A San Diego County Sheriff’s Department patrol car struck and injured a person using a mobility scooter in a crosswalk in Encanto Friday.

The crash occurred around 8:40 a.m. at 65th and Imperial when the patrol car struck the pedestrian, according to San Diego police. 

Video captured from a nearby surveillance camera shows the dramatic moment when the patrol car struck the scooter.

The woman in the scooter was carrying a bag of food and tomatoes were scattered on the ground.

The injured woman was transported to Mercy hospital and is expected to recover. She has no broken bones but is complaining of some pain. She also suffered a cut over her eye.

Train services in the area have been re-routed as police investigate.

A witness told NBC 7 the pedestrian crossing signal was illuminated and the woman in the scooter had the right of way.

San Diego police said the deputy was at fault but will not face criminal charges.

The deputy told investigators she never saw the pedestrian in the crosswalk until right before she hit her. Officials said the deputy hit the brakes as the vehicle and the scooter made contact.

The San Diego Sheriff's Department will launch an internal investigation. 

Jurors have acquitted a mentally-ill transient who spent eight years behind bars for the brutal killing of an Escondido girl.

Stephanie Crowe was just 12 when she was stabbed nine times in her bed and then collapsed and died in her bedroom doorway.

On Friday, jurors acquitted Tuite and with that verdict, reopened a painful wound for Crowe’s parents whose son Michael was once charged with the crime.

After a full day of deliberations, jurors returned a nort guilty verdict, clearing Tuite of voluntary manslaughter charges. 

Tuite smiled at his attorney and then turned to the back of the courtroom and smiled at his sister seated behind him.

Kerri Licon, Richard Tuite’s older sister, was his sole supporter who never gave up on her brother.

She has long admitted her brother was a transient who suffered from schizophrenia but she maintained he was not in the Crowe home on the night of Stephanie’s death.

Stephanie Crowe’s sister, Shannon Dehesa, was the only member of the Crowe family in the courtroom when the verdict was read. She was crying and being comforted by a friend.

Stephanie’s mother Cheryl Crowe told NBC 7 it’s only a matter of time before Richard Tuite kills again.

She and her husband were in Oregon Friday where they welcomed a new grandchild into the family just five days ago.

Jurors may have found Tuite not guilty but that doesn't mean he's innocent, Crowe said.

“I’m sure they will regret their verdict once he kills somebody else. It’s only a matter of time. So lock your doors," she warned.

“He’s already killed my daughter. It’s just a matter of time before he does it to someone else’s child,” she added.

Her son, Michael, was not surprised by the verdict.

Jurors also heard from Michael Crowe during the trial. He was initially arrested and charged in his sister’s murder.

A judge later threw out the charges levied against Michael and his friends Aaron Houser and Joshua Treadway, ruling they were based on coerced confessions of teenagers.

Jurors heard the videotaped confession along with the defense team’s theory that Michael Crowe, Treadway and Houser were responsible for Stephanie’s death.

Michael Crowe, who has since been ruled factually innocent in the case, spoke to NBC 7 in an exclusive interview before testifying, earlier on in Tuite's retrial. He called the defense’s theory “an argument that comes out of the inability to accept reality.”

In closing arguments, the defense reminded jurors that under the law, if they are going to go with circumstantial evidence, every link in the chain must stand on its own.

“Does all of this evidence raise, at the very least, a reasonable doubt and suggest that somebody other than Richard Tuite committed this offense?” defense attorney C. Bradley Patton asked jurors in his closing argument.

After the verdict, Patton pointed to two factors he believed led to the not guilty verdict - the lack of evidence placing an angry, violent Tuite near the Crowe home on the night of the killing and the inability for his client to get inside a locked house.

“There was absolutely no evidence he could have gone into that residence. At all. The door was deadlocked. Steven Crowe made that clear and there was no other source for accessing that residence,” Patton said. “It’s implausible to suggest that it could’ve been Richard Tuite.”

