Re: GABRIEL SCOTT JOHNSON 8 months - Tempe, Arizona (USA) - 27/12/09

**Twiglet** Sat Apr 16, 2011 3:42 am

ABC15.com (KNXV-TV)

12 April 2011

Attorney aims for dismissal in 'Baby Gabriel' case‎

The attorney representing Elizabeth Johnson, the mother of missing 'Baby Gabriel' told me he plans to request the case against Johnson be dismissed pending the deposition of a San Antonio detective.

“We’re not going to make that request until we have that detective deposed,” said Daniel Raynak, who is representing Johnson.

Raynak was in a Phoenix courtroom Tuesday for a status conference hearing regarding the case against Johnson.

The planned deposition was a hot topic during the hearing.

San Antonio Detective Jesse Salame is set to answer questions from Raynak next week regarding his investigation into the case of Gabriel Johnson.

Gabriel was last seen in San Antonio the day after Christmas in 2009.

Raynak says the deposition will focus on two key issues involving his client and Salame’s investigation.

Raynak claims his client’s rights were violated when the San Antonio police officer questioned her without an attorney present.

"I think what the detective did was outrageous and I think that once we're able to show that to the judge we're hoping that he does dismiss the case," said Raynak.

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region_phoenix_metro/central_phoenix/attorney-aims-for-dismissal-in-'baby-gabriel'-case

**Twiglet** Sat Apr 16, 2011 3:44 am

Arizona Republic

14 April 2011

Attorney mum on Baby Gabriel tape‎

The attorney for Baby Gabriel's mother has a taped interview between his client and a San Antonio detective, but has declined to say whether Elizabeth Johnson confesses to murdering her son, as the detective has claimed.

"My comment is I am not going to comment on anything in the tape," said defense attorney Daniel Raynak.

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2011/04/14/20110414gabriel0414.html

**Twiglet** Mon May 09, 2011 7:58 pm

Examiner

16 April 2011

Gabriel Johnson case: Mom's lawyer won't divulge info about alleged confession

The attorney defending baby Gabriel Johnson’s mother, Elizabeth Johnson, declined this week to comment on a taped interview between his client and a San Antonio detective in which she is said to have confessed to murdering her infant son.

Defense attorney Daniel Raynak said, “My comment is I am not going to comment on anything in the tape.”

In December 2009, Elizabeth fled the Tempe, Arizona area with Gabriel -- at the time he was less than a year old. During her trek, she contacted the baby’s father, Logan McQueary, claiming she’d killed the boy by smothering him. After finally being arrested in Miami, Florida, she told authorities she gave Gabriel to an unidentified couple in San Antonio, Texas. Extensive searches have been conducted to find him, but Gabriel has yet to be found.

http://www.examiner.com/crime-in-national/gabriel-johnson-case-mom-s-lawyer-won-t-divulge-info-about-alleged-confession

**Twiglet** Mon May 09, 2011 8:01 pm

Arizona central

1 May 2011

Desperate acts of 2 in Baby Gabriel mystery‎

Tammi Peters Smith thought God had answered her prayers for another child when she first spied Baby Gabriel and his young mother at an Indianapolis airport in June 2009.

Gabriel Johnson was 1 month old. His mother, Elizabeth Johnson, 24, of Tempe, seemed "scared, depressed and with a baby who appeared to be underweight," Smith told Tempe police.

Smith, 39, of Scottsdale, had failed in several unconventional attempts to adopt a sibling for her adopted daughter, Hannah.

Smith had asked a pregnant woman at a local Jack in the Box for her unborn baby, offered California military wives in MySpace posts $9,000 to be her surrogate, and had a woman at her Scottsdale residence inseminated with sperm she falsely said was her husband's, according to interviews contained in a Tempe police report.

Laying eyes on the chubby-cheeked Gabriel, Smith "felt as though God had sent her Johnson and the baby for her and her husband to adopt," a Tempe investigator wrote.

