Greene couple pleads
A Wind Ridge man charged last year in connection with a triple homicide in Littleton, W.Va., pleaded guilty Friday in Wetzel County, W.Va., to three counts of second-degree murder and will serve 40 years in prison.
Samuel Lee Spencer, 26, entered an Alford plea, meaning he asserted his innocence but admitted evidence could persuade a judge or jury to find him guilty.
Spencer’s girlfriend, Natasha Burns, 27, of 420 W. Roy Furman Highway, who also was charged, pleaded no contest to a count of obstructing a law enforcement officer. She was released after receiving a sentence of 215 days, the amount of time she served in a West Virginia jail.
The two were initially charged with first-degree murder in the Jan. 13, 2014, deaths of Michael McDougal, 63, and Carmen McDougal, 55, of Littleton, and Jimmy Kisner, 48, of Aleppo, Greene County.
“The decision to accept a guilty plea in this case was made after lengthy consultation with the investigating officers and with family members of the victims,” said Timothy Haught, Wetzel County prosecuting attorney. “It was an objective and impartial decision based entirely upon the lack of direct evidence and concerns regarding the credibility of a key witness. It was a legal decision based upon the quality of evidence, the applicable law and a careful assessment of the probability of acquittal if this case went to a jury.”
State police and firefighters were called to the McDougal residence on a remote, dead-end road. The bodies of the McDougals were found in the charred remains of the trailer, and a third body found outside the mobile home was identified several days later as Kisner.
An autopsy revealed all three victims were stabbed to death and the fire set to conceal the homicides, according to a criminal complaint filed by Cpl. William Henderson, the investigating officer for West Virginia State Police.
Police credited video surveillance obtained from Koontz Country Cupboard market in Littleton for providing them with a suspect vehicle that was seized by West Virginia State Police troopers. The vehicle was sent to a state police criminal laboratory where human blood, identified through DNA as Kisner’s, was found inside of it.
An acquaintance of Spencer’s allegedly said Spencer spoke to him on the evening of the murders and said, “I told you I would get them back,” before confessing in detail to the crimes and stating it was Burns who drove him to and from the McDougal residence. Spencer allegedly said his only regret was Burns witnessed the killings.
However, Haught said the defense would most likely make a motion to suppress that statement based on its credibility. Without it, there was no direct evidence to put Burns at the scene of the murders, he said.
“I made the decision based upon my education, judgment and 26 years of experience in criminal law, 15 years of which have been spent prosecuting cases,” Haught said. “It is better under the facts and law of this case to obtain a sentence of 40 years for Spencer, who I believe is a principal party to this crime, than to risk an acquittal by a jury because of the circumstantial nature of the evidence.
“An acquittal in this case is an outcome that would not serve the interests of justice, the victims’ families or protect our community. Neither I nor the investigating officers and family members that I spoke with are willing to risk that outcome in this case. It would be unacceptable. Moreover, the court has approved and accepted the agreement as in the best interest of the state under the facts and law of this particular case.”