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Thread: Jeffree Jay Buettner - California Death Row

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    Jeffree Jay Buettner - California Death Row


    Stephanie Ann Benton


    Jeffree Jay Buettner


    Summary of Offense:

    Buettner was sentenced to death in Riverside County on April 23, 2010 for strangling, with accomplice Glen Jones, Stephanie Ann Benton on May 28, 2002.

    Jones was sentenced to death on June 11, 2010. For more on Jones, see: http://www.cncpunishment.com/forums/...rnia-Death-Row

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    December 14, 2009

    Two men guilty of strangling 18-year-old woman

    By JOHN ASBURY
    The Press-Enterprise

    On Monday, Jeff Benton sat in a crowded Riverside courtroom as two juries convicted two men in the 2002 murder of Stephanie Ann Benton, his 18-year-old daughter.

    Jeffree Jay Buettner, 33, and Glen Joseph Jones, 26, were found guilty of first-degree murder in the strangulation death of the 18-year-old El Cajon woman in Lake Elsinore in southwest Riverside County. Her body was left stuffed into a 55-gallon drum.

    The two separate juries delivered the verdicts hours apart as the Benton family and family members of Buettner and Jones sat in the courtroom. Those juries will begin hearing arguments today whether both men should receive the death penalty.

    Though Benton now has convictions for his daughter's death, he said there is no such thing as closure.

    "There's no great feeling and no sense of relief, that's for sure," Benton said.

    Prosecutors said the two men plotted to kill Stephanie Benton because she told police that she had loaned her car to the two men the night of a home burglary.

    She disappeared May 28, 2002, when Buettner and Jones picked her up in her own car, beat her over the head with a flashlight and strangled her with Jones' belt, according to testimony.

    Nearly two weeks later, Benton's decomposed body was found wrapped in a blanket inside the steel barrel.

    The first jury convicted Jones of murder and a special circumstance of kidnapping and killing a witness. As the verdict was read, Jones hung his head and dabbed his eyes. A woman leaving the courtroom said, "I love you Glen."

    The second jury reached its verdict unaware of the first conviction about two hours later. Buettner family members could be heard crying as the jury found him guilty of murder and killing a witness and lying in wait.

    Benton said he was frustrated that the case took this long to reach a jury, though he did not blame the district attorney's office.

    "I've been totally disgusted with the legal system," Benton said. "It's been horrible ... We as a society have become complacent about what's important."

    http://www.pe.com/localnews/inland/s...5.40b6a67.html


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    April 24, 2010

    LAKE ELSINORE: Judge sentences Menifee man to death

    Nearly 8 years after Stephanie Benton's death, case for one of her killers concludes


    Calling him a "man without morality," a judge Friday sentenced Jeffree Jay Buettner, 34, to death for the 2002 slaying of an 18-year-old woman whose body was found decomposing in a 55-gallon drum in Lake Elsinore.

    Riverside County Superior Court Judge Christian Thierbach said it was an unfortunate sentence for a man who was raised by a close-knit family, was a star quarterback in high school and once had a promising career in construction. But Thierbach said there was "overwhelming" evidence that the Menifee resident, who was convicted of first-degree murder in December, carried out the murder of Stephanie Ann Benton in a cold and calculated manner and attempted to cover it up. Benton had moved from El Cajon to stay with friends in Southwest County because she had planned to attend Mt. San Jacinto College.

    Buettner, an admitted member of a violent white supremacist gang, showed little emotion, only holding his head down when the judge announced this sentence. Most of the dozen or so members of Buettner's family and Benton's family who attended the hearing cried.

    Thierbach rejected defense attorney Sam Long's argument that, because Buettner was under the influence of methamphetamine when the killing took place, he should be given life in prison instead of a death sentence.

    "Speed was a big part of what happened in this case," Long said. "And that affected my client's judgment at the time of these events."

    But Thierbach said the circumstances surrounding the brutal murder "show a person in full control of his faculties and unaffected by his use of methamphetamine."

    The judge ordered Buettner to be transported as soon as is practical to San Quentin, where "death row" prisoners wait ---- usually for years ---- to be executed. Under the law, Buettner's sentence automatically will be appealed.

    Buettner did not act alone. A separate jury convicted Wildomar resident Glen Joseph Jones, 26, of first-degree murder in connection with Benton's May 2002 disappearance.

    Early the next month, her decomposing body was found inside a drum that had been dumped in a remote field in northern Lake Elsinore. Her head had been wrapped in duct tape, a sock had been stuffed in her mouth and a leather belt had been wrapped around her neck.

