News (USA)

Ex-Marine convicted in stabbing death of gay Indiana professor

Ex-Marine convicted in stabbing death of gay Indiana professor
Michael Griffin

A jury in Indiana has convicted Michael Griffin, an ex-Marine, for the murder of 53-year-old Don Belton, an openly gay professor at Indiana University.

Griffin admitted to jurors that he killed Belton in December 2009 by stabbing him 22 times with a knife that had a 10-inch-long, double-edged blade.

Griffin had claimed Belton, an assistant English professor, raped him on Dec. 25, 2009, after a day of heavy drinking at Belton’s Bloomington home.

He said he killed Belton two days later in a rage when he confronted him about the alleged assault.

The verdict came after 12 hours of deliberations. Griffin, now 27, faces a maximum sentence of 65 years.

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