VIOLENCE
06-18-2005, 09:50 PM
FRESNO, Calif. — Marcus Wesson, the patriarch of a large clan he bred sometimes through incest, was convicted yesterday of murdering nine of his children, whose bodies were found in a pile last year at the end of a police standoff.
Wesson, 58, could get the death penalty.
The jury took more than two weeks to find Wesson guilty on nine counts of first-degree murder. He was also convicted on all 14 counts of raping and molesting seven of his underage daughters and nieces.
The defense had argued that Sebhrenah Wesson, 25 — the oldest to die — killed herself and her siblings and the 1-year-old son she had with her father.
Prosecutors said Marcus Wesson was the triggerman, but they also argued that even if Sebhrenah Wesson did the shooting, her father should be found guilty if he encouraged her to kill.
The jurors accepted the prosecution's second theory: They found Wesson guilty even though they decided the government did not prove he pulled the trigger.
Several witnesses had testified that Wesson had repeatedly coached the children to be ready to kill each other and themselves if authorities ever threatened to break up the clan.
Many of Wesson's surviving family members still support him and stifled sobs as a clerk read the verdicts. Wesson remained quiet.
After the verdict, the home's front yard stood barren behind green-and-black tape, a stark contrast to the mounds of teddy bears, statuettes and flowers left immediately after the killings.
Neighbors said they were glad to see Wesson held responsible.
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"He was in that house when shots were fired. He's still living, all of them are dead," said Linda Morales, who lives across the street. "If he didn't pull that trigger, he certainly didn't do anything to prevent it."
The jury will return Wednesday for the penalty phase.
Calls to defense attorneys were not answered. The Fresno County District Attorney's Office issued a brief statement saying prosecutors would seek the death penalty.
Officers were summoned to Wesson's home on March 12, 2004, after two Wesson nieces who had fled the home went back to try to get their children.
Wesson talked with officers at the front door and then stepped backward and disappeared into the back bedroom as the nieces screamed, begging officers to intervene and save their children. About an hour and 20 minutes later, he emerged, blood on his clothing, and turned himself in.
In the bedroom was a pile of corpses, each shot through the eye.( ) Officers pulled out the bodies of Sebhrenah Wesson and the eight others, ranging in age from 1 to 17. The nieces' children were among the dead.
http://gfx.dagbladet.no/pub/artikkel/4/42/425/425226/wesson1.jpg
Wesson, 58, could get the death penalty.
The jury took more than two weeks to find Wesson guilty on nine counts of first-degree murder. He was also convicted on all 14 counts of raping and molesting seven of his underage daughters and nieces.
The defense had argued that Sebhrenah Wesson, 25 — the oldest to die — killed herself and her siblings and the 1-year-old son she had with her father.
Prosecutors said Marcus Wesson was the triggerman, but they also argued that even if Sebhrenah Wesson did the shooting, her father should be found guilty if he encouraged her to kill.
The jurors accepted the prosecution's second theory: They found Wesson guilty even though they decided the government did not prove he pulled the trigger.
Several witnesses had testified that Wesson had repeatedly coached the children to be ready to kill each other and themselves if authorities ever threatened to break up the clan.
Many of Wesson's surviving family members still support him and stifled sobs as a clerk read the verdicts. Wesson remained quiet.
After the verdict, the home's front yard stood barren behind green-and-black tape, a stark contrast to the mounds of teddy bears, statuettes and flowers left immediately after the killings.
Neighbors said they were glad to see Wesson held responsible.
Click Here
"He was in that house when shots were fired. He's still living, all of them are dead," said Linda Morales, who lives across the street. "If he didn't pull that trigger, he certainly didn't do anything to prevent it."
The jury will return Wednesday for the penalty phase.
Calls to defense attorneys were not answered. The Fresno County District Attorney's Office issued a brief statement saying prosecutors would seek the death penalty.
Officers were summoned to Wesson's home on March 12, 2004, after two Wesson nieces who had fled the home went back to try to get their children.
Wesson talked with officers at the front door and then stepped backward and disappeared into the back bedroom as the nieces screamed, begging officers to intervene and save their children. About an hour and 20 minutes later, he emerged, blood on his clothing, and turned himself in.
In the bedroom was a pile of corpses, each shot through the eye.( ) Officers pulled out the bodies of Sebhrenah Wesson and the eight others, ranging in age from 1 to 17. The nieces' children were among the dead.
http://gfx.dagbladet.no/pub/artikkel/4/42/425/425226/wesson1.jpg