Thompson gets life in prison for sexual assaults
SEATTLE - A convicted rapist and Level 3 sex offender known for his courtroom outbursts and threats will be going to prison for the rest of his life - and he still has to stand trial for murder.
After 2½ days of deliberation, a jury on Friday found Curtis Thompson guilty of assaulting two college students - and that he did it with sexual motivation.
Under state law, that means two strikes under Washington's "three strikes" law. And Thompson already one strike from a 1985 case in which he was convicted of raping four women. So Thompson is virtually guaranteed a life term before his murder trial begins.
His most recent trial for assaulting two college students, conducted over the past two weeks, featured several outburts.
As Thompson was being led out of the courtroom on Sept. 25, he stared at his own attorney and said, "You're going to be dead." He then let out a profanity-laced rant.
During testimony Monday afternoon from Officer Jonathan Huber about his arrest of Thompson in an elevator four years ago for holding two women and a man who tried to help, Thompson yelled: "Two hundred forty pounds and I'm beating your (expletive). Yeah, right you (expletive) dumb (expletive)."
Later that day, after more testimony from Huber, Thompson yelled, "What a lying punk. Why don't you tell the truth once in awhile?"
But on Friday, as the verdict was read, there were no outbursts or taunts from Thompson - only stares.
The contentious trial had many sub stories.
The jury never knew that as Thompson testified and sat in court he was shackled to the chair - something the jury couldn't see.
Nor were they told that he has refused to talk to his own defense attorney for the past year.
"He has it in his head that I'm part of the system that is working against him, and I'm unable to shake him of that," said his attorney, John Hicks.
So Thompson used another attorney, Phillip Tavel, who spoke on his behalf to his own attorney and to the media.
Says Tavel: "I think he questions whether justice was served for him. You know his spirits are OK. He now moves on to the next case."
Thompson now has two more trials starting in November.
He's accused of killing a Seattle mother of two and raping another woman basically just before he assaulted the college students in this week's case.
Even though he'll spend the rest of his life in prison, these trials will go forward so the victims' families can have closure.
After 2½ days of deliberation, a jury on Friday found Curtis Thompson guilty of assaulting two college students - and that he did it with sexual motivation.
Under state law, that means two strikes under Washington's "three strikes" law. And Thompson already one strike from a 1985 case in which he was convicted of raping four women. So Thompson is virtually guaranteed a life term before his murder trial begins.
His most recent trial for assaulting two college students, conducted over the past two weeks, featured several outburts.
As Thompson was being led out of the courtroom on Sept. 25, he stared at his own attorney and said, "You're going to be dead." He then let out a profanity-laced rant.
During testimony Monday afternoon from Officer Jonathan Huber about his arrest of Thompson in an elevator four years ago for holding two women and a man who tried to help, Thompson yelled: "Two hundred forty pounds and I'm beating your (expletive). Yeah, right you (expletive) dumb (expletive)."
Later that day, after more testimony from Huber, Thompson yelled, "What a lying punk. Why don't you tell the truth once in awhile?"
But on Friday, as the verdict was read, there were no outbursts or taunts from Thompson - only stares.
The contentious trial had many sub stories.
The jury never knew that as Thompson testified and sat in court he was shackled to the chair - something the jury couldn't see.
Nor were they told that he has refused to talk to his own defense attorney for the past year.
"He has it in his head that I'm part of the system that is working against him, and I'm unable to shake him of that," said his attorney, John Hicks.
So Thompson used another attorney, Phillip Tavel, who spoke on his behalf to his own attorney and to the media.
Says Tavel: "I think he questions whether justice was served for him. You know his spirits are OK. He now moves on to the next case."
Thompson now has two more trials starting in November.
He's accused of killing a Seattle mother of two and raping another woman basically just before he assaulted the college students in this week's case.
Even though he'll spend the rest of his life in prison, these trials will go forward so the victims' families can have closure.