Jury Finds 2 Men Guilty Of 2017 Tulsa Triple Murder

A jury found two men guilty of shooting and killing three people in a Tulsa home in 2017. The jury recommended Melvin Porter and Christopher President get life without the possibility of parole. 

The jury took a little more than an hour to come up with a verdict. Prosecutors said that's because the evidence speaks for itself, even four years later.

After a week-long trial, Melvin Porter and Christopher President were found guilty on Friday for three counts of first-degree murder and one count of armed robbery.

Investigators said Porter and President shot Thomas Brown outside his mother's home. They also said the men shot Thomas' mom, Cara Brown, and her boyfriend Kenneth Sellers.

First Assistant District Attorney Erik Grayless said this case was especially challenging because they do not see a lot of triple murders in Tulsa. They say the scene was brutal and the witnesses were hard to track down.

Grayless said the main turning point was when cell phone experts on both sides agreed that both Porter and President's statements were inconsistent. 

"That was a major change - when their expert agreed with our expert that the cell phones in this case was inconsistent with their own client statements. That changed it in the jury's minds. Forensic evidence can't lie in this case," Grayless said. "Ultimately the jury agreed, and not only did they agree but they definitively agreed which is a win for the criminal justice process."

Sellers' family said they can finally breathe after waiting four years for justice. 

"These last few days has been horrendous. Some sleepless nights, teary eyes, but we're just glad that it's finally over with - that my mother and my brother can get justice," said Sellers' niece, Ajuania Ferrell.

Both Porter and President are scheduled for sentencing in June.