Nielsen guilty of murder

LOGAN — Friends and family of Trisha Ann Autry sat silently Wednesday evening, showing virtually no reaction as a judge pronounced guilty verdicts against the man on trial in the kidnapping, killing and dismembering of the Hyrum teenager.

Across the aisle, Cody Lynn Nielsen's parents and two sisters sat with heads lowered and silent tears running down their cheeks. After just four hours of deliberation Wednesday, the six-man, six-woman jury found Nielsen, 31, guilty of capital murder, aggravated kidnapping, kidnapping and two counts of desecration of a human body.

"Justice was done," special prosecutor Scott Wyatt announced after the verdict was rendered. "This is just a tremendous, tremendous relief."

Defense attorney Shannon Demler expressed disappointment with the verdict but said it was not entirely unexpected.

"We were aware what the evidence was and what problems we had with the case," he said.

Defense attorneys had prepared Nielsen for the possibility of the guilty verdicts, and Demler said he thought Nielsen handled the announcement with dignity.

Jurors will return to court today for a preliminary matter and then will be back next week to begin the sentencing phase of the trial. At that time the jury will decide whether Nielsen should be put to death or be sentenced to life in prison with or without the possibility of parole.

Demler said his focus at next week's proceedings will be to show jurors what kind of person Nielsen is beyond the negative information they have already received. Nielsen will likely take the stand, something he did not do in the trial's initial phase.

"If someone's going to ask (the jury) to save his life, I think he should be the best person to do that," Demler said.

Autry's older brother said Wednesday that his family has not taken a position on what punishment Nielsen should receive.

"For the most part, our family is just concerned with him being on the streets again," 30-year-old Aram Autry said.

Earlier Wednesday, Wyatt had urged the jury to find Nielsen guilty on all counts. Nielsen, he said during closing arguments, committed "the most evil acts that any person can do."