The meeting in Indianapolis between the two Valley women with complementary passions would pave the way for one of the biggest unsolved Arizona crimes in recent history: the disappearance of Baby Gabriel on Dec. 27, 2009.

The union of a woman who wanted someone else's baby and a confused unwed mother furious at her boyfriend would lead to bizarre adoption schemes and, ultimately, the mystery surrounding a baby's unknown fate.

The case continues today in Maricopa County Superior Court, when a status conference is scheduled for Smith and Johnson.

http://www.azcentral.com/community/tempe/articles/2011/05/01/20110501baby-gabriel-mystery.html

**Twiglet** Mon May 09, 2011 8:03 pm

KPHO Phoenix

2 May 2011

Baby Gabriel's Father Breaks His Silence‎

Baby Gabriel Johnson has been missing for more than a year. His mother put him in a car and drove him to Texas, but her stories as to what happened to him once they got to San Antonio are all over the map and could be the difference between life and death for the boy.

“It pisses me off to see her,” said Logan McQueary, Gabriel's father.

McQueary broke his silence Monday for several reasons. Elizabeth Johnson appeared in court for the first time in months, and kept staring at McQueary, trying to catch his gaze. But those glances were not returned.
“I noticed that. It just angers me. I’ve gotten to the point that I don’t know what to do so I don’t want to see her,” said McQueary.

McQueary stayed silent for several months because he said he feels this case, including charges of kidnapping, child abuse and conspiracy against Johnson, is the only chance for his family to get justice for Gabriel. And McQueary said he was afraid that by speaking publicly, he would somehow mess it up.

But with every day that goes by, his hope for a happy outcome and a reunion with Gabriel fades.

http://www.kpho.com/valleynews/27747827/detail.html

**Twiglet** Mon May 09, 2011 8:05 pm

Daily Mail

3 May 2011

Will we ever find Baby Gabriel? Infant still missing after more than a year as mother who 'threw him in a dumpster' faces trial for kidnapping and child abuse

The mother of an eight-month-old boy who has been missing for more than a year has been charged with kidnapping and child abuse.
Elizabeth Johnson, 24, of Tempe, Arizona, allegedly phoned the father of Gabriel - who would have turned two tomorrow - after a row and told him she had suffocated the child and thrown his body in a dumpster.
However, Johnson later recanted, saying she handed her son over to a couple in a park in San Antonio, Texas, in December 2009 under the direction of Tammi Peters Smith - and believes he is still alive.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1382824/Baby-Gabriel-Johnson-missing-Mother-Elizabeth-faces-trial-kidnapping-child-abuse.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

**Twiglet** Mon May 09, 2011 8:08 pm

About - News & Issues

5 May 2011

Trial Date Set in Baby Gabriel Case‎

In spite of a motion to dismiss the case on the table, an Arizona judge has set a tentative trial date in the case of missing Baby Gabriel. The baby's mother, Elizabeth Johnson, is facing charges of kidnapping, child abuse and conspiracy.
Her trial date has been set for Aug. 8, while a trial of a woman who is charged as an accomplice in the case has been set for September.

Johnson has given conflicting statements regarding the fate of her son, Gabriel Johnson, who has been missing since December 2010 when he was 8 months old.

http://crime.about.com/b/2011/05/05/trial-date-set-in-baby-gabriel-case.htm

**Twiglet** Mon Aug 01, 2011 9:06 pm

East Valley Tribune

21 July 2011

Will Baby Gabriel's mother stand trial or be committed?

In less than two weeks, Elizabeth Johnson will know whether she is deemed competent to stand trial in the case of her missing son Gabriel — or whether she is on her way to being committed to a state mental hospital.

On Aug. 2, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Paul McMurdie will rule on the findings of doctors as to whether Johnson is competent to stand trial after he allowed her attorney’s motion in May to have a second psychological evaluation performed on her.

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/local/article_49515e9c-b3f7-11e0-888f-001cc4c03286.html

**Twiglet** Mon Aug 01, 2011 9:08 pm

KTAR.

