Texan Sentenced To Life In Slayings Of 2 Friends
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BURNET (AP) — A 23-year-old Central Texas man was sentenced to life in prison without parole in the shooting deaths of two friends at his home while he was on a hallucinogenic drug.
A jury on Monday found Garrett Ballard guilty of capital murder and then a judge sentenced him in the deaths of 17-year-old Elijah Benson and 26-year-old Travis Fox in 2014.
Ballard's father is a Burnet County constable. At the time of the killings, Ballard's parents were out of town. His father was attending a Texas Narcotic Officer Association Conference.
According to Ballard's confession, the three friends had gotten into a confrontation at the house. Ballard told officials he then got the keys to his father's law enforcement vehicle, retrieved a rifle, loaded it and fired on Benson and Fox.
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