Fw: Two face trial in death of Miami woman during illegal silicone

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Two face trial in death of Miami woman during illegal 'body sculpting'

By a McMahon Staff Writer Posted May 1 2003

The ugly side of the underground beauty business will be examined in Broward Circuit Court today as jury selection starts in the trial of two people accused of killing a Miami woman by injecting her with silicone.

Vera Lawrence, 52, a grandmother and secretary, died March 20, 2001, after attending an illegal "pumping party" at a Miramar apartment. She wanted to enlarge her buttocks.

As incredible as it seems, Lawrence was one of many South Floridians who risk being injected with industrial-grade silicone in exchange for more-affordable cosmetic procedures performed in motel rooms and private homes.

While criminal trials of the practitioners are rare, the pumping parties are very popular, experts say.

Prosecutors say Mark Hawkins and Donnie Hendrix, who lived in Greenville, S.C., ran a traveling, cut-rate "body-sculpting" business that catered to transgender people, drag queens and straight women seeking to enhance their bodies.

The two are romantically involved and lived together for many years before they were jailed in this case. Hendrix was born a man but underwent professional surgery and treatment and lives as a woman.

Defense attorneys say they will argue that Lawrence's death was a coincidence. They say she was killed by unrelated medical problems or the cumulative effect of years of illegal silicone treatments at the hands of people other than Hawkins and Hendrix. They say there's no evidence the defendants injected Lawrence or were responsible for her death.

Defense: No force used

"It's very unfortunate that Vera Lawrence put herself in this situation," said Hawkins' attorney, Schwartzreich. "No one forced this woman to do this to herself, no one tied her down and injected her. She just died on the wrong doorstep. Mark and Donnie did not cause her to die."

Hendrix's defense will be similar.

"The victim lived an absurd, crazy lifestyle. This was like a psychological addiction," said Reres, the assistant public defender representing Hendrix. "We feel sorry for Vera Lawrence, and we recommend people go see a psychologist for the underlying issues relating to this self-mutilation."

Hawkins and Hendrix are charged with manslaughter, third-degree murder and unlicensed practice of medicine. If convicted they face a maximum of 30 years in prison.

Cory , who was a friend of Lawrence's late son, hosted the pumping party and invited Lawrence to attend. was born a man but had gender-change surgery and treatment. has agreed to testify against Hawkins and Hendrix in exchange for a sentence of four years' probation. pleaded guilty to manslaughter with culpable negligence.

Prosecutor Scheinberg declined to comment on the case.

But according to court documents and pretrial hearings, Lawrence died of a silicone embolism caused when the substance entered her bloodstream. She had 36 puncture marks around her buttocks.

When paramedics arrived at the Miramar apartment to treat her, Lawrence was gasping for breath and could not communicate her problem. Witnesses will testify that Hawkins, Hendrix, and did not give paramedics relevant information that could have helped them treat Lawrence.

The defense says is blaming her former cohorts to spare herself. The attorneys also will attack the credibility of other prosecution witnesses, who will testify that Hendrix and Hawkins injected them.

Many injections

Lawrence had been injected on numerous occasions before she died. And she had even been injected earlier on the day she died by a Homestead man known only as "Marcos," the defense says.

Lawrence's daughter Tangela Sears, 37, of Miami, said she had no idea her mother was getting silicone injections.

"This was her secret. We were very close, and she told me nothing about it, and she did not tell her closest friends," Sears said. "The focus of this trial needs to be on the people who were posing as doctors and nurses. This is a team of people going around slowly killing people."

Sears expects the trial, which could last a month, to be very upsetting, but hopes it will educate other people of the dangers of illegal cosmetic procedures.

One defense medical expert is expected to testify Lawrence had so much silicone injected into her system over the years that the quantity would have filled several large soda bottles.

An autopsy on Lawrence showed that silicone had invaded every organ in her body, the defense says, and her death was inevitable.

Choosing jury tricky

Jury selection is likely to be more complicated than in many murder cases, the defense acknowledges.

Both sides will be looking for jurors who are not prejudiced against transgender people and will not treat the case like an afternoon talk show, despite the flamboyant clothing and unusual lifestyles of some of the participants.

The defense has not yet decided how Hendrix will dress for the trial. A one-time "belle of the ball," as her attorney calls her, Hendrix used to help dress and make up drag queens for pageants.

But she has had a very difficult time and severe medical problems since she was jailed.

Housed in the men's section of the jail, Hendrix, who looked very much like a woman, was attacked by another inmate and her silicone implant breasts ruptured.

She underwent a double mastectomy and has struggled with depression and other health problems.

Hendrix got permission to wear a dress in court because that is how she feels most comfortable. But Reres backed off a request to get her hair dyed and wear makeup after jail officials pointed out that female inmates usually are not given that opportunity.

a McMahon can be reached pmcmahon@... or 954-356-4533.