    Prosecutors say she was beaten in the head with a flashlight, and suffocated by the leather belt wrapped around her neck and the duct tape wrapped around her head.

    The two were found guilty of killing under special circumstances, which qualified them for the death penalty. The juries concluded both men killed the teen to eliminate a witness. In Buettner's case, jurors also determined he had lain in wait for the young woman.

    The twin juries recommended death for both men in January.

    Jones also was scheduled to be sentenced Friday. But Thierbach granted a request to postpone the sentencing until June 11.

    Jeff Benton, the slain woman's father, said after the hearing that he was disappointed with the delay of Jones' sentencing, given it took more than seven years to bring the case to trial. But the Ashland, Ore., man said he was gratified to see the case against Buettner reach a conclusion.

    Benton was permitted to speak in court, after the judge rendered his decision.

    "I'm not going to harbor hatred in my heart," he said. "I do hope that he is put to death, but not in the tortuous way he put to death my daughter."

    Turning to the row where a half dozen of Buettner's relatives sat, Benton said, "I got to tell you, I feel more compassion for you, the family. It just breaks my heart."

    Felicety Benton of Imperial, the wife of Stephanie Benton's brother, delivered a tearful, emotional address.

    "Our family was robbed of a sweet, loving and funny girl," Felicety Benton said. "I hate that all we have left is fond memories instead of her wonderful presence."

    She alluded to the maximum sentence Buettner received.

    "In my mind, there is no punishment that could be severe enough," Benton said.

    During the trial, jurors were told that Stephanie Benton, Buettner and Jones all knew each other. And it was Jones' borrowing of Benton's car that triggered the chain of events that culminated in her murder.

    According to testimony, the car was identified as having been used in an attempted burglary. And jurors determined the two men conspired to kill Benton because they suspected her of being a "snitch" when contacted by police.

    The men were heavy methamphetamine users, and Jones admitted on the stand that he supported his habit through burglaries.

    During the more than two-month trial, the two defendants turned on each other.

    Jones claimed Buettner was the one who instigated the attack, and that Jones pleaded with him to stop and take the young woman to a hospital.

    Buettner, however, said that Jones and Benton dropped him off, then Jones picked him up later ---- with Benton's body in the trunk.

    Members of Buettner's family did not speak in court, and declined to comment after the hearing.

    Outside the courtroom, Long, Buettner's attorney, said, "I'm deeply saddened by the verdict and the sentence, as is his family."

    http://www.nctimes.com/news/local/la...af398be39.html

  3. #3
    Jody
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    Even if he is guilty, he should NOT be on death row. That 1 murder is only worth AT MAX 20 years!

  4. #4
    Administrator Helen's Avatar
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    Are you an idiot? Try saying that ridiculousness to the victim's family.
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

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    Senior Member Member OperaGhost84's Avatar
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    They strangled a woman to death. What am I missing?
    I am vehemently against Murder. That's why I support the Death Penalty.

  6. #6
    Senior Member Frequent Poster joe_con's Avatar
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    This is California so in reality it is unlikely he will be executed. Hopefully the family can find solace in him dying in prison whenever that takes place.

  7. #7
    Administrator Heidi's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jody View Post
    Even if he is guilty, he should NOT be on death row. That 1 murder is only worth AT MAX 20 years!
    You should read up on California's death penalty before posting uninformed opinions.

    Number of victims are immaterial in death penalty cases. Aggravating factors matter.

    1.The murder was especially heinous, atrocious, cruel, or depraved (or involved torture)

    2. The murder was committed to avoid or prevent arrest, to effect an escape, or to conceal the commission of a crime.

    3. The murder was committed against a witness, a potential witness, or a family member of a witness in a criminal or civil proceeding to prevent the witness from appearing, or for revenge.
    An uninformed opponent is a dangerous opponent.

    "Y'all be makin shit up" ~ Markeith Loyd

  8. #8
    Administrator Moh's Avatar
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    On April 30, 2014, counsel was appointed to represent Buettner on direct appeal before the California Supreme Court.

    http://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca.g...5TICAgCg%3D%3D

  9. #9
    Senior Member CnCP Legend JLR's Avatar
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    On the 11th of July 2018, Buettner filed his initial brief.

    http://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca.g...5TICAgCg%3D%3D²
    Last edited by JLR; 11-12-2019 at 08:23 PM. Reason: Incorrect date

  10. #10
    Senior Member CnCP Legend JLR's Avatar
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    On the 2nd of September 2020, the prosecution filed its response.

    https://appellatecases.courtinfo.ca....5TICAgCg%3D%3D

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