"This is going to be a hard case," Parnham told Primetime 2 months before the trial. Lindsey Harris, 17, took the stand as the prosecution's last witness against orthodontist Clara Harris, who stands accused of running down her husband - David Harris, 44, also a dentist -. While David Harris daughter Lindsey spent the school year in Ohio with her mother, the teenager lived in Houston with her dad and stepmom over the summers. During the interview, Harris, dressed in prison-issued white drawstring pants and smock, talked about the work with Braille she does with 60. Lindsey opened the door and stuck her feet on the ground, as if she was attempting to escape, according to witnesses, who then saw Clara whip the car around, hit the accelerator again, and drive over her husbands crumpled body a second time. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected. But last year, she got a new parole attorney, Kevin Stouwie of San Antonio. They watched as prosecutors built a case against Dr. Harris, 45, a former beauty queen who is a dentist. Illustrations by Lindsey C. Harris My art work is imaginative in origin, illustrative and narrative in nature, and often depicts images from myths, stories, dreams and personifications of ideas with psychological and emotional content. Clara Harris leaving prison on May 11, 2018. She first became eligible for parole in 2013 but her request was denied. Lindsey Harris, along with her mother (David's first wife), quickly filed suit against Clara Harris in hopes of claiming David's insurance proceeds and inheriting his portion of the estate. David Harris's father, however, refused to agree with Ms. Magness that Clara Harris's behavior in the days leading up to the confrontation at the hotel was anything unreasonable. Claras application for parole was granted, Inside the Bro-tastic Party Mansions Upending a Historic Austin Community. a bunch of times. 2023 The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers on this website. Gerald Harris, a former school principal who later directed the transportation division of a school district before he retired, said his son was a good husband and a good father to their young twin boys. The tape did not capture the moment of initial impact, but it showed Harris' Mercedes driving in circles afterward, lurching over what prosecutors were saying was her husband's body. "I've always said I thought that video eventually would be the best thing in the world for us," he said. If jurors find she acted under the legal definition of sudden passion, she could receive a two-to-20-year sentence. She cried. Lawsuit by Clara Harris' children settled, Willie Nelson pays lovely tribute to another country legend, Rare photos show 2 ocelots crossing South Texas road, Astros GM Dana Brown has more praise team's top prospect, This is what Houston looks like from space. Suzie from Carson City on April 17, 2016: Val..I would agree with you about Clara's reaction & out of control behavior, but as you can see from my comment~ I firmly believe she allowed her husband's infidelity to literally drive her to the brink of insanity. She has no history of violent behavior. Clara Harris is serving a 20-year sentence for murder in the case, which drew national attention. She said she remembered one of them telling her, "Don't go where they're going. ''She was very determined that's what was going to happen,'' Lindsey testified. If she did, there was a risk the prosecution would get her police statement admitted, with her potentially incriminating comments about wanting to hurt her husband. Then she did another 180 and ran over him a third time. Inside Look at Mercedes Killer's Defense - ABC News She has since filed a wrongful death suit against her stepmother. A few books have been written about Clara Harris, but the best one is Steven Long's Out of Control, published in 2004. When Harris suddenly accelerated, Lindsey was thrown against her seat and saw her father put his hands on the hood of the car, shouting, Stop! she said. Clara Harris retained $1.2 million in assets. "Soon after that, it all turned into massive turmoil, and the only thing that I could do was to yell for help for someone to please, please get her off of me.". Days of Our Lives Spoilers: Steve Burton's First Airdate Revealed At her parole hearing this past October, he brought her two sons, who were then nineteen years old and attending universities in Texas. Im thinking about pulling a Clara Harris, a woman would say with a laugh after learning her husband had done something really stupid. Bridges says before Clara Harris was pulled off of her, Harris attacked her -- she pulled her hair, punched her head and face, and bit her. ''I thought it was