BELLEFONTE, Pa. (AP) -A former Penn State football player was convicted of murder for stabbing a student to death in what prosecutors said was a crime driven by a desperate need for money.
LaVon Chisley Jr., 23, was found guilty by a jury Friday of first- and third-degree murder and immediately sentenced to life in prison.
Centre County prosecutors said Chisley stabbed 26-year-old Penn State senior Langston Carraway 93 times in June 2006. A bloody rubber glove found at the murder scene had Chisley’s DNA as well as the victim’s, authorities said.
Multiple witnesses testified that Chisley knew Carraway was a marijuana dealer who always had large amounts of cash inside his Patton Township apartment. Chisley had racked up tens of thousands of dollars in debt to a tattoo artist, a dog breeder and two sports agents in a failed bid to play professional football, authorities said.
Chisley, a former defensive lineman from Waldorf, Md., was kicked off the Penn State team before the 2005 season because of poor grades. He is a father of two.
The Carraway family had no comment on the verdict, which came after seven hours of deliberation.
Defense attorney Karen Muir said she and Chisley, who appeared stunned as he was led out, would discuss whether to appeal.
“It is my position that LaVon did not kill Langston Carraway,” Muir said through tears. “While I respect the jury’s decision, I still believe the evidence supported a not-guilty verdict.”
Chisley’s father, LaVon Chisley Sr., vowed to contact the NAACP to help with appeals. Chisley is black and the jury was all white.
“It was biased, it was racist. All of it. The trial never gave my son a chance,” LaVon Chisley Sr. said. “I’m not going to let my son do life for something he didn’t do.”
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