25 July 2011

Next week judge will rule on Elizabeth Johnson's competence

Elizabeth Johnson, mother of baby Gabriel Johnson, underwent a second psychological evaluation in May. Those results will be what a judge uses next week to rule on her competence.

In June of last year doctors ruled her incompetent to stand trial but have said counseling and medication could change that.

Johnson has been in jail for 15 months now. Her story of how her nine-month-old son disappeared has changed multiple times.

At one point she said she killed him and has also said she gave him to a couple in San Antonio, Texas when he was seven months old.

If she's found incompetent again by the judge, the case could be dismissed.

http://ktar.com/category/local-news-articles/20110725/Next-week-judge-will-rule-on-Elizabeth-Johnson's-competence/

**Twiglet** Mon Aug 01, 2011 9:11 pm

East Valley Tribune

26 July 2011

New delay for trial of women in missing baby case

The trial of a high-profile case involving two women connected to missing baby Gabriel Johnson will be delayed for at least another six weeks.

The trial, which was scheduled to begin Aug. 8, likely will not begin until October, according to information from Maricopa County Superior Court. The Maricopa County prosecutor assigned to the matter is working on an older ongoing case that takes precedence.

But the case is going to trial, according to Anne Phillips, the attorney for a Scottsdale woman who once was interested in adopting Baby Gabriel and is charged with forgery, custodial interference and conspiracy to commit custodial interference.

That woman, 39-year-old Tammi Smith, is being tried at the same time as the baby’s mother Elizabeth Johnson. Smith appeared in Maricopa County Superior Court on Tuesday for a settlement conference but decided not to plead guilty to avoid a trial.

Johnson, who turned 25 on Sunday, has been incarcerated in Maricopa County’s Estrella jail on a $1 million cash bond since January 2010 on charges of kidnapping, child abuse, custodial interference and conspiracy to commit custodial interference.
‎
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/local/article_a7c2137e-b7ce-11e0-8a77-001cc4c03286.html

**Twiglet** Thu Sep 29, 2011 8:43 am

KPHO Phoenix

3 September 2011

Defense in Johnson case says charges should be dropped

Attorneys for Elizabeth Johnson were back in a Phoenix courtroom this morning and hinted they could soon ask for all the charges against her to be tossed out.

Her legal team claims that prosecutors got a hold of a letter she wrote from jail that was supposed to go to an investigator working for her defense team.

They say that violates her rights, so they could soon ask for the kidnapping charges against her to be thrown out and for the judge to reprimand the prosecutors.

Johnson is charged in the December 2009 disappearance of her 8-month-old son, Gabriel.

http://www.kpho.com/story/15387769/defense-in-johnson-case-says-charges-should-be-dropped

**Twiglet** Thu Sep 29, 2011 8:46 am

ABC 15

16 September 2011

Baby Gabriel's mother Elizabeth Johnson appears in court‎

The mother of a missing baby Gabriel appeared in court Friday as a judge heard testimony on whether she is fit to stand trial.

Elizabeth Johnson did not testify. Instead, she heard attorneys on both sides read letters she has written from jail and sent to family and friends.

The judge also revealed Johnson has even sent him several letters.

At issue is whether Johnson is competent to stand trial in connection with the disappearance of her then 9-month-old son, Gabriel.

He has still never been found and it's not clear what happened to him.

Investigators have said Johnson has changed her stories and, at one point, said she killed her son. She has also said she gave him away.

The key issue at Friday’s hearing was whether she can assist her attorneys in her defense.

Her lawyer said she doesn't trust him and isn't cooperating.

Prosecutors argue she likes her attorneys and has bragged about them.

The next hearing is set for Sept. 30.

