North Carolina woman found guilty in husband’s 2017 death

NEW BERN, N.C. (AP) — A jury has found a North Carolina woman guilty in the 2017 shooting death of her husband.

News outlets report jurors took 61 minutes on Thursday to return their verdict in the trial of Sharon Whitford.

Whitford said she shot her husband in self-defense in Craven County in December 2017. Testimony showed that Jimmy Whitford called his wife’s lover, saying he knew they were having an affair.

Defense attorneys tried to paint Jimmy Whitford as an abuser who drew a shotgun on his wife after beating her.

A judge sentenced Whitford to between 20 and 25 years in prison, and ordered her to pay $15,000 in restitution to her father in law.