PHOENIX (AP) — In a shocking conclusion to a high-profile trial, an Arizona jury has sentenced Cleophus Cooksey Jr. to death for the brutal murders of eight individuals over a three-week span in late 2017. Cooksey, 43, was convicted of murder, kidnapping, armed robbery, and attempted sexual assault.
The jury handed down death sentences for six of the eight murder counts, deliberating intensely on the complexities surrounding Cooksey's conviction related to the killings of his mother and stepfather.
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell is currently weighing the options for a possible sentencing retrial for the two familial murders or choosing to allow a judge to impose life sentences instead.
The victims in this harrowing case were a representation of random violence in the metro Phoenix area, encompassing a security guard shot while walking to a girlfriend's home and a woman abducted and sexually assaulted before being found lifeless in an alley.
Authorities connected Cooksey to the heinous acts through pieces of evidence recovered from his mother's apartment, including a firearm used in multiple murders and personal items belonging to other victims.
According to prosecutors, Mitchell emphasized the moral imperative of capital punishment in this case, stating, “It takes a special kind of evil to prey upon the vulnerable and needlessly take the lives of eight innocent people. Death is the only just punishment for him.”
While Cooksey's connections to some victims were established, his offenses have left investigators puzzled regarding a clear motive, and he has steadfastly maintained his innocence throughout.
The community continues to reel from the impacts of this case, with comparisons being drawn to previous serial incidents in the Phoenix area. As this trial closes, the question remains on the future of capital punishment in Arizona and its legitimate scope in response to such senseless violence.
