Inmate; Desormeaux confessed to Bourque murder

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September 30, 2010

Mary Meaux The Port Arthur News The Port Arthur News Thu Sep 30, 2010, 07:19 PM CDT

BEAUMONT — An inmate who once bunked near Joseph Jimmy Desormeaux claims the Port Arthur man confessed to the murder of Summer Bourque.

Cornelius Green, currently incarcerated on a charge of aggravated assault with prior convictions including manslaughter and attempted murder, told jurors in Judge John Stevens’ courtroom that Desormeaux spoke about the case.

But two other inmates, called by defense attorney Tom Burbank, rebutted Green’s testimony.

“He and her left and the club and he let her drive. They were both tipsy,” Green said. “She wrecked his truck, van, ran off the road while she was driving. He jumped up and hit her head on the steering wheel, got mad at her or something.”

Green said Desormeaux told him he hit Bourque in the head with an object and that later he “put her in a place where there were alligators.”

The inmate told jurors he was not promised anything in return for his testimony and that upon his return to jail, would be considered a “snitch” by other inmates who will likely throw urine and feces on him.

He also testified he did not watch television or know about Desormeaux’s case prior to the conversation.

Shawn Jones, who was called to the witness stand by Burbank, told a very different story. Green, he said, bragged to other inmates that he would speak to investigators in order to have his prison sentence shortened.

Jones is currently serving a 70 year sentence for aggravated assault. According to a story that ran in the May 1, 2009 edition of The News, Jones was charged with firing an SKS assault rifle at a vehicle that ended in a car chase after an accident with now deceased rapper Chad Butler, also known as Pimp C. Jones also has prior charges, he said.

“There ain’t nothing the DA (district attorney) or anybody can do for me to help me,” Jones said regarding a lesser prison sentence for testifying.

Alvin Gray, also serving time for aggravated assault, was called to the witness stand by Burbank.

Gray is charged in connection with shooting his nephew after the two men went fishing in 2009. He felony priors of aggravated assault and armed robbery.

The inmate told jurors that Green told him he was going to testify in order to receive a reduced sentence.

He refuted Green’s testimony saying the Desormeaux is a quiet person who would not speak to someone unless he was spoken to first.

Prosecutor Ramon Rodriguez quizzed Gray about the timing of his coming forth with the information. Testimony showed Gray reportedly knew Green would lie to investigators for several months but did not tell authorities until an investigator for the defense questioned him.

Robert “Bob” Henderson, owner of Henderson Forensics and Associates, made the 11-plus hour trip to Beaumont where he testified as an expert on bloodstain analysis.

Henderson explained that much information can be gleaned from studying bloodstain patterns. He was called to examine Desormeaux’s Dodge van in search for forensic evidence. When looking at a crime scene “it is just as important to know where the blood is not, as it is to know where the blood is,” he said.

Most of the blood collected in the vehicle originated in the back area of the van, the headliner and the passenger side. From looking at the different blood spatter patterns, Henderson deduced that a struggle ensued in the rear of the vehicle and the victim was struck with a blunt object.

Bourque was last seen Aug. 10, 2008, leaving Dylan’s bar and restaurant with Desormeaux. Her badly decomposed body was found three days later in the J.D. Murphree Reserve.

Desormeaux fled the area and his van was seized in Sabine County under a search warrant. The suspect was later apprehended by U.S. Marshal’s in Seattle, Wash.

The trial will continue on Friday.

mmeaux@panews.com

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Inmate; Desormeaux confessed to Bourque murder

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