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Last updated on Friday, October 26, 2012
(BROWNSTOWN) - A 12-person jury found 24-year old John Aaron Shoultz III, of Crothersville, guilty on two counts of conspiracy to commit murder Tuesday afternoon, in the Jackson County Circuit Court.
Shoultz was found guilty of plotting to kill chief deputy prosecutor Amy Marie Travis, John Roche, Shoultz's own lawyer; and Aaron Rollins, the man who was dating Shoultz's ex girlfriend.
Shoultz took the stand to defend himself, but seemed more at odds with his own story than the prosecutor. He told his lawyer, the police, and the jury a different story, but told Jeffery Chalfant, deputy prosecutor, something else.
While awaiting trial for the 2009-murder of his father, he made plans with another inmate to send a bomb to Travis' office at the Jackson County Prosecutor's office in addition to sending bombs to the other two's addresses.
Evidence showed Shoultz admitted to police that he and Michael Luttrell, the other inmate, were in agreement that they would send bombs. Plans were made between the two during meetings in a cell. Both would cover the speaker with a sticker and the eyehole on the door with toilet paper and discuss plans and draws instructions to build a homemade bomb.
Shoultz's defense played off the situation as if he was not serious in carrying out the crime or that he had never built a bomb successfully himself.
Shoultz testified it was "just a jailhouse thing" and "we were just messing around."He also had plans to send a bomb to Aaron Rollins, the man who began dating his ex girlfriend.
Shoultz told the jury he "cooled off" but admitted to telling his mother that Rollins had "a death warrant on his head."
Jury members deliberated for nearly 40 minutes before returning with their guilty verdict.
Shoultz will be sentenced at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 21.
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