Associated Press
HATTIESBURG - Stephanie Stephens was found guilty Monday of murder in the 2001 death of her husband, a Hattiesburg heart surgeon.
The jury returned its verdict after over two hours of deliberations. Stephens was immediately sentenced to life in prison by Special Judge Jess Dickinson.
Testimony in the murder trial ended Saturday without the defendant taking the stand.
"I wanted to testify, but (defense attorney Ray Price) thought it was in my best interest that I not testify," Stephens had said after leaving the courtroom on Saturday. "He believes and so do I that the evidence speaks for itself."
Stephens, 36, was charged with killing Dr. David Stephens, 59, on May 1, 2001.
Defense attorneys claimed David Stephens, who had liver problems caused by hepatitis C and diabetes, killed himself by injecting two anesthetic drugs into his body.
During the deliberations, the jury returned to the courtroom to ask the judge a question about assisted suicide. Dickinson said he could not answer the question, but told the jurors to read a copy of the law that was given to them.
Instead of changing the venue of the trial because of pre-trial publicity, the jury was selected in DeSoto County last week and brought south to the Forrest County Courthouse.
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