NORWICH – The prosecution and defense gave closing statements on Friday, and within two-and-a-half hours the jury had convicted a Guilford man for the murder of his 16-year-old adopted son.

Prosecutors said at around midnight on March 1, 2017 at their home at 457 State Route 8 in the Town of Guilford, Ernest Franklin worked with his wife to kill their 16-year-old disabled son Jeffrey Franklin and burn the evidence. Franklin was convicted for second-degree murder, third-degree arson, and tampering with physical evidence.

His wife, Heather Franklin, has also pleaded not guilty to the charges and is expected to have her case presented before a jury in the next month.

Defense Attorney Veronica Gorman and District Attorney Michael Ferrarese gave closing statements, describing the night of the fatal fire.

Approximately two-and-a-half hours after closing statements, the jurors convicted Ernest Franklin for the murder of his adopted son, Jeffrey. Franklin’s sentencing will be at 9:30 a.m. on May 3 in Chenango County Court.

“If you look at every piece of this case together, all of the evidence, the GPS information, the fire investigator’s testimony, the autopsy report, the defendant and co-defendant's timelines, and the story of, “Manchester by the Sea,” you will find Ernest Franklin guilty beyond a reasonable doubt,” said Ferrarese. “The evidence in this case proves that Jeffrey’s last breaths on this Earth were cut short by violent means.”

He said that the Franklins had been thinking of ways they could kill their son prior to the fire, and after watching, “Manchester by the Sea,” they formed a plan and put it into action.

“When the first officer on scene ran up his driveway, Franklin stayed back and let the officer run right past him,” said Ferrarese. “Through his actions you can see there was absolutely no sense of urgency from the defendant.”

He said when the fire department arrived on scene, Franklin mislead them by saying Jeffrey was, “Where the fire is." He added that Franklin knew his son was already dead in his bedroom but lied to help the spread of the fire destroy evidence.

“His child is in that house, the firefighter was walking away, why wouldn’t he stop him,” asked Ferrarese. “He didn’t stop him because he needed the fire to continue to spread and destroy Jeffrey’s body.”

According to Ferrarese, Franklin never made a meaningful attempt to get into Jeffrey’s room, and he was aware that the fire was going to take place because he had already removed his animals from the house.

He said that if Jeffrey were alive when the fire started, he would have tried to escape, and there would have been signs inside his body showing that he had breathed-in during the fire.

“Jeffrey would have been breathing in soot, carbon monoxide, and other gases if he were still alive at the time of the fire,” said Ferrarese. “Even the defense’s own witness Dr. Beno couldn’t recall a single case where an individual had a low carboxyhemoglobin level, but a high cyanide level.”

He said if Jeffrey could smell and feel heat, and his pediatrician since 2012 said he could, then he could perceive danger.

“There is only one verdict in this case that is just,” said Ferrarese. “I ask that you come back with a verdict of guilty, because he is.”

According to Gorman, a misguided investigation from law enforcement and a blood sample that was analyzed for cyanide weeks later then it should have been resulted in Franklin's arrest.

"Where does this case go wrong," she asked. "From the defense's point of view, very early on."

She said Ernest Franklin has consistently maintained his innocence, but a faulty medical examiner's report turned an accidental fire investigation into a witch hunt.

"E.J. watches a movie, goes out to do his daily animal chores, comes back to his house to let one of his dogs out, and both dogs escape," said Gorman. "He chases after the dogs, and after following them to a neighbor's pond and capturing them, he returns to his home in flames."

She said Franklin picked up a rock and threw it through a window to save his son, but with dense smoke and heat pouring out from the hole he couldn't get in.

"E.G. runs down to his neighbor's house to call the fire department, and within minutes police arrive," said Gorman. "He brings the police officer to the window his child is in, points at it, and the officer says he can't make it in because it's too hot."

She said all of the fire investigator's reports label the fire as undetermined, but suddenly after the medical examiner's report is released to police E.J. and Heather were suspects in the murder of their child. She added that law enforcement didn't appear to care about the truth, and they wanted Franklin to confess to something he didn't do.

"I think we can all agree that grief hits everyone differently," said Gorman. "You have all had the opportunity to observe E.J. throughout the trial, and I'm sure you saw that his emotional state doesn't change, he has looked exactly the way he does right now throughout the entire trial."

She said the toxicology report showed that Jeffrey had .8 percent cyanide levels in his blood, and cyanide levels would have been significantly higher if the medical examiner had done testing to check for cyanide several weeks earlier.

"Cyanide is one of the toxic gases released in a trailer fire," said Gorman. ".8 is dangerously close to the lethal percent of 1.0."

She said that many of the witnesses the prosecution called to testify were unreliable, such as Joshua Sherock, a convict who allegedly heard Franklin say he was planning on killing his son for awhile before they did it.

"They made a deal with the devil himself," said Gorman. "The prosecution took the bait, hook, line, and sinker."

She said Sherock wrote his way out of a life in prison sentence, but it cost the jury the truth. She added that if the jury added up all of the inconsistencies in the prosecution witnesses testimony, they would have reasonable doubt, and must find him not guilty.

"You may hate this case, you may hate your role in this case, but if you follow the facts you'll find my client not guilty, thank you," said Gorman.

The jury had reached a verdict of guilty on all counts at 2:48 p.m. Friday, and Franklin’s sentencing will be at 9:30 a.m. on May 3 in Chenango County Court.

When asked about the case and possible sentencing after the verdict, Ferrarese said he couldn’t discuss the details yet because co-defendant Heather Franklin is scheduled for a murder trial towards the beginning of April.

"Because we have another murder trial coming up related to this case, all I can tell you is that I'm very happy the jury heard all of the evidence and found Franklin guilty beyond a reasonable doubt," said Ferrarese. "I can't really discuss sentencing at this time, but there will likely be a very extensive time to serve in prison."

The Franklin murder trial concluded after seven days, two weeks earlier then court officials originally anticipated. The prosecution called approximately nineteen witnesses, and the defense called four witnesses.

The prosecution's witnesses were comprised of individuals from various fields including five from law enforcement, a medical examiner, a firefighter, two grocery store security guards, a toxicologist, two neighbors of the Franklins, a fire investigator, a ex-convict, and the defendant's sister.

The defense's witnesses were three friends of the Franklins, and a toxicologist.

Pictured: Chenango County Sheriff's Office Detective Sergeant Gary Miller, Chenango County District Attorney's Office Secretary Faye Pierze, Chenango County Sheriff's Office Detective John Fern, Chenango County Fire Coordinator Matthew Beckwith, Chenango County District Attorney Michael Ferrarese, DA Office Intern Sophie Bunce, Chenango County Sheriff Ernest Cutting, Chenango County Sheriff's Office Lieutenant Joshua Gