Murder Trial Begins In Texas Windshield Death
Chante Mallard Accused Of Leaving Man To Die Impaled On Windshield
Updated: 7:09 p.m. EDT June 23, 2003
FORT WORTH, Texas -- A former nurse's aide accused of impaling a man in her windshield and leaving him to die in her garage pleaded guilty Monday morning to evidence tampering before arguments began on the first-degree murder charge against her.
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Mallard was arrested in March 2002 and charged in the death of Gregory Biggs, 37, in October 2001. Police and medical reports say Mallard hit Biggs while driving in southeast Fort Worth.
She told police she hit the man with such force, he jammed into the windshield of her car where he remained, moaning, for a few hours.
The police report says Mallard kept going in and out of the garage, telling the man she was sorry. But she finally quit going into the garage and doesn't know when he died.
Mallard told police she was scared and left Biggs stuck in her windshield, parked in her garage. The medical examiner said Biggs, who bled to death, could have survived if he'd received medical attention.
Prosecutors will rely on two key witnesses, both friends of Mallard who say they helped dispose of Biggs' body in a nearby park.
"Now they've got a witness to testify on behalf of the state of Texas against her and that obviously puts the last nail in her coffin," legal analyst Bill Lane told KXAS-TV in Dallas in September 2002.
The defendant looked down and some jurors looked away when pictures were shown of Biggs' body on Monday.
Images of the bloody, mangled body were displayed on a large screen in the Fort Worth courtroom.
Mallard's attorney said his client panicked and made the wrong choice in not seeking aid for Biggs. He said she's guilty only of failing to stop and render aid -- not murder.
The prosecution and defense both say Mallard was drunk and high on drugs the night of the incident.
If convicted of murder, Mallard could get anything from probation to life in prison.
There were no leads in the case until a tip four months later said that Mallard had mentioned the accident at a party.
Copyright 2003 by WFTV.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.