Updates on Mavrick Fisher / Grant Whitaker murder case
[Transcript] Hello. I’m here in Lakeport, California because tomorrow is the preliminary hearing for deaf man Mavrick Fisher’s murder case. He is accused of murdering his former deaf business partner Grant Whitaker on August 20 at a campground in Humboldt County. The case is here in Lakeport, which is about 100 miles down south, because that’s where the body of Grant was found.
I will discuss the case more in detail later, but I want to give you several updates on both Mavrick and Grant’s side.
Let’s start with Grant. His maternal grandmother (his mother’s mother), Pam Embry Thierry, said on a Facebook page named “Justice for Grant Whitaker” that his body was cremated and that his remains are now with the family.
There was a memorial service for Grant on October 5th. Pam told me that deaf people from all over the U.S. came to Illinois and that she was stunned and moved that they would do this. Pam plans to bury Grant’s remains on April 12th in Illinois because that is Grant’s birthday. She said that day was very special to her because on April 12 of this year, Grant was in Illinois and that’s when he took the picture of himself with his cousin and two half brothers. That picture is his Facebook profile picture.
Pam said Grant’s mother, Courtney Whitaker Bun, had him when she was a young teenager. She served in the Air Force and is a registered nurse (RN) and lives in Illinois. Grant’s father, Chad Wheeler, went to prison when Grant was a toddler for murdering his son from a different mother. The infant was only three months old and named Levi. He died from being violently shaken and he had broken limbs. According to a newspaper in central Illinois, “The Pantagraph,” he was released after 21 years in 2017, but is now back in prison for aggravated domestic battery when he attempted to strangle his girlfriend. So he’s back behind bars.
Pam said Grant visited his father in prison every couple of years with his other grandparents and received letters from him from time to time.
Pam explained on the “Justice” Facebook page that Grant graduated from the Maryland School for the Deaf and went to RIT for less than a semester. Pam said that most of his young adult life had to do with farming and that Grant met Mavrick in the spring and summer to see if they could start a farm business together.
We can see that Grant made appearances in Mavrick’s vlogs on his “Mav” Facebook page here in Lakeport. It’s over there in the mountains. The vlogs were posted in July. In a vlog, Grant did explain that he went to a farming school and had extensive knowledge on farming and wanted to bring a new farming concept to the deaf community.
GRANT WHITAKER: I will try to develop a world-class deaf ranch and agricultural business.
[Image of Grant taking a selfie. Text says, “This was Grant’s final Facebook post on August 19, which is the day before he died.”]
Now, let’s share updates on Mavrick.
During his arraignment hearing in September, Mavrick and his attorney pleaded not guilty to murder. His bond was set at $1 million. Mavrick’s mother, Michelina Martin-Fisher, told me that she wanted to start a GoFundMe campaign to raise the 10% necessary to post bail, which was $100,000. She did start a campaign, but it was quickly taken down by GoFundMe after multiple people complained that this violated a GoFundMe policy against raising money for people who are accused of serious crimes.
Michelina said the GoFundMe was “rudely closed.” Mavrick is still in jail. Michelina said she got a few letters from him and that he said he is treated well in jail and has a room of his own and that jail staff and police officers are learning ASL. They are working on getting a VP installed there so he can make calls. Michelina said that Mavrick said in a letter that it is the hardest time of his life but that he is staying strong for the deaf community and his family and especially his son, Kaden.
Let’s look at what will happen tomorrow during the preliminary hearing. Remember when I id an interview with Michael Schwartz, a deaf law professor at Syracuse University? He told me that this will be a “trial before a trial” where the prosecutor, the D.A., has to show what kind of evidence they have against Mavrick to show the judge that they have a solid case. We can expect a more extensive report of what kind of evidence the D.A. has against Mavrick. It should be more than what I have already shared.
Schwartz said that the reason for Mavrick’s not guilty plea may be to challenge the prosecutor’s case. Schwartz said it is possible that the two sides are negotiating behind the scenes for a guilty plea for a reduced sentence. He said the defense may ask for a psychiatric evaluation because they may plead not guilty by reason for insanity. So those are three possible scenarios.
Tomorrow I will go to the courthouse and film it. I have the court’s permission. I will make a quick post on Facebook after the hearing to update you on the main developments, then work on a video report so you all can see what happened in the courtroom.
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