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Jury finds Allen guilty Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli photo Ron Sohnrey, center, brother of murder victim Evelyn Marie Smith, gathers with other family members outside a Jackson County courtroom Monday after a jury found William Henry Allen Jr. guilty of raping and murdering Smith in 1981. Convicts him of raping, murdering Evelyn Marie Smith in 1981 at what is now South Medford High. But judge must still rule on defense motion that dugout photo's questionable By DANI DODGE Mail Tribune In a case that took nearly 21 years to come to trial, a Jackson County jury found William Henry Allen Jr. guilty Monday of raping and murdering Evelyn Marie Smith. Allen remained emotionless as the verdict was read, but members of Smith's family immediately began to cry. After the verdict, the 20 or so family members - who sat through the entire four-day trial and camped out in the hallways of the Justice Building during two days of jury deliberation - went to the cemetery where Smith is buried. "We'll tell her everything," said Smith's brother, Ron Sohnrey, "that we love her and miss her." "And that she can finally rest in peace," added Smith's sister, Pamela Marchbanks. Allen, 37, of Oakley, Calif., was accused of raping and murdering Smith in April 1981 at what was then Medford Mid High School, now South Medford High School. She was 17 at the time and Allen was 16. Smith's nude body was found in a tunnel leading to the locker room of what is now Speigelberg Stadium. Then, last year, Allen was charged with three counts of murder: murder, felony murder and aggravated murder. He was found guilty Monday only of felony murder, which means he killed Smith in the course of raping her. The other two charges, intentional murder and aggravated murder, would have required the jury to determine that Allen intentionally killed Smith, while felony murder doesn't require intent in the death.He faces life in prison on the conviction. But Smith's family didn't leave the courtroom with complete closure. Just before the verdict was delivered, Allen's defense attorney, David Orf, made a motion for a mistrial before Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Patricia Crain. Crain said she would not rule immediately on the motion. Allen's sentencing will come after she rules. In the motion, Orf claimed that a photo of the baseball dugout used as evidence in the case didn't reflect the way the dugout looked in 1981. In his testimony Allen said he'd had consensual sex with Smith in the dugout, but a former coach at Mid High brought in the photo that showed the dugouts were fenced off and inaccessible in 1981. Deputy District Attorney Beth Heckert said she is researching Orf's allegation. "Until I do more research, I can't do an educated guess on whether it's founded in information that could be important to the court or not," Heckert said. "At this point it's somewhat speculative." Heckert suggested that anyone with photos of the Mid High baseball dugout in 1981 should take them to Detective Terry Newell at the Medford Police Department. "I'm still very pleased after 21 years Evelyn Smith has some justice," Heckert said. "It took a long, long time to have this case presented." Orf declined comment on the case. Allen's sister, who sat through the trial, also declined comment. Although police determined within two days of Smith's murder that Allen - a convicted arsonist and car thief - was the last person seen with her, he didn't become a major suspect in the murder case until he committed another crime against a teenager. Less than two months after Smith's murder, Allen got in the car of a 16-year-old girl, held a razor between her legs and ordered her to drive around Medford. The girl was able to escape, but Allen kept the car and fled. He was convicted in adult court of kidnapping and robbery, serving six years of a 20-year sentence. Allen's criminal history never came out in the trial because a prosecutor can bring up a defendant's prior felony convictions only if he was convicted or released from prison within 15 years. "I missed by a few months being able to ask him about it," Heckert said. And in 1981, police didn't have enough evidence to arrest Allen in the murder case. Allen told police he and a friend had picked up Smith in downtown Medford and then the friend dropped Smith and Allen off at the Mid High baseball stadium. At the time, Allen told police he and Smith kissed and hugged on second base, but then he got tired, left her there and walked home. He denied having sex with her. Smith's clothing and identification were never found. Allen's fingerprints were never found near Smith's body in the football stadium. Only recently, due to the doggedness of Detective Terry Newell and new technology, did police match Allen's DNA to sperm found in Smith's body. Allen was arrested on the 20th anniversary of Smith's death. When Allen took the stand Thursday, he changed his story substantially from what he originally told police. On the stand, he said he and Smith did have sex, but that it was in the dugout and not on second base. During the trial, Heckert insisted Allen was telling lies to hide the fact he killed Smith. Orf contended that police didn't have enough evidence to link Allen to the murder and said someone else must have killed her after Allen left. Marchbanks, Smith's sister, said she felt she knew all along that Allen was the one who killed her sister. She said the verdict was especially important for her ailing mother, who was often transported to the courthouse in a wheelchair. "It's a sense of relief for my mom," Marchbanks said. "She needed to know. She needed to know who took our little sister from us." Smith was the youngest girl among 13 siblings. "There's still 13," Sohnrey said. "She's still with us." Reach reporter Dani Dodge at 776-4471, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.