VAN NUYS : Sierra Madre Man Found Guilty of Killing Parents
A Sierra Madre man was found guilty Friday of first-degree murder in the 1988 shooting deaths of his parents, whose bodies were found bound and gagged inside the family home.
Jeffrey Stephen Percell, 35, had walked into the courtroom beaming at friends, but looked shaken minutes later when the verdict was read in Van Nuys Superior Court.
Jurors, who were not allowed to comment, will return to court March 22 for the penalty phase to decide if Percell should receive the death penalty or life in prison.
The prosecution’s case centered on evidence that placed Percell at the family home on Liliano Drive on Nov. 15, 1988, the day before the bodies of John and Doris Percell, both 61, were found. A month later, Percell surrendered to Vermont police after having pawned several pieces of jewelry belonging to his parents. Percell’s defense attorneys argued that the evidence was circumstantial, that the jewelry had been given to him and that Percell had no motive to kill his parents.
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