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region_phoenix_metro/central_phoenix/baby-gabriel-mother-elizabeth-johnson-appears-in-court

**Twiglet** Wed Jan 04, 2012 10:14 am

CBS News

8 December 2011

Elizabeth Johnson, mother of "Baby Gabriel," ruled fit to stand trial in his disappearance‎

The mother charged in the disappearance of her eight-month old son was declared fit to stand trial Wednesday

According to CBS affiliate KPHO, Baby Gabriel Johnson was last seen Dec. 27, 2009. His mother, Elizabeth Johnson, was charged with kidnapping, child abuse and custodial interference. But in September, a judge ruled her incompetent to stand trial.

In May, Crimesider reported that Johnson allegedly put Gabriel in her car and drove to Texas from their home in Phoenix before he disappeared. However, her stories about what happened after he arrived were "all over the map."

According to KPHO, the judge announced Johnson's trial would go forward after reading the psychiatrist's report saying that she was restored to competency.

Immediately afterward, KPHO learned that Johnson's legal team was withdrawing from the case, making them Johnson's third legal team to quit.

She will be assigned a public defender. The trial date has been set for January 6.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57339646-504083/elizabeth-johnson-mother-of-baby-gabriel-ruled-fit-to-stand-trial-in-his-disappearance/

**Twiglet** Wed Jan 04, 2012 10:16 am

My Fox Phoenix

27 December 2011

Tempe Baby Missing for 2 Years‎

We've followed the story from the beginning and it all started right here in the valley.

December 27 marks the two-year anniversary since Gabriel Johnson was last seen.

Police say the child's mother, Elizabeth Johnson left Arizona with Gabriel a week before Christmas in 2009.

She reportedly took the 8-month-old from his father to San Antonio, Texas.

The baby's father claims he has text messages that say Elizabeth killed Gabriel and put him in a diaper bag.

Elizabeth later told police she gave him away to an unidentified couple in a San Antonio park.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/local/tempe/missing-gabriel-johnson-12272011

**Twiglet** Wed Jan 04, 2012 10:18 am

Gabriel's photo is age-progressed to 2 years

GABRIEL SCOTT JOHNSON 8 months - Tempe, Arizona (USA) - 27/12/09 - Page 13 Gsj10

**Twiglet** Sat Jan 14, 2012 6:55 am

KPHO Phoenix

6 january 2012

Case involving Gabriel Johnson back in court
‎
The case involving Elizabeth Johnson was back in court this morning.

The mother of missing Gabriel Johnson was assigned a new attorney and it turns out it's a familiar face.

Johnson's public defender, Vanessa Smith, is the same woman who was originally assigned to her two years ago.

After Smith was gone, Johnson eventually hired two sets of attorneys but both of them quit after Johnson refused to help in her defense.

Because of that, she's once again getting the public defender she first met.

Johnson did not appear in court today. The judge did stress he is anxious for this trial to move forward.

Johnson's next hearing is set for Feb. 3.

http://www.kpho.com/story/16465553/case-involving-missing-toddler-back-in-court

**Twiglet** Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:10 am

KPHO Phoenix

31 March 2012
UPDATED 4 April 2012

2 women about to face trial in baby Gabriel's disappearance‎

After more than two years it's still unknown what happened to an 8-month-old Valley boy.

Gabriel Johnson disappeared in Texas with his mother, Elizabeth Johnson.

When she was captured, her son was nowhere to be found.

Johnson said she conspired to give her boy up for adoption with the help of another Valley woman, Tammi Smith.

Now, both women are just days away from facing trial for his disappearance.

According to a memorandum filed by her attorney, Smith's psychologist said she acts impulsively and without reflection where children are involved.

In Arizona, that's not allowed to be used as an excuse for a crime. But her attorney believes it helps explain why she would help Johnson escape the state with her son, Gabriel.

Smith said her plan was to adopt the boy without his father's knowledge, but once Johnson drove across the state lines, the boy was never seen again.

"It's in her nature to feel compelled to help, because of her religious beliefs, again, because of her family background. She feels compelled to help, particularly when she perceives a woman in trouble or child in trouble," said Smith's attorney, Anne Phillips.

According to the filing, Smith is easily manipulated in stressful situations, in part caused by a history of abuse from her father and first three husbands. Because of that history, her psychologist said she is naively and unrealistically trusting.

