Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 27, 1991 TAG: 9103270342
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: VICTORIA RATCLIFF STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Actually, it probably took about five minutes for Rogers to die from a stab wound in the chest that cut through her heart and lung, Dr. William Massello, assistant deputy chief medical examiner for Western Virginia, told a Roanoke County Circuit Court jury.
Rogers, a Mastin Kirkland and Bolling real estate agent, was killed while showing a vacant house she had listed in Southwest Roanoke County.
King faces two life sentences Becky King plus 40 years in prison for robbing and killing Rogers and for forging and passing two of Rogers' checks.
Danny King, who married Becky King while he was still married to another woman, faces the death penalty for the same charges. His trial is set for June.
Becky King's attorneys have said she had no idea her husband was going to rob and kill Rogers when they met the real estate agent at the house on Foxcroft Circle. She simply was the victim of a smooth-talking con man who set her up to take the rap, defense attorney Vince Lilley told the jury Monday.
In fact, Danny King almost killed Becky King as well because she was a witness, Lilley told the jury. Lilley said Becky King was afraid of her husband and that he had threatened to kill her.
But on Tuesday, bank tellers testified that Becky King did not act unusual or distraught while she was cashing Rogers' checks. One said King was giggling when she cashed a check at the Dominion Bank at the Tanglewood Mall Kroger store.
An employee of the pawn shop where King pawned Rogers' $3,000 engagement ring for $50 said she did not appear afraid or upset.
But testimony from an Ohio Highway Patrol trooper who helped capture the Kings several days after Rogers' killing seemed to bolster Becky King's defense.
Lt. Robert L. Jones testified that when Ohio authorities ordered the Kings from their stolen van at an interstate rest area, Danny King emerged saying, " `Don't hurt her. Don't hurt her. She doesn't know anything about this. I'm the one you want.' "
But Jones also testified that Becky King did not seem upset or afraid. After her arrest, she was "quiet, somewhat calm," he said.
Roanoke County Commonwealth's Attorney Skip Burkart contends that Becky King was somehow involved in Rogers' slaying. He told the jury Monday that she either killed Rogers or was an accessory.
Becky King called at least one other real estate agent before she telephoned Rogers the morning of Oct. 11 and arranged for Rogers to show her the house, Burkart said Monday.
The jury watched a videotape Tuesday of the inside of the house. The tape showed bloodstains on the carpet and briefly showed Rogers' body in the unfinished basement.
Rogers bled to death from a knife wound in the heart, Massello testified.
But she also was choked to the point that fingerprints were left on her throat and blood vessels burst in her eyes. She was bruised on her head and body, and her ears and finger were bruised - probably from jewelry being ripped from them, the medical examiner said.
by CNB