Teacher Carla Hughes Dodges Death Penalty - Updated

(Canton, Mississippi) A jury of nine women and three men has spared the life of convicted murderer Carla Hughes.

Jurors returned a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole on Wednesday for the 28-year-old former Jackson schoolteacher and mother of a 5-year-old son. The other option was the death penalty.

"Avis can finally rest in peace," Frederick Banks, the father of the slain woman, said leaving the courthouse Wednesday evening.

The courtroom was emotion-packed during the proceedings with the prosecution arguing that the crime warranted the death penalty while the defense and Hughes' family pleaded for her life. Even the jurors were observed wiping away tears.

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Teacher Carla Hughes Guilty of Capital Murder - Updated
[Previous 10/13/09 post]
(Canton, Mississippi) Earlier today, former Chastain Middle School teacher Carla Hughes was convicted of capital murder by a Madison County jury for the deaths of Avis Banks and her unborn child.

Prosecutors say Hughes killed Banks at her Ridgeland home so she could be with Keyon Pittman. Pittman and Hughes were having a sexual relationship and taught at the same Jackson school.

Banks was shot in the leg, buttock and head and then stabbed in the face and neck on Nov. 29, 2006, in the garage of the Ridgeland home she and Pittman shared.

The jury will reconvene tomorrow for the penalty phase to decide whether Hughes gets the death penalty or life in prison without parole.

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Suspect Seeks Leniency Due to Slavery
[Previous 9/12/07 post]
(Madison County, Mississippi) In March 2007, a 27-year-old former teacher at Chastain Middle School in Jackson, Carla Hughes, was indicted for double murder in the killing of 27-year-old Avis Banks and her unborn child.

The killings took place in the carport of Banks' home on November 29th. Banks had been shot and stabbed in what police believe was a surprise attack. Lt. John Neal of the Ridgeland Police Department indicated the case against Hughes is "extremely solid."

This week, the defense spoke.

The attorney for a suspect accused of killing a pregnant Jackson woman is expected to ask a judge for leniency, because the defendant is a descendant of slaves, according to an area newspaper.

The connection escapes me. Not only that but the victim was probably descended from slaves also.