Jury reaches verdict on ten charges against Jason Jones

DAKOTA COUNTY, Nebraska (KTIV) – The jury has returned a verdict in favor of Jason Jones.

After ten days of deliberations, the twelve-member jury needed just over seven hours on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday to reach a verdict on the ten charges facing Jason Jones.

Jason Jones was found guilty on all four counts of first-degree murder.

Jones, 44, is charged with four counts each of premeditated murder and use of a firearm to commit a crime, as well as two counts of arson. He is accused of shooting 86-year-old Gene Twiford, his wife, 85-year-old Janet Twiford and their 55-year-old daughter Dana Twiford, and 53-year-old Michele Ebeling in their homes in Laurel, Nebraska, in the early morning hours of August 4, 2022, and then setting each home on fire.

Jones' defense team asked for lesser charges for the murders, saying Jones had suffered a “nervous breakdown” at the time of the Twiford killing and that the killing was not premeditated, a prerequisite for the premeditated murder charge.

A conviction for premeditated murder in Nebraska carries the death penalty, which the state will seek if convicted. The jury will hold a new hearing to determine whether there are aggravating circumstances that justify the death penalty.

The case was referred to the jury for deliberation on Wednesday afternoon.

This is how the jury ruled on the individual charges:

• First degree murder of Michele Ebeling: GUILTY
• First Degree Murder of Gene Twiford: GUILTY
• First Degree Murder of Janet Twiford: GUILTY
• First Degree Murder of Dana Twiford: GUILTY
• Second Degree Arson (Ebeling House): GUILTY (initially charged with First Degree Arson)
• Second Degree Arson (House in Twiford): GUILTY (initially charged with First Degree Arson)
• Count 1 – Use of a firearm to commit a crime: GUILTY
• Count 2 – Use of a firearm to commit a crime: GUILTY
• Count 3 – Use of a firearm to commit a crime: GUILTY
• Count 4 – Use of a firearm to commit a crime: GUILTY

Jones' trial was moved from Cedar County, where the crime occurred, to Dakota County after Judge Meismer ruled that Jones would have a difficult time getting a fair trial from a jury there. Jones will remain out of the courtroom throughout the trial. A July court ruling granted his request not to appear in person for the hearing because Jones cannot sit for long periods of time due to the burns he suffered the night of the shooting.

Jones' wife, Carrie Jones, is charged in connection with the murders. She has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, tampering with evidence and aiding and abetting a crime. Her next hearing is scheduled for November in Cedar County District Court.

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