YORK — A York man will spend the rest of his life in jail in the 1989 death of retired school teacher Mary Stewart, a judge said.
Bobby Lee Holmes Jr., 36, pleaded guilty this morning to murder, burglary first degree and common law robbery in connection to Stewart’s death.
The York widow was sexually assaulted and beaten in her home Dec. 31, 1989. She died in March 1990 from a beating a doctor previously testified left her with brain damage.
Holmes received life without parole for murder, Judge G. Thomas Cooper Jr. of the Fifth Judicial Circuit said. Holmes also received life without parole for burglary, first degree, and 15 years for common law robbery, Copper said. The sentences will run concurrently.
Across the court room, Stewart’s family looked on.
“Mary Stewart was an extraordinary individual,” Stewart’s grandson, Ken Stewart, said after court. “My family can continue to move forward and give honor to her legacy of excellence."
Holmes' mother, Willie Mae Steel, declined to comment after court. Co-Attorney Jim Morton spoke briefly.
“It’s been a long 18 ˝ years, and it will continue to be difficult for the victim’s family and for Mr. Holmes and his family,” Morton said. “We’re glad his life was spared.”
Holmes’ guilty pleas came days before jury selection was slated to begin Monday in his third retrial. In 1993, Holmes was previously convicted and sentenced to death until the S.C. Supreme Court overturned that conviction, paving the way for a new trial. A 2001 trial also yielded a conviction and death penalty for Holmes, but that was overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. He had been on death row for 15 years.
“It is my hope that Bobby Holmes will take this opportunity to use this gift to better himself,” Ken Stewart said. “ He has his life back. I hope he uses it well.”
In an unrelated case, Holmes also received 20 years on an assault and battery charge stemming from incident that happened in 1992 while Holmes was in custody.
Holmes remains in custody today at York County Detention Center. Sheriff Bruce Bryant said he will be transferred to a state prison on Monday.
Those who were to serve jury duty at 9 a.m. Monday at the Moss Justice Center are excused from their duty and do not need to come, said David Hamilton, York County Clerk of Court.
For more details, read Sunday’s Herald.
E-Mail
Print
@Nyx.CommentBody@