Jurors deliberate in Mo. murder case

Jackson County, Mo., jurors got the case Thursday afternoon for a man accused of robbing and killing a former Lawrence resident.

Jurors – who are considering murder and robbery charges against Lamar Quarles, 19 – deliberated into the evening in Kansas City, Mo. They will return to consider a verdict today.

Prosecutors accuse Quarles of robbing and killing Derek A. Orchard, 37, of Overland Park. Police found Orchard’s body May 16, 2007, in southern Kansas City. He was shot to death.

Orchard worked in marketing in the Kansas City area, and he graduated from Lawrence High School in 1988.

Quarles faces charges of second-degree murder, first-degree robbery and two charges of armed criminal action.

Prosecutors allege Quarles and Antonio E. Smith, 18, of Kansas City, Mo., robbed and shot Orchard. Smith was convicted of the charges in March, and he has been sentenced to concurrently serve four 25-year prison terms.