SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Jurors are considering whether to impose the death penalty on a man convicted in a fatal Oregon bank bomb blast. A Marion County Circuit Court jury began deliberating Bruce Turnidge’s fate after prosecutors and defense lawyers wound up closing arguments Monday in the penalty phase of his trial.
Deputy District Attorney Katie Suver said that unless confined to death row, Turnidge could spread his anti-government beliefs to other inmates, who might later carry out plots of their own. Defense lawyer John Storkel highlighted testimony from Turnidge’s wife Janet, who described him as a hardworking man who is a stabilizing force in his granddaughter’s life.
Turnidge and his son, Joshua, were convicted of aggravated murder in a December 2008 bombing at a Woodburn bank that killed two police officers. The jury will consider the older man’s sentence first.
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Information from: The Oregonian, http://www.oregonlive.com
