Jury finds Beloit man guilty of murder

By STAN STRICKER ( Contact ) Thursday, Sept. 11, 2008

A guilty verdict in a Rock County murder case may have come down to the testimony of a single witness according to prosecutors.

22-year-old Rick D. Freeman was found guilty Thursday afternoon of first degree intentional homicide in the 2005 shooting death of 20-year-old Maurice Hanna. Assistant Rock County District Attorney Gerald Urbik says one witness had the courage to come forward and identify Freeman as the killer. Urbik says, without that witness, its unlikely all the other evidence would have ended with a conviction. He says other witnesses appeared afraid of retaliation, which is a legitimate concern in the Porter Avenue neighborhood where the murder occurred. Sentencing is set for November 26th.

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