CLAY COUNTY, Fla. – A man accused of beating a woman with a hammer and dumping her body was found guilty of murder Thursday evening.
David Martin will face the death penalty after he was convicted of killing Jacey McWilliams in March 2008. Prosecutors said he beat her with a hammer seven times, stole her car and used her money.
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McWilliams, who was 24 when she was killed, had disappeared and was found dead a week later in a wooded area near Middleburg.
During Tuesday's testimony, one detective told the court how investigators traced Martin's cell phone to the spot where McWilliams' body was found.
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Prosecutors said Martin knew McWilliams, but they were not dating.
The defense argued that Martin was guilty of stealing McWilliams' car and using her ATM card, but someone else killed her and Martin was blackmailed.
The jury returned the guilty verdict at about 6:15 p.m., just more than an hour after it was charged.
McWilliam's mother, who spoke to Channel 4 after the trial, said she doesn't hate Martin but hates what he did to her daughter.
"This gentleman asked for help, she was there. She tried to assist him, and this was the thanks she got," McWilliams' mother Christina McWilliams said. "We were happy with whatever happened. My whole goal in this is not to have this man on the streets to do this to another family."
Sentencing has been tentatively set for Dec. 2.
