Judge Rebecca Stern orders Hamilton County Deputy's, left, to escort Adolphus Hollingsworth from the courtroom following Friday's jury decision of guilt in the death of his wife in 1997. Hollingsworth was convicted of the second-degree murder and will be sentenced in March.A jury today found Adolphus Hollingsworth guilty of second degree murder in the 1997 slaying of his wife, Victoria Hollingsworth.
Sequestered jurors deliberated for a full day Thursday and about 90 minutes this morning before delivering the verdict to Judge Rebecca Stern. When she heard "guilty," Vicki's niece, Dakeya Carr, stood and clapped.
She and Hollingsworth's biological mother were quickly ejected from the courtroom.
"I think that justice has been served," Carr said outside.
Hollingsworth will face between 15 and 25 years in prison. His sentencing was scheduled for March 30.
Prosecutors say Adolphus Hollingsworth, charged last year with his wife's murder, stabbed Victoria Hollingsworth in the neck as she took him to work in her Ford Mustang, then buried her body under some tires on Billy Goat Hill in East Chattanooga. Prosecutors say he drove the Mustang back to her parents' home afterward.
Victoria Hollingsworth's body wasn't found until May 1999 despite searches following her disappearance.
Read more in tomorrow's Times Free Press.
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