Scott Huss
On April 25, 2007 Joyce Huss looked outside her window from her Longwood Florida home and saw eight year old Peter standing on the sidewalk. Peter was the son of Yana Huss, her daughter in law. Joyce went outside to fetch the boy and immediately saw he had blood on his shirt. All Peter had was the clothes on his back and a suitcase. However, the only thing in the suitcase was a note written by Joyce's son, Scott. I was unable to determine what the note said.
Joyce took Peter to the store to buy him some clothing and at some point she apparently called her other son, Michael. There are reports that there was a period of about four hours from the time that Joyce discovered Peter until she and her son called the police. They apparently called the police in Port Charlotte, three hours away, to have a well being check done on her daughter in law, Yana. Beyond that I am unsure what she told the police
When police arrived at the home of Yana Huss, they found her "being" anything but "well." She was found in the laundry room of the home. She had been stabbed multiple times and was no longer alive.
Of course the police wanted to talk to Scott Huss, but they were not sure where he was but it did not take long for them to find him In Tallahassee. He had rented a hotel. On his body they found a false identification, a bag with nearly $3,000 in it and a ticket to Dallas. In the hotel room they found a police scanner, a hair dying kit and his watch, covered in blood. In his car they found Yana's purse. He was arrested on the suspicion of murder.
Pretty open and shut case right? Well, yes and no. Not to mention suspicion does not get convictions. Evidence does.
Despite having Scott Huss in custody investigators had to build a case. For his part Scott was denying any involvement in the murder of Yana. At his trial in 2010 Scott would claim that Yana had gotten a pre-paid phone and had called him the day of the murder scared. He would claim (at least through his attorneys) that he went to the home, found her body and grabbed Peter and left. Well, that is some of what Scott would claim through his defense, but we will get into all of that later.
For the investigators part they looked in the history of the couple. They learned that Yana was Russian born and bred. The couple had met in Russia after Yana's first husband, and Peter's father had died. Yana came to the United States with her son and in 2003 she and Scott married. For his part I read that Scott had had at least one prior marriage and some children but found no information on them. Soon the couple had a little girl, Katrina, together. But, from all account the marriage was riddled with problems. They had moved into their home in 2005 and it was said that from then until Yana filed for divorce on April 11, 2007 the police were called at least twenty times relating to domestic violence issues. To be fair, there was not a record of what each of those calls determined or who was responsible and I found nothing that said either of them spent any time in jail.
It seems that Yana was staying in the home with the children and Scott had moved out but possibly unwillingly as there were reports that there were efforts made, not just by Scott but by his mother also to have Yana evicted from the home. On Sunday April 22nd, just eleven days after she filed for the divorce Scott went looking to Yana and the children at her church a friend would testify later. According to the friend Scott seemed rather angry that he could not find them and word got back to Yana. She apparently decided to spend a few days at a shelter and expressed to people she feared Scott. On April 25th, the day of the murder she left the shelter, dropped her daughter off with a babysitter and went to her home with Peter. Many assume it was to pick some things up and claim that she was still fearful of Scott.
Investigators would learn, apparently according to 8 year old Peter, that Scott came into the home and had both a knife and a gun. He ordered Peter into the bathroom and told him not to come out. Prosecutors believe that Peter did not listen to his stepfather completely and witnessed Scott stab his mother in excess of ten times and then cut her throat. The presence of blood on Peters shirt indicates he was either not in the bathroom at the time of the stabbing or he had in some way touched his mother after she lay dying.
While researching this case and reading about the defense at his trial I got the distinct feeling that they were throwing theories at the wall and just seeing if one stuck. One theory was stating that Yana's first husband had been killed by the Russian Mob and that they were after her now too. They would claim that Yana would "disappear" for days at a time and that after one incident Scott found her at a hotel and saw two black SUV's there. He would claim to see the same two SUV's at the home when he claims he went to check on her only to find her body and grabbed Peter. So why would the Russian Mob murder her? Well it seems that there were a few reasons for this. Again, let's throw it out and see what sticks. One theory was that they murdered her because of her association with her ex husband (and some say a brother) and theoretically she "knew too much." Another theory was that she had made a deal with them to work with them in what they called a "green card operation." Apparently it seems that this so called operation got women to marry American men and then at some point divorce them for half of their estates, presumably to give to the Russian Mob. Scott's defense team would argue that they killed her because she was reluctant to file for divorce.
In my opinion none of these theories sounded in any way plausible, and even if they did Scott's actions countered them. First off, Yana HAD filed for divorce just 14 days prior. So, not a long time, but long enough that if someone was going to kill her for not doing so they could have or would have known and had proof. Secondly, by all accounts Yana was in no way reluctant to do so. In fact, it appears that she had wanted to for some time but as many abused women do, waited until she felt was the right time and moment to do so. Thirdly, there is no evidence that Yana had bought any sort of pre-paid phone and contacted Scott in any way. We were left to believe that someone (i.e Russian hit men) had gone into the home and apparently were still there because Scott claims to have seen their vehicles, murdered her and hung around, allowing Scott to enter, find the body, grab Peter who could obviously report what he'd seen, and grab her purse and never see them. He then takes the child, covered in blood and drives three hours to his mothers home and drops him off and drives away. We are then to believe that he purchased items to disguise himself and a police scanner before he was going to Dallas because why? Last I heard the Russian hit men and mob do not use police scanners so it is not like he was going to get information on where they were at.