maybe a duffle bag or something like that,'' Mr. Moza added. Previously, Lindsey was a Director, Marketing at Frazier Healthcar e Partners and also held positions at Texas Ambulatory Surgery Center Society, Access MediQuip. He conceded that David Harris's relationship with Gail Bridges, 39, a receptionist in his dental practice, was not proper. Facebook gives people the power to. Gail Bridges told Garza that her heart goes out to the children, especially Lindsey, who was in the car and witnessed this tragedy that night. She would tell me pretty much everything that was going on and made me feel part of the family. Lindsey, David Harris daughter from a previous marriage, spent summers and holidays with her father and Harris. There are 5500+ professionals named "David Harris", who use LinkedIn to exchange information, ideas, and opportunities. George Wong/Getty ImagesClara Harris and attorney George Parnham after the first day of testimony in 2003. Eyewitnesses testified for the prosecution that Harris seemed "possessed" as she got into her Mercedes, and some said they saw multiple runovers. She lunged at Gail, slapped her, grabbed her shirt and tore it off, all the while screaming, You bitch, hes my husband! At the same time, Lindsey began hitting her father with her purse, shouting I hate you! What Colombia plans for their descendants, Messy storms roll eastward after slamming Texas, Louisiana, Ukrainians dig up more bodies from makeshift graves in once-occupied towns, New crew from U.S, Russia and UAE arrives at space station, Two Americans arrested on charges of selling tech to Russia. When asked to choose from a list of possible verdicts, most of the mock jurors chose criminally negligent homicide. In November, Claras application for parole was granted, and her release date was set for May 11. Most women in her shoes would've snapped. Refine Your Search Results All Filters 1 Lindsey Fore Harris, 53 Resides in Collierville, TN Lived In Marietta GA, Newnan GA, Fairhope AL, Huntington Woods MI David Harris | Facebook Her behavior was erratic and her speech loud and angry as she demanded to know which room her husband and his mistress were in. David Lindsay Harris. He says he replays the trial in his head every night, wondering what went wrong: whether it was the tire track on the police photograph, or the jurors' jealousy of Harris and her success. In 2007, Clara was brought back to Houston for a civil trial to defend herself in a wrongful-death lawsuit filed by Davids parents. Gail Bridges stood watching, too stunned to move. Raised by her widowed mother, she grew into an ambitious adult who studied dentistry in her home country before making her way to the United States in the late 1980s. Creger, who said she was trained in CPR to care for a premature son, tried to help the injured dentist breathe. In his opening argument, Parnham set out the essence of the defense case: that Harris had wanted to rescue her marriage, and ran over her husband by accident when her actual intention was to ram Bridges' car. Its free. ''She just had this evil look on her face,'' Lindsey, now 17, said, describing how her stepmother appeared as they drove around for several hours trying to find David Harris, 44, an orthodontist who had told his wife several days earlier that he was having an affair with Gail Bridges, 38, who worked in his office. ''Sometimes I think she loved him too much,'' the victim's mother said. Under the conditions of her parole, she has to wear a monitoring bracelet, take regular drug and alcohol tests, be gainfully employed, and reside in Galveston County. ''I know that he was trying to get away and he couldn't.''. Lindsey started hitting her father while shouting, I hate you! Harris ripped the shirt off Bridges, then David reportedly pushed Harris to the floor. She killed my dad,'" Bridges responded. Originally sentenced to twenty years for first-degree murder, the former Houston dentist has been paroled. This was said to be the equivalent of Davids half of the estate plus a little over 50 percent of Claras half. Clients were advised to let the investigators do the work and simply wait for the report upon completion. The Shocking Story Of Clara Harris, The Woman Who Killed Her Cheating Husband With Her Mercedes. David Harris' tooth, found on the pavement next to his head, was introduced as evidence, as were autopsy photos showing what a pathologist said were tire tracks across the body of the. She said Clara Harris finally stopped the car, ran to her husband and said: ''I'm so sorry. David Harris, a suburban Houston orthodontist, died July 24 after Clara Harris' car struck him. Her neighbor at the psychiatric prison is another client of Parnham's: Andrea