ORLANDO, Fla. — After deliberating for less than two hours Friday evening, the jury in Sarah Boone's murder trial has come back with a verdict: guilty of second-degree murder.
Boone had been charged in connection with the 2020 death of Jorge Torres Jr. She was accused of zipping him up in a suitcase and leaving him to suffocate.
According to a 2020 arrest affidavit, Boone told Orange County deputies that Torres got into the suitcase when they were playing hide-and-seek. She said they both had consumed a lot of alcohol, and she fell asleep. She said she later found Torres unresponsive and called 911.
During closing arguments, the state replayed video prosecutors say Boone recorded on her phone of Torres pleading for his life while inside the suitcase.
Despite the video evidence, the defense claims Boone acted in self-defense, Torres physically abused her and that the incident was the result of battered spouse syndrome.
Boone’s lawyers continued to build their case around battered spouse syndrome Friday, calling a psychologist and detectives to the stand.
Forensic psychologist Dr. Julie Harper, who had seen Boone nine times since 2020, said she suffers from PTSD and determined there was trauma from intimate partner violence.
In opening statements last week, prosecutors accused Boone of zipping Torres into the suitcase to punish him, which ultimately caused his death.
During closing arguments, prosecutor Dave Cacciatore said that Boone was not in any danger from Torres at the time, and that is death wasn't justified.
"Jorge Torres was zipped up in this box — Jorge Torres took his last panicked breaths in this box," Cacciatore said. "Jorge Torres was murdered in this box. He couldn't commit murder against anybody. He couldn't even scratch his face."
Speaking during closing his closing statement Friday, Boone's attorney, James Owens, argued that his client had the right to defend herself from abuse, regardless of what that entailed.
“Ultimately this is about justifiable use of force — that is a legal defense in Florida," he said. "We, as citizens, the law is designed to protect us.”
Owens went on to say that he had "no regrets" for taking on Boone's case.
"I took the case of a mentally ill person because I had been following the case online for some time, and did not believe she would receive a fair trial without counsel," he said. "I did not appreciate, at the time, how complex and difficult the case would end up being, To have friends and family rally around me in support has made me realize I made the right decision. We all worked so hard, learned so much and got even closer as a result. I pray Sarah Boone finds peace and justice in her appellate journey."
Boone is scheduled to be sentenced at 1:30 p.m. on Dec. 2.