Man Found Guilty Of Murdering Couple Over Christmas Years Before
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FORT LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami) – The jury has decided the fate of a man accused of murdering a gay couple in their Wilton Manors home back in 2010.
The jury found Peter Avsenew, 32, guilty of killing the couple - Kevin Powell and Stephen Adams.
Avsenew had no reaction to the verdict even though he could be executed for the crimes.
Adams's sisters who were in the courtroom for the whole trial wept when the verdict was read.
They were troubled that Avsenew showed no remorse but say the verdict brings them some peace of mind.
"It was hard on our parents. We lost our dad two years ago but he told us we have to forgive Peter," said Missi Badgett.
Missi Badgett and her sister Marci Craig say they have forgiven Avsenew.
They won't say whether they support the ultimate penalty - death by lethal injection which the jury has the option of imposing.
"We will leave that up to the jury," they said.
The jury deliberated about 14 hours over three days before finding Avsenew guilty on all counts.
It was back over Christmas 2010 when police say Avsenew shot and robbed Powell and Adams.
Avsenew, who met the couple through Craigslist, stayed with them just a few days before the murder.
Prosecutors said after killing the couple, Avsenew took their SUV and charged up their credit cards before reaching his mother's house.
Some of the most incriminating evidence against him came from his own mother, Jeanne Avsenew, who turned him in.
During closing arguments, prosecutor Shari Tate quoted statements Avsenew had made since the killings.
"He says 'don't you know, I'm a stone-cold killer,'" Tate told the jury.
Tate said Adams and Powell tried to help Avsenew who was down on his luck.
Avsenew denied he killed Adams and Powell.
His attorney had painted him as a man down on his luck and said he discovered the couple shot to death and fled in a panic.
As for his sentencing, the jury will return in January to consider the death sentence for Avsenew.