Yates, who is serving a life sentence for drowning her five children in a bathtub. ''She said she could kill my father for what he'd done to her,'' Lindsey testified, glancing only briefly at her stepmother, a former beauty queen and dentist, in almost five hours on the witness stand. Clara Harris went totally berserk & lost all control & sense of reality. Clara Harris tried to control the damage by making herself real pretty so Dad would want her and not Gail, said Lindsey. Parnham was confident. Around Houston, she became a pop culture reference. On July 22, 2002, she got into her silver S-Class 430 Mercedes-Benz and drove to the Nassau Bay Hilton, across the highway from the Johnson Space Center. "He once told me that he would like to spend the rest of his life with me, and he did," Bridges said. Gideon Lindsey Harris, who went by the name of Lin or Lindsey, was born December 12, 1813 in Wilson County, Tennessee on his father's farm off the south bank of the Cumberland River. Find Lindsey Harris's phone number, address, and email on Spokeo, the leading people search directory for contact information and public records. When David Harris wed Colombian-born beauty queen Clara Suarez in a Valentines Day 1992 ceremony befitting royalty at the Nassau Bay Hilton Hotel, he had no way of knowing his loving bride would end his life here some 10 years later. David Harris was gasping for air, making gurgling sounds and his limbs were drawing close to his body, similar to those of stroke victims, she testified. David Harris | Facebook Hotel security was called and Clara was escorted from the building and told to leave the premises. "And at that point I knew I had to focus on her.". 300+ "Lindsay Harris" profiles | LinkedIn I hit her because I knew that she had killed my Dad, said Lindsey. 1 Lindsey Harris ER 2006 Sudbury, Suffolk, CO10. She changed so many times to appease him, but it was never good enough. Clara Harris had it all. If she was cheap enough to carry on with a married man, she's cheap enough to have no remorse. Bridges then walked to her car with David following. Not to mention destroying so many other lives. "It's hard to tell. We report on vital issues from politics to education and are the indispensable authority on the Texas scene, covering everything from music to cultural events with insightful recommendations. ''But there is no problem with me getting to see those children.''. The lawsuit sought damages from the Nassau Bay Hilton Hotel and the Blue Moon Investigations detective agency for the couple's twin sons, Brian and Bradley, 5, and Harris' daughter, Lindsey, 18, by a previous marriage. Her sons were placed in the care of family friends, and her stepdaughter Lindsey testified against her at the trial that began in January 2003. The lawsuit claimed that Blue Moon, of Webster, which Clara Harris hired to photograph her husband with another woman, should not have told Clara Harris that the two were at the hotel. But, he said, she insisted on testifying. 20 years was extremely unfair. In her turn on the stand, Mildred Harris said she and her daughter-in-law ''were like friends.''. "Even before she opens her mouth, she has that that Leona Helmsley look her type of dress, that much makeup," one woman said, referring to the real estate "Queen of Mean" jailed in the 1990s for tax evasion. They then called Dr. Harris on his cellphone and told him to come home because one of the twins was sick, a statement Lindsey testified was not true. All the while, Lindsey sat screaming at her stepmother from the Mercedes passenger side; begging Clara to stop. Lindsey Harris in Florida. DAVID HARRIS - CLARA HARRIS - CMM-Crime, Mystery & Mayhem Then, learn about rich teenager Ethan Couch being released from prison despite murdering four people. David Harris | Facebook On February 14, 2003 (which ironically would have been David and Claras 11th anniversary), the jury found her guilty of second degree murder. 11/21/2022 8:44 AM. According to her testimony on Jan. 29, she screamed repeatedly at her stepmother to stop as the car rushed toward her father. Garza asked Bridges. Her husband had confessed to her on July 17, and Harris had confronted Bridges at the orthodontics office that same day, telling her she was fired. Lindsey Harris - People Directory - 192.com 156 Results for Lindsey Harris Please use the search above if you cannot find the record you require. "We're just glad it's over," he said. They should've paroled her the first time she was up for parole. This time, a jury had little sympathy for Claras story, and it ordered her to pay $3.75 million in damages. Nevertheless, Claras attorneys persuaded the jurors that Clara had acted under sudden passion rather