Ex-Lynwood Employee Guilty of Murder : Courts: The verdict fails to solve the mystery of his motive in killing the husband of a city councilwoman. Several jurors urge further investigation of the case.

A former Lynwood city employee was found guilty Wednesday of murdering the husband of a city councilwoman in a case that scandalized City Hall in the Southeast Los Angeles County suburb.

But the verdict in Compton Superior Court did not solve the mystery of the motive for the slaying of Donald Morris, who was gunned down a day after he publicly accused his wife, Councilwoman Evelyn Wells, of having an affair with the then-city manager.

Police and prosecutors said neither Wells nor the former city manager, Laurence H. Adams Sr., were suspects. Part-time city graffiti cleanup worker Samuel Baxter was arrested after a friend identified him as the gunman, but authorities could find no reason for him to shoot Morris.

On Wednesday, several jurors who convicted Baxter, 31, called for the prosecutor to continue the investigation, complaining that the crime remained shrouded in uncertainty despite the weeklong trial. As jury foreman Nat Bheksar put it, “I smell fish.”

Deputy Dist. Atty. Frank Duarte said authorities will continue to review the evidence and noted, “There’s no statute of limitations on murder.”

The events at issue began April 1, when the Long Beach Press Telegram printed Morris’ charges that his wife was having an affair with Adams. Wells and the city manager denied the allegations.

The next day, Morris was shot two times in the back and then three more times in the chest as he collapsed in a neighbor’s front yard. The murder weapon was never found.

In all, 23 witnesses testified in the trial, most having to be subpoenaed by the prosecutor because they were reluctant to appear in court. But the verdict hinged on the testimony of Frederick Foley, an electrician who was with Baxter on the evening of April 2.

He testified that he and Baxter--a friend of Wells--went to see the councilwoman’s husband after reading of his allegations. They ended up drinking with Morris for several hours, Foley said, and then drove him back home. That’s when the shooting occurred, he said.

Foley testified that while he sat in his truck, he heard five shots. He said Baxter jumped into the front seat, lay down and ordered him to drive off saying, “I’m a cold killer.”

After two days of deliberations, jurors found Baxter guilty of one count of first-degree murder.

As the verdict was read, Baxter slumped briefly in his seat, turned to look at a friend sitting in the courtroom and shrugged. Morris’ family began weeping and several whispered, “Yes, yes.”

Outside the courtroom, Morris’ relatives said they were happy with the verdict, but were disturbed--much like jurors--by the unanswered questions.

“I think there is more to it,” said Morris’ niece, Vivian Holton. “I’d like to know Baxter’s motivation.”

Defense attorney Ronald Le Mieux called the verdict “really a bad decision.”

The defense had challenged the credibility of Foley, who testified that he did not see the actual shooting and that he waited two days to go to police.

“Can you convict a man on the testimony of a witness who says, ‘I never saw him shoot?’ Who says, ‘I didn’t even see what happened to Donald Morris?’ ” Le Mieux asked jurors in his closing arguments.

But several jurors said that they believed Foley.

“I think he was confused and upset, he was in shock,” said juror Lyndell Wesley, a program analyst. “He got himself into something and he didn’t know what to do.”

The jurors said they became convinced Foley was telling the truth when several other witnesses--who allegedly saw the trio together the night of the killing--hemmed and hawed on the stand, saying they could not remember anything.

“We felt a lot of the witnesses were lying and they were scared and that made us wonder why they were scared,” juror Jennifer Balestreri of Carson said.

“It was by no means an easy decision,” said foreman Bheksar. “. . . Not all questions were answered in this case. No motive was established. . . . I have no doubt that Sam Baxter killed Donald Morris. But I think the district attorney should get to the bottom of this. I don’t think we have heard the last of it.”

Prosecutor Duarte said he will continue to look for a motive in the murder.

“Ever since Day 1 I thought there could possibly be more to this case,” he said. “On the other hand Baxter was an employee watching his city be attacked. His brother was a close friend of Evelyn Wells, he may have felt some loyalty. . . . One individual has the key to the motive and has it locked up in his head. Mr. Baxter knows what the motive is.”

Wells, who testified only briefly at the trial, was not present for the verdict and could not be reached for comment.

Although authorities have said that Wells is not a suspect, with an election campaign under way she has been the target of campaign flyers labeling her everything from an accessory to murder to an adulteress.

Adams was fired as city manager in June.

Baxter faces up to life in prison at his sentencing, scheduled for Nov. 12.