Modesto Attorney Found Not Guilty of Murder Charges
MODESTO (CBS13) - Not guilty. A jury acquitted prominent Modesto attorney Frank Carson of all charges in a wild murder conspiracy trial.
Following the court decision, Carson and a group of his closest friends and family went around the corner to a Modesto restaurant to celebrate. Besides the champagne, the congratulations for Carson came in the form of one hug after another.
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CBS13's Steve Large asked Carson what words described how he was feeling following the verdict.
"Relief," Carson said. "And happy."
A jury deliberated for two days before delivering the decision.
"We were always confident we should prevail, but whether we would or not we really didn't know," Carson said.
Prosecutors had charged Carson in the murder of 26-year-old Korey Kauffman, alleging he was targeted for repeatedly stealing from Carson's property.
Kauffman's body was found by hunters in the Stanislaus National Forest in 2013. Kauffman had disappeared in 2012.
The Stanislaus County D.A.'s office issued a statement reading, in part, "In this case, a young man lost his life over a few dollars in scrap metal. The case deserved to be decided by the people in this community and we fully respect the jury's decision."
Carson says prosecutors need to search for Kauffman's true killers for justice to prevail.
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"And the sooner that they replace the investigators in this case, the sooner they're going to find, hopefully, who perpetrated it," Carson said.
Carson hasn't seen the last of a Stanislaus County courtroom.
He's still practicing law.
His law license has remained active and he has been defending clients throughout his own murder trial.