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Brothers convicted in '02 slaying
HUNTINGTON — A jury determined two brothers from Cabell County are guilty of second-degree murder in the death of a woman six years ago.
The three-man, nine-woman jury convicted Phillip Scott Barnett, 28, and Nathaniel Todd Barnett, 25, in the slaying of Deanna Crawford. Passers-by found the 21-year-old’s body on Aug. 8, 2002, in the secluded area of Hickory Ridge Road in Salt Rock.
“What was done to Deanna Crawford should never have happened, and those who did it must pay,” Prosecutor Chris Chiles told jurors during closing arguments Wednesday.
The guilty verdict ends years of question and concern for Crawford’s family. Her father, Terry, expressed some of the relief.
“We’re glad that finally justice has been done for our daughter,” he said. “It’s been a long time coming.”
The brothers were among four men charged in the West Virginia State Police investigation. Co-defendants, Brian Emerson Dement and Justin Keith Black were convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to prison earlier this year. Dement admitted to the charge and testified against his co-defendants.
Crawford’s death followed an Aug. 5, 2002, party at Black’s house. That evening involved drinking alcohol and playing video games. The motivation for her death remains a mystery.
Wednesday’s verdict followed strong and impassioned closing arguments from both sides.
Defense attorneys focused on calling Dement a “liar” and a “contract witness.” The prosecution pointed to Dement’s consistencies and explained his story matched other evidence.
Chiles told the Crawford’s family their loved-one deserved this last piece of justice. He tried the case with assistant prosecutor Jara Howard. The three-day trial ends prosecution in her death.
“I feel justice was done,” Chiles said. “Hopefully, the family will be able to get the closure they deserve.”
The mood was very different with brothers’ family. Their mother, Tammy, clutched to her religious faith in shock, holding onto a bible after the verdict was announced.
“Just based on the evidence and the witnesses. Based on my personal opinion, nothing matched,” she said.
Glen Conway represented one of the brothers. He tried the case along side defense attorney John Laishley. They closed the trial without presenting any evidence and their clients opted not to testify. Conway was visibly disappointed, but said he doesn’t question the strategy.
“What a jury does is completely unpredictable,” he said.
Circuit Judge John Cummings presided over the case. He scheduled sentencing for Oct. 3.
All of the parties agreed the case lacked physical evidence implicating the brothers. They saved the fiery language for arguments about Dement’s credibility and the prosecutor’s decision to enter into a plea agreement with Dement.
The prosecution said Dement’s court testimony was honest and corroborated by other people. Laishley accused Dement of telling repeated lies, and Conway classified those incidents to be “major lies.”
“The stories are inconsistent within themselves,” Conway argued. “They are inconsistent with each other. They are inconsistent with the known facts.”
Chiles defended his main witness with vigor. He told jurors each of Dement’s initial statements to police mentioned the co-defendants leaving a party with Crawford. Each story told of a vehicle ride that turned violent when Phillip Barnett hit the victim.
“It doesn’t matter whether if we call Brian Dement a liar one time, 50 times, 500 times or 1,000 times,” he told the jury. “It doesn’t matter what they say he is. What matters is whether you believe he told the truth here in court today.”
Conway also suggested Dement could have created his story as investigators led him with different facts.
Chiles said Dement’s story came first, followed by statements from the supporting witnesses. Examples included Dement’s prior knowledge of the vehicle used and the time frame of Black’s party. The time frame was confirmed by Phillip Barnett days after her discovery. Phillip Barnett was not a suspect at the time.
Laishley seized on Dement’s plea agreement. He argued Chiles and Dement performed and lived up to their ends of the deal.
Chiles fought back. He told the jury Crawford’s death presented his office with a decision — prosecute and convict Dement at trial or accept a plea agreement and convict all four people.
“If you think the state of West Virginia – mainly me in that regard – made the wrong decision there, then set these people free,” Chiles said. “But the job is to convict everybody who is guilty and responsible.”
The defendants ranged in age between 19 and 22 at the time of her death.
Black received a 40-year prison sentence, while Dement received a 30-year sentence. Both were handed down by Cummings.
