VIDALIA — Connor Wood’s convictions will stand.

The Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal’s opinion affirming the 2008 conviction of Wood for three-counts of second-degree murder was released Wednesday.

“I am extremely pleased with their decision,” said District Attorney Brad Burget, who prosecuted the case in district court. “I thought the appeal lacked any merit. We thought the evidence was overwhelming, and the third circuit agreed with us.”

Click on the following link to download a copy of the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeal’s ruling:
Appeal Court Ruling

Wood was initially arrested in March 2007 following the shooting deaths of his parents, John and Geraldine Wood, and Matthew Whittington, a 16-year-old neighbor.

Wood’s appeal was based on claims that insufficient evidence was presented for his conviction and that his sentences — three consecutive life sentences without possibility of parole — were excessive.

Two video statements Wood made to investigators were used at his initial trial.

In the first statement, Wood claimed he and Whittington had planned the killings, and after Whittington had killed Wood’s parents he became angry with Whittington and shot him.

The second statement said Wood had killed all three victims.

The first statement was made before Wood was officially considered a suspect, while the second statement was made following his arrest.

In the appeal, Wood argued that, based on the first statement he made, the state had not produced evidence to show he had intent to kill his parents.

The appeal court responded that, even if Wood had not done the shooting, he could still be charged as a principal to the killings and thus was no less culpable.

In the decision, Sullivan wrote, “In defendant’s second recorded statement to (CPSO Investigator David) Hedrick, he admitted to shooting his parents. The jury apparently chose to believe this statement over the previous statement in which defendant labeled Matthew as the gunman, and this court will not second-guess the credibility determinations made by the jury.”

The appeals court also concluded that — based on evidence presented at trial — Whittington’s killing was not done in self-defense.

Likewise, the court noted that a review of phone records, computers, e-mail, MySpace, Facebook accounts, and insurance policies showed no evidence of a conspiracy, despite statements Wood made that he and Whittington had called, text messaged and e-mailed each other about the alleged plan.

When reviewing the claim of excessive sentencing, the court noted that Wood did not file an objection to the sentence in the year following its handing down, and for that reason it would not be considered.

But the court also said Wood failed to prove that the sentencing was excessive.

“Given the senselessness of the three murders, we cannot say that the imposition of three consecutive life sentences at hard labor without benefits (of probation, parole or suspension of sentence) is grossly disproportionate to the offenses committed by Defendant,” the court wrote.

The affirmation of Wood’s sentence came the same week that Rep. Andy Anders filed a concurrent resolution with the Speaker of the House of Representatives urging gun safety in Whittington’s memory.

The resolution states that, “training in the secure storage of firearms may have prevented a tragedy in Concordia Parish, in which Matthew Whittington, age 16, was killed by a teenage neighbor after he had gained unauthorized access to his parents’ firearm.”

The resolution goes on to say, “The Legislature of Louisiana does hereby urge and request gun owners in the state of Louisiana to utilize these resources in an effort to further reduce firearms accidents and to prevent unauthorized access to firearms.”

The resolution continues that the state will publicly promote firearm safety training through partnerships with public and private agencies.

A suitable copy of the resolution will be forwarded to Whittington’s mother, Judy Whittington.

A three-judge panel composed of Judges Oswald Decuir, Michael Sullivan and Billy Ezell, with Sullivan writing the opinion, decided the appeal.

At this point, Wood can file for a re-hearing with the third circuit court or he file a writ requesting review with the state supreme court.

While the right to an appeal is mandatory, any further actions or reviews for Wood’s case are at the discretion of the courts.