[h=1]BREAKING NEWS: Marine who shot dead American Sniper Chris Kyle and his friend declared guilty[/h]
- Eddie Ray Routh, 27, was convicted of 2013 murder Tuesday evening
- Jury of ten women and two men decided verdict after less than three hours
- Trial in Stephenville, Texas, ended with unanimous verdict
- Defense attorneys had argued that Routh was psychotic at time of killing
- He shot both men dead then fled in Kyle's truck
A marine has been found guilty of murdering famed U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle at a gun range two years ago.
Eddie Ray Routh, 27, was convicted by a jury in Stephenville, Texas for shooting Kyle and Chad Littlefield multiple times in February 2013, then fleeing in Kyle's pickup truck.
Jurors decided not to declare him not guilty by reason of insanity. He will serve life in prison without possibility of parole, after prosecutors decided not to pursue the death penalty.
The jury, which reached its decision Tuesday night after just two and a half hours, was made up of ten women and two men.
Taya Kyle, Chris Kyle's widow, was not in the courtroom when the verdict was delivered.
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Face of guilty: Eddie Ray Routh, center, in a red tie, is pictured moments after he was convicted of murder after just two and a half hours' deliberation from a jury
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Sentence: Judge Jason Cashon delivered the sentence Tuesday evening in Stephenville, Texas
Eddie Ray Routh, 27, was convicted by a jury in Stephenville, Texas for shooting Kyle and Chad Littlefield multiple times in February 2013, then fleeing in Kyle's pickup truck.
Jurors decided not to declare him not guilty by reason of insanity. He will serve life in prison without possibility of parole, after prosecutors decided not to pursue the death penalty.
The jury, which reached its decision Tuesday night after just two and a half hours, was made up of ten women and two men.
Taya Kyle, Chris Kyle's widow, was not in the courtroom when the verdict was delivered.
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Face of guilty: Eddie Ray Routh, center, in a red tie, is pictured moments after he was convicted of murder after just two and a half hours' deliberation from a jury
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Sentence: Judge Jason Cashon delivered the sentence Tuesday evening in Stephenville, Texas
After the verdict, Judy Littlefield, the mother of Chad Littlefield, gave a statement to journalists saying her family was 'thrilled' to have received justice.
She said: 'We just just want to say that we've waited two years for God to get justice for us on behalf of our son.
'And we're so thrilled that we have the verdict that we have tonight - and thank you guys for being so compassionate and treating us with respect and honoring us.'
On Tuesday, a crime scene analyst, Ryan Howard said Kyle's gun wounds were close together, suggesting he had been hit in the spinal cord and had not moved much when he was struck.
'He absolutely never saw this coming,' Howard told the court.
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Widow: Taya Kyle, who testified in the trial, was not in the courtroom when the verdict was delivered
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Sorrow: Taya was tearful as she testified to the jury earlier in the trial
She said: 'We just just want to say that we've waited two years for God to get justice for us on behalf of our son.
'And we're so thrilled that we have the verdict that we have tonight - and thank you guys for being so compassionate and treating us with respect and honoring us.'
On Tuesday, a crime scene analyst, Ryan Howard said Kyle's gun wounds were close together, suggesting he had been hit in the spinal cord and had not moved much when he was struck.
'He absolutely never saw this coming,' Howard told the court.
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Widow: Taya Kyle, who testified in the trial, was not in the courtroom when the verdict was delivered
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Sorrow: Taya was tearful as she testified to the jury earlier in the trial
mange227, Townsville, Australia, 29 minutes ago
Good stuff. I ferevently hope every day of his sentence is an absolute nightmare for him. Too many soldiers use the PTSD excuse for their violent crimes (I am a veteran of four middle eastern tours in the last 12 years) and literall get away with murder. I do not accept that PTSD can ever be an excuse for this type of crime; I have some issues related to service in Afghanistan myself but the idea of killing someone or beating my wife have never entered my head.
Good stuff. I ferevently hope every day of his sentence is an absolute nightmare for him. Too many soldiers use the PTSD excuse for their violent crimes (I am a veteran of four middle eastern tours in the last 12 years) and literall get away with murder. I do not accept that PTSD can ever be an excuse for this type of crime; I have some issues related to service in Afghanistan myself but the idea of killing someone or beating my wife have never entered my head.
