November 15, 2006
Albany -- Two Albany Marine Reservists are sentenced to life in prison after a jury finds them guilty of murdering a teenager in a deadly love triangle.
The Dougherty County jury deliberated for about two hours Wednesday morning before finding 22-year-old Navarro Brinson and 20-year-old Temyrance Johnson guilty on all charges.
Prosecutors say Brinson shot 18-year-old Damarcus Waddell ten times in the back last November in the parking lot of the Pizza Hut on Dawson Road where he worked. Johnson and Waddell had dated the same woman, and prosecutors say Johnson helped plan and plot the murder.
When the guilty verdict was announced, Brinson quietly muttered that he was innocent, while Johnson apologized to the victim's family.
Waddell's father was asked if he thought life in prison was the right punishment. Ricardo Barbary said, "To me, being a father, to be honest, no. But I can accept it."
Brinson's lawyer Jody Weathers said, "We were kind of fighting with one hand tied behind our backs, because we had to try the defendants together. I think if severance had been granted in this case, it could very well have been different for Mr. Brinson."
Weathers said his client would definitely appeal the verdict.
After the verdict was read, a member of Brinson's family fainted outside the courtroom door. Paramedics were called, and she was treated at the scene.
Both Brinson and Johnson were sentenced to life in prison, plus five years, both have the possibility of parole.
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