Virginia – A Virginia woman, 45-year-old K. Linch, was convicted last week of first-degree murder for her role in the death of 45-year-old disabIed man, J. Morreno at the family’s home in Virginia, prosecutors said. Her husband, 52-year-old Jam es, earlier pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the same case and was sentenced to twenty five years in prison, Commonwealth’s Attorney records show.
Virginia authorities found the victim dead inside an apartment two years ago, after a call to the residence. Officers and investigators who responded determined the victim had suffered blunt force trauma and signs consistent with stranguIation, and the death prompted a homicide investigation by police and the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office. Evidence collected during the investigation and testimony presented at trial led a jury to find the defendant guilty of first-degree murder.
Prosecutors say the victim, a disabIed man whom the couple had invited to live with them after meeting him, was subjected to a sustained and violent assault inside the apartment. Investigators recovered items from the scene and medical examiner findings were used to establish cause of death and the nature of the assault during pretrial hearings and at trial. The husband’s earlier guilty plea and subsequent testimony in his wife’s trial supplied prosecutors with firsthand descriptions of the attack and the couple’s actions on the day Moreno died.
The investigation unfolded with interviews of the defendants and witnesses, physical evidence processing at the scene, and forensic examinations. Virginia authorities interviewed both the man and the woman; the husband ultimately accepted responsibility in a plea deal, admitting to his part in the killing and receiving a twenty five year state prison sentence. At the woman’s trial prosecutors presented evidence they say shows the two worked together in the assault. The Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office released a statement after the verdict thanking investigators and jurors for their work in the case.
In the days before the killing, prosecutors said the disabIed victim was beaten repeatedly with a frying pan, causing severe head injuries, but no medical help was sought because the attackers did not want to risk arrest. The assault continued with the use of a baseball bat, followed by strangulation with a belt and a dog leash.
The death was not reported until two days later, after a conversation with a pastor who urged them to call 911. When police arrived, they found the victim’s naked body covered in bruises and cuts, with visible ligature marks around the neck. An autopsy later confirmed the cause of death as a combination of blunt force trauma and strangulation.
One of the attackers told investigators the victim had attacked and se-ually assaulted her, then challenged her husband to man up and take care of the disabIed victim. The woman’s husband told police the victim resisted and kicked during the assault, claiming the victim displayed strength despite being significantly smaller and lighter.