Stephanie's mother argued that Tuite was able to escape police custody at an early court hearing and travel from downtown to Clairemont without capture.

“He slipped out of the San Diego County Courthouse. If you can slip out of there you can slip into somebody else’s house,” Cheryl Crowe said.

The defense team also attacked the blood stains found on Tuite’s clothing, offering testimony that the blood could have been transferred while in the custody of investigators.

Patton said Tuite conveyed to his defense team he was happy with the verdict and the way the jury handled the case, his attorney said.

The plan is for Tuite to be released once administrative work is complete and live with his mother and stepfather, Patton said.

Licon said the Tuite family has been through a life-altering, indescribable experience over the last 15 years.

Her brother was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in 2004 – six years after the killing. In 2012, a federal appeals court voided Tuite's conviction and ordered a new trial.

"We never doubted his innocence. We just had to have faith in our system to get their head out of their a-- and do the right thing,” Licon told NBC 7.

She feels justice was served.

"Justice has finally prevailed, not only for Stephanie, but for Richard. Today is justice for Stephanie,” Tuite's sister said.

The Crowes say the verdict doesn't change their opinion that Tuite is their daughter's killer.

“We will get justice one day but it won’t be here on Earth,” Cheryl Crowe said.

Bay Area officials are working to get the homeless into shelters after four people died this week in Santa Clara County due to hypothermia-related causes, the medical examiner’s office confirmed Friday.

Three of the deaths occurred at various homeless encampments in San Jose, according to officials, and a fourth victim was found dead in Saratoga inside an open garage.

The first hypothermia-related death happened on Nov. 28, according to Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Lt. David Lera. The other victims died during the “extreme weather” that has moved through the region since late Wednesday, he said.

None of the names of the deceased have been released, though Lt. Lera did say all the victims were men in their 40s or 50s.

The county plans a limited activation of its emergency operation center, Santa Clara County Health Officer Dr. Sara Cody said at a Friday press conference. Cody said she’s trying to organize the county’s resources to better serve the community, especially between now and Tuesday, when more cold is expected.

“We want to try to get folks who don’t have a home into shelter, particularly this weekend,” Dr. Cody said.

The county is working to provide ponchos, blankets, socks and other cold-weather gear to homeless individuals who won’t accept shelter so they can “shelter themselves,” Dr. Cody said.

There are more than 7,600 homeless people in Santa Clara County, according to a recent nationwide census.

Freeze warnings expired Friday morning, but a winter weather advisory remains up through the weekend.

Overnight temperatures in most of Santa Clara County dipped below freezing for around 10 hours starting after 9 p.m. Thursday.

Temperatures were expected to stay above freezing Friday night into Saturday, except for in the hills, but precipitation could cause problems for those without any shelter. Below freezing temps are expected to return Saturday night.

MORE: San Jose Homeless Camp Gets Eviction Notice

On Monday, non-profit group EHC LifeBuilders started offering 275 shelter beds for the homeless during the cold weather season in Santa Clara County, which has one the fourth highest homeless population in the country, a spokeswoman said.

EHC LifeBuilders, based in San Jose, launched its annual Cold Weather Shelter Program with 50 beds in San Jose, 125 in Sunnyvale and 100 in Gilroy, according to Jenny Niklaus, the organization's chief executive.

"We only have about 1,000 beds on any given night in this whole community. There are 7,000 people outside," Nicklaus said. "So even if every bed was full, or above capacity, we're still gonna have people outside in this dangerous weather."

Friday night, they added 50 more beds to their homeless shelter in San Jose to accommodate more people during the cold snap. The EHC shelters in Gilroy and Sunnyvale also planned to add beds.

Earlier in the day, workers from a number of organizations sent teams out to homeless encampments in the San Jose area and handed out 1,000 blankets.

The shelter is also extending its hours. Saturday morning, instead of asking clients to leave at 6 a.m., they'll be asking them to leave at 8 a.m., when it's a little bit warmer.

