ST. MARTINVILLE, La. (AP) — A St. Martin Parish jury on Wednesday found Dewayne LaKeith Joseph guilty of first-degree murder in the drowning death of his 31-year-old wife, whom he dumped into a St. Martin Parish canal while she was bound to a dolly by duct tape and a chain.
Joseph, who was found to be mentally retarded, killed his estranged wife, Delores Joseph, of Patterson, on Feb. 26, 2009. She was a mother of three and had been married to him for about two years.
“We’re very proud of the verdict, and it validates the very hard work of the detectives who worked the case,” said Chester Cedars, a 16th Judicial assistant district attorney.
Cedars said the only disappointment he had was that he was not able to pursue the death penalty against Joseph because of his mental retardation.
Authorities discovered Joseph’s body in the Harbor Estates Canal off of La. 70, near Stephensville on March 5, 2009.
An autopsy report found blunt force trauma to her head and face.
Craig Colwart, Joseph’s public defender, admitted at the onset of the trial that his client was guilty of killing Delores Joseph. Colwart argued that the killing was an accident and that a lesser verdict was appropriate in the case. He said his client believed she was dead before he rolled her body into a canal, which was an attempt to dispose of the victim’s body.
Cedars disagreed and suggested that Joseph had duct taped the victim’s mouth shut so that people would not hear her scream. He said Joseph knew his wife was alive when he dumped her into what he had earlier called “a watery grave.”
Joseph, who took the stand in his own defense Wednesday, told jurors an argument occurred when Delores Joseph found a text message from one of Joseph’s ex-girlfriends after the married couple had finished having consensual sex at the business.
“She started tripping,” Joseph said.
Joseph said he grabbed a shirt and threw it at his wife’s face. She responded by charging at him, he said.
“I hit her in the face,” Joseph said.
Delores Joseph fell and hit her head and would not wake up, he said.
He said a fear of getting caught prompted him to wrap his wife’s arms, feet and mouth in duct tape.
He said he believed she was dead when he dumped her into the canal. When he later found out she died from drowning he said he told his attorney he wanted to plead guilty and to ask for the death penalty.
“A life for a life,” Joseph said on the stand.
Joseph now faces a mandatory life sentence.
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Information from: The Advocate, http://www.2theadvocate.com
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La. man found guilty in wife’s death
February 3, 2011