Ex-NFL player Anthony Smith's murder trial ended in convictions for three killings, while a jury deadlocked on a fourth death blamed on the former Oakland Raiders defensive end.
Smith, 48, was found guilty in the double murders of Ricky and Kevin Nettles in 1999 and the 2001 death of Dennis Henderson, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office told the
Los Angeles Times. He faces life in prison without parole
.
Jurors split on the 2008 murder of Maurillo Ponce, with nine jurors voting to convict and three who didn't believe Smith was guilty. The jury deliberated for eight days on all the charges.
"I am a true believer in the jury system, but I respectfully disagree with their decisions on counts 1, 2 and 3," said Smith's attorney Michael Evans.
KABC-TV said Smith will be sentenced on Dec. 21. The judge also will hold a hearing on whether Smith will be retried for the Ponce death.
Smith was a first round draft pick, 11th overall, in the 1990 NFL draft and spent his entire career with the Raiders, Oakland and Los Angeles, from 1991 to 1997. He played in 98 games, started in 50 of them, and collected 190 total tackles as a defensive end. He had 57.5 sacks, including a career-high 13 sacks in 1992.
Evans said he plans to file a motion for a new trial for Smith.
Prosecutors said Smith pretended to be a police officer when he kidnapped brothers Ricky and Kevin Nettles at their car wash establishment in 1999, reported the Times. The brothers were tortured and killed with a handgun before their bodies were found the next day.
Henderson had been beaten and stabbed before he was found in the back of a rental car in 2001. Prosecutors said Smith kidnapped Henderson the day before in Mar Vista, California.
Ponce, a mechanic, was found dead of six gunshot wounds in 2008. Jurors could not reach a verdict on the case in a 2012 trial and the judge declared a mistrial.
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