Tuesday, March 4, 2014

The Trial and Conviction of Patricia MacCallum - Home Page


Welcome!! And thanks for visiting my blog. This is the home page and the table of contents for the trial of Patricia MacCallum who, on December 16, 2013, was convicted of killing her husband, Michael Christopher MacCallum, my son. I hope you find what I have written here to be of interest.


Update March 6, 2019 - Appeals Court Affirms Conviction

On July 13, 2018, the Court of Appeals of California, Third District, Siskiyou filed the result of Patricia's appeal. The court upheld Patricia's conviction for the murder of her husband, Michael Christopher MacCallum.

Update January 29, 2015:

On January 20, 2015, Patricia Leigh-Ann MacCallum was sentenced to 50 years to life in prison. Please click on the sentencing link near the bottom of this page for full details.

The following week, on January 27, 2015, she was transferred to the Central California Women's Facility (CCWF) outside Chowchilla, near Fresno, CA. She is inmate WF1297.

The last time I worked on this blog was Summer 2014. In this final update, I have made changes to:
  • This page
  • The list of news reports to include the sentencing (sidebar to the right and link, below)
  • The timeline to include the sentencing (sidebar to the right and link, below)
  • Pre-sentencing motions and hearings page (below) adding detail about all the activities since August 19, 2014
  • Added a page about the sentencing and the statements that were presented at the hearing, see the bottom of the page
  • I added a Sincere Thanks section to the sidebar to the right
  • I added two more paragraphs to the bottom of the personal observations page, below

If you have any questions, comments, suggestions, corrections, plaudits, etc., please let me know: mmaccallum@verizon.net.

Robert Scott has written an e-book about Chris' murder and posted it to Amazon. Check it out at: Fatal Family Affair.

The Investigation Discovery channel presented Deadline: Crime with Tamron Hall - Murder in the Applegate, a show about Chris' murder. The first airing was on June 8, 2014, with periodic repeats since then. In my opinion, the show is very well done and does an excellent job in telling Chris' story. At the beginning of the show, they say that Chris was half Vietnamese. Actually, he was half Hispanic. You can watch Murder in the Applegate online:


The Trial of Patricia MacCallum - Table of Contents

Arrival in Yreka - Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Jury selection - Thursday, November 14, 2013

Pretrial motions - Friday, November 15, 2013

Day 1 - November 18, 2013
  • Jury instructions from Judge Dixon
  • Opening statement by Mr. Allison for the People
  • Opening statement by Mr. Duncan for the defense
  • Testimony of Deputy James Biddle, Jackson County Sheriff
    • Handled missing person report filed by Patricia

Day 2 - November 19, 2013
  • Testimony of Deputy Biddle, continued
  • Testimony of Sergeant Shawn Richards, Search and Rescue Supervisor, Jackson County Sheriff
  • Testimony of Deputy Eric Johnson, Search and Rescue, Jackson County Sheriff
    • Discovery of Chris' body at the campsite
  • Testimony of Deputy Jason Denton, Jackson County Sheriff
  • Testimony of Detective Jess Elzy, Oregon State Police
    • Interview of Amber Lubbers on 11/20/12
    • Visit to Ruch Country Store on 11/21/12
    • Interview of John Singley on 11/21/12

Day 3 - November 20, 2013
  • Testimony of Detective Geoffrey Kirkpatrick, Medford Police Department
    • Interview of Patricia on 11/20/12
  • Testimony of Travis Lee, Crime Scene Office, Oregon State Police
    • Obtained picture and receipt from Food 4 Less
    • Went to Checker Cab and the FTD call center
  • Testimony of Shawn Center, Assistant Manager and Cashier, Ruch Country Store
  • Testimony of Detective Bryan Scott, Oregon State Police
    • Interview of Patricia on 11/20/12
  • Testimony of Bonnie Mortensen, Forensic Technician, Siskiyou County Sheriff

Testimony of Bonnie Mortensen
  • Ms. Mortensen testified to the physical evidence discovered
    • At the campsite where Chris' body was found
    • During a search of Patricia's house
    • From the autopsy
    • From St. Vincent de Paul
  • Testimony of Ms. Mortensen, continued
  • Testimony of Dr. James Olson, Medical Examiner, Southern Oregon
    • Autopsy report