Police are on the scene of a single gunshot wound victim at an apartment complex in Mission Valley.

The victim was pronounced dead on the scene and the incident appears to be a self-inflicted wound.

The complex is at Mission Center Court and Caminito Gabaldon, just north of I-8 and south of Friars Road, between S-R 163 and I-805.

A Coast Guard aircrew medically evacuated a woman from a cruise ship Friday after she began experiencing internal bleeding nearly 600 miles south of San Diego.

The crew of the Carnival Miracle contacted the Joint Harbor Operation Center Thursday evening, requesting a medevac for the 34-year-old. A helicopter crew launched from Coast Guard Sector San Diego met the ship, which was nearly 300 miles south of San Diego at the time of the medevac.

The crew transported the woman to Sector San Diego, where she was transferred to emergency medical personnel for further care.

Two Loudoun County women are out of the hospital after a collision with a deer Thursday.

But there's a very unusual twist: one of the women was jogging when the deer hit her. A Loudoun County's Sheriff's Department spokesman says the accident happened around 6 p.m. on southbound Clairborne Parkway near the ramp to the Dulles Greenway.

A 71-year-old woman was driving an SUV when a deer stepped into the roadway and hit the front passenger side of her car.

The impact sent the deer airborne, and it hit a 27-year-old female jogger who was running on a path.

Both women were taken to the Lansdowne Campus of Inova Loudoun Hospital for treatment. Both were released from the hospital Friday. 

Andrew Disilvestre, whose home backs up to the path, noticed what he thought looked like a single car accident on his way home Thursday night.

Then, Friday morning, something else caught his eye out his back window.

"I noticed some big vultures flying around and noticed a dead deer," said Disilvestre.

News4 told him that the deer had hit a jogger before it fell to the ground.

"It's certainly an anomaly... that's a surprise, " said Disilvestre. "I might look out for deer next time I'm jogging."

Other residents were equally stunned to hear about the deer flying into the jogger.

"That' pretty amazing," said Michael Valmont as he worked out at gym near the accident scene. "I don't know what the statistics are for that but it's pretty low."
 

A former Long Beach police officer and a relative have been arrested in connection with a conspiracy to obstruct justice and aiding a criminal street gang, the city’s police chief said on Friday.

Yvonne Robinson, 42, a 13-year member of the police force, was taken into custody Thursday. Also arrested was 24-year-old Prentice Jones.

Speaking briefly during a Friday afternoon press conference, Long Beach Police Chief Jim McDonnell hung his head as he explained.

"Yesterday we celebrated the graduation of 40 new recruits,” he said. “But today it's our duty to announce the arrest of one of our own ... We will not tolerate the actions that dishonor the badge that all of use wear so proudly."

Robinson is accused of providing information to Jones, a known gang member and the brother of Robinson's brother-in-law, McDonnell said.

The case stems from a 2012 gang investigation in which Long Beach police arrested 16 members of the "Baby Insane Crip" gang for a variety of criminal charges, including murder.

During the investigation, detectives learned that someone in the gang was being provided details of the murder case to aid the suspects involved in that case, McDonnell said.

Robinson was using her position as a detective to review police reports and provide information to Jones, McDonnell said. After Jones received the information, she passed it along to the leaders of that gang.

Robinson was fired from her job in March, a year after receiving high regard from fellow officers.

Robinson received a community-service award from the Southern California Chapter of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives and was featured in news articles about in online.

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Fashion Valley Mall was closed at 9 p.m. Friday night after an attempted robbery at the Kay Jewelers store, according to police.

Officials say a man armed with a handgun confronted four employees as they left the jewelry store for the night. One employee was holding a bag, which the suspect took.

The man fled the scene and was last seen running north out of the mall.

Police say the sack did not contain any money, and there was no loss from the store. No injuries were reported.

Officials described the armed suspect as a black man in his 20s with a thin build. He was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt at the time of the incident.
 

