California v. Markhasev
"The Ennis Cosby Murder Trial"
Markhasev guilty in Ennis Cosby case
July 7 (Court TV) --After one day looking at Mikail Markhasev's prison letters and other evidence in the Ennis Cosby murder case, a California jury found Markhasev guilty of murder.
Markhasev, 19 and reportedly steeped in gang life, was convicted not only of first-degree murder but also attempted robbery and using a firearm in his botched robbery of Ennis Cosby.
Cosby, son of entertainer Bill Cosby, was shot dead on a Bel-Air roadside in January 1997 while changing a spare tire.
The verdict comes with a mandatory sentence of life without parole.
Bill Cosby and his wife Camille were not in the courtroom when the verdict was read. However, they issued their reaction to the verdict through their spokesperson.
"The Cosby family is satisfied with the judicial process that has led to this conviction," said a family spokesperson, who said the Cosbys had nothing to say about the stiff sentence.
Prosecutor Anne Ingalls had centered her case around prison letters in which Markhasev implicated himself in the crime. Despite attacks by defense attorneys against prosecution witnesses -- including former Markhasev friend Christopher So, who was paid by a tabloid for his story -- the evidence against Markhasev was ample to convince the jury that he had shot Cosby in cold blood.
Defense attorney Henry Hall indicated that he would appeal Markhasev's conviction, insisting that there is no conclusive proof that his client is Cosby's killer. Markhasev is scheduled to be formally sentenced August 11.
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