Jury deliberates fate of Hanlon murder defendant

Kim Smith

Friday, Sept. 8, 2000 | 10:32 a.m.

Jurors this morning began deliberating the fate of the man accused of shooting the son of former state Board of Education member Bill Hanlon Sr.

If Scott Bedard is found guilty of first-degree murder in the death of Billy Hanlon Jr., he could receive the death penalty. In order to find him guilty of first-degree murder the jurors must find that Bedard killed Hanlon with premeditation or during the commission of a felony such as robbery or burglary.

Prosecutors believe all three factors exist.

Jurors were given the case shortly after 5 p.m. Thursday and began deliberations this morning at 8.

Prosecutors Dave Barker and Dave Schwartz say Bedard killed Hanlon with one shot to the head when the janitorial service business owner surprised Bedard as he was burglarizing the Templeton Plaza offices on Rainbow Boulevard.

Hanlon's body was found outstretched holding an empty wallet on the morning of Aug. 6, 1997.

During his closing arguments Thursday afternoon, Barker told the jurors that "every piece of evidence points to Scott Bedard and it doesn't just point to him once, but over and over again."

Schwartz and Barker reminded the jurors that crime scene analysts found footprint impressions left by Bedard's shoes at the scene along with DNA evidence and a single fingerprint left on a compact disc.

In addition, two laptop computers and what turned out to be the murder weapon were found at the home of the mother of Bedard's girlfriend.

Defense attorneys Michael Cristalli and Pete Christiansen told jurors the prosecutors had not proven the case beyond a reasonable doubt. No fingerprints were found on Hanlon's wallet and no DNA evidence was left anywhere near Hanlon's body.

Christiansen said that given the damage wrought by the burglar, who kicked in the doors of several suites inside the building, it would make sense that more than one fingerprint would be found.

The people who came forward and told police that Bedard had confessed to them did so only after watching the TV news and after learning of a sizeable reward, Christiansen said.

"You have to ask yourself, is this a case where the police picked a suspect and built their case around that suspect?" Christiansen said.

Schwartz told the jurors that it sounded to him as though the defense attorneys want them to believe that Bedard somehow stumbled onto the murder scene and simply decided to steal the laptops.

In fact, Schwartz said, Bedard killed Hanlon because "dead witnesses don't testify in court."

The evidence found at the scene "paints a mural of senseless destruction, a mural made or created by this man," Schwartz said, pointing at Bedard.