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Man pleads not guilty in baby death, tells ex-girlfriend 'I love you'

Tribune photo by JIM REED

A woman comforts Jasmine Bedwell outside the Hillsborough County Courthouse. Bedwell's ex-boyfriend is accused of kidnapping her baby and throwing him from a car on Interstate 275.

By TOM BRENNAN and RAY REYES

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 20, 2009

Updated: 05/20/2009 08:12 pm

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Richard McTear Jr.

TAMPA - Shackled in chains and surrounded by deputies, the man accused of tossing an infant from a car had some parting words for the baby's distraught mother as he was led out of the courtroom.

"I love you, Jasmine," Richard Anthony McTear Jr. said over his shoulder after pleading not guilty to murder, kidnapping and other charges today.

His ex-girlfriend, Jasmine Bedwell, 17, broke down outside the courthouse when asked about McTear's comment.

"No, no, no," she said before collapsing on the sidewalk in tears and throwing away her purse and shoe heels.

"Why?" wailed Bedwell, her head in her hands as friends and family sought to comfort her. "Why?"

She continued crying while being led to a van in a parking lot. There, Bedwell and her friends declined to comment.

Authorities say McTear forced his way into Bedwell's apartment May 5. They say he beat Bedwell, threw her 3-month-old son, Emanuel Wesley Murray, on a concrete floor and then drove off with the child before throwing him onto the shoulder of Interstate 275 just south of Fowler Avenue.

The medical examiner's office said today that it hasn't determined when during the incident Emanuel died.

During McTear's arraignment, Assistant Public Defender Kenneth Littman asked prosecutors to say whether they would seek the death penalty.

But Assistant State Attorney Jalal Harb said the state has 45 days to make that decision.

The first question for prosecutors is whether there was premeditation, said John Fitzgibbons, a Tampa defense lawyer and former federal prosecutor.

"This thing happened somewhat quickly," said Fitzgibbons, who is not involved in the case. "But there was enough time that the state could argue that he was able to form a conscious thought or intent to kill the infant."

McTear was indicted by a grand jury May 14. He has been held without bail since his arrest.

Police have said McTear's criminal history includes dozens of arrests, several involving domestic violence.

In April, Bedwell was granted a temporary restraining order against McTear, although it later was dropped, records show. That same month, she told an investigator that McTear had beat her up because of something she wore.

Joanne Olvera Lighter, president of The Spring of Tampa Bay, said McTear telling Bedwell in the courtroom that he loves her appears to be his way of retaining power and control.

"What we know about batterers and abusers, they can be charming people," said Lighter, whose organization serves victims of domestic violence. "This is a young woman who's been through a lot of trauma."

Security was tight in the courtroom.

All other defendants were cleared, and McTear sat alone in the jury box as 11 deputies hovered nearby.

Already emotional, Bedwell had to be led out of the courtroom before the hearing began. She appeared to wave to McTear when she returned.

Hillsborough County Circuit Judge Gregory P. Holder set a July 1 status conference in the case.

Holder also will consider in July whether to revoke the probation McTear received in 2008 after pleading guilty to battery charges in connection with a domestic dispute involving a different woman.

Tribune reporter Josh Poltilove and News Channel 8 reporter Peter Bernard contributed to this report. Reporter Tom Brennan can be reached at (813) 259-7698.

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