12 Certified Monsters, and the Legal Loopholes That Let Them Walk Free

You’d think the legal system could be as easy as, “Hey buddy, you killed someone. Time to go to jail for the rest of your life,” but as the now hundreds of True Crime shows have shown us, it’s nowhere near that easy. The criminal justice system is a complex and ridiculously confusing series of rules and regulations that, if combed through by much smarter legal minds than us, leave room for some very interesting loopholes.

Quirky little technicalities like an improper search warrant or a statute of limitations have allowed even the most savage people to evade conviction, despite overwhelming evidence that pointed to their guilt. Now they’re out here, just kickin’ it like the rest of us. Does mass murder just pop up in their everyday conversations like one solid “Back in my day” story? Maybe. Hey, you could always ask one of these 12 verified monsters whose legal loopholes allowed them to stand right behind you as you read this.

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12 Come on, Arkansas… Mass murder is mass murder.

GRACKED THEIR AGE ALLOWED THESE SCHOOL SHOOTERS TO WALK FREE. In 1998, Mitch Johnson and Andrew Golden killed 4 children and 1 adult at a middle school in Jonesboro, AR. Since Johnson was 13 and Golden was 11, their sentence was juvenile detention until they turned 21. They're the only school shooters in the U.S. who were allowed to walk free. — CBS / ABC

11 Keep your opinions to yourself, officer!

CRACKED MURDERER STEVEN MENDEZ WALKED FREE BECAUSE OF IMPROPER STATEMENTS. After allegedly killing 21-year-old Saikou Koma in NYC, a judge determined that detectives delivered problematic testimony by giving their opinions to the jury instead of just stating the facts. All charges were dismissed. — NY Post

10 But he even admitted it!

GRACKED A CONFESSED ABUSER OF OVER 250 BOYS NEVER SPENT A DAY IN JAIL. In 1992, hundreds of men accused Fresno priest Father Mario Cimmarrusti of sexually abusing them in the '60s and '70s. Не confessed to every one of them, but since the statute of limitations had passed, he was let go. — Bishop / Anderson Advocates

9 How many boos do you think one tour can draw?

GRACKED BILL COSBY IS FREE AND READY TO TOUR! After serving less than 3 years for drugging and raping women, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court released Cosby because he was told that his original confession couldn't be used against him in court. Now free, he spoke about touring again, but 5 new women are filing charges. — BET

8 Think about it, officer, who uses Internet Explorer?

GRACKED INEPT COPS OVERLOOKED CASEY ANTHONY'S INCRIMINATING SEARCH HISTORY. Police found 17 vague searches on her computer's Internet Explorer browser, but completely forgot to check Mozilla Firefox, where she Googled fool-proof suffocation on the day of her daughter's disappearance. This was discovered after the trial, where she'd already been acquitted. — USA Today

7 Well, that’s one way to get famous.

GRACKED ALLEGED MURDER, CANNIBALISM, AND NECROPHILIA DIDN'T WARRANT ANY PRISON TIME. In 1981, Issei Sagawa allegedly murdered Renée Hartevelt, ate parts of her, and raped her corpse in France. They extradited him to Japan (his homeland) but did not send the evidence, so the Japanese court had nothing to convict him with. Не then made millions writing about his crime. — All That's Interesting

6 Yes, paperwork is annoying, but come on!

GRACKED A PAPERWORK DELAY LET ACCUSED MURDERER KAMARI BELMONT WALK FREE. Не allegedly shot a man who then died weeks later, but because it took the DA's office over a year to elevate the shooting charge to a murder, they had to completely drop the charges. Не was shot and killed minutes after leaving the jail. — Chicago Tribune / Facebook

5 Guys, he’s good now, we promise.

GRACKED AN ALLEGED MURDEROUS CANNIBAL WALKED FREE IN CANADA. In 2008, witnesses reportedly saw Vince Li behead and cannibalize a fellow rider on a Greyhound bus in Canada. Instead of prison, he was sent to a mental institution, and was released in 2016 after the institution said he stopped being a threat to others. — CBC

4 Double Jeopardy wasn’t just a sweet movie.

GRACKED AN ACCUSED MURDERER'S MISTRIAL LED TO DOUBLE JEOPARDY. In 2017, Courtney Hackney allegedly beat Holly Barnett to death. Normally, her first mistrial would've resulted in another trial, but because of a procedural rule, Hackney could not technically be retried for the crime. She walked free. — KMBC

3 But he confessed! Come on!

GRACKED A TECHNICALITY VOIDED A CONFESSION. In 2016, Donald Clark's home invasion caused 77-year-old Willis Sample's fatal heart attack. Clark wasn't able to knowingly waive his Miranda rights, which made his confession void, so the judge was forced to completely dismiss the murder charge. — WBRC

2 These cops couldn’t file a murder charge in under 60 days?!

GRACKED SLOW FILING GOT THESE ACCUSED MURDERERS RELEASED. MARIANNA MURDER SUSPECTS RELEASED ON TECHNICALITY JAMES BROWNLEE TYLER MOODY In 2018, James Brownlee & Tyler Moody allegedly murdered Carlos Sanders, but a technicality under Rule 8.6 stated that a failure to file charges within 60 days would result in the defendant's release from custody. — KATV

1 Possibly another season of The Wire?

GRACKED BALTIMORE FREED A BAKER'S DOZEN OF CONVICTED MURDERERS. After being locked up for decades, 13 convicts were released after the state's highest court overturned their convictions due to improper jury instructions. The men were convicted before 1980, and since then, the court has changed the way juries are allowed to decide cases. — CBS / The Marshall Project

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