Ultimately in December of 2010 Scott Huss as found guilty of 2nd degree murder (I am uncertain why it was not 1st degree) and the following month he was sentenced to life in prison.
Joyce took Peter to the store to buy him some clothing and at some point she apparently called her other son, Michael. There are reports that there was a period of about four hours from the time that Joyce discovered Peter until she and her son called the police. They apparently called the police in Port Charlotte, three hours away, to have a well being check done on her daughter in law, Yana. Beyond that I am unsure what she told the police
When police arrived at the home of Yana Huss, they found her "being" anything but "well." She was found in the laundry room of the home. She had been stabbed multiple times and was no longer alive.
Of course the police wanted to talk to Scott Huss, but they were not sure where he was but it did not take long for them to find him In Tallahassee. He had rented a hotel. On his body they found a false identification, a bag with nearly $3,000 in it and a ticket to Dallas. In the hotel room they found a police scanner, a hair dying kit and his watch, covered in blood. In his car they found Yana's purse. He was arrested on the suspicion of murder.
Pretty open and shut case right? Well, yes and no. Not to mention suspicion does not get convictions. Evidence does.
Despite having Scott Huss in custody investigators had to build a case. For his part Scott was denying any involvement in the murder of Yana. At his trial in 2010 Scott would claim that Yana had gotten a pre-paid phone and had called him the day of the murder scared. He would claim (at least through his attorneys) that he went to the home, found her body and grabbed Peter and left. Well, that is some of what Scott would claim through his defense, but we will get into all of that later.
For the investigators part they looked in the history of the couple. They learned that Yana was Russian born and bred. The couple had met in Russia after Yana's first husband, and Peter's father had died. Yana came to the United States with her son and in 2003 she and Scott married. For his part I read that Scott had had at least one prior marriage and some children but found no information on them. Soon the couple had a little girl, Katrina, together. But, from all account the marriage was riddled with problems. They had moved into their home in 2005 and it was said that from then until Yana filed for divorce on April 11, 2007 the police were called at least twenty times relating to domestic violence issues. To be fair, there was not a record of what each of those calls determined or who was responsible and I found nothing that said either of them spent any time in jail.
It seems that Yana was staying in the home with the children and Scott had moved out but possibly unwillingly as there were reports that there were efforts made, not just by Scott but by his mother also to have Yana evicted from the home. On Sunday April 22nd, just eleven days after she filed for the divorce Scott went looking to Yana and the children at her church a friend would testify later. According to the friend Scott seemed rather angry that he could not find them and word got back to Yana. She apparently decided to spend a few days at a shelter and expressed to people she feared Scott. On April 25th, the day of the murder she left the shelter, dropped her daughter off with a babysitter and went to her home with Peter. Many assume it was to pick some things up and claim that she was still fearful of Scott.
Investigators would learn, apparently according to 8 year old Peter, that Scott came into the home and had both a knife and a gun. He ordered Peter into the bathroom and told him not to come out. Prosecutors believe that Peter did not listen to his stepfather completely and witnessed Scott stab his mother in excess of ten times and then cut her throat. The presence of blood on Peters shirt indicates he was either not in the bathroom at the time of the stabbing or he had in some way touched his mother after she lay dying.
While researching this case and reading about the defense at his trial I got the distinct feeling that they were throwing theories at the wall and just seeing if one stuck. One theory was stating that Yana's first husband had been killed by the Russian Mob and that they were after her now too. They would claim that Yana would "disappear" for days at a time and that after one incident Scott found her at a hotel and saw two black SUV's there. He would claim to see the same two SUV's at the home when he claims he went to check on her only to find her body and grabbed Peter. So why would the Russian Mob murder her? Well it seems that there were a few reasons for this. Again, let's throw it out and see what sticks. One theory was that they murdered her because of her association with her ex husband (and some say a brother) and theoretically she "knew too much." Another theory was that she had made a deal with them to work with them in what they called a "green card operation." Apparently it seems that this so called operation got women to marry American men and then at some point divorce them for half of their estates, presumably to give to the Russian Mob. Scott's defense team would argue that they killed her because she was reluctant to file for divorce.
