NEW BOSTON, Texas: A Bowie County jury found a man who shot his uncle to death as he slept in front of the living room television was found guilty of capital murder Thursday and sentenced to life without parole.
Andrew Deiontrey Hamilton, 21, used a .380 pistol he stole from his uncle, Roland Hamilton, to shoot another uncle, Winfred Hamilton, Sept. 14, 2017. Andrew Hamilton lived in a bedroom in his uncles’ house in Wake Village, Texas.
At trial, witnesses testified that Winfred Hamilton, 61, often made sure Andrew Hamilton had food and gave him rides around town. On the night of his death, Winfred Hamilton bought Andrew Hamilton dinner and was seen bringing it into his home shortly after 6 p.m.
Roland Hamilton left home shortly after 6 p.m. to attend choir practice and attend the fair. When he returned home after 10:30 p.m. he noticed the 1997 Delta 88 Oldsmobile Winfred Hamilton drove was not in the driveway. Roland Hamilton testified that he thought his brother was sleeping when he first got home. A red stadium blanket which was usually in Andrew Hamilton’s room was covering Winfred Hamilton’s face and body where it lay on the living room floor.
After shooting his sleeping uncle once in the head, Andrew Hamilton carried out jewelry, guns, ammunition and rare coins which he stole from a small safe in Roland Hamilton’s bedroom and a flip-style cell phone he stole from Winfred Hamilton. When Andrew Hamilton was stopped in the Delta 88 by Texarkana, Texas, police at about 4:45 a.m. Sept. 15, 2017, some of the stolen goods were still in the car.
Under questioning from his defense attorney, Jeff Harrelson of Texarkana, Andrew Hamilton denied the murder and called many of the state’s witnesses liars. Under questioning from First Assistant District Attorney Kelley Crisp, Andrew Hamilton had a difficult time explaining why others would lie about his actions the night of the murder.
In closing arguments, Assistant District Attorney Lauren Richards reminded the jury that Winfred Hamilton was a working man who earned a living in janitorial services at Red River Army Depot and who liked to relax in front of the television at night and watch westerns he recorded.
“This individual is one of the most cold-blooded killers I’ve ever seen,” Richards said. “You guys sat in here and looked into the eyes of evil while this defendant was on the stand.”
Crisp argued that while Andrew Hamilton’s motive for killing his uncle may forever remain a mystery, the overwhelming evidence of his guilt is clear.
“This man has no conscience,” Crisp argued. “When you stand over a man you’ve known all your life and kill, what do we do? Where do you put a person like this?”
The jury deliberated less than 30 minutes before returning a guilty verdict. Because the state was not seeking the death penalty, 202nd District Judge John Tidwell sentenced Andrew Hamilton to life without the possibility of parole.