Police discovered about 12 tons of marijuana worth more than $7 million hidden inside a tractor-trailer after two men posing as law enforcement officials tried to pull the vehicle over in Orange County Monday, officials said.

Officers responded about 8 a.m. to reports of a possible attempted cargo theft in the 1100 block of Warner Avenue, according to the Tustin Police Department.

The driver of a big rig carrying electronics from San Diego to a Tustin business told police that two men in a white panel van pulled alongside him and demanded he pull the vehicle over, police said. The passenger of the van displayed an unknown chain or badge around his neck.

Police said the driver of the big rig was suspicious of the unprofessional look of the men, and instead pulled into a local business that had an armed security guard stationed. Police were notified, but the van left before officers arrived.

When inventory and inspection of the truck was conducted, about 24,000 pounds of marijuana was found packaged in bricks, hidden inside boxes, officials said.

During their investigation, officers found that no law enforcement agency was involved in trying to stop the truck, officials said.

The driver of the big rig is not a suspect in knowingly transporting illegal cargo, police said.

The driver of the van is described as a male Hispanic, approximately 30 years old with a shaved head wearing gray plaid shorts. The passenger is described as a Hispanic man with a thin build wearing what appeared to be a black ballistic-type vest, officials said.

Anyone with information regarding the illegal cargo is asked to call Detective Haug at 714-573-3246.
 

Donations to the New Jersey waitress who claimed she received an anti-gay note instead of a tip at the restaurant where she worked are being refunded after her story was questioned, NBC 4 New York has learned.

Dayna Morales, a server at Gallop Asian Bistro in Bridgewater, posted a photo on Facebook last month showing the bill with a line through the tip area. The photo of the receipt showed someone had written, "I'm sorry but I cannot tip because I do not agree with your lifestyle."

But days later, a New Jersey couple came forward to NBC 4 New York, claiming the receipt was theirs and that they had left a tip and did not write a note, suggesting it was used for a hoax. The handwriting, they said, was not theirs, and they also supplied what they said was a credit card statement showing they were charged for the total plus the $18 tip.

After Morales' initial Facebook post, her story got national attention and she began receiving money from all over the world. She said at the time that she planned to donate some of it to the Wounded Warriors Project.

This week, three people who sent money to a PayPal account set up in her name say their electronic donations were refunded. 

Brittney Stilgenbauer of Tuscon, Ariz. was one of hundreds of supporters across the country who immediately rallied around Morales after reading her story on Facebook. She told NBC 4 New York over Skype Friday, "I felt awful for her, and I thought it would be great if people could come together and donate a dollar each and make up for her tip that she lost."

Stilgenbauer said she and others on Facebook encouraged Morales to set up a PayPal account to accept donations.

On the same day, Nov. 13, a PayPal account in Morales' name was set up and publicized on Facebook, and Stilgenbauer donated $1 to the account, according to time stamps on the Facebook photo and the receipt emailed to Stilgenbauer after she made the donation.  

Over three weeks later, on Friday, Stilgenbauer received another email from PayPal informing her that her $1 donation to Morales' account was refunded. 

Two other people told NBC 4 New York in phone interviews they also saw their electronic donations refunded. However, one man who mailed cash to Morales at the restaurant said he has not gotten the money back. 

Morales did not respond to requests for comment Friday but in her last interview with NBC 4 New York, maintained she had been telling the truth: "All I know is what I've been saying." 

Gallop Asian Bistro, meanwhile, suspended Morales from her job last week and says its internal investigation is still ongoing. 

Stilgenbauer said she would like Morales to "return all the funds." 

"Hopefully her heart was in the right place and she's sorry," she said. 

The family of a U.S. Marine who committed suicide inside a U.S. Embassy in Greece says their son was buried without a heart, after the Greek government performed an illegal autopsy on his body and “harvested” the organ.

