Courtroom footage captured the moment that the father of a murder victim lunged towards his daughter’s killer, attempting to get to him across the court after he allegedly smirked at him.
Van Terry’s 18-year-old daughter Shirellda Terry was killed by Michael Madison in Ohio back in 2013, when a body was discovered in a garage leased by the killer.
Two more bodies were found upon further searching.
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One body was discovered in a backyard and another in the basement of a vacant house.
All three were wrapped in plastic bags.
The bodies were found after a neighbour complained about the horrific smell coming from the property.
Madison was arrested and taken into custody after further evidence of decomposition was found in his house.
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As well as Terry, he killed 38-year-old Angela Deskins and 28-year-old Shetisha Sheeley.
During his trial, Terry’s father Van gave a victim impact statement to the court, but he never actually made it to the end of his prepared written statement.
He started out: "Right now I guess we're supposed to in our hearts forgive this clown.
"He's touched our families, taken my child..."
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At that point, he stopped.
Then, it is alleged that Madison smiled across the courtroom at him, leading Terry to lose his cool.
He leapt from his table and ran across the courtroom attempting to get at the man who murdered his daughter.
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Afterwards, he told Fox8 news channel: “When I first went up there I was okay,
“I was thinking about how he mutilated my child, how you cut my child, and you did all this while my child was still alive so you caused my baby great pain.”
With all that, the smile made him snap.
“I don’t know if I thought about leaping or thought about what have you, I just know I wanted him,” he continued.
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There was some talk of charging Terry after his attempt, but remained defiant.
“I call it a father feeling his pain.
“And if I do get charged I’m alright with that because I did what was right.”
Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Tim McGinty later told ABC5: “The man reached a breaking point obviously and the defendant was taunting him,
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“He killed his daughter.
“This is the type of thing Mr. Madison finds amusing.
“Michael Madison is a gutless coward.”
Madison was eventually found guilty and sentenced to death, although Terry always said that he didn’t want that.
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“Release him inside the [prison] population and let him deal with it every day of his life,” he said.
“That’s what I think; I think he should suffer like we suffered.”
It was the first time that the judge had ever sentenced someone to death, and in summary, she said: “In coming to my decision today, I am struck by the sheer inhumanity of what one human being can do to not one, but three human beings. It is incomprehensible,
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“People who commit the kind of crimes that you have committed must be punished, and must be punished as severely as the law allows.
“It is absolutely necessary.”
As of 2023, he remains in prison on death row.
Tom Wood