"Her character in general causes her to act a certain way. Not with criminal intent but more in a misguided attempt to help," said Phillips.

Prosecutors are trying to keep Smith's psych evaluation out of court and are expected to paint her as a woman obsessed - who would do anything to adopt Gabriel.

Smith's attorney predictably disagrees.

"What I think happened is that Tammi, a good citizen, a good Samaritan, a law-abiding person, got involved with the wrong person and it spiraled out of control," said Phillips.

Prosecutors in Smith's case declined to comment.

Smith waived her court appearance for Tuesday's hearing. Opening statements in her trial are now expected to begin on April 17, 2012. The trial is expected to last five weeks.

http://www.kpho.com/story/17299923/2-women-facing-trial-for-gabriels-disappearance

**Twiglet** Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:14 am

Arizona Republic

10 April 2012

Baby Gabriel trial: Jury forms, opening arguments up next‎

Tammi Smith, the Scottsdale woman who wanted to adopt Baby Gabriel, is headed for trial on charges connected to the December 2009 disappearance of the 8-month-old child, whose plight remains a mystery.

Jury selection began Monday and opening arguments are scheduled for next Tuesday in the case of Smith, 40, who is charged with forgery and conspiracy to commit custodial interference in her alleged role in Gabriel's unknown fate.

Court records portray Smith as a woman desperate to adopt Gabriel from his unwed mother and to keep him from his father, Logan McQueary, 27. Smith had already adopted her husband's granddaughter and seemed on a mission to add Gabriel to the family, according to court records.

She is accused of helping the baby's mother, Elizabeth Johnson, 25, of Tempe, who fled to San Antonio with Gabriel three days after the baby's father was awarded custody.

Johnson is being held without bond on charges of kidnapping, child abuse, custodial interference and conspiracy to commit custodial interference.

Johnson's trial is scheduled for September, but she has a status conference next Monday, the same day McQueary is due in court in an unrelated trafficking-in-stolen-property case. McQueary was charged March 30.

On Dec. 26, 2009, the last day Gabriel was seen alive, Johnson told McQueary she smothered the child, put him in a diaper bag and threw him the trash because McQueary talked with other women, according to police records. She later said she gave the baby to an unidentified couple in a San Antonio park under Smith's direction.

McQueary would likely be an important witness in the trials of both women, as they are charged with conspiring with each other to keep McQueary from keeping custody of Gabriel.

According to a defense motion, Smith has a character trait "which causes her to act impulsively and without reflection where children are involved, due to her unstable childhood and her personality."

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/local/articles/2012/04/10/20120410baby-gabriel-trial-jury-selection.html

**Twiglet** Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:16 am

KTAR

12 April 2012

Baby Gabriel's father McQueary to testify

PHOENIX -- Prosecutors say the father of an Arizona baby who disappeared after his mother fled to Texas will be available to testify against another woman charged with interfering with his custody rights.

A Maricopa County Attorney's spokesman told The Arizona Republic on Thursday that Logan McQueary has agreed to surrender on a stolen-goods trafficking charge and be available.

The mother of McQueary's 8-month-old son Gabriel fled with him after he gained custody in December 2009.

Police say Elizabeth Johnson first said she smothered Gabriel and put him in the trash, then said she gave the baby to a couple in San Antonio, Texas.

The baby has not been found.

A 40-year-old Scottsdale woman who wanted to adopt Gabriel goes on trial next week for her alleged role in the case.

http://ktar.com/6/1527513/Baby-Gabriels-father-McQueary-to-testify

**Twiglet** Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:18 am

ABC 15

15 April 2012

Significant moves ahead in missing baby Gabriel case
‎
It could be a very interesting week in the so-called "Baby Gabriel" case.

All of the key players in the national investigation are involved in significant events happening in the Valley this week.

Gabriel Johnson was last seen the day after Christmas in 2009.

His mom, Elizabeth Johnson , took the boy from Tempe to San Antonio where the boy vanished.

