Here's What's Hot On CBS11TV.COM:
Jun 30, 2008 10:14 pm US/Central
Neighbor Charged With Murdering Elderly Woman
TERRELL (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
-
-
Wynell Bourns died on June 29 of injuries from being beaten during a robbery at her house.
KTVT / KTXA
-
-
Mona Medlen is charged with robbing Wynell Bourns.
KTVT / KTXA
A 93-year-old Terrell woman has died of the injuries she suffered when she was attacked earlier this month.
Wynell Bourns was trying to recover from her injuries at the Baylor Institute For Rehabilitation in Dallas when she died.
Bourns was beaten while in her house on the morning of June 17. Police say she was found lying on her kitchen floor with severe head injuries.
Bourns' family said she improved after the attack and was even talking again, until she slipped into a coma Saturday.
"We were very grateful... that was a very special blessing," La Donna Thurman, Bourns' daughter said.
Bourns lived by herself, cooked, drove and attended church three times a week. "She had a very strong constitution, and she had a very positive attitude on life," Thurman said.
Family members say she was also generous. Thurman says her mother talked of a neighbor who asked to borrow and to work for money. Bourns obliged, the first two times.
"Mother told her that she hadn't paid her back for the money she borrowed yet, so she really didn't have work for her to do," said Thurman.
That neighbor was Lacretia Medlen. She is accused in her death and now faces capital murder charges.
Mona Lacretia Medlen, 49, of Terrell was arrested at her house three days after Bourns was beaten. Police say robbery was the motive for the attack.
Medlen was initially charged with aggravated robbery and unauthorized use of a vehicle. Late Monday afternoon Terrell police said she had been charged with capital murder in the wake of Bourns' death.
We interviewed Medlen before she was named as a suspect, and she told us that she feared for her safety because such a crime had happened in her neighborhood. Three days after the interview, she was charged with committing that crime. Click here to watch our entire interview with Medlen.
Medlen's mother, Erma Austin, says she is mentally ill and a drug addict, long in need of help. "When I talked to her, I said, 'Lecretia, who did this with you?' She said, 'The Devil. The Devil made me do it, Mom.'
"All I can feel is just sorrow for the lady's family and for my family. My family is going through hell right now, too," Austin said.
Medlen's mother knows her daughter could face the death penalty if convicted. She hopes, instead, she'll spend the rest of her life in a mental institution.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Hollywood Hair
Click to enlarge
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
