The fate of the woman charged in the killing of Zachariah Hayes now rests in the hands of a Kalamazoo County jury.
The jury began deliberations at about 4 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 5, in the trial of Melissa Morgan, 33, who faces charges of first-degree murder and first-degree arson connected to Hayes’ death in February 2019. The prosecution alleges Morgan lit Hayes’ home on fire while he was passed out inside. Her defense attorney argues that Hayes raped her multiple times prior to the fire that killed him, and that a different person started the fire.
Morgan faces a potential sentence of up to life in prison if convicted by a jury in Kalamazoo County Circuit Court. Kalamazoo County Assistant Prosecutor Rebecca D’Angelo said in her closing arguments to the jury Wednesday that Morgan killed Hayes after an argument because he would not get her drugs.