Teresa Varnadore was clearly emotional but collected Friday afternoon, eyes hidden behind sunglasses as she spoke in hushed tones to a group of reporters outside the Gwinnett County courthouse.
"For us," she said, "nothing's gonna bring my son back, and that would be the ultimate thing we wish could happen. We're just glad it's over."
Her son was Shane Varnadore, a 28-year-old Papa John's delivery driver. Over was the trial of Reginald Lofton, the now-15-year-old who'd been accused of participating in the robbery that ended in Varnadore's death.
A jury took just over two hours Friday to convict Lofton on two counts of felony murder and single charges of armed robbery and aggravated assault. Sentencing was deferred for about 60 days, but the conviction leaves Superior Court Judge Randy Rich with only two options — life with the possibility of parole or life without it.
"I do sincerely believe that [Lofton] was not the shooter" in the case, defense attorney LeAnne Chancey said after the verdict was read. "I'd hoped that had the jury taken that into consideration, that they might have compromised in some way and found him guilty of [only] the lesser charges."
Lofton and 21-year-old Jermaine Young were arrested following the March 1 incident at the Wesley Herrington Apartments near Lawrenceville, where authorities believe the duo lured Varnadore to a building near their own apartment under the guise of a routine delivery.
Varnadore was shot and killed instead, and both Lofton and Young were arrested and charged.
Prosecutor Sabrina Nizam and other authorities that testified during Lofton's trial this week readily admitted that they did not know who actually killed Varnadore. But under Georgia's party to a crime laws, it doesn't necessarily matter — the statutes hold that anyone who aids, abets or encourages a crime that ends with someone's death can be charged with murder, even if they didn't do the killing or expect it to happen.
Prosecutors believe that Lofton at least provided the cellphone used to place the pizza order and the gun used to kill Varnadore, and that the teenager then acted as a lookout during the robbery.
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In a police interrogation shown to jurors on Thursday, Lofton admitted that he knew Young planned to rob Varnadore, that he watched the incident from a nearby breezeway and that he scooped the pizza up after Varnadore was killed. He and Chancey claimed, however, that he didn't actually participate in the crime.
The jury did acquit Lofton of the single count of malice murder filed against him, a charge that implies intent.
Chancey said Friday that she plans to lobby for her client's sentence to include the possibility of parole.
Lofton, a Chicago native, moved to Gwinnett County last year, placed in the custody of his sister after his mother died and his father was ruled unfit to care for him. Lofton once witnessed his brother being shot, Chancey said, and even at his young age, had seen a handful of friends killed in his hometown.
"My client's had a difficult life," Chancey said.
Members of Lofton's family declined to speak with reporters Friday as they left the courthouse. Teresa Varnadore, meanwhile, lingered outside with friends and loved ones.
"I'm just thankful that [the jury] ... heard all of those same things that we did to make the right decision," she said.
A trial has not yet been scheduled for Young.
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