Day 5 - November 22, 2013
  • Testimony of Ms. Mortensen, continued
  • Testimony of Detective Sergeant Colin Fagan, Digital Evidence Forensic Examiner, Jackson County Sheriff
    • Chris' and Patricia's cell phone records
  • Testimony of Sergeant Michael Gilley, Commander of Special Operations, Siskiyou County Sheriff
    • Attempt to recover Patricia's handgun
  • Testimony of Thomas Vasquez, Criminalist, California Department of Justice Laboratory
    • Examination of bullets found during the autopsy, at the campsite, and during the search of Patricia's house
  • Testimony of Mr. Vasquez, continued
  • Testimony of Richard Marcello, Cab Driver, G2G Taxi, Medford
    • Chris' plans to work on 11/17/12, his birthday
  • Testimony of Detective Jacques Morlet, Major Crimes Division, Siskiyou County Sheriff
    • Interview of Patricia and search of her house on 11/23/12
    • X-ray of Chris' body at the Rogue Valley Medical Center prior to autopsy
    • Conversation with Patricia on the way to pick up her car about her route through Jacksonville to get to the campsite
  • Testimony of Brett Liddicote, Northern California Computer Crime Task Force
    • Report of Patricia's computer, including internet browsing history
  • Testimony of Corporal Jeremiah LaRue, Siskiyou County Sheriff
    • Led the team that recovered the tent with Chris' body in it
  • Jury observation of the tent
  • Testimony of Jeremiah Hills, Patricia's former boyfriend
    • Patricia told Jeremiah that she wanted Chris dead
  • Testimony of Brian Inman, Technician, Siskiyou County Sheriff
    • Video of the campsite where Chris was killed
  • Testimony of Amber Lubbers, Patricia's ex-stepsister
    • Described how she and Patricia planned Chris' murder
    • Described how Patricia killed Chris at the campsite
  • Testimony of Ms. Lubbers, continued
    • Described her plea bargain and confession
    • Video tape of her confession just after being arrested
  • Testimony of Angela Setsodi, Chris' friend
  • Testimony of Samantha Adams, Chris' fiancee
  • Testimony of Brian Inman, Technician, Siskiyou County Sheriff
    • Transcript of text message conversations between Chris and Patricia from the time they reconciled on 9/7/12 until his death on 11/16/12
  • Testimony of Supervising Investigator Marc Perrin, Siskiyou County District Attorney
    • Amber Lubbers' arrest, plea bargain, confession, and interview
    • Screen shots from social media websites on which Patricia was active from the time they reconciled on 9/7/12 until his death on 11/16/12 
    • Email records from Patricia's computer
  • Testimony of Detective Sergeant James Randall, Siskiyou County Sheriff, lead investigator in the death of Chris MacCallum
    • Collection of evidence at the campsite on 11/20/12
    • Interview of Patricia on 11/20/12
    • Search of Patricia's home on 11/23/12
    • Participation in the autopsy
    • Report of ATM surveillance camera video in Jacksonville
  • Testimony of Misty James, Driver/Dispatcher, Check Cab Company, Medford
    • Chris' plans to work on 11/17/12, his birthday
  • Testimony of Garrett Weschler, Owner, Check Cab Company, Medford
    • Chris' plans to work on 11/17/12, his birthday
  • Testimony of Detective Jeff Moser, Siskiyou County Sheriff, chief investigator in the death of Chris MacCallum
    • Arrest, plea bargain, confession, and interview of Amber Lubbers
    • Video of the plea bargain and confession
    • Search of Patricia's house on 11/23/12
    • Drive through Jacksonville to get to the campsite
  • Testimony of Detective Moser, continued
  • Testimony of Ben Jump, friend of Kris Lubbers
    • Alibi for Kris Lubbers
  • Testimony of Erich Norum, friend of Kris Lubbers
    • Alibi for Kris Lubbers
  • No further witnesses, the prosecution rests
  • The defense rests
  • Jury instructions from Judge Dixon
  • Closing statement by Mr. Allison
  • Correction to the jury verdict form
  • Mr. Allison reopens closing statement to address those corrections
  • Closing statement by Mr. Duncan
  • Final statement by Mr. Allison

The Verdict - December 16, 2013

Pre-sentencing motions and change of attorney
  • Original sentencing date postponed
  • Motion for a new trial--deadline missed
  • Mr. Duncan relieved, Ted A. Bastian, Jr., appointed as Patricia's new attorney
  • Attorneys to meet with Judge Dixon on April 29 to discuss a new sentencing date
  • Another hearing has been set for May 22 to discuss the sentencing date
  • On May 22 Judge Dixon set July 22 for the next hearing to discuss the sentencing date

The sentencing
  • The sentencing hearing
  • Personal impact statements

Pictures from the trial - courtesy of  KTVL CBS 10 News, Medford

Jury instructions used in the trial

List of evidence presented at the trial

List of images used in this blog

List of witnesses who testified at the trial

Locations mentioned in the trial

News reports about the murder, trial, and sentencing

Personal observations from the trial

Timeline of the murder, trial, and sentencing


End of homepage
Last update: 3/6/19