GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A Gwinnett County jury found a man guilty of murdering his mistress and burning her body in a local park.
Lauren Taylor’s body was found in Deshong Park in 2014. Prosecutors said Charmane Goins killed Taylor after she threatened to tell his family about their ongoing affair.
Goins picked up Taylor near Chattanooga, strangled her and then dumped her body.
During the trial, Goins took the stand in his own defense.
“I don't see how anybody could believe anything he said at all,” Taylor’s mother, Crystal, told Channel 2’s Tony Thomas.
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It took the jury less than four hours to find Goins guilty on all counts.
"I'm so glad this is over with. The evidence speaks for itself," Crystal Taylor said.
During the trial, Goins and his defense team tried to pin the murder on other witnesses.
"Mr. Goins had three years to make up a story and that's exactly what he did. I don't want you to believe that story because it's a lie," prosecutor Daryl Manns told jurors.
Goins now faces life in prison. The judge will decide whether it's with or without a chance of parole. He was ready to sentence him on the spot, but the defense asked for a delay. No exact date has been set.
"I hope he sits in prison for the rest of his life and thinks about what he did and sees those photos that we had to look at of what he did to her. I hope he has those thoughts every single day and doesn't rest at all," Crystal Taylor said.
Cox Media Group