In my opinion none of these theories sounded in any way plausible, and even if they did Scott's actions countered them. First off, Yana HAD filed for divorce just 14 days prior. So, not a long time, but long enough that if someone was going to kill her for not doing so they could have or would have known and had proof. Secondly, by all accounts Yana was in no way reluctant to do so. In fact, it appears that she had wanted to for some time but as many abused women do, waited until she felt was the right time and moment to do so. Thirdly, there is no evidence that Yana had bought any sort of pre-paid phone and contacted Scott in any way. We were left to believe that someone (i.e Russian hit men) had gone into the home and apparently were still there because Scott claims to have seen their vehicles, murdered her and hung around, allowing Scott to enter, find the body, grab Peter who could obviously report what he'd seen, and grab her purse and never see them. He then takes the child, covered in blood and drives three hours to his mothers home and drops him off and drives away. We are then to believe that he purchased items to disguise himself and a police scanner before he was going to Dallas because why? Last I heard the Russian hit men and mob do not use police scanners so it is not like he was going to get information on where they were at.
Ultimately in December of 2010 Scott Huss as found guilty of 2nd degree murder (I am uncertain why it was not 1st degree) and the following month he was sentenced to life in prison.
Re 2nd degree and not 1st--The trial transcript indicates that the State had no evidence beyond circumstantial that Mr. Huss was the murderer and therefore was unlikely to get a conviction for 1st degree. To fill in gaps in your story, check out acandyrose.com and the Scott Huss website, apparently created by a friend of Mrs. Joyce Huss. The domestic violence calls resulted in no arrests because, for most of them, Mrs. Yana Huss recanted. The Huss website includes a photo of just one legal document in which she did so. The website also includes an unsigned, undated letter from a juror to Mr. Huss's attorney, a copy of which was provided to Joyce Huss. Like many stories involving Russian people, this story is like an onion, with layer upon layer of information to which most Americans have no access. Research into Russian mafia in the US, especially in South Florida, and interviews with Huss family members and investigators reveal that the defense had solid evidence. The public has no access to that evidence because the judge ruled it as irrelevant and therefore inadmissable. One more thing--when Huss family members arrived to court to seek custody of Katrina, they and their attorneys were told that the hearing had already taken place and that Yana's mother had taken Piter and Katrina--a US citizen--to live in Russia.
ReplyDeleteIt is evident that there is much that is not known by the writer of this "True Crime Stories". 1 Joyce did not look out the window. She met Peter on the sidewalk.
ReplyDelete2. She did not see the 'blood ' on Peter's shirt until much later and not being an expert analyst of 'blood' did not know it was blood even when she saw it and Peter said he had got dirty when he 'hid'. One of the many stories he told and changed with each repeat. 3. Peter said that his mom had been 'hurt' by two men in black that had broken into the house. 4.It was not 4 hours before the Longwoood Police were called. Joyce's son had called the Port Charlotte sheriff's office and asked that they check the address. Their response was that they had no report of any disturbance at that address. When the Longwood detective arrived he called Port Charlotte and they did respond and found Yana's body. 5: Multiple knives were used as evident by the wounds AND no gun or knives were found. It is definitely evident that more than one person was involved in the crime and the house was totally wrecked, broken furniture slashed and there was litter, dirty diapers etc. thrown in corners. 6: When Joyce was finally permitted to enter the house she found nothing but filth and destruction. Food was sitting on the stove filled with maggots, the pantry was crawling with roaches and all the food was out dated and also filled with roaches and evidence that mice/rats had also been eating. There were dirty diapers thrown in corners, bathrooms were strewn with dirty towels, broken toys and toiletries strewn on the floor, broken bottles etc. etc. This alone should have been evident that more than one person was involved. 7: If someone would have done a thorough investigation evidence could have been uncovered that Scott was telling the truth and was not the one guilty. NO investigation was done however...Just arrest Scott. 7: It was NOT a 'claim" that Yana would disappear for days She did and would then call Scott and beg to come home. 8: The domestic violence calls were part of the scam. Each time Yana would say that she was wrong or the deputy misunderstood her and the case would be dismissed. 8: Joyce had requested custody of Peter and Katrina, however CFS had denied any visitations for Joyce to see Peter or Katrina until Judge Daleu ordered a visitation for Joyce and Katrina. Unfortunately judge Daley died before the final decision on custody. Another fiasco,,,When Joyce went to the custody hearing, with summons in hand, accompanied by her two attorneys, she was told that the hearing had taken place and their maternal grandmother had taken Peter and Katrina to Russia. Several times the CFS attorney referred to Joyce 'as no spring chicken" however Joyce is still going strong alert and saddened that Katrina is not living the life she is entitled to as a U. S. citizen. The maternal grandmother is not rearing the children... she immediately "gave them" to someone else to rear Justice???? There are many layers to this case. Finally: It is sad that Yana is gone. She was living a dangerous life and was deeply involved with the Mafia as would have been proven IF the expert witness had been permitted to testify/ Just another example of the in-justice of the justice system. The "Juror Letter" spells out some of the errors that occurred during the "Kangaroo Court" trial.
You obviously have no clue what really happened. Had you sat in all 5 days of the actual court case, and WATCHED AND SEEN by your own 2 eyes what REALLY happened, maybe you wouldn't be spewing these lies. May he rot in hell when his time comes!
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