than with intent to kill, and they gave her a twenty-year sentence. Bridges spoke to News2Houston in an exclusive interview Thursday. She said she remembered driving around in circles, "confused," with no conscious thoughts going through her mind. Things spun out of control for Joy and she fled the country. Skeptical that he would do so, Lindsey accompanied her stepmother that day on her quest to find her husband, whom they believed to be with Ms. Bridges. She screamed. David Harris' Mistress Breaks Her Silence - KPRC A Right-wing Cabal Took Over Odessas Municipal Government. Clara suddenly gunned the engine and raced toward them. However, on a rational side, what bothers the most is Clara's not being aware through all those years that her husband was a cheating type - despite the fact that he didn't even particularly hide it. He openly flirted with women everywhere he went, even showing his wife notes scribbled by waitresses at Hooters. ''I don't approve of that kind of behavior,'' said the surviving son, also named Gerald, a professor of psychology at the University of Houston who is no stranger to Houston courtrooms. He was pronounced dead at 9:48 p.m. and Clara Harris was charged with murder. David Harris was run over shortly afterward. They entered into a contract for services with Clara, which outline standard provisions of any decent agencyone of those provisions being that the client was not to interfere with the detectives investigation. ''We could talk to each other because we both loved David,'' she said in testimony that began with her smiling broadly at the jury. Probation and therapy would have been the better option because she has no history of this behavior and no criminal behavior on her record prior to this. The 44-year-old orthodontist was tragically already gone. Since the trial, Parnham has been asking himself why the jury imposed the maximum. But then, to his horror, the judge read the jury's sentence: 20 years. According to her testimony on Jan. 29, she screamed. Her friends have told me she is worried that people she meets will realize who she is and back away. David and Clara Harris were married for ten years before she killed him in a fit of rage. When the story about the scorned woman who used her Mercedes to extract revenge on her cheating husband made national headlines, Americans suddenly found themselves embroiled in a debate: Was it really murder? The two began working to repair their marriage, and David Harris even told a friend, Were going to make it. He then informed his wife that he wanted to take Bridges to one last dinner to end things amicably, as he had led the receptionist to believe that his marriage was open. Daniel Vaughn is the countrys first barbecue editor, and he has eaten more barbecue than you have. Gail Bridges describes the night she and her lover, David Harris, were confronted by his wife, Clara Harris, in a hotel lobby -- the last night she would ever see him alive. Clara struggled to get pregnant; after undergoing fertility treatments, she gave birth to twin boys Brian and Bradley in 1998. Her husband drove her to kill him. Get the day's top news with our Today's Headlines newsletter, sent every weekday morning. The thing that made me upset about this case, is that no one ever touched on the fact that David caused his own death due to his own foul behavior. Finally David and Gail exited the hotel, obviously unaware of his wifes presence or even the scene she had created in the hotel earlier. I never thought hed do something like that to her. They seemed like the perfect family but on July 24, 2002, Harris fatally ran over her husband with her car. Witnesses recalled seeing Lindsey punch Harris in the face before both of them exited the vehicle. He clearly did not make them a priority. But shes a wonderful woman. Custody Compromise Reached For Clara Harris' Twins, Custody Battle Begins Over Harris Children, Harris' Stepdaughter Sues Hotel, Detective Agency, Hotel Official Fired After Testifying In Clara Harris Trial, Clara Harris Says She Still Loves Her Dead Husband, Jury Considers Punishment For Clara Harris, Jurors Set To Begin Deliberations In Clara Harris Case, Closing Arguments Wednesday In Harris Trial, Jurors Told To Bring Toothbrushes In Clara Harris Trial, Clara Harris' Attorney Collapses Outside Courtroom, Harris' Lover Testifies About Relationship, Defense Goes After Victim In Clara Harris Case, Collision Expert Testifies About Harris' Death, Accusations Fly After Harris Daughter Testifies, Harris' Daughter Testifies: 'She Meant To Kill Him', Stepdaughter To Testify In Clara Harris' Trial, Harris Cries Uncontrollably, Removed From Trial, Private Investigator Testifies In Clara Harris