Charles Bond was sentenced to death by the State of North Carolina for ordering the murder of sixteen year old boy
According to court documents Charles Bond ordered sixteen year old Theola Saunders to murder Wayne Thomas. Theola Saunders would kidnap Wayne Thomas and his sister Leslie Dawn Thomas from their home. The siblings were forced to participate in a brief crime wave
According to Leslie Dawn Thomas her brother Wayne Thomas attempted to overpower Theola Saunders so she could escape and he was shot three times in the process
Charles Bond would be arrested, convicted and sentenced to death
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Charles Bond Case
Defendant Charles Phillips Bond was convicted on 15 March 1995 of the first-degree murder of Wayne Leon Thomas, robbery with a dangerous weapon, and two counts of first-degree kidnapping. The jury answered special issues as to the basis for its verdict, stating it found defendant guilty of first-degree murder on the basis of malice, premeditation, and deliberation as well as under the felony murder rule. The felonies which the jury relied upon for the felony murder verdict were the kidnapping of Wayne Leon Thomas, the kidnapping of Leslie Dawn Thomas, and robbery with a dangerous weapon. After a separate capital sentencing proceeding, the jury recommended a sentence of death, and the trial court sentenced defendant accordingly. The trial court also sentenced defendant to consecutive terms of forty years imprisonment for each of the felony convictions.
The State’s evidence tended to show inter alia that on 24 March 1994, defendant, Theola Saunders, and two other men drove from North Carolina to Virginia to commit a robbery. The attempted robbery was interrupted by the police, and in fleeing, defendant shot himself in the foot. Defendant and Saunders kidnapped Wayne and Leslie Thomas in order to obtain use of their car. Defendant directed the Thomases, brother and sister, to drive defendant and Saunders back to North Carolina. During the course of the evening, defendant ordered Wayne to help Saunders rob various establishments, including convenience stores and restaurants, which they attempted to do. Each time, defendant told Saunders to kill Wayne if he did anything wrong. Defendant held Wayne and Leslie hostage for a total of eight hours, during which time defendant would occasionally tell the victims he was going to let them go. This he never did. After one robbery attempt was successful, defendant told Wayne to take him to the hospital so he could get medical care for his foot. At the hospital, defendant got out of the car and told Saunders and the victims to come back and pick him up in an hour or two. Defendant also told Saunders to “waste” the Thomases if they did anything wrong.
At some point while driving around, Wayne told Saunders that he needed to use the bathroom. Saunders directed them to a convenience store, and Leslie and Wayne went inside. Saunders waited outside. *169 Wayne told Leslie they had to do something, that defendant and Saunders were not going to let them go, and that they were going to kill them anyway. The brother and sister returned to the car, and as Saunders was getting in the backseat, Wayne grabbed Saunders from behind and yelled, “run, Leslie.” In the ensuing struggle, Saunders shot and fatally wounded Wayne Thomas. Saunders then fled and was soon apprehended. The evidence was undisputed that defendant was not actually present at the time of the shooting but that defendant had orchestrated the robbery, attempted robberies, and kidnappings and had great influence over his young accomplice. Defendant was arrested at the hospital.
https://law.justia.com/cases/north-carolina/supreme-court/1996/143a95-0.html