This file photo provided by the Dallas County Sheriff's Office shows Thomas Johnson. The former Texas A&M football player is being tried for the killing of a jogger police say was hacked to death with a machete in 2015. Johnson's murder trial began Monday, April 29, 2019, after years of litigation over whether the 25-year old former wide receiver is mentally competent to be tried for the killing of David Stevens. (Dallas County Sheriff's Office via AP)
The Associated Press
DALLAS (AP) - A former Texas A&M football player accused of hacking a Dallas jogger to death with a machete in 2015 has been convicted of murder.
A Dallas County jury swiftly returned a guilty verdict Tuesday in Thomas Johnson's trial in the killing of David Stevens after the former wide receiver's legal defense declined to call a single witness.
Johnson was accused of waiting on a trail in East Dallas four years ago and attacking the 53-year-old mechanical engineer as he ran by. Prosecutors have said the 25-year-old Johnson confessed to the seemingly random killing and that DNA evidence also pointed to his guilt.
The verdict, which came a day after the trial began, follows years of legal dispute over whether Johnson was mentally competent to be tried.
FILE - In this Nov. 10, 2012, file photo, Texas A&M wide receiver Thomas Johnson (8) carries for extra yardage after a reception during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Ala. The former Texas A&M football player has arrived in court to be tried for the killing of a jogger police say was hacked to death with a machete in 2015. Johnson's murder trial began Monday, April 29, 2019, after years of litigation over whether the 25-year old former wide receiver is mentally competent to be tried for the killing of David Stevens. (AP Photo/Dave Martin, File)
The Associated Press