Trial, Witnesses Describe Harris Running Over Husband, Jury Selection Continues In Harris' Murder Trial, Jurors To Be Picked For Clara Harris' Trial, Harris' Stepdaughter's Remarks Spark Debate, Audiotapes Allege Clara Harris Also Having Affair, Custody Battle Stems From High-Profile Murder, Wife Free After Allegedly Running Over Husband. The 1995 move Suburban Madness starring Selma Ward is loosely based on the Clara Harris case. Clara Harris: Death by Mercedes - The CrimeWire - HubPages Bridges told Garza that her life has never been the same since that night. David had been married once before and had a daughter named Lindsey, and Harris loved the young girl like her own. I believe anyone can be driven to do what Ms Harris did when they are pushed far enough. Clara Harris was born Clara Suarez on Feb. 3, 1958, in Bogot, Colombia, according to Texas Monthly. The romance blossomed so rapidly that the couple got married on Feb. 14, 1992, less than a year after their first date. Prosecutors, however, went after her, saying she knew exactly what she was doing in that Hilton parking lot. Because she is penniless (and legally, she still owes her in-laws $3.75 million), she will initially live with a friend, and she will look for a job. During hearings on the matter, Lindsey Harris testified she was severely traumatized from her stepmother's actions. Join Facebook to connect with Lynsey Harris and others you may know. In an interview with Oprah before her release, Harris said, I want to be judged by what really happened, not by the speculations people had made I found myself in a situation that I never thought myself capable of.. Menu Log In Sign Up It seemed that life was perfect and complete for the Harris family. And I went to look at the direction, and then we saw her," Bridges said. "This is going to be a hard case," Parnham told Primetime 2 months before the trial. Lindsey was with Harris when she sped off in the direction of the hotel on July 24 to confront her husband. Obviously, he hadnt. David Harris is on Facebook. Then she went inside looking for David. On the other side of the aisle, with a majority made up of women especially those whose husbands or exes had cheated on themthere are those who insisted it was a crime of passion and David got what he deserved. Four of the jurors said they could "relate" to how Harris felt. Sixteen years ago, Clara was a pretty and personable dentist who lived in a prosperous south Houston suburb with her husband David, an orthodontist, and their twin three-year-old sons. Today, they had the chance to explain why. The witness, a police accident expert, displayed a crime scene photograph showing a tire mark pointing directly toward David Harris's body possible evidence that he had been run over more than once. In short time, the Harrises were showing signs of success, with an expensive home and high-dollar import vehicles. "This is Dr. David Harris and he's fing this woman right here!" Harris David - Facebook In the statement she gave to police on the night of her husband's death in July 2002, Harris was at times barely coherent, talking nonstop about dental practices and her desire to remake herself for her husband after he told her he was seeing another woman. On the stand, Harris gave an account similar to the videotaped one that had been so effective with the mock jury. ''You could hear a car going round, hard.''. Her trial began the following February. Dr Lyndsey Harris is a Criminologist with extensive qualitative research experience. In the week before the murder, Harris went to a tanning salon and a beauty shop, joined a gym and consulted with a plastic surgeon about liposuction and breast implants, her checkbook register shows. View the profiles of professionals named "Lindsay Harris" on LinkedIn. Most of all, mind your own damned business. Turner: TEA is giving Houston ISD two optionsclose school or be taken over, Who is Justin Dirden? Then, the theory went, Harris panicked and locked the wheel to the left, driving around her husband's body in a 40-foot circle, but not hitting it again. During jury selection, they aimed for married women who seemed likely to have the kind of self-esteem problems Harris had had with her weight and appearance. Murdaughs fall from grace ends in a life sentence for murder, CPAC shows the GOP has deep divisions that may prove impossible to repair, Abortion clinics crossing state borders not always welcome, Black Vietnam veteran finally awarded Medal of Honor, Toxic forever chemicals about to get their first U.S. limits, Hidden, illegal casinos are booming in L.A., with organized crime reaping big profits, Best coffee city in the world? Mayor: HISD has two optionsclose school or be taken