A Herndon man who strangled his wife, put her body in a suitcase, then surrendered to police and immediately confessed was convicted of voluntary manslaughter Wednesday and sentenced to seven years in prison by a Fairfax County jury, which rejected his defense that he was insane.
The trial of Jamie A. Kuhne, 35, was emotionally charged, as jurors learned of a horrific childhood marked by repeated sexual abuse by his paternal grandfather and repeated beatings by his father.
A defense psychologist said that Kuhne was mentally ill and suffered from a dissociative disorder perhaps linked to his childhood trauma. Another defense expert said that Kuhne also had Asperger syndrome, a form of autism.
So Kuhne’s attorneys asked a jury to find him not guilty by reason of insanity. “Jamie did not understand the nature, character and consequences of his act at the time,” defense attorney Joseph T. Flood said. “His mind was not under the control of reason.”
Full Story: Herndon man who strangled wife, put body in suitcase gets 7 years
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