Opinion ID: 1136073
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: The plot to kill Carolyn Grayson

Text: Defendant's sister, Barbara Jones, testified that, around November 1st[, 1981], she overheard a conversation between defendant and their mother, Margaret Payne, at Payne's residence, during which defendant was pretty nervous ... and told my mom that he felt Carolyn was getting ready to talk. Barbara stated that defendant told Payne, I knew I should have killed the bitch when I killed the white bitch. The identity of the person referred to by defendant as the white bitch is not disclosed by the record. According to Barbara, defendant's mother replied, Well, it's either your life or hers. [3] On approximately November 3, 1981, defendant contracted pneumonia and was hospitalized. Barbara testified that she and her mother discussed killing Grayson by giving her poisoned Tylenol capsules: [M]y mom said that would be the right time [to kill Grayson], [be]cause that's the best alibi in the world for him to be, you know, in the hospital on the weekend so they knew it wouldn't have been him. So, um, Troy gave me $20 and he went into the hospital, and my mom, um, gave me some money, and I went and got the pills and got the stuff for her. And we brought it back here, and my mom mixed it up [filling the capsules with glass and, subsequently, with Drano drain cleaner] and everything, you know, and we gave it to her for two days straight, and nothing happened. Barbara testified further that, in response to Grayson's complaints about cramps after having ingested the adulterated pills, defendant encouraged Grayson to go to the hospital to have yourself checked, informing Barbara, I'm glad Carolyn didn't die you know, I'm glad nothing happened to her. On Thanksgiving Day, 1981, Joanne Jones (another sister of defendant) and Tanya Jones (defendant's wife) discussed the plot to kill Grayson. According to Barbara's testimony, Tanya said: `Ah, that's a die-hard bitch, she's not going to die,' you know, like this. Yeah, you see, we had put glass into the pills, and that didn't kill her. So we poisoned her, didn't do it. So the only way to kill her would be a bullet. Barbara testified further that Tanya was kinda upset because she  I guess she felt she was losing Troy to Carolyn ... [a]nd that's when ... she says: `He don't want to kill the bitch,' she says, `But the only way to kill her is  she's a diehard bitch, is with a gun.' Troy made no comment, Barbara testified, adding, [H]e walked away because ... see, he didn't agree upon at that time about it.