Rice guilty in murder of Cobb mother, son
Jury to hear testimony in penalty phase
By
YOLANDA RODRIGUEZ
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 07/14/08 Jurors in the death penalty trial of Lawrence Rice will begin to hear testimony in the sentencing phase of the case on Tuesday.
The jurors found Rice, of Tucker, guilty Monday morning of two counts each of murder and felony murder and one count of burglary in the April 2003 deaths of an east Cobb mother and her son.
Jurors will be sequestered until they reach a decision on the sentence.
They will have three options for Rice's sentencing: life in prison with the possibility of parole; life without the possibility of parole; or death by lethal injection, prosecutor Henry Thompson said in opening statements Monday afternoon.
Connie Mincher and her 14-year-old son, Ethan, were beaten to death in their home on April 17, 2003.
Marlee Mincher, who was 12 at the time, testified last week that she found her mother and brother when she came home from school that day.
"Ethan was on the floor face down. A rug over his head," the teenager testified.
Later, she found her mother in a bedroom, with her hands wrapped in duct tape behind her back. Her head was wrapped in blankets.
There was blood everywhere.
Thompson told jurors they will hear victim impact statements from the Minchers' friends and family. Among the evidence they will also be asked to consider is last week's testimony of Cobb Medical Examiner Brian Frist and autopsy photographs.
Connie Mincher was beaten to badly that her skull caved in, Thompson reminded jurors. Her teenage son was also beaten badly, he said.
In the end, Thompson told jurors, prosecutors will ask that Rice be sentenced to death.
Defense attorney Angela Moore-Brown told jurors they respected their guilty verdicts.
She said defense lawyers will present evidence that Rice, up until his arrest had never been in trouble with the law. They will also hear evidence of Rice's mental disorder.
Arriving at the guilty verdict was difficult, she told them. In the sentencing phase "you have to make an even harder decision," she said. "What is the right sentence for Lawrence Rice?"
Moore-Brown urged them to keep an open mind.
"If you hear nothing else, you can consider in your own heart, your own mercy, your own decision," she said. "....We will ask you to save the life of Lawrence Rice."
Rice found guilty in murder trial...
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Originally Posted by Vayda
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