The Anderson County jury returned Wednesday with the sentence for Sean Shannon Finnegan for the killing of Jennifer Gail Paxton of Knoxville.
Demise b
On Monday, the identical 12 jurors discovered Finnegan, who had lived on Fairview Highway in Oak Ridge for a number of years, responsible of:
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Two counts of first-degree homicide
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Criminally negligent murder (as an alternative of one other rely of first-degree homicide cost)
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Tried aggravated rape
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Aggravated rape
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Aggravated kidnapping
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Particularly aggravated kidnapping
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Conspiracy to commit aggravated rape
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Conspiracy to commit aggravated kidnapping
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Abuse of a corpse
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Tampering with proof
He was discovered not responsible of conspiracy to commit first-degree homicide and one other rely of aggravated rape.
A listening to will likely be held Nov. 7 to resolve upon sentencing for the lesser prices – something aside from the homicide prices – that Finnegan was convicted of on Monday.
Assistant District Attorneys Sarah Winningham Keith and Kevin Allen mentioned Paxton’s physique had been saved for about eight months in a freezer within the bed room, however rapidly moved by Finnegan to a spot beneath his mattress earlier than police arrived to seek for the physique, that was present in early August 2020. They imagine she was strangled to demise in December 2019. Finnegan’s girlfriend or fiance, 26-year-old Rebecca Dishman, informed officers that Finnegan killed Paxton, strangling her with string over a prolonged time frame, taking breaks, and stopping to smoke.
Dishman reached a plea settlement with the district lawyer normal’s workplace final yr, pleading responsible to first-degree homicide and agreeing to testify in opposition to Finnegan in return for a life sentence. She testified in opposition to him final week.
The sentencing listening to for Finnegan started Tuesday morning, with attorneys for each side making opening and shutting statements, permitting Paxton’s relations to learn statements on how her demise had negatively impacted their household, and bringing in two character witnesses for Finnegan – a co-worker and his former sister-in-law, who painted a darkish image of his childhood.
Finnegan is rarely going to be free once more, lawyer Forrest Wallace assured Anderson County jurors on Tuesday morning originally of the sentencing listening to. He mentioned the minimal sentence they may give him for the first-degree homicide of Jennifer Gail Paxton is 51 years. Finnegan turns 57 subsequent month.
“Do the mathematics,” he mentioned.
Arguing for the demise sentence, Anderson County Assistant District Lawyer Normal Kevin Allen mentioned, “Sean Finnegan have to be given the identical quantity of mercy they (he and Rebecca Dishman) gave Jennifer Paxton.”
The early lifetime of Sean Finnegan
Wallace introduced two witnesses earlier than the jurors, which he described as exhibiting Finnegan’s humanity. The primary was the supervisor who had labored with him on the bar in Knoxville, who testified throughout the trial he labored more often than not and was dependable.
His former sister-in-law painted a darker image of Finnegan’s youth.
Roxanne Mundy of Indiana testified about his house life when she married into the household. Finnegan was in his early to center teen years. He had two youthful brothers and a sister, and two older brothers, together with John Finnegan Jr., who Mundy married. They’re now divorced.
“I used to be afraid of the person,” she mentioned of her former father-in-law, Sean’s father. She described the person generally known as John Sr. or “Huge John” as an abusive alcoholic and gambler who steadily abused his spouse, Sean’s mom, each verbally and bodily, together with not less than as soon as “past recognition,” and inflicting the kids to run for his or her rooms when he got here house. The violence continued to the purpose that she acquired the spouse to get an order of safety in opposition to him, she mentioned, which he violated. She mentioned she and John Jr. helped her get an house of their constructing for her, Sean and his youthful brother and sister, the older brothers having moved out of the house in Florida by that point.
Mundy mentioned earlier than she met her husband, the household had fled Ohio, forsaking their house and belongings, and have been dwelling in a automobile parked in a relaxation space in Florida till they’d sufficient cash for a house. Sean and one of many brothers have been despatched to reside with uncles. She mentioned she did not know in the event that they have been really relations or not. The youthful siblings stayed with their mom within the automobile.
The topic of the uncles got here up later. She mentioned when a truancy officer confirmed up on the Finnegan house to report that Sean Finnegan and a brother weren’t coming to high school, it was found that the uncles have been choosing them up. She recalled Sean coming house sooner or later in a “scorching mess,” very upset, and revealing he was being sexually and bodily abused by the uncles and others.
As Mundy testified, Finnegan wiped tears from his eyes.
She mentioned when the daddy discovered Sean had been lacking that a lot faculty, he beat him so unhealthy that he was unable to go to high school for a couple of week due to the bruises. Lawyer Williams offered faculty information that he mentioned indicated Sean primarily solely went to high school by way of the eighth grade.
The previous sister-in-law jumped ahead within the timeline to inform of an grownup Sean Finnegan getting a job at a restaurant in Fort Lauderdale, the place he was the grasp chef and normal supervisor, having fun with the job that included dressing in a white coat and chef’s hat and mingling with the friends and meals critics.
“He was a fantastic cook dinner,” she mentioned.
That restaurant would ultimately shut and he’d go to a different, she mentioned. He moved to East Tennessee when the restaurant wished to increase to Knoxville. When his siblings could not deal with his mom, she mentioned, he supplied to permit her to come back stick with him. In the course of the trial it got here out that she had been in hospice on the time the offenses occurred and has since died.
Mundy mentioned she hadn’t seen him in about 34 years, however she had identified the grownup Sean Finnegan to be somebody that nobody would guess was completely different, with a stupendous spouse, pet canine he cherished, good houses and garments, and cordial to folks. In response to questions, she mentioned she knew he drank alcohol at night time and smoke pot, getting drunk so much.
On the state’s facet, Paxton’s cousins gave statements previously reported on about how her demise had impacted their lives. A brand new assertion was given from Paxton’s grandmother, who relations mentioned she known as her mother. It was learn on the stand by Paxton’s cousin Brittany Payne. Within the printed assertion, the grandmother mentioned, “Dropping her destroyed my coronary heart. She was my every part.” She added that the nightmares she had on earth would by no means finish and that she knew she’d be along with her granddaughter once more in Heaven.
The Oak Ridger’s Information Editor Donna Smith covers Oak Ridge space information. E mail her at dsmith@oakridger.com and comply with her on Twitter@ridgernewsed.
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This text initially appeared on Oakridger: Sean Finnegan gets death penalty for murder of Jennifer Gail Paxton