Craig and Beverly LaLoup, of Coatesville, Pa., filed a lawsuit in federal court on Friday against the U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Navy and U.S. government for negligence, emotional distress and alleged mistreatment of their son’s body.

U.S. Marine Sgt. Brian LaLoup, who was stationed at the U.S. Embassy in Athens, Greece, shot himself following a night out drinking in the Greek capital on Aug. 12, 2012, according to the court filing. The 22-year-old allegedly had been at an off-duty party when he told a fellow officer he was considering ending his life.

“I don’t have anyone who loves me,” he allegedly said. He then apparently told the officer he was planning to shoot himself in the face with a shotgun.

That officer notified a superior, listed in the suit as Staff Sgt. Martinez, about Brian’s intentions. But instead of getting him medical care, the commander allegedly took him out to drink more – a violation of Marine Corps protocol, the lawsuit claims.

Later that night, Brian went into an unlocked room inside the embassy, where weapons were stored, and committed suicide. According to court documents, he was visibly drunk and distraught and passed a guard on his way through the building.

Brian was taken to an Athens hospital and pronounced dead. The family says his body was left unguarded and because of that, the body was moved to a Greek morgue where, several days later, an illegal autopsy was performed. It was during that autopsy that Brian’s heart was removed, according to the complaint.

The sergeant’s body was flown back to the United States and upon arrival at Dover Air Force Base, a second autopsy was performed. The LaLoups say that’s when officials realized the heart was gone. However, the family claims they were never told their son’s heart was gone until after he was buried.

“Instead of being honest and up-front with the family and taking the appropriate action to have the heart returned, [the] Defendants decided to lie and conceal this fact from the Plaintiffs,” the suit says. “As a result of Defendants’ failure to act, Sgt. LaLoup’s heart was destroyed by the Greek government.”

According to the lawsuit, the family said they were told only parts of their son’s scalp were missing and they didn’t realize his heart was gone until after another officer told them “by accident."

“He extended to me a piece of paper as he stated it was his heart that was missing. I asked him why were we told it was parts of his scalp. His reply was, ‘that they were not going to tell us because that is not something you tell a grieving mother,’" Beverly LaLoup stated in the filing.

After the LaLoups lodged complaints about the situation, the lawsuit claims the Greek government sent a heart they claimed was Brian’s to the United States. However, DNA testing showed it was not his organ, according to the filing. The heart still remains missing.

The couple believes officials violated several protocols and intentionally lied to them about the missing heart, the suit states. They seeking damages in excess of $75,000.

Contact Vince Lattanzio at 610.668.5532, vince.lattanzio@nbcuni.com or follow @VinceLattanzio on Twitter.

An emotionally disturbed man set off panic inside a subway train when he assaulted a woman, prompting riders to jump in and subdue while another pulled the emergency brake, cell phone video shows.

The man began screaming in a violent, hate-filled tirade that began on the subway platform at 34th Street and continued on a Brooklyn-bound D train Thursday evening, according to witness Jessica Valencia. 

He yelled racial slurs at random straphangers and "he was pushing people, almost pushed people off the platform," said Valenica. 

"He started screaming, saying everyone should die," she said. "We were all slaves, his slaves." 

When a woman on the train challenged the man's rant, he hit the woman in the face, video taken by Valencia shows.

She hit him back before other straphangers jumped in, but one panicked rider tugged on the emergency brake, trapping riders with the apparently disturbed man underground. 

The conductor ushered riders out of the car, isolating the man in a car by himself until the train reached the Brooklyn DeKalb station, where police took him into custody. 

Former NYPD detective Bo Dietl, who's now a private security expert, says riders did the right thing by working together to subdue the unarmed man, but says they should have avoided pulling the emergency brake. 

"It's not a good thing. There's no one there to help you" when the train is stuck underground, he said.

The man was taken to Woodhull Hospital for a psychological evaluation. Charges were pending, according to police. 

