Beebe guilty in Henslee-Howarth murders

PAW PAW, Mich. (WOOD) - A jury has convicted Junior Lee Beebe Jr. in the January deaths of two Van Buren County women.

Beebe was found guilty Tuesday of second-degree murder in Amy Henslee's death, which carries a penalty of life in prison with the possibility of parole. He was found guilty of first-degree murder in Tonya Howarth's death, which has a penalty of mandatory life without parole. He was also found guilty of firearms charges.

When asked point blank after the verdict was read if he killed Howarth and Henslee, Beebe shouted, "No."

The jury began deliberations Friday afternoon and stayed until around 7:30 p.m. Jurors returned to continue deliberations at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday. At around 10 a.m., the court went back into session and the judge addressed the jurors' written requests.

Jurors asked for transcripts of testimony regarding DNA evidence, the layout of the trailer where the shootings allegedly occurred, and testimony of one of the first officers on the scene after blood was found at the scene off of County Road 687 in Bangor Township.

Jurors also requested photos of the interior of the trailer and inquired about rendering a verdict on a charge other than manslaughter, first- or second-degree murder. They asked if they could consider convicting Beebe as being an accessory to murder.

The judge gave jurors the transcripts but told them to rely on their memories in regards to questions about the interior of the trailer. He said no photos could be given to them that were not submitted as evidence.

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