Elizabeth, who currently faces charges including kidnapping and child abuse, refuses to say what exactly happened to the boy or where he is.

While Elizabeth sits in jail, a hearing has been scheduled for Monday morning to address her lack of cooperation with court personnel.

Also Monday, Gabriel's father, Logan McQueary is expected to turn himself in to face charges of trafficking stolen goods.

McQueary, known for pleading for the public's help in finding his son, hasn't been as vocal or visible in the search for Gabriel lately.

McQueary suddenly moved from Arizona, but is expected to be back in the Valley to face the charges.

McQueary already has a criminal record and is expected to testify in the case against another person detectives have questioned in the disappearance of the boy.

Opening statements are planned for Tuesday in the trial against Tammi Smith.

Smith was a close friend of Elizabeth Johnson and is charged with conspiracy to commit custodial interference and forgery. It was previously reported that Smith wanted to adopt Gabriel.

According to detectives, tips and information regarding the search for Gabriel Johnson have dropped significantly.

Next month, Gabriel would turn 3 years old.

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region_southeast_valley/tempe/it-could-be-a-very-interesting-week-ahead-in-the-baby-gabriel-case-involving-the-key-players

**Twiglet** Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:20 am

My Fox Phoenix

16 April 2012

Mom of Missing Arizona Baby Statements Can't Be Used‎

Jurors will never get to hear a statement made by the mother of a missing Arizona baby that she killed her son and dumped him in a Texas trash bin.

Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Paul McMurdie issued that ruling Monday in the upcoming trial of 25-year-old Elizabeth Johnson, saying that her constitutional rights were violated when a Texas detective interviewed her in a Phoenix jail without her attorneys being there or even knowing about the interview.

McMurdie threw out the statement and said it could not be used during trial. He declined Johnson's request to dismiss the case based on the constitutional violation.

Johnson has pleaded not guilty to charges of child abuse, kidnapping and custodial interference in the case of her missing son, 8-month-old Gabriel.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/AZMissing-Arizona-Baby-04162012

**Twiglet** Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:22 am

My Fox Phoenix

17 April 2012

Attorney: Would-Be Adoptive Mom 'Obsessed'‎

Prosecutors are painting the would-be adoptive mother of an Arizona baby missing for more than two years as an "obsessed" woman who would stop at nothing to win custody of the boy, while defense attorneys said she was just looking out for the child and his mother.

The attorneys spoke during opening statements Tuesday in the trial of 40-year-old Tammi Peters Smith.

At issue is whether Tammi Smith helped Elizabeth Johnson after she left Phoenix with baby Gabriel around December 20, 2009.

The state tried to paint Tammi Smith as a woman so desperate to have a baby she even solicited a pregnant woman at a Jack in the Box about adopting her child.

Smith's defense attorney said the 40-year-old is a businesswoman and a mom who is the victim of a character assassination.

Smith's attorney said she and her husband Jack wanted to adopt a child because they had just adopted a family member's child -- and that they reached out to Elizabeth Johnson to help her and the baby.

Once Johnson fled with Gabriel, Smith's attorney says Smith did everything she could to get the baby home safely.

Smith has pleaded not guilty to charges of forgery and custodial interference in the case.

Gabriel's mother, Elizabeth Johnson, has said she killed Gabriel and dumped him in a trash bin but later recanted and said she gave the baby to a couple in San Antonio.

Logan McQueary, the baby's father, testified he was pressured by Tammi Smith to to give up Gabriel -- something he never wanted to do.

"I didn't want him to be adopted at all, I wanted the chance to take care of him myself," he said.

McQueary told jurors that he told Tammi Smith in December of 2009 he wanted to keep his son. The conversation took place, he says, just days before his 8-month-old son Gabriel disappeared.

Gabriel was last seen in San Antonio, Texas some days later.

http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/dpp/news/justice/AZMissing-Arizona-Baby-04172012

**Twiglet** Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:24 am

KETK

17 April 2012

Trial may provide answers in Baby Gabriel search
‎
Little Gabriel Johnson was 8-months-old when he was last spotted alive in 2009 at a Texas motel.