over, Meet the Astros prospect tearing up Spring Training, Report: Houston ranked No. Also known as Lindsey D Clay, Clay Lindsey. Clara Harris was granted parole in November 2017, and she was ultimately released in May of 2018. Garza asked Bridges. Seven months later, she called News2Houston's Cindy Garza and said she was ready to talk, but only under one condition -- no cameras, only audio. When they arrived at the hotel, she said, they went to the front desk, where they were told that neither Dr. Harris nor Ms. Bridges was registered. Lindsey Harris is a Director, Marketing at CPS Solutions based in Dublin, Ohio. In the end, Galveston County probate judge Gladys Burwell ruled Davids three children would receive almost $2 million each, while Clara was allowed to retain roughly $1.2 million in assets. Without warning, she stomped on the accelerator and went straight for my Dad, testified Lindsey, 17, at Harris murder trial Wednesday. Join Facebook to connect with David Harris and others you may know. It's time to send her home. Lindsey Harris filed a wrongful death lawsuit against her stepmother and was awarded about $2 million from her father's estate, as were her half brothers. The Mercedes glanced off Gails SUV and hit David before he could get out of the way, propelling him 25 feet across the lot. Lawsuit by Clara Harris' children settled - Chron He and Gail both contributed to the situation. Blue Moon investigators would make a deadly mistake when it came to their client Clara Harris. The courtroom in Harris County State District Court was packed today. She already missed out raising her boys. Eventually, Clara and Lindsey stormed back to the Mercedes. David was dead at the scene and Clara was charged with first-degree murder. At the trial, Lindsey Harris testified against her stepmother, claiming to have attempted suicide four times after her father's death. Resides in Chicago, IL. She thought her car was going to stop on the high sidewalk, she said, but instead it kept going. She was led from the courtroom, and the trial was recessed for 15 minutes. Dr Harris' research background is inter-disciplinary with research specialisms in domestic abuse, terrorism and political violence. YouTubeDavid and Clara Harris were married for ten years before she killed him in a fit of rage. ''In 10 years, he never had a negative thing to say about Clara. As the defense rested its case, Parnham was concerned about the damaging police statement and some of the testimony, but he was confident the jury would accept Irwin's testimony that Harris only hit her husband once. By the time they tracked him down at a hotel, Harris was livid. Since it only showed Harris circling the parking lot, and since David was barely visible, the defense argued she only hit him once. When the car stopped, Lindsey ran around to the drivers side. Murder Defendant's In-Laws Tell Jurors Why They Remain Her Strongest Supporters, https://www.nytimes.com/2003/02/11/us/murder-defendant-s-in-laws-tell-jurors-why-they-remain-her-strongest-supporters.html. The attorneys said that Blue Moon. Lindsey Harris - Director, Marketing - CPS Solutions | ZoomInfo What followed was a gruesome murder and a controversial legal saga. Gideon Lindsey "Lin" Harris (1813-1896) - Find a Grave Memorial . A symbol of her American success story, the luxury car soon became a murder weapon. Six months later, all Lindsey knows for sure is that her father is dead, and that her stepmother is to blame. They were expected to argue that Harris deliberately and repeatedly ran him over. David was consciously and purposely careless with his family. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. Today, the judge sent the jury out and told her: ''Either you will sit here in a composed manner or you will be removed from the courtroom. The worst was yet to come, however. If you need help with the Public File, call (713) 778-4745. She knew what she did and she wasnt sorry, said Lindsey. When Parnham and his team watched the tape closely, they decided they could make the argument that the Mercedes hit David Harris only once, and that the subsequent passes went around his body, not over it. Houston pitmaster goes viral after hilarious TV interview, Willie Nelson's new album is a lovely tribute to a fellow country legend, Two ocelots were photographed crossing a road in rare South Texas sighting, Astros GM Dana Brown sees bright future for top prospect Drew Gilbert, This is how astronauts see Houston, Texas Gulf from space with unaided eyes. In cross-examination, Ms. Magness said that after the death of her husband, Clara Harris could have kept the twins from seeing their grandparents if the grandparents had chosen not to support her.