Woman convicted of murder in dog-mauling case loses appeal

[n2doc]

S.F. dog-mauling defendant loses in state court

Bob Egelko, Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, December 2, 2010

(12-01) 17:08 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- The state Supreme Court rejected an appeal Wednesday from a San Francisco lawyer convicted of murder for her dog's fatal mauling of a neighbor in their Pacific Heights apartment building in 2001.

The court's action confirmed the 15-years-to-life sentence of Marjorie Knoller. She had been released from prison in 2004 after her original trial judge reduced a jury's second-degree murder conviction to manslaughter. But another judge reinstated the conviction and sent Knoller back to prison in 2008 after the state Supreme Court ordered a new hearing.

Her lawyer, Dennis Riordan, was unavailable for comment Wednesday, but has said he would go to federal court if the state courts upheld the murder conviction.

Knoller and her husband, attorney Robert Noel, were charged in the death of Diane Whipple, who was mauled in an apartment hallway in January 2001. Whipple, 33, the women's lacrosse coach at St. Mary's College, bled to death from at least 77 wounds.



Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/12/01/BAMH1GKHUV.DTL

[AnArmyVeteran]

1. From what I know about this case I'm glad she will remain in jail.

The minds of the defendants in this case weren't much brighter than of their evil dogs.

[valerief]

2. I fail to understand why anyone in an apartment building needs a large, dangerous dog.

I'm terrified of the dangerous dogs in my area. I can see why they're banned in some countries.

[XemaSab]

4. She was a lawyer and they belonged to her client/adopted son

He was a white supremacist who was organizing dog fighting from inside Pelican Bay State Prison.

This woman, her husband, the adopted son, and the two dogs used to have orgies.

I am not making any of this up.

[valerief]

6. Arrgh!!!! nt

[AngryAmish]

3. suffer, asshole, suffer

[Altoid_Cyclist]

5. It's nice to know that the CA. Supreme Court did the right thing.

The decision probably won't do much to ease the pain of the victim's family and friends, but at least they know that the animal responsible for the death will remain caged. The couple that owned the dogs are the real animals in this story.

[Warren DeMontague]

7. That story was SO fucked up.

Classic case of arrogant, entitled pet owner and "why did you provoke my little snookums" ... :eyes: