A jury has convicted a man charged with killing a Ben Davis student and setting her body on fire to try to cover up the crime.
A jury found William Gholston guilty of felony murder in the August 31, 2014 murder of Ben Davis High School student Dominique Allen, who disappeared from a relative's front porch around 4:00 am in August 2014. She was 15 years old.
Family and friends of the slain teen embraced in the hallway outside the courtroom after the verdict was read.
Inside, gasps and shouts of "yes" could be heard when the jury's verdict was announced.
Gholston will be sentenced April 15.
A man who had let his dog out found the teenager's body behind a house on North Elder Street after her friends and family had reported her missing. Later, a police officer stumbled across Allen's purse and sandals outside a boarded up home nearby.
After following up on lead after lead, IMPD homicide detectives arrested Gholston, calling him their primary suspect in the case, based on evidence that includes DNA.
Police arrested Gholston in November 2014 after a three-month investigation.
Family, friends and even strangers testified Monday about the last time they saw Allen alive. The victim's family packed the courtroom to get a look at her accused killer, who had very little support in court.
"I just don't think he murdered this child," said Gholston's stepmother, Edwina Hogan.
Hogan plans to be in court as much as possible for the trial.
"I feel the Lord has me here just to be a support for him. The family, I don't know them, I've told them I am sorry. But I am sorry that happened to their sister, their niece, or whatever," she said. "I think he needs some support when his own family won't support him, I'm sad to say, and I think that's unfortunate."
Gholston, 46, actively spoke with his counsel during the jury selection process. In one case, the judge dismissed a juror who completed an internship in the prosecutor's office under one of the sitting deputy prosecutors in this case.
The judge dismissed another juror who explained that her mind would be distracted during the four-day trial because of upcoming college finals.