His mother, Elizabeth Johnson, allegedly told the father she killed the infant and put his body in a Dumpster. She later told police she drove from her home in Arizona to Texas and gave him to a couple she met in a San Antonio park.

Johnson is in a Phoenix jail cell awaiting trial for kidnapping, custodial interference and child abuse, and Gabriel's disappearance is still a mystery.

Some answers may surface Tuesday, when opening statements are expected in the trial of another woman, Tammi Smith.

Smith is accused of helping Johnson try to wrangle custody of the boy from his father, in order to adopt the little boy herself.

She is charged with forgery and conspiracy to commit custodial interference. She has pleaded not guilty and could face a sentence of six years if she's convicted.

Smith and Johnson allegedly met in June 2009, when both women were waiting for the same flight at the Indianapolis airport.

In statements to police, Smith described the 23-year-old Johnson as looking "scared" and "depressed."

Smith says she suggested to Johnson that she and her husband should adopt Gabriel.

Smith did not hear from Johnson until that December, when Johnson called to ask if the Smiths were still interested in the adoption.

Johnson was entangled in a custody dispute with Gabriel's father, Logan McQueary.

In court documents, prosecutors allege that Smith and her husband pressured McQueary into surrendering custody so they could adopt Gabriel, and that Smith falsely wrote the name of her cousin on a paternity document as Gabriel's possible father.

On December 17, 2009, a judge awarded Johnson and McQueary joint custody of Gabriel, but Johnson allegedly defied the ruling and set out for Texas with her son.

McQueary didn't hear from Johnson until several days later, when she reportedly sent him a text message saying she'd killed Gabriel.

She was arrested on December 30, 2009, in Miami Beach, Florida.

She told police that she'd given the boy to a unknown couple she met up with in San Antonio. She later told police she did this under Smith's direction.

Smith has maintained she does not know where the little boy is, and that she had nothing to do with the couple who supposedly received Gabriel. Smith's defense attorneys are hoping to introduce testimony from a psychologist who examined their client to show that Smith makes poor decisions in stressful situations and is naive and too trusting.

http://www.ketknbc.com/news/trial-may-provide-answers-in-baby-gabriel-search

**Twiglet** Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:27 am

AZ Family

17 April 2012

Testimony reveals tumultuous life of Baby Gabriel's parents‎

The woman who wanted to adopt missing baby Gabriel Johnson in the weeks before his disappearance is on trial. Prosecutors say 40-year-old Tammi Smith of Phoenix forged adoption papers, and committed custodial interference in December of 2009.

Gabriel Johnson was 9-months-old when his parents split. Logan McQueary, Gabriel's father, was the first witness called against Smith at trial.

McQueary described his relationship with Gabriel's mother, Elizabeth Johnson, as on-again off-again, and at times violent. He said Johnson destroyed two of their apartments, breaking the windows, and sometimes targeting him in her rages

"She busted plates on my head, picked up an ashtray and threw it at me. Anything on the counter she threw at me," McQueary told the jury.

After the two split late in 2009, Johnson says he petitioned for full custody of Gabriel. He says Johnson did not want Gabriel, but she also did not want McQueary to have sole custody.

"She told me that we needed to talk, that she wanted to give Gabriel up for adoption," said McQueary.

Johnson and Tammi Smith crossed paths, and drew up paperwork for Johnson to give Gabriel to Smith and her husband.

"She just kept saying, 'He'd have a better life. They're rich.' They offered to give me $1,000 to get and apartment and get me back on my feet," McQueary said.

Gabriel's father refused to sign him over to the Smiths, and soon after Elizabeth Johnson disappeared with Gabriel. She was later found in Florida without the boy, and first said she'd killed him and threw his body in the trash. Since then, Johnson has changed her story, insisting she gave Gabriel to a couple she met in a San Antonio park.

