Jury hands down death penalty for Jason Thornburg, convicted of gruesome Fort Worth slayings

A jury has handed down the death penalty for Jason Thornburg, convicted of the 2021 slayings of three people in Fort Worth.

Jurors in the capital murder trial of Thornburg heard more testimony and closing arguments Wednesday morning before entering the final stage of deliberations to determine whether the 44-year-old would face the death penalty or life in prison without parole.

The punishment phase of the trial gripped a packed courtroom as Thornburg’s defense team presented their final witness on Wednesday: Thornburg’s uncle. He detailed the challenges Thornburg faced growing up on a Navajo reservation, including his mother’s struggles with drug addiction while pregnant with him.

“From the get-go, he was doomed in the womb. He had no chance to be the correct person he should be," said defense attorney J. Warren St. John.

He also argued his client was mentally ill, and now on the right medication, should be able to live, albeit in prison.

“He thought he did the right thing by committing a horrible, sinful, sacrifice. It’s the voices he heard, which are not justified, they are evil… but he believed it was correct," he said.

Earlier this month, Thornburg was convicted of capital murder for killing three people—a man and two women—in September 2021. The murders occurred inside his Mid-Cities motel room, where he dismembered their bodies and kept them before later burning them in a Fort Worth dumpster.

During the trial, prosecutors revealed that Thornburg told investigators he committed the crimes because he was called by a higher power to "commit sacrifices."

“We don’t use words like cannibal because it’s fun. We use words like cannibal because he ate David’s heart. We don’t use the word sadist because we think it’s a buzzword, we use the word sadist because he had sex with Lauren’s torso," said Kim D’Avignon, Assistant District Attorney.

During closing arguments, she and fellow prosecutor Amy Allin argued Thornburg was using mental illness as a shield, pointing to his own words.

“I couldn’t use my chainsaw because that would be too loud and I would get caught. I have to use my knife. I can’t carry out the bodies like that, that would be too obvious. I need to get my car back, I need to go buy some bins, and load them up in my car," Allin recounted.

They also tried to discredit defense experts who testified earlier in the trial, stating Thornburg had partial fetal alcohol syndrome and suffered from other childhood trauma.

“Y’all, I have seen better scientific method in a TikTok personality quiz," said D'Avignon during closing arguments. “The words, ‘I’m seeing something’ are just things he says when he’s about to get in trouble or when there’s about to be a trial or when there’s about to be a jury of people that he needs to convince that there’s something wrong with him and to spare his life.”

Prosecutors argued that Thornburg would still be a threat to others behind bars, saying he was still making weapons in his cell as jury selection was happening.

“Imagine what he is capable of with a lifetime of nothing to do but plan," Allin said.

Outside the courtroom, victims' families gathered in a prayer circle before the jury's deliberation. Proceedings ended after several of them gave impact statements.

The jury began deliberations on Thornburg's punishment on Wednesday afternoon and returned with the sentence Wednesday shortly after 4 p.m.

Victim impact statements were read shortly after the death penalty sentence was announced.

The Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney made a post on social media concerning the case.

A Tarrant County jury sentenced Jason Thornburg to Death Row. pic.twitter.com/LNad1fKCXV

— Tarrant County CDA (@TarrantCountyDA) December 4, 2024

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