Monday, October 8, 2012
A convicted felon has been found guilty of killing a North Texas pastor in his church last year.
Steven Lawayne Nelson faces the death penalty or life in prison without parole.
Jurors in Fort Worth deliberated more than an hour Monday before finding Nelson guilty of capital murder in the March 2011 death of the Reverend Clint Dobson at Arlington's NorthPointe Baptist Church.
Last week, Nelson denied killing the minister while testifying in his defense. He said two friends went inside and committed the crime while he was outside.
But defense attorneys said the church secretary, who was beaten, told a doctor that two men assaulted her.
During closing arguments, prosecutor Page Simpson called Nelson a "predator" and said he wanted to steal a car and the victims' credit cards.
