Tuesday, 30 October 2012 17:10

GUILTY: The Rafferty Verdict Featured

Written by  Edward L. Esposito
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Brogan Rafferty Brogan Rafferty WEWS-TV Media Pool feed

UPDATE Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Lynn Callahan repeating the word over and over again reading the 70 counts faced by 17-year old Brogan Rafferty of Stow: guilty of counts relating to the so-called Craigslist killings.

Rafferty was convicted in the three murders and one attempted murder of men who answered ads on Craigslist offering jobs in Noble County, east of Zanesville. The men went to the remote area where they were shot and buried. One man was wounded but survived his wounds and hid for hours before seeking help.

There was only one count Rafferty was found not guilty, an identity theft charge. Family members of the victims did not react to the verdict outside the court, but Timothy Kern's father could be seen on camera giving a "thumbs -up" to those seated around him.

Rafferty could be sentenced to life in prison when facing Judge Callahan again on Monday morning. Prosecutors charged Rafferty with adult murder counts; he could get life in prison but the death penalty is off the table unlike the situation faced by co-defendant Richard Beasley, 52, who is in the Summit County jail awaiting trial. .

Rafferty was never painted as the mastermind of the scheme to use the Internet to lure men to a Noble County farm on the promise of a job, but the teenager was tried as an adult for allegedly helping Beasley carry out the attacks by luring men looking for work to their deaths.

Defense lawyers argued Rafferty feared for his life because Beasley threatened to kill his family if he revealed the plot.

(editor's note: information from Scott Jennings's report from the Summit County Courthouse was included in this story)

Last modified on Tuesday, 30 October 2012 17:53
Edward L. Esposito

Edward L. Esposito

Edward "Ed" Esposito is vice-president, information media for the Rubber City Radio Group. He oversees news and public affairs programs for www.AkronNewsNow.com, 1590 WAKR, 97.5 WONE and 94.9 WQMX. He is Secretary-Treasurer of the Radio Television Digital News Foundation; a former chair of the Radio Television Digital News Association and Foundation and a former president of the Ohio Associated Press Broadcasters Association. He's also served as a member of the Akron Press Club , Kent State University Student Media Advisory Board, Ohio Open Government Coalition, Northeast Ohio AMBER Task Force. He's lectured on broadcasting and journalism for the University of Missouri in China, as well as across the country for RTDNA and RTDNF. You can reach Ed through the newsroom at 330-864-6397 or by email eesposito@rcrg.net

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