SC man found guilty of murder in professor’s death

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — A Richland County jury has found a 40-year-old Columbia man guilty in the stabbing death of a University of South Carolina professor.

Circuit Judge J. C. Nicholson Jr. sentenced Hank Hawkes to life in prison without parole Thursday for killing 36-year-old Jennifer Wilson in 2011.

Prosecutor Luck Campbell told the jury that Wilson was stabbed 22 times and beaten. Campbell said Hawes stayed in Wilson’s home for hours after her death, planning his defense and a suicide attempt.

Hawes testified he did not remember killing Wilson. His attorneys argued that the death was a crime of passion and not premeditated, therefore not murder.

Hawes’ defense team also argued that he was defending himself from Wilson after he’d told her he was breaking off their relationship.