Jury returns murder verdict : Husband ruled guilty
Posted on Sunday, June 10, 2007
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/hl/News/20750/
GLENNALLEN, Alaska — A jury here on Thursday found Derek Sawyer guilty of first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Gretchen Sawyer, almost 10 years ago.
The verdict came in around 1: 30 p. m. Alaska time. Gretchen Sawyer is a native of Decatur, Ark.
At 12: 43 a. m. on July 13, 1997, Alaska State Troopers received a 911 call from Derek Sawyer, then 23. He stated that Gretchen, then 20, was sleeping in their bed and he was taking a shower when he heard a gunshot.
Upon entering the bedroom, he said he found his 2-year-old son sitting on the bedroom floor next to a. 357-caliber revolver, and Gretchen had been shot. An autopsy revealed Gretchen died of a single gunshot wound to the face, according to an Alaska State Trooper news release.
Blood spatters at the scene, including some inside the gun, also indicated that blood should have also been on the shooter.
Troopers found no blood on the boy and said only Derek Sawyer had recently bathed. Troopers also questioned whether a 2-year-old could pull the trigger of a. 357-caliber revolver, according to The Anchorage Daily News.
Derek Sawyer was unhappy with his marriage and feared Gretchen would leave with their children, the original charges stated. The couple often fought, friends told troopers in 1997.
The Sawyers moved to Gakona, a community of 235 about 15 miles northeast of Glennallen, after Gretchen and Derek met in Arkansas, The Anchorage Daily News reported. She disliked living in Alaska and was desperate to return home to Arkansas, court documents state.
Derek Sawyer was arrested in February as a result of an Alaska State Trooper investigation program initiated in 2003. The coldcase program applies new forensic technology to re-evaluate evidence from unresolved cases.
Sawyer’s defense lawyers, Cynthia Strout and James Mc-Comas, maintained that Gretchen’s death, if not an accidental shooting by the young boy, could have been suicide.
The prosecution team, led by cold-case prosecutor Pat Gullufsen, had striven to present evidence that neither scenario laid out by the defense was credible and that Derek Sawyer was guilty of first-degree murder.
“ A lot of work was put into this case, taking a second and third look at evidence and photos, ” cold-case investigator Tim Hunyor said. “ A number of investigators spent a lot of time putting this case to a close for Gretchen and her family. This is the right verdict, and we are thrilled that we were able to assist in getting justice accomplished. ”
Derek Sawyer grew up in the Copper Valley, Alaska, area and has lived and worked in the Glennallen community since the death of his wife.
The trial began May 14 with the winnowing of more than 100 potential jurors down to 14 — 12 jurors and two alternates who go through all the proceedings so that the loss of one or two jurors will not affect the trial. Trial presentations began May 16. The case went to the jury Monday.
During the proceedings, the families and friends of Derek Sawyer and Gretchen Sawyer were a faithful audience. Gretchen’s family members traveled from Decatur to attend the trial, The Copper (Alaska ) River Recordreported. Instructed by Superior Court Judge John Suddock to maintain quiet demeanor and separation from jury members, the families alternated sitting in the first and second rows of the small Glennallen courthouse. Others interested in the trial often filled the rest of the seats, listening as witnesses were cross-examined, and photos and other crime-scene evidence were brought before the jury, The Copper River Recordreported. Gullufsen could not be reached Thursday but released this statement through an Alaska Department of Law spokesman: “ Justice delayed is better than no justice at all. It feels good to me that a jury had an opportunity to look at this and make a decision. ” Suddock scheduled Sawyer’s sentencing for Nov. 15.
The Anchorage Daily News and the Copper (Alaska ) River Record contributed to this story.