ANDERSON COUNTY, Tenn. — The prosecution and defense rested their cases Friday afternoon in Sean Finnegan's death penalty trial.
The Oak Ridge man is accused of kidnapping, raping, torturing and murdering Jennifer Paxton of Knoxville.
During closing arguments, the state asked the jury to be "stone cold" decisionmakers in this case. Prosecutor Kevin Allen alleged that Finnegan was caught red-handed in the crimes, referencing the origin of the phrase: a hand covered in blood.
Allen said the jury should find Finnegan guilty on all counts. He explained that Finnegan kidnapped, beat, raped, tortured and strangled her, and then slept eight feet away from her body for months.
Authorities said Finnegan kept her body in a freezer for months in his upstairs bedroom closet. When police moved in to check out reports of a body in the freezer, Finnegan hid Paxton's body under his bed, the state alleges.
During his closing, Allen went over the witnesses the state called, reflecting on the highlights of their testimony.
Kit Rodgers then gave the defense's closing argument. Throughout the trial, the defense has tried to place blame on Finnegan's co-defendant, Rebecca Dishman. Dishman pleaded guilty last year as part of a plea deal to escape the death penalty. She testified against Finnegan earlier this week.
In his argument, Rodgers used a chalk board to explain traits of Dishman and Finnegan. He cast Dishman as a stay-at-home girlfriend who was unreliable and mentally unstable. He cast Finnegan as a "regular dude" who showed up to work everyday on time and took care of his ailing elderly mother.
The state then had the opportunity to address the jury again. Attorney Sarah Keith for the state reiterated Allen's argument, saying Paxton was brutally raped, beaten and killed in Finnegan's home. She said Finnegan should be found guilty on all counts, which include kidnapping, aggravated rape, premeditated first degree murder and abuse of a corpse.
On Saturday morning, the jury will hear about 100 pages of instructions from Senior Judge Don Ash. The instructions will go over how the jury should apply the law to each count Finnegan is charged with.
After that, jurors will begin to deliberate. It's unclear whether or not a verdict could be read Saturday -- it depends on how long deliberations take. The jury is sequestered.
If Finnegan is found guilty of murder, he will automatically be sentenced to life in prison. But because he faces the death penalty, a 'mini trial' will take place next week, where jurors will reconvene and decide if Finnegan should face life in prison with the possibility of parole, life without the possibility of parole, or the death penalty.
Trial resumes Saturday morning in Clinton.