MORGAN COUNTY, Ala. — UPDATE 8/28/2024:
A verdict has been reached in the Frederic Rogers trial.
- Capital murder two or more: guilty
- Capital murder burglary: guilty
- Capital murder arson: guilty
- Capital murder robbery: not guilty
UPDATE:
4:02 pm - Jury is breaking for the day. Court is over for the day.
3:37 pm - The judge has completed re-reading the charges and the jury, made up of 8 women and 4 men, has returned to the jury room to continue deliberations. The judge has also left the courtroom.
3:14 pm - The judge and jury have re-entered the courtroom after the jury requested a copy of the definition of the charges and the explanation of them.
The jury asked for a copy of the charges, but the judge said he can’t give a copy of the charges to them. The judge offered to reread the charges and the jurors nodded to agree that’s what they wanted him to do.
12:25 pm - The jury has left the courtroom and has now been sent to the jury room to receive verdict form and begin deliberations. They will be able to look over evidence—including guns used upon request.
Alternates are being kept in courtroom and given instructions by the judge
Judge says court is now operating on the jury’s timeline.
Verdict must be unanimous on each count.
Earlier:
Closing arguments are underway in the trial of the septuple homicide being called the "Seven Deadly Sins" case. Frederic Rogers is on trial for Capital Murder in the slaying of seven people in Valhermoso Springs in 2020.
The judge explained how the process will go. The state will give closing arguments, the jury will be given instructions, and they'll get the verdict form for deliberations.
The attorney for the State addressed the jury, saying, "You are invested and you care about this case...It is clear as day as we sit and as I stand here talking to you that this defendant Frederic Rogers is guilty of capital murder.” Rogers was expressionless during the closing arguments.
The judge is giving the jury instructions, which are running to 25 pages. The jury will be sent to the deliberation room following instructions, and any verdict must be unanimous. The jury is only determining guilt or innocence at this time, not sentencing.
Here are the counts they are deliberating:
Count 1: Capital Murder during a Robbery 1st degree
Count 2: Capital Murder of 2 or more persons
Count 3: Capital Murder during a Burglary 2nd degree
Count 6: Capital Murder during Arson 1st
Counts 4 and 5 were dismissed.
Background:
June 4, 2020: The Morgan County Sheriff's Office shared an update on the investigation into the murders of seven people in Valhermoso Springs.
The seven were discovered when deputies responded to a gunshot call at the home.
Not all seven people lived at the location, but investigators declined to explain the relationships between the people in the home.
The victims are:
Tammy England Muzzey 45 of Valhermoso Springs
Emily Brooke Payne 21 of Valhermoso Springs
Roger Lee Jones Jr 19 of Decatur
Jeramy Wade Roberts 31 of Athens
William Zane Hodgin 18 of Somerville
James Wayne Benford 22 of Decatur
Female Juvenile, 17 (name withheld by law enforcement)
While deputies had been called to the home multiple times in 2020 for calls including three poisoning/overdoses and one criminal trespass, they did not answer questions on whether or not the murders might be drug related.
June 22, 2020: Suspects Frederic Rogers and John Michael Legg were arrested in Oregon. They were taken into custody during a traffic stop in Marion County, OR and extradited to Alabama.
Investigators say the two murder suspects were so upset with fellow members of their club, Seven Deadly Sins, that they gunned them down to "wipe the slate clean."
February 26, 2021: Frederic Rogers and John Michael Legg were indicted by a Morgan County grand jury on six counts each of Capital Murder.
May 22. 2024: Alabama asks for the death penalty for Frederic Rogers. His attorneys file a motion asking that a death penalty verdict must be unanimous.
