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| Verdict Reached in Dwight Stacy Justice Case: Not guilty of Murder; Guilty of Felony Child Abuse |
Dwight Stacy Justice is found guilty of felony child abuse, but the jury finds him not guilty of murder. After a long weekend, the jury in the state’s case against Dwight Stacy Justice for the murder of his two-year-old step son rendered a verdict today of not guilty of first degree murder… but the group of nine women and three men said the man is guilty of felony child abuse, a charge that carries a sentence with a minimum of five years in prison and a maximum of 15 years. And the jury had more work ahead of them today after submitting their verdict. The group heard from both prosecution and defense attorneys so they could determine whether there were aggravating factors in the case. The hearing resulted in one possible aggravating factor, that of Jeremiah’s age. They were then asked to deliberate once again and give the court their recommendation as to whether they believe Jeremiah’s young age was an aggravating factor in the child abuse charge. This afternoon, just before 3:30, the jury reported to the judge that they were divided on the aggravating factor, 9 to 3. The defense said that if the jury couldn’t decide then they were in agreement that the judge should proceed without them. The judge declared a mistrial as to that portion of the proceedings and will determine aggravating factors taking into consideration the defendant’s prior record. Justice was then handcuffed and taken to jail, with the specific amount of jail time still undecided. Felony child abuse requires an active sentence but that will be determined at a later date… with Justice’s record level three and five points and with aggravating factors possibly in play, his sentence could be in the highest of the ranges… from 9.6 years to over 12 years in prison. Two-year-old Jeremiah Swafford died in 2009 after he sustained a head injury while in the care of his mother, Kathy Lynn Swafford and his stepfather, defendant Dwight Stacy Justice. The jury has deliberated on the case since last Wednesday. We will keep you updated as the sentencing process continues. ###
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