Man charged with killing mother at sea seeks freedom

United States Courts

The man charged with killing his mother at sea in a plot to inherit millions of dollars has asked a federal court Wednesday to authorize his release from custody pending trial.

The attorneys for Nathan Carman filed a motion in U.S. District Court in Burlington saying the evidence against him is “tenuous at best” and he is not a flight risk or a danger to the community.

As conditions of release, Carman is willing to surrender his passport, submit to electronic monitoring and turn over all the money he has, $10,000, to a third party or post some of that money as bail, the filing says.

He has also been under criminal investigation for almost a decade and he has been facing civil litigation, but he has always shown up in court.

“At no time during that lengthy period has Mr. Carman ever attempted to threaten a witness, contact a witness inappropriately or sought to influence a witness in any way,” the filing says. “There is no evidence to support such a claim now.”

After Carman’s arrest, prosecutors argued he should be held because he poses a flight risk and is a danger to the community.

Carman has been held since his arrest in May when he was indicted on a charge of first-degree murder in the death of his mother, Linda Carman of Middletown, Connecticut, during a fishing trip off the Rhode Island coast. Her body has never been found.

He was also charged with multiple counts of fraud.

Authorities also alleged Carman killed his grandfather, John Chakalos, at his home in Windsor, Connecticut, in 2013 as part of a scheme to obtain money and property from his grandfather’s estate, but he was not charged with that killing.

The Wednesday motion says that during his eight years living in Vernon, Vermont, Carman led a quiet life with solid ties to the community, participating in town forums, attending a local church and had many local friends.

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USCIS Adjusting Premium Processing Fee

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today it is adjusting the premium processing fee for Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker and Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers beginning on Oct. 1, 2018 to more effectively adjudicate petitions and maintain effective service to petitioners.

The premium processing fee will increase to $1,410, a 14.92 percent increase (after rounding) from the current fee of $1,225. This increase, which is done in accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act, represents the percentage change in inflation since the fee was last increased in 2010 based on the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers.

“Because premium processing fees have not been adjusted since 2010, our ability to improve the adjudications and service processes for all petitioners has been hindered as we’ve experienced significantly higher demand for immigration benefits. Ultimately, adjusting the premium processing fee will allow us to continue making necessary investments in staff and technology to administer various immigration benefit requests more effectively and efficiently,” said Chief Financial Officer Joseph Moore. “USCIS will continue adjudicating all petitions on a case-by-case basis to determine if they meet all standards required under applicable law, policies, and regulations.”

Premium processing is an optional service that is currently authorized for certain petitioners filing Forms I-129 or I-140. The system allows petitioners to request 15-day processing of certain employment-based immigration benefit requests if they pay an extra fee. The premium processing fee is paid in addition to the base filing fee and any other applicable fees, which cannot be waived.

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