Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 11, 1991 TAG: 9104110654
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-4 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium
The jury of eight women and four men took less than 90 minutes to reach the verdict. Jurors contacted outside the courtroom said they believed Severn F. Kellam, 41, had been unfairly treated in a bitter custody dispute with his estranged wife, Tammy.
Saying "fathers have rights, too," the jurors pointed to Kellam's unsuccessful attempts to get a judge to hear allegations that his son, Jonathan, was being sexually abused. Also, they said, he and his family were routinely denied visitation rights, even at Christmas.
There was no dispute that Severn Kellam disappeared with Jonathan to Fairhope, Ala., in September, disguising his trail by creating a new identity as Paul Anthony Noden.
The main question during the three-day trial was why.
Jurors said after the trial that the key to the verdict was an instruction by Circuit Judge Thomas Shadrick that they should acquit Kellam if they found he acted reasonably to avoid an "imminent harm" to Jonathan and if he had exhausted all other legal remedies.
Kellam, who faced up to five years in prison on the abduction charge, shook the hands of each juror as they passed, saying, "I want to thank all of you very much."
Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Frank Zanin said Kellam's claim of sexual abuse was "poppycock" and was no excuse for the defendant to knowingly break the law. He said Kellam had no proof of abuse and was simply trying to mask the real issue.
Kellam, he said, was miffed at a 1989 court order that restricted his visits with Jonathan to about 40 hours a month.
But defense attorney Joseph Lyle said his client had tried repeatedly to get doctors, social service workers and judges in Circuit Court to listen to his allegation of sexual abuse.
by CNB