Life sentence given for Board of Education murder

Thursday, Sept. 14, 2000 | 4:32 a.m.

Career criminal Scott Bedard escaped a death sentence when jurors decided life without parole was the appropriate punishment for killing the son of a former State Board of Education member in August 1997.

Jurors recommended the sentence Wednesday after 10 hours of deliberations.

Prosecutors said Bedard was burglarizing the Templeton Plaza office complex when he was interrupted by Billy Hanlon, who owned a janitorial company and was cleaning the complex at the time.

Bedard forced Hanlon, 33, to kneel on the floor and then fired a shot into his head as he begged for his life, prosecutors said. The victim left behind a wife, Stacey, and daughter, Riley, now 5.

Jurors on Friday found Bedard guilty of murder and 14 other charges related to the incident. District Judge Jeffrey Sobel will sentence Bedard on the non-murder charges on Oct. 26.

Hanlon was the only son of Bill Hanlon, who is now a director with the Clark County School District.