A jury took less than two hours to find a former University of Texas student guilty of killing 21-year-old Jennifer Cave in his apartment and dismembering her body. The same jury recommended that Colton Pitonyak be sentenced to 55 years in prison.

Pitonyak, 24, testified at the trial, telling the jury that he was in an alcohol and Xanax-induced blackout and had no memory of shooting Cave, who he called his "best friend."

But during closing arguments, prosecutors told a different story.

"He sawed her head off. He sawed her hands off. He stabbed her in the face. He stabbed her in the chest," prosecutor Stephanie McFarland said. "If they mutilate the person's body, it tells you a lot about their intent toward that person."

Pitonyak's defense took a major blow when the judge ruled that the jury could not consider the lesser charges of manslaughter or criminally negligent homicide. The only choices for the jurors were intentional murder or innocence.

Earlier Article:
Trial Begins in Student's Decapitation Case

See Also:
Pitonyak to Serve 55 Years
Jurors Find College Student Guilty of Killing and Dismembering Woman