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Channon Gail Christian, aged 21, and Hugh Christopher Newsom Jr., aged 23, were from Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. They were kidnapped on the evening of January 6, 2007, when Christian's vehicle was carjacked. The couple were taken to a rental house. Both of them were raped, tortured, and murdered. Four males and one female were arrested, charged, and convicted in the case. In 2007, a grand jury indicted Letalvis Darnell Cobbins, Lemaricus Devall Davidson, George Geovonni Thomas, and Vanessa Lynn Coleman on counts of kidnapping, robbery, rape, and murder. Also in 2007, Eric DeWayne Boyd was indicted by a federal grand jury of being an accessory to a carjacking, resulting in serious bodily injury to another person and misprision of a felony. In 2018, Boyd was indicted on state-level charges of kidnapping, robbery, rape, and murder.Four of the five defendants (Eric Boyd, Letalvis Cobbins, Lemaricus Davidson, and George Thomas) had multiple prior felony convictions. After a jury trial, Davidson was convicted and sentenced to death by lethal injection. Cobbins and Thomas were convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Vanessa Coleman was convicted of facilitating the crimes and sentenced to 53 years. Eric Boyd was convicted at the federal level and sentenced to 18 years in federal prison for being an accessory after the fact to carjacking. He was convicted on state level charges over a decade later in 2019.All of the state convictions were initially set aside because of misconduct by the presiding judge, who has since been disbarred. Retrials were originally slated for the summer and fall of 2012. The orders for retrials of Davidson and Cobbins were subsequently overturned by the Tennessee State Supreme Court, and their convictions and sentences stand. The Coleman and Thomas retrials resulted in convictions, but with a reduced sentence for Coleman and the same sentence for Thomas.Controversy arose due to differing interpretations regarding the media's coverage of the murders. Many people believed that the crimes were ignored because the victims were white while the perpetrators were black. Others, including journalists, disagreed with this assertion. Efforts have been made to remember and honor Christian and Newsom. In 2014, new laws named after the victims were introduced in Tennessee. Both victims have also had memorials and scholarships named after them. Victims Channon Gail Christian (born April 29, 1985, in Nacogdoches, Texas) moved from Louisiana to Tennessee with her family in 1997. She was a graduate of Farragut High School (2003), and a senior majoring in sociology at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. She planned on graduating in December 2007. Channon was 21 years old when she was murdered.Hugh Christopher "Chris" Newsom Jr. (born September 21, 1983, in Knoxville) was a former baseball player for the Halls High School Red Devils, graduating in 2002. After high school, he attended Pellissippi State Technical Community College and became a carpenter. Newsom was 23 years old when he was murdered. Murders On Saturday, January 6, 2007, Christian and Newsom planned to go for dinner together and attend a friend's party. That afternoon, Christian went to a friend's apartment to get ready. At around 8:00 pm, Christian's friend went to the party, and Christian stayed behind and waited for Newsom to pick her up. Newsom arrived, and he and Christian went to the apartment complex parking lot.The assailants observed Christian and Newsom standing close to Christian's vehicle in an embrace. They then decided to attack the couple. Both were forced into the backseat of Christian's SUV at gunpoint, had their hands tied behind their backs, and were taken to Davidson's house at 2316 Chipman Street.Both Christian and Newsom were raped. Newsom is believed to have been raped inside Davidson's house. According to the testimony of the Knox County Acting Medical Examiner, Newsom was sodomized with an object and raped by a minimum of one of the perpetrators. He was then taken to a set of railroad tracks where he was forced to walk barefoot to the location where he was murdered. Prosecutors believe a mangled dog leash found on a hillside leading up to the railroad tracks was used to force Newsom to walk to his death. When Newsom was murdered, his hands were bound behind his back, and his feet were bound together. He was blindfolded with a bandana and gagged with a sock. He wore only a shirt and underwear. Newsom was shot in his neck and the back. Newsom survived this shooting initially, but later was shot again in the head. The fatal shot was fired with the gun's muzzle against his head above his right ear, and it severed his brain stem. After killing Newsom, the assailants poured gasoline on the comforter and Newsom, and then set his body on fire.Christian was held prisoner inside Davidson's house, mostly in the north bedroom. Prosecutors believe that Coleman held Christian captive while the male offenders were murdering Newsom. After murdering Newsom, the assailants returned to Davidson's house where they beat and repeatedly raped Christian. The medical examiner testified that Christian died after hours of sexual torture, sustaining severe head injuries and suffering severe injuries to her vagina, anus, and mouth due to sexual assaults. Her injuries were consistent with being raped with an object. According to the medical examiner, the sexual attack Christian endured was "extreme" and "much more than a simple sexual assault." Prosecutors believe that Christian was tied to a chair and orally raped by Davidson and Cobbins. Christian was also anally and vaginally raped. She was also beaten, kicked in her groin, and beaten on the head. Christian suffered extensive hemorrhaging to her head and groin. Additionally, Christian suffered bruises and carpet burns on much of her body. According to Davidson's confession, during Christian's captivity, she said she "didn't want to die."While Christian was still alive, in order to remove DNA evidence, Christian's attackers poured bleach down her throat and scrubbed her body, including her bleeding and battered genital area, with bleach. Christian was bound in a hog-tied fashion with curtains and strips of bedding. Her face was tightly covered with a small trash bag, and her body was stashed in five large trash bags. Christian, who was naked except for her camisole and sweater, was tied in a fetal position, placed inside a residential waste disposal unit inside the kitchen of the home, and covered with sheets. The medical examiner testified at trial that there was evidence that Christian slowly suffocated to death. Christian died between the afternoon of January 7 and the afternoon of January 8. As Christian was suffocating to death, Davidson left to spend time with his girlfriend and gave her Christian's personal items. Davidson also used Newsom's cellphone and was seen wearing Newsom's shoes. Investigation After Chris.... Discover the Thomas S Coleman popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Thomas S Coleman books.