Morris Garner, who also goes by the name Tracey Lynn Garner, has been charged with conducting the procedure in March at his house in Jackson, Mississippi. The Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood announced during a press conference that Garner had no training or legal license to perform such a procedure.
Police officers have said they are now beginning the testing phase of the process and are examining the substance that was injected into the victim and believe it is some kind of counterfeit silicone. The Attorney General believes more people have had such breast or buttock implant surgeries performed by Garner and hope that they come forward.
Garner has been charged with depraved-heart murder in the death of Karima Gordon, 37. Depraved-heart murder is a legal term for an action that demonstrates a “callous disregard for human life” and results in death. In Mississippi the crime carries a life sentence.
A Hinds County judge, Melvin Priester, has denied Garner bond after a recent hearing. “Based on the seriousness of the charge, the court does find that you are a danger to yourself, and more importantly, a danger to the community.” The defense attorney says he is shocked at the charges leveled against his client and his lack of bail. Garner denies that he is guilty of depraved-heart murder.
The victim, Gordon, was an adult entertainer and aspiring model in Atlanta and had undergone other cosmetic procedures, though these have not yet been specified. Gordon is believed to have driven to Mississippi with a friend to have the procedure, but became sick only a few hours later. Her friend called Garner and asked what to do, and he told them to buy some cough medicine. Unsurprisingly, the cough medicine did not fix the larger problem and Gordon died at a Georgia hospital a few days later.
Such deaths from illegal cosmetic procedures have popped up intermittently across the country as people seek cheaper alternatives to plastic surgeons but remain very rare in Mississippi. One recent case involved a New Jersey woman who pleaded not guilty after she was charged with giving a man a fatal dose of silicone during a penile enhancement procedure over the summer. Prosecutors say the woman had no medical training.
If you’ve been involved in something that requires the skill of an experienced Mississippi criminal defense lawyer, please call us today at (833) 536-5656.
Source: “Miss. man charged in buttocks implant death,” by Holbrook Mohr, published at AJC.com.
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