Opinion ID: 2593661
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Murder Conviction

Text: ¶ 68 We now turn to Mead's contention that the evidence was insufficient to support the jury's finding of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt as to the murder charge. Mere weeks before Pamela Mead's death, David Mead offered Hendrix $30,000 $40,000 to kill her. Further, Mead told both Walls and Simon he would kill his wife, have an alibi, and make it look like an accident. He told Hendrix this would happen after he had played the role of a good husband for a year to allay any suspicions of his involvement. While Mead had apparently been working on the pool for some time, he hastily completed it shortly after Pamela Mead's foot surgery. The backyard lights were in working order at the time of the murder; however, the bulbs had been unscrewed slightly, leaving the backyard dark. Moreover, Mead began dismantling the pool before the police even arrived, and his brothers completed this the next day. Additionally, the allegation that Mead was motivated to kill his wife for the life insurance money was bolstered by Mead's own prior statements and the fact that he began his efforts at recovering the insurance proceeds the day after his wife's death. We conclude there was sufficient competent evidence as to each element of the crime charged for the fact-finder to find, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the defendant committed the crime. Layman, 1999 UT 79, ¶ 12, 985 P.2d 911. [11]