4:26 PM
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By Kathee Baird

August 2, 2015



Anthony Zarro SCSO mug shot
Anthony Joseph Zarro (mug shot SCSO)

Galena, MO.-  A teenager accused of murdering an elderly couple near Lampe in January 2013 is facing new assault charges.

Authorities say Anthony Joseph Zarro, 19, allegedly assaulted an inmate in the Stone County jail where is being held while awaiting his murder trial.  Court documents say Zarro punched Brion Hendricks "twice in the head and threatened him not to say anything," in late June.

A nurse discovered the injuries after Hendricks was called into her office.  Hendricks told the nurse he didn't say anything "because he was in fear of his family and himself being hurt."

Hendricks underwent surgery for a broken nose after the injuries were discovered by a mobile X-Ray unit, according to Stone County Sheriff Doug Rader.  He also had a black eye and numerous contusions to his head and face.  

Video surveillance at the jail allegedly recorded the jail assault, according to the probable cause statement.

Zarro, and his co-defendant Christopher James Allen, were charged with murder, armed criminal action, burglary, robbery, tampering with evidence, tampering with a motor vehicle and property damage connected to the deaths of Paul and Susan Brooks, who were vacationing at their sons home near Lampe.


Susan and Paul Brooks
Susan and Paul Brooks


The boys had run away from the from Lives Under Construction, a rehabilitative ranch for troubled boys, about a week before the double homicide.

Authorities say Zarro, of Spring, Texas, and Allen, of Nashville, Tennessee hid in a vacant cabin next door to the Brookses and watched the elderly couple come and go before allegedly killing them.  An autopsy determined the couple died from blunt force trauma and stab wounds.

Zarro is scheduled to stand trial for the double homicide next March in Newton County, where it was moved on a change of venue.


Christopher James Allen (mug shot SCSO)
Christopher James Allen (mug shot SCSO)


Allen, 18, who pleaded guilty in April to burglary charges connected to the Brookses murders, is scheduled to stand trial later this month for his alleged part in the  murders in Boone County, where it was moved on a change of venue.  That is expected to be delayed due to a motion filed in June requesting that he undergo a mental evaluation.

Zarro is scheduled to appear in court on the assault charges tomorrow (08-03-15) afternoon in Stone County associated circuit court.

4 comments:

Real cab driver said...

Zarro murder trial. Why does it take more than 2 years to have a murder trial? And whose interest is served by it taking so long? A county jail is a terrible place to be compared to being in prison, they aren't intended for long term incarceration. Mr. Zarro might be 19 but he is not a kid by any stretch of imagination. Whole situation is really sad. And why not commit more crimes in jail, he knows he'll never get out anyway.

Kathee Baird said...

@ Real Cab Driver.....it typically takes a year and a half or more for a murder trial in Missouri to go to trial. That being said, one of the reasons it will take longer in this instance was Zarro's age at the time the murders were committed. The Supreme Court has ruled that anyone under the age of 18 cannot face life in prison without the possibility of parole or the death sentence. Those are the only sentences available to those charged with first-degree murder in Missouri.

Real cab driver said...

Kathee,

My best friend from high school got popped for marajauna when we were seniors. He was a gifted athlete, well liked, good looking, very promising kid generally speaking. His parents decided to teach him a lesson and let him sit in the Washtenaw County Jail (Ann Arbor, Michigan) for something like 4 or 5 months awaiting trial. He described watching a rape, and laughed about it.

Danny did 2 federal sentences for bank robbery before he was 21. He did not graduate from high school, he did not compete in NCAA gymnastics, and he was never a space cadet kid again.

Mr. Zarro takes no prisoners, pre-emptively strikes first, and views society the same way a soldier views the enemy. Apparently he discovered his life path young, and chose to be a criminal the same way the lawyer(s) representing him chose that law for post graduate education.

We, the people of the United States have the biggest prison population in the world, on a percentage of population basis and simply in raw numbers. We can't afford it, for a variety of reasons.

Unknown said...

OMG

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