Livingston guilty in Medema murder

KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) - One of two men has been found guilty on all counts in connection with the murder of a Kalamazoo antiques dealer.

Antonio Livingston, 21, was convicted Feb. 26 of first-degree murder, first-degree home invasion and assault with intent to rob in the death of 74-year-old owner Robert Medema.

Medema, the owner of The Emporium in Kalamazoo, was found dead Aug. 11, 2012 inside his home along the 2400 block of Oakland Drive.

If the guilty verdict stunned Livingston, he didn't show it. He sat motionless and silent in the courtroom.

That was not the case for his mother, Linda Livingston. She stormed out of the courtroom, hurling obscenities. She collapsed for a short time outside the courtroom and was evaluated by medical personnel.

"My son is not a murderer. And I am going to fight for my son. I love him. He did not do this," she later told 24 Hour News 8. "There's a lot of things that the public does not know, that the media does not know, that the court wouldn't let you know. This is not over. My son was framed."

Linda Livingston said the brutal murder was planned and executed by John Aguilar, who also faces murder charges in Medema's death.

Last week, Livingston testified in his own defense, stating Aguilar beat Medema to death with a baseball bat.

Defense attorney Susan Eifler said Livingston was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Kalamazoo County Assistant Prosecutor Alexis Sanford said the jury didn't buy it, and by the time Livingston took the stand, the damage to his case was already done.

"At that point, they had already heard that he had given so many iterations of this story," said Sanford. "And to just add one more on top, there was a point where I felt like I was beating a dead horse to point out all of the inconsistencies."

But the Livingston family maintains Antonio is not guilty.

"Don't get us wrong; we do have deep feelings for the Medema family, but my brother did not do this," Antonio's brother told 24 Hour News 8.

Aguilar's trial will start April 9.