Judge: Police free to call Burkett a serial killer

A judge struck down a defense motion Friday in the case of the man Las Vegas police have labeled a serial killer suspect.

It just wasn't the motion everyone thought it was.

Justice of the Peace Eric Goodman denied a request from murder suspect Nathan Burkett's lawyer, Alzora Jackson, that would have forced Las Vegas police to remove videos and statements from the Internet in which officials called Burkett a serial killer.

But there was confusion in the courtroom as lawyers squared off on issues of media, language and fairness.

"Apparently what we thought you were seeking was not what you were seeking," Goodman said.

Jackson backed away from statements on Thursday morning in which she chastised the media for "vilifying" her client. Instead she said her issues were not with the media, but with the police. She hadn't intended to argue for court restrictions on media.

She said the motion had been drafted before she was assigned the case. She blamed the media in court Thursday because she was "frustrated" by the cameras that morning, she said.

"I was agitated," Jackson said. "It was impossible for him (Burkett) to even whisper to me."

Clark County prosecutor Mark DiGiacomo said police had no responsibility to remove a video of their news conference. Identifying Burkett as a potential serial killer would inform the public and could lead to future cases, police said.

"None of their actions violated the rules here," he said.

Police on Thursday did take down a YouTube video in which homicide Lt. Ray Steiber called Burkett an "animal." DiGiacomo acknowledged the statement was prejudicial, but it was made before the district attorney's office had the case.

Goodman said Friday it was a moot point because the video was already taken down.

During their debate on whether police could characterize Burkett as a serial killer, DiGiacomo and Jackson inadvertently released more information from his case file.

DiGiacomo argued that Burkett has a history of strangling women dating to 1965 when he was arrested in Chicago. That was not a murder case.

Burkett is charged with two counts of murder in a pair of Las Vegas cold cases. Police said they have forensic evidence linking Burkett to the killings of 22-year-old Barbara Ann Cox on April 22, 1978, and 27-year-old Tina Gayle Mitchell on Feb. 20, 1994.

Jackson said prosecutors were overstating the similarities and contended Cox and Mitchell were both prostitutes, unlike the women in other cases.

Goodman said Jackson was disparaging the victims and shouldn't be arguing the evidence during a motion hearing.

"Well he did!" Jackson said of DiGiacomo.

In 2003, Burkett was convicted of voluntary manslaughter for the 2002 death of Valetter Jean Bousley, a 41-year-old Las Vegas woman. He served six years in prison.

Jackson also defended Burkett in that case.

He also faced a capital murder charge in Pearl River County, Miss., in the early 1980s.

On Aug. 10, 1983, Burkett was found guilty of manslaughter and sentenced to 20 years in prison. Records show he was scheduled to be released in 1992.

A Mississippi official said the victim in the case was Burkett's mother, who was burned to death.

Mississippi authorities were investigating Burkett in connection with an unsolved 1980 slaying. Officials told the Las Vegas Review-Journal last week there were indications the killing matched the circumstances in other deaths, but more details were not available.

Las Vegas police arrested Burkett on July 18 with assistance from Picayune, Miss., police and an agent with the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.

Steiber said that Burkett also is being investigated in connection with other unsolved homicides in the valley.

A preliminary hearing has been set for Oct. 5.

Contact reporter Mike Blasky at mblasky@review
journal.com or 702-383-0283.