At trial, the evidence was strong. His footprint on her nightgown was convincing, since she was wearing that same nightgown when her badly beaten body was found and right under that footprint was a crushing injury to her chest, consistent with that footprint. After he had used a blunt object to beat her head and neck, and after he had shoved the barrel of his gun in her mouth and blown her brains out, he stomped her chest as her lifeless body lay on the floor. And there was much more evidence. The jury didn't have much trouble finding him guilty.