A jury on Wednesday did not reach a verdict in a Lawrence murder trial nearly five years in the making. The 12 jurors on the panel, plus three alternates, have spent the past three and a half weeks hearing evidence, testimony and arguments. They must decide whether they are convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant bludgeoned and stabbed 19-year-old Justina Altamirano Mosso to death on or about ...
A longtime resident of Lawrence’s Cedarwood Apartments testified Tuesday that he saw a woman kiss an unknown man outside of apartment 13 about a week before her slain body was found inside its bathroom. David Brown, who lived on the building’s third floor back in November 2014 when Justina Altamirano Mosso was murdered, testified that he told police he had seen a woman kissing and embracing a tall, ...
In closing arguments in a long-running Lawrence murder case, prosecutor C.J. Rieg portrayed defendant Rontarus Washington Jr. as an untrustworthy person who changed his story every time he spoke to police, both before and after they accused him of killing Justina Altamirano Mosso. Defense attorney Adam Hall, however, emphasized the shortcomings he saw in the law enforcement investigation into a crime he said ...
Story updated at 7:34 p.m. Monday, Sept. 30: A detective who analyzed phone records in a Lawrence murder case found three key points in the data, which he shared with a jury in Douglas County District Court Monday. Firstly, former Lawrence Police Department Detective Scott Slifer testified that evidence shows the husband of a Lawrence murder victim was en route to Manhattan on Friday, Nov. 7, 2014, the day ...
A Topeka man who pleaded guilty to charges of felony theft and criminal damage in a case involving stolen cable box batteries was sentenced Tuesday in Douglas County District Court to two years and eight months in prison. The judge sentenced Quentin Raymond Sowers, 50, to 14 months in prison for one count of felony theft, Cheryl Wright Kunard, assistant to the district attorney, told the Journal-World via ...
Story updated at 6:01 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27: A judge on Friday sentenced a former University of Kansas volunteer assistant volleyball coach to probation for burglarizing players’ homes and stealing intimate items. He is also prohibited from coaching any sports. Skyler Yee, 24, of Overland Park, was sentenced Friday to 24 months of probation for two felony counts of burglary of a dwelling. He has an ...