charge, count 62 states that a
laptop was taken from the premises.
Five counts, one listing for each family member
who was killed, include the charge of "attempting to commit forcible
felony, criminal sexual assault."
The three additional charges of obstruction of
justice against Jason Harris allege that he hid the laptop from
authorities, lied to state investigators and burned the clothing of
Christopher Harris.
During the hearing, Logan County Judge Thomas
Harris laid out the potential sentences, which range from three to
six
years on the lesser charges to 20 to 60 years in prison on some of
the murder counts. The judge advised that if convicted on two or
more of the murder charges, either or both brothers could face life
sentences.
In regard to counts 41, 42 and 43, the bill
stated that if either or both brothers were convicted of any of
those counts, a life sentence would be imposed. The judge also
advised both brothers that if the state so asks, and the court finds
the request warranted, both could be facing the death penalty.
Christopher Harris was represented by public
defender Patrick Timoney. Timoney filed with the court that
Christopher by a statement of assets and liabilities was "indigent."
The judge agreed and allowed Timoney to act as public defender
for Chris Harris at trial.
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Timoney also filed a request that Capital Litigation
Trial Bar lawyers James E. Elmore and Matthew Maurer be included as
Chris Harris' counsel. The judge allowed the addition of counsel.
Christopher Harris' case was placed on the
calendar for a final pre-trial hearing on Dec. 3 at 10 a.m.
Jason Harris, represented by Bloomington attorney
Steve Skelton, who is a member of the Capital Litigation Trial Bar,
did not seek additional counsel. His statement of assets and
liabilities was also found by the judge to warrant a public
defender. Jason Harris' next court appearance was set for a final
pre-trial hearing on Dec. 3 at 11 a.m.
Judge Harris stated in both hearings that he has
children attending Chester-East Lincoln School but that his children
had minimal, if any, contact with the Gee children, who also
attended C-EL. The judge also said that he is a member of the C-EL
school board but that he did not know the family and wanted it made
clear from the onset that he could conduct the trials in a fair and
unbiased manner.
On the record, neither defense team nor the
prosecution expressed any reservations about Judge Harris handling
the case.
The judge further instructed all counsel to
abstain from offering any pre-trial publicity in the case.
In a related matter, Jennifer Earnest, Jason
Harris' girlfriend, who was arrested for obstruction of justice in the case, will appear before Judge Harris
on Thursday
at 10 a.m. Earnest is represented by Lincoln
attorney Jim Grimaldi, who was appointed by the court.
[LDN staff]
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