Family members, sheriff happy with death sentencePosted Mar13, 2008 at 04:31 PMFamily members of Derrick McFarland, one of the men murdered in August 2006 by William Morva, said this afternoon they don't necessarily support the dealth penalty but believe it was the right sentence for Morva. After deliberating for three hours this afternoon, a Washington County jury recommended that Morva be put to death for each of three counts of capital murder they convicted him of two days ago. Morva will be formally sentenced by the judge June 23. As the verdicts were read, Morva smiled and snapped his fingers, an action that upset some of the victims' family members. "Like he won the lottery," McFarland's father, Harold McFarland, said outside the courtroom. Continue reading "Family members, sheriff happy with death sentence" » Jury recommends deathPosted Mar13, 2008 at 04:13 PMThe jury returned to the courtroom with the recommendation that William Morva be sentenced to death. Morva was found guilty Tuesday on all charges: three counts of capital murder, two counts of use of a firearm in commission of murder, assault and battery of a law enforcement officer and escaping with force. Details from closing statements in Morva trialPosted Mar13, 2008 at 02:10 PMBefore the jury began to deliberate at 12:30 p.m. whether to sentence William Morva to life in prison or the death penalty, they listened to the prosecution and the defense make their final arguments in the case. Montgomery County Commonwealth's Attorney Brad Finch told jurors that Morva is a future danger to society and should be put to death. What makes Morva so dangerous, he said, "is that he is both extremely intelligent and also extremely violent. "In a split second, this defendant can go from calm and friendly and composed to deadly, brutal and violent," Finch said, reminding jurors that they had heard testimony that Morva was friendly to hospital workers just before he beat a deputy unconscious and killed hospital security guard Derrick McFarland. Continue reading "Details from closing statements in Morva trial" » Morva's punishment in jury's handsPosted Mar13, 2008 at 12:34 PMJurors just heard closing statements in the case of William Morva and have gone to the jury room to deliberate. Defense attorney Tony Anderson told jurors that life in prison would be the ultimate punishment for Morva, who by his actions has made it clear that he does not want to be locked up. Prosecutor Brad Finch told them that Morva has shown his hatred for law enforcement officers and that if were locked up, prison guards would be in danger. Jurors have only two options for punishment: life in prison or the dealth penalty. Their decision must be unanimous. Jurors still waiting for court to beginPosted Mar13, 2008 at 09:46 AMAn hour after court was scheduled to start this morning, people are still milling about the courthouse, waiting for things to get under way. It's unclear what is causing the delay. Prosecutors and defense attorneys could be discussing jury instructions. When court starts this morning, it's expected that jurors will first hear their instructions and then closing arguments before beginning to deliberate about William Morva's sentence: life in prison or the death penalty. The 12 jurors' decision must be unanimous. The courtroom is crowded today, with several of the people who testified for Morva yesterday sitting behind the defense table and nearly a dozen law enforcement officers in plain clothes on the prosecution's side. |
.....Advertisement.....
|
...Advertisement...
...Advertisement...
