Man convicted in Va. teen’s death to appeal

LYNCHBURG, Va. (AP) — A 48-year-old man convicted in the abduction and slaying of a Nelson County teenager says he plans to seek a new trial in a different county.

Jurors found Randy Taylor guilty May 8 in the death of 17-year-old Alexis Murphy. Her body has never been found.

The News & Advance (http://bit.ly/1hTwW3G) interviewed Taylor in the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail. He has been held there since his arrest Aug. 11, 2013, eight days after Murphy disappeared.

Taylor declined to answer questions about the night Murphy vanished.

Surveillance video from a gas station in Lovingston shows Taylor holding the door for Murphy.

He blames his conviction in part on jurors who were influenced by Murphy supporters in the courtroom. They wore pink ribbons and clothing in her memory.

Taylor’s sentencing is July 23.

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Information from: The News & Advance, http://www.newsadvance.com/

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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