McQueary told the court he has always partly blamed Tammi Smith for his son's disappearance.

"I told her, 'I think you had a part in doing this and helping Elizabeth,'" McQueary testified.

Some investigators agree, and believe Tammi Smith played more of a role in Gabriel's disappearance than she has admitted.

Smith's attorney told the jury her client is an upstanding citizen, and a caring mother who was simply trying to help the struggling mother and her baby.

As cross examination continues Wednesday, Smith's attorney is expected to attempt to discredit Logan McQueary's testimony by bringing up his history of arrests for drugs and thefts.

Tammi Smith's trial is set to last about five weeks, and she is on the list to testify.

http://www.azfamily.com/news/Testimony-reveals-tumultuous-life-of-Baby-Gabriels-parents-147862135.html

**Twiglet** Thu Apr 19, 2012 6:29 am

San Antonio Express

17 April 2012

SAPD detective defended in questioning of Baby Gabriel's mom
‎
On Tuesday, the father of missing Baby Gabriel testified in an Arizona courtroom that his ex-girlfriend Elizabeth Johnson confessed to killing their son more than two years ago in San Antonio.

But on Monday, a Maricopa County Superior Court judge ruled that another reportedly similar statement Johnson also made to a San Antonio homicide detective would not be heard when she goes to trial in September.

The two events marked fresh movement in the ongoing legal drama nationally known as the Baby Gabriel case. A saga that began around Christmas 2009 when Gabriel Johnson, then 8 months old, went missing here — and that since has unfolded into an amalgam of allegations to include abuse, fraud and a conspiracy between Johnson and another woman, Tammi Smith, to illegally adopt the boy.

Johnson is set to stand trial in September for kidnapping, child abuse and custodial interference.

Smith is now on trial in Arizona for forgery and conspiracy to commit custodial interference in connection with Baby Gabriel's disappearance. Gabriel's father Logan McQueary took the stand and described text messages Johnson sent to him the week she was in San Antonio. She told him that she killed Gabriel, put his body in a diaper bag and then threw him in a trash bin.

However, Johnson later recanted and said she gave Gabriel away to a couple she met in a park here.

The information was not new, given that hundreds of documents have already been released to the public. Also previously leaked to an Arizona news station was a recording of San Antonio homicide Detective Jesse Salame confirming Johnson confessed during a May 2010 interview.

It was that interview that violated Johnson's sixth amendment rights the judge ruled on Monday. The ruling resulted from a motion to dismiss Johnson's previous attorneys filed in October 2010 accusing Salame of violating her right to counsel, disparaging the attorneys, threatening her with the Texas death penalty and touching her arm and leg while speaking with her.

However, two law enforcement officers at the jail said in a sworn affidavit that neither of them saw Salame touching the defendant nor did they hear him threaten Johnson with death row, according to court documents.

The document also stated Salame read Johnson her Miranda warnings and she waived her right to an attorney.

Marc Victor, Johnson's new attorney, said the judge ruled her sixth amendment rights were violated. Victor said Salame's tactics were egregious and “un-American.”

And while SAPD has not commented specifically about the allegations against Salame, both First Assistant District Attorney Cliff Herberg and police union president Michael Helle came to his defense.

“Jesse Salame is a great homicide detective,” Helle said, adding he is both competent and conscientious. “When you have a guilty client the only thing the defense attorney has is a smokescreen, and that's exactly what he's doing. He's diverting attention from the real issue.”

Herberg said Salame and the police were investigating a different case and that because the charges are separate no one from the San Antonio agency needed permission from her Arizona attorneys.

He said cops have to make quick decisions based on information at the time and even if a court decides a violation occurred that doesn't automatically mean the officer meant harm.

“He would be royally crucified (here) if he gave up the opportunity to talk to a key suspect,” Herberg said. “It's not fair to blast this cop when he's been sent out to do his job and he has to make the quick decision.”

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local_news/article/SAPD-detective-defended-in-questioning-of-Baby-3490063.php

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