Couple appeared in court before deaths

HAMPTON , Va. (WAVY) - 10 On Your Side is digging deeper into the paper trail Carla Williams left before her husband killed her, their young daughter and Carla's grandmother.

Carla Williams petitioned the court for a protective order that would have mandated her husband, Travis Williams, have no contact with her.

Instead, the judge ruled that for the next two years, Travis not commit any acts of abuse or any other criminal offenses.

10 On Your Side placed a call to Judge Robert B Wilson's office to find out why he denied Carla a full protective order. Through his assistant, Judge Wilson said, "He is not ethically able to discuss any case he has decided."

WAVY.com went to Portsmouth Commonwealth Attorney Earl Mobley for some perspective and found out the ruling is pretty typical.

"You're putting a judge in a position where he's supposed to have a crystal ball in front of him and they don't, and they make decisions based on the evidence that's before them," Mobley explained.

Mobley said from reading the case, it appears there wasn't anything to suggest Travis would do what he did.

Even Travis' own lawyer, Joseph Lindsey, said the news was the biggest shock in his 28 years of practicing law.

Lindsey said just hours before the deaths of Carla, their 1-year-old Tori and Carla's grandmother, Katie Frye, the couple reached an amicable agreement about child custody. He added when he left Travis after court, there was "nothing that suggested he would become unhinged."

Others would disagree.

"I think we have to get past the idea that domestic violence is a black eye," Georgette Bridger said.

Bridger left an abusive relationship 27 years ago with an infant and toddler in tow and sees things differently.

"If you feel threatened and controlled to the point you are going to get a protective order,... something else is going on that isn't seen."

After hearing about this case, some may question the point of obtaining a protective order. But, most of the time, they work, authorities said. The orders deter many people from committing crimes, and they make it easier for police to make an arrest. Also, when the subject of the order breaks its conditions, they often receive the highest possible punishment.

There are several domestic violence shelters in Hampton Roads that offer families a safe haven, help to start over and legal aid. Click here for a list of accredited sexual and domestic violence agencies in the state of Virginia.