Sentencing next in murder case
MACHIAS — Jurors in the Matthew Davis trial deliberated for about an hour Thursday morning before finding the Houlton man guilty of murder in the shooting deaths of an Oakfield couple at their home three years ago.
The jurors Wednesday, after deliberating more than 10 hours over two days, found the defendant guilty of four counts of arson, three counts of theft and one count of aggravated criminal mischief related to the crime spree Davis went on the day of the killings, but they had deadlocked on the two murder counts.
Superior Court Justice E. Allen Hunter about 4:30 p.m. Wednesday ordered the jury to return at 8:30 a.m. Thursday to continue their deliberations. It is standard practice for judges to instruct jurors to go back and try again the first time they announce they are deadlocked.
Davis had been accused of shooting to death Michael Kitchen, 51, and Heidi Pratt, 49, in the early morning hours of Sept. 23, 2013, in the Oakfield home they shared, setting their house ablaze and fleeing in a stolen pickup truck. Davis also was accused of stealing other vehicles, setting other fires and damaging property.
Pratt’s son, Paul Suitter of Portland, spoke briefly with reporters Thursday as he and family members left the courthouse.
“We’re all so grateful that justice was served today,” he said. “We’re incredibly thankful to the attorney general’s office, the Maine State Police and the Maine court system for their hard work and dedication on the case.
“And, we’re also very thankful to the 12 members of the jury who took their civic duties responsibly,” he continued. “That they deliberated for three days in this case is just evidence of how seriously they took their responsibility, and it’s what makes our criminal justice system shine.”
Suitter was a student at Harvard Law School when his mother was killed. He is a clerk for 1st Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Kermit Lipez, who has an office in Portland.
Suitter was one of about a dozen family members who attended the trial that began with jury selection three weeks ago. After the verdict was announced Thursday morning they wept and hugged each other, the prosecutors and the detectives assigned to the case.
Davis showed little emotion when the verdicts were read Wednesday or Thursday. His wife, Billie Jo Davis, and four or five other family members sat behind the defendant throughout the trial. Davis family members, who appeared to be upset, declined Thursday to speak to reporters as they left the courthouse.
Defense attorney Daniel Lilley of Portland said Davis and his family were “disappointed” in the verdict as were he and co-counsel Amber Tucker. Lilley said the case “very likely” would be appealed to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court.
When asked about how long it took the jury to reach a verdict on the murder counts, Lilley replied: “Well, I guess we’d say reasonable doubt. Or, maybe it wasn’t so reasonable or they slept on it and decided to change. Of course, I don’t know how many decided to change or where they were, but it is a little odd.”
Assistant Attorney General Macomber said outside the courthouse that for the victims’ families, the verdicts in the case are “probably the best Christmas present they could hope for.”
“This crime rocked the southern Aroostook County area,” the prosecutor told reporters. “We know that people were following these events closely there and we hope that this brings some small measure of peace and hopefully they don’t have to go through similar events.”
Macomber said that although no evidence of a motive for Davis’ crime spree was presented to the jury, information about drugs as a possible explanation most likely will be brought up at sentencing.
Jurors found that Davis’ crime spree started before the slayings at Katahdin Forest Products Co., an Oakfield firm that makes log homes. A truck registered to the firm was found at Kitchen and Pratt’s home up against the house and on fire, according to testimony.
Maine State Police Cpl. Corey Hafford told the jury on Dec. 8 that he was called to Katahdin Forest Products while the firefighters were at the Kitchen/Pratt home. Hafford said a flatbed wrecker truck registered to Davis had been backed into a building at Katahdin Forest Products and that the truck and the company’s office had been set on fire.
Davis fled the death scene in a pickup truck registered to a business owned by Kitchen’s family. It was found on fire at a camp in Island Falls. From there, Davis stole a kayak and paddles, which were found on the other side of Mattawamkeag Lake.
Police eventually tracked down Davis and arrested him at about 10:45 a.m. Sept. 23, 2013, in another stolen vehicle on Beaver Dam Point Road in Island Falls, according to trial testimony. He has been held without bail since then and will continue to be held until he is sentenced.
If jurors had been unable Thursday to reach a verdict on the murder charges, Hunter most likely would have declared a mistrial on those two counts. The state then would have had to decide if they wanted to try Davis again on those two charges.
Thursday marked the 14th day of proceedings in the trial. Opening statements were made late in the day on Dec. 6 after 3½ days of jury selection that began Dec. 1. The trial convened just three days last week because of a winter storm Dec. 12 and a scheduling conflict Friday.
The judge moved the case to Washington County in September after a jury could not be seated in Aroostook County.
Davis did not take the stand in his own defense.
He faces between 25 years and life in prison on the murder charges and up to 30 years in prison on the arson charges. Maine law allows judges to sentence defendants convicted of multiple murders to life in prison.
Macomber said Thursday that the prosecution would recommend a life sentence. He said the sentencing most likely would be held in early February.
BDN writer Jen Lynds contributed to this report.
