Jury Hears Videotaped Confession At Williford Murder Trial

Friday, October 12th 2007, 6:00 pm

By: News On 6

Testimony wraps up Friday in the murder trial of a former â€œTulsa Worldâ€ deliveryman. Paul Williford is charged with two counts of murder. He's already serving prison time for the attempted strangling of another woman. The News On 6â€™s Ashli Sims was in court on Friday, and reports the defense rested without calling a single witness. Williford, himself, did not take the stand, but the jury did hear from him.

Paul Williford is accused of killing two elderly women who he delivered newspapers to for years.

Prosecutors showed the jury a videotaped police interview where Williford confessed to killing Geraldine Lawhorn and Donna Jo Stauffer. The confession echoed much of what he told The News On 6 last year.

In the videotaped police confession, Williford told detectives he strangled Lawhorn in her own home. In the confession, he says he struggled with the 75-year-old on the ground, and he dragged her to the bathroom where he held her head underwater in a bathtub.

When the detectives asked if Williford said anything to Lawhorn during the attack, he responded that he told her you can't stop me, I'm stronger than you.

In a second police interview, he also described choking Donna Jo Stauffer to death at her home. He told police he choked her once, discovered her husband was home sleeping in another room, then choked Stauffer again before he left, to make sure she was dead.

The defense claims that both Stauffer and Lawhorn died of natural causes, which is what police thought before Williford confessed. Williford's attorney also claims her client made up the confession to become famous.

During cross-examination of the investigating detective, the defense tried to cast the interview as Williford's idea. An idea, the defense says Williford pursued because he wanted to be sentenced to the death penalty.

Closing arguments are set to start Monday afternoon, then the case will go to the jury.

Watch the video: Testimony Wraps Up In Newspaper Carrier Trial

Related Stories:

10/25/2005 Tulsa Newspaper Carrier Reportedly Confesses To Murder

10/26/2005 Ripple Effects Of Paul Williford's Confessions

4/10/2006 Paul Williford Pleads Guilty

10/19/2006 Former Newspaper Carrier Faces New Murder Charges

2/20/2007 Murder Suspect's Court Hearing Rescheduled

10/10/2007 Jury Selection Begins In Murder Case

10/11/2007 Testimony To Begin In Double Murder Trial

10/12/2007 Testimony In A Newspaper Carrier's Murder Trial Continues