The prosecution claimed that a California interior designer killed her stepfather, a butterfly conservationist, after discovering nude images of herself on his computer. She was found guilty of first-degree murder on Wednesday.
Jade Sasha Janks, 39, of Solana Beach, had wide eyes as the jury for San Diego County heard the judgment, and she turned to face her defense attorney in apparent shock and astonishment.
Janks, who had been out on bail, was detained right away. For the murder of Thomas Merriman, 64, a co-founder of Butterfly Farms in Encinitas, she faces a sentence of 25 years to life in jail. The following court date for her is April 3.
Jorge Del Portillo, a deputy district attorney, praised the jury for their decision.
He told reporters outside the Vista courthouse, "They've been fantastic, patient, polite, and attentive throughout this entire trial, and we're just delighted we gained some justice for Tom and his family."
On December 31, 2020, Merriman was slain, not long after Janks discovered the scandalous pictures on Merriman's computer.
Prosecutors claim that Janks sedated Merriman before strangling and choking him to death. Jurors were given a text message Janks made to a friend on the day Merriman died, in which she said, "I just dosed the crap out of him."
Merriman's death, according to Janks' defense, was caused by poor health and long-term drug usage. An overdose of a prescribed sleep aid was given as the official cause of death.
Marc Carlos, a defense attorney, said he is considering all possible routes for appeal. He acknowledged that the jury's decision was significantly influenced by the texts Janks sent.
Less serious accusations, such manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter, which may have permitted the judge to take mitigating factors into account at sentence, were rejected by the jury.
Jade believed she was innocent of this offense, and that has been her position throughout the entire case, Carlos said.
Carlos asserted that he recognized his client's disbelief.
He remarked, "It's really a bizarre circumstance to be in." "It seems to take forever for the jury to enter, hand the judge their note, have the judge read it, hand the note to the clerk, and have the clerk start reading it. Therefore, it is highly stressful psychologically."
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