A 10-year-old boy managed to run and alert a neighbor when two robbers broke into his New Jersey home and tied up his mother as his sibling watched, police say. 

The boy was inside the Brick, N.J. home on Montclair Drive Thursday evening when the two men broke in, according to police. The child ran out and went to a neighbor, who called police. 

Responding officers found the boy's mother bound and gagged on the floor, and the boy's younger sibling inside the home. Neither was hurt. 

The mother, who owns the home, told police that the robbers were dressed in all black and wearing scarves over their faces, and may have been armed with long guns. The robbers ransacked the home and ran away. 

While canvassing the area, police arrested a trespasser several blocks from the home, a man from Neptune, but it's not clear if he was one of the two home invaders. 

Neighbors in the quiet neighborhood were upset to learn of the violent intrusion.

"I've been here 38 years, we've never had anything like this happening here," said neighbor Iris Chiesa. 

"I need to lock my doors tonight, that's what it makes me think," said another neighbor, Jim Hicks. 

Brick police believe they're making progress in their investigation. They won't say if the home was targeted, but Chief Nils Bergquist said he believes the incident is isolated. 

The 13-year-old driver in a crash that killed a 12-year-old boy and injured four others last month in a Chicago suburb was officially charged this week.

The girl, whose name is not being released because of her age, is charged with reckless homicide, reckless conduct and possession of a stolen motor vehicle, according to the Cook County State's Attorney's Office.

The crash happened Nov. 27 in the 600 block of Brookwood Terrace in south suburban Olympia Fields. Police say the car was traveling at a high rate of speed when it crashed into a tree.

Olympia Fields resident Armani Creamer was killed in the crash. The other passengers, all under the age of 16, were treated and released from area hospitals.

Creamer's mother said he was supposed to be grounded but sneaked out for a joyride with friends.

The driver was arraigned Thursday and released to her mother's custody.

Creamer will be buried on Saturday.

A retired San Diego teacher and counselor will now spend the next seven years in prison for possessing nearly one million images of child pornography, the office of U.S. Attorney Laura E. Duffy confirmed Friday.

James Rick Mitchell, 67 – a former San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) educator employed by the district for 34 years – was busted as a collector of child pornography through an investigation by the United States Postal Service into a commercial distributor of child porn.

According to court documents, the investigation revealed that between 2006 and 2011, Mitchell collected 942,542 images and 4,751 videos depicting children engaged in sexually explicit conduct.

Over that five-year period, Mitchell spent approximately $4,300 to purchase dozens of those illicit images and videos, according to investigators.

U.S. Postal Inspectors executed a search warrant at Mitchell’s home and uncovered a trove of child porn that he had collected over time.

With Friday’s sentencing, Mitchell will serve 84 months behind bars, followed by five years of supervised release.

He’s expected to self-surrender to begin serving his sentence on Feb. 7, 2014.

Duffy’s office said Mitchell was employed by the SDUSD between 1969 and 2003. He worked as a physical education teacher and counselor at Einstein Junior High School and as a math teacher and track coach at Point Loma High School.

For 24 years between 1979 and 2003, Mitchell worked as a math teacher and track coach at University High School.

During the sentencing, a judge told Mitchell he had cast “pallor” on his long career as an educator with his actions.

Mitchell’s case was part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The San Diego Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force assisted in the takedown of Mitchell alongside the U.S. Postal Service.

The older sister of Richard Tuite, a mentally-ill transient who spent eight years behind bars for the 1998 slaying of an Escondido girl, was overjoyed Friday when her brother was acquitted by a San Diego jury.

“I asked God to give me the strength to go through this again, and he did. And justice prevailed, finally,” Licon told NBC 7 San Diego.

Licon – Tuite’s supporter since day one – said her brother has always claimed his innocence in the death of 12-year-old Stephanie Crowe, and she has never doubted his story.

“That was never a doubt in my mind. We never doubted his innocence. We just had to have faith in our system to her their head out of their a-- and do the right thing,” Licon added.

In 2004, Tuite was convicted in the death of Stephanie Crowe, six years after the young girl was brutally stabbed nine times in her bed in her family’s Escondido home. She collapsed and died in her bedroom doorway.

In 2012, a federal appeals court voided Tuite’s conviction and ordered a new trial. The retrial began in San Diego this past October, with prosecutors trying Tuite on one count of voluntary manslaughter.

On Friday, jurors returned a verdict for Tuite of not guilty of voluntary manslaughter, not true of using deadly weapon.

After the verdict was read, Tuite smiled at his attorney and then turned around, glancing at Linon in the back of the courtroom, flashing a small smile at his sister. Overcome with emotion, Licon smiled back.

For Licon, the not guilty verdict finally brings closure to the case and her family.

“Justice has finally prevailed – not only for Stephanie, but for Richard. Today is justice for Stephanie. Today is justice for Richard,” she said outside of the courtroom.

““I am ecstatic today. This has restored my faith in our system and in God more than you guys will ever know. I’m on a cloud. I’m on a cloud,” Licon added.

Licon said watching her brother go through this ordeal has been especially difficult for her because she herself is the mother of a murdered child. Her only daughter was killed many years ago, and Licon said that killer was never caught.

“As the mother of a murdered daughter myself – whose murderer still walks the streets – I have a very difficult time with what has happened over the past 15 years,” she said.

Licon added that the whole experience – trials, convictions and retrials – has been surreal and “life-altering.”

“I still feel like I’m having an out-of-body experience,” she said.

Still, over the years, Licon said she’s never left her brother’s side.

Throughout Tuite’s incarceration, Licon said she has visited her brother on a regular basis, written him letters and made sure he had everything he needed behind bars.

“He’s my baby brother,” said Licon. “I am his sister and it is my job to take care of him.”

As for Tuite, Licon said he’s been holding up “as well as could be expected” over the years, given the situation. Now, she said she’s ready to give her brother a big hug upon his release.

Officials told NBC 7 Tuite will remain in jail over the weekend and will likely be released Monday.

Other than stating that justice has been served for Stephanie Crowe, Licon said she had nothing further to say to the Crowe family at this time.

During this retrial, jurors heard from many of Stephanie Crowe’s family members including her mother, Cheryl Crowe, her sister Shannon Dehesa, and her brother, Michael Crowe.

Michael Crowe was initially arrested in and charged in his sister’s murder. A judge later threw out those charges levied against Michael and his friends, Aaron Houser and Joshua Treadway, ruling they were based on coerced confessions of teenagers.

Ultimately, Michael was ruled factually innocent in the case.

Still, retrial jurors heard the confession taped in 1998 of Treadway confessing to the murder, along with the defense team’s theory that Michael Crowe, Treadway and Houser were responsible for Stephanie’s death.

Prior to testifying during the retrial Crowe spoke exclusively to NBC 7 and called the defense’s theory “an argument that comes out of the inability to accept reality.”

A Florida Keys man was arrested after he stabbed a couple with a box cutter at an outreach mission facility because they were kissing, authorities said.

Andrew Sullivan, 53, was arrested on an aggravated battery charge following the stabbing at the Star of the Sea Outreach Mission on Stock Island Friday night, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office said.

Deputies responded to reports of a stabbing at the outreach mission and found a man and woman sitting on a bench covered in blood. The woman had been cut on the arm and the man had several wounds, including one to his upper right chest, authorities said.

The couple said they had been watching movies and drinking with Sullivan at the woman's living quarters when Sullivan became angry because they kissed, authorities said.

Sullivan pulled out the box cutter and stabbed the man then stabbed the woman when she intervened, authorities said.

Sullivan fled the scene but was found hiding in a small space behind a shed on the property, authorities said. He complained of neck pain and was hospitalized along with the stabbing victims.

Jail records showed Sullivan was being held without bond Saturday. It was unknown whether he has an attorney.