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DAKOTA CITY - A Dakota County jury was handed Jason Jones’ murder case for deliberation Wednesday Sept. 25 after hearing nearly two hours of closing arguments.
District Judge Bryan Meismer submitted the case to the jury at 1:40 p.m. Jurors deliberated until about 7:15 p.m. but had not yet reached a verdict. They were sequestered at a South Sioux City hotel.
Jurors were tasked with deciding whether Jones, 44, was guilty of four counts each of first-degree murder and use of a firearm to commit a felony and two counts of first-degree arson in connection to the shooting deaths of Gene Twiford, 86, and his wife, Janet Twiford, 85; their daughter, Dana Twiford, 55; and Michele Ebeling, 53, in the early-morning hours of Aug. 4, 2022, in Laurel.
Jones is accused of fatally shooting the Twifords after forcing himself into their home and intentionally setting their 503 Elm St. home ablaze before entering Ebeling’s 209 Elm St. house, killing her and starting her home oil fire.
In her 43-minute closing, Assistant Nebraska Attorney General Sandra Allen laid out the state’s case, which was presented to the jury through dozens of witnesses and more than 1,000 evidentiary exhibits over about 10 days. She said it’s difficult to come up with words to describe what happened in Laurel.
“It’s hard to imagine that four people were gunned down in cold blood in a town the size of Laurel...” Alien said. “The word that comes to my mind is senseless. This was a senseless crime that makes absolutely no sense. (There’s) no reason why these people were murdered, but they were, and the evidence in this case that was presented during trial establishes that beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Allen highlighted evidence the state believes shows premeditation, including Jones purchasing gas cans and backpacks the day before the killings; text messages he sent to Ms wife stating he could kill Gene Twiford; phone calls to Ms mother in wMch he talks about Ebeling being possessed; and messages and GPS data showing he was driving around Laurel the day before the killings looking for Twiford.
There also was a plethora of evidence found at both the Twiford and Ebeling residences linking Jones to the crimes.
Investigators located the Ruger 57 semi-automatic pistol used to shoot the Twifords on the family1 s living room floor with Jones’ DNA on it, plus a pop bottle, gas can, gun magazine, piy bar and lighter outside the home, all of which had Jones’ DNA A backpack in Ebeling’s home contained receipts to a number of businesses where Jones made purchases. A lighter and flasMight on the Ebeling property contained Jones’ DNA, as did a bullet found on the floor of her home.
A .44 semi-automatic pistol found inside the dresser next to Jones’ bed also contained his DNA.
A forensic scientist specializing in firearms had testified that the bullet on Ebeling’s floor was fired from the pistol found in Jones’ dresser.
In phone calls Jones had with Ms mother since the killings, he talked about Gene Twiford’s behavior toward Carrie Jones, detailing how Twiford harassed his wife and others in Laurel. Jason Jones also alleged that Ebeling and her fiance, Brian Welch, were demoniacally possessed and would sit outside their home in their underwear.
Allen said there was no evidence to back Jones’ statements, calling them “absurd.”
“He’s ranting and raving, trying to justify to his mother why he went and murdered four people; that’s all he’s doing,” Allen said.
There had been evidence that Gene Twiford would make sexually inappropriate comments toward people in Laurel, but witnesses to Twiford’s behavior knew he was a jokester and considered him harmless, according to testimony.
Allen, calling Jones “a pretty bad arsonist,” argued that Jones had accidentally started himself on fire while setting the Twiford home ablaze. As he exited the residence, he stopped, dropped and rolled in the backyard, leaving behind several pieces of charred fabric from the clothes he was wearing, the prosecutor said.
The defense alleged Jones intended to die by suicide. A note created on his iPad believed to have been addressed to Carrie Jones suggested Jason Jones planned to take his life.
The note, in part, states: ‘Yes, I went with them, setting up my own Greek funeral pyre, a la Darth Vader, took my tools with me, too.” It was a reference to suicide by fire.
