Deaf woman pleads no-contest in boyfriend's murder

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Deaf woman pleads no-contest in boyfriend's murder - NewsFlash - mlive.com

A deaf woman has pleaded no-contest to second-degree murder in the stabbing death of her live-in boyfriend.

The Detroit News reports that 45-year-old Mary Ann McBride made her plea Friday and will be sentenced Jan. 14 in Macomb County Circuit Court.

The Roseville, Mich., woman cannot speak and used an interpreter during the proceedings. She has been in the Macomb County Jail since 2005 and faces up to life in prison.

Defense attorney Daniel Garon says McBride's plea means she will be eligible for parole at some point.

Police had said that 45-year-old Robert Adelsburg was slain after McBride became upset when she learned he planned to end their relationship. Adelsburg also was deaf.

 

[Miss-Delectable]

No contest plea in killing

No contest plea in killing | The Detroit News | detnews.com

JoAnne McCann had mixed emotions Friday after the woman accused of killing her brother more than three years ago pleaded no contest to second-degree murder.

"I would have preferred life in prison. She took my brother's life," said McCann, 56, as she started to cry. But she added: "I'm glad (the case) is coming to an end."

Mary Ann McBride, who is deaf and cannot speak, will be sentenced Jan. 14 before Macomb Circuit Judge Peter Maceroni in connection with the stabbing death of Robert Adelsburg, her live-in boyfriend, on April 22, 2005. Adelsburg was also deaf.

The second-degree murder charge carries a penalty of up to life in prison with parole, however, presentencing guidelines for her case range from 12 to 22 1/2 years in prison, said McBride's attorney, Daniel Garon.

"It's an appropriate resolution of the case," said Garon, noting his client has been in the Macomb County Jail since the incident. "The plea to murder two avoids a mandatory life without parole sentence. Some day she'll be eligible for parole."

The case experienced many delays as judges -- as high as the state's top court -- determined whether her confession obtained via a sign language interpreter was valid. Ultimately, McBride's confession was suppressed after experts testified in Macomb that to properly advise a deaf person of their rights it requires the interpreter to have certification in Miranda interpretation, said William Cataldo, chief of homicide for the Macomb prosecutor's office.

For example, a word-to-word interpretation would not be sufficient because there is no single sign language symbol for the word "Miranda" or "Constitution," he said. Those words must be explained and defined.

Cataldo said the prosecutor's office is "satisfied" with the second-degree murder conviction.

"She did leave notes to the police indicating she did intend to kill him," Cataldo said. But, once McBride's confession was suppressed, "(premeditation) would have been impossible to prove ..."

The case will likely set higher standards -- at least in Michigan -- for prosecutors, police and court officials when dealing with deaf defendants and Miranda rights, Cataldo said. The Macomb Prosecutor's Office is going to begin a campaign to notify the county's police departments -- and eventually those statewide -- that Miranda interpretation is specific.

"The Roseville Police Department was 100 percent correct in following procedure," Cataldo said. But, "if anything can come out of this ... it's that deaf defendants have a higher need in their rights. We need to meet those ... and not have certain evidence thrown out because of a lack of knowledge."