Joseph Capstraw was found guilty of murder Friday (2/21) by a Hardin Circuit Court jury in the 2018 beating death of Amber Robinson.
The jury received the case Friday morning and deliberated for six hours and 25 minutes. The jury recommended Capstraw serve a 50-year sentence.
Capstraw, 22, a homeless street performer, was arrested July 7, 2018, by Elizabethtown police after 18 year-old Amber Robinson was found dead inside a home on Joan Avenue. She died of blunt force trauma to the face and head, and strangulation, according to a state medical examiner.
Capstraw and Robinson were both from Florida and met up in June 2018 at a Rainbow Family of the Living Light festival near Dahlonega, Georgia. They eventually hitchhiked to Elizabethtown and were given a place to stay for the night.
Capstraw had contended he attacked Robinson, who was a foot shorter and about 100 pounds lighter than him, after she attacked with a knife. On Thursday, he testified that wasn’t true and said marks on his left forearm were caused by him attempting to commit suicide after seeing her in a large pool of blood.
He said he struck her after she struck him in the face and claim to have blacked out during the attack.
Testimony in the trial lasted parts of three days with closing arguments Friday morning. Capstraw was the only defense witness.
Final sentencing for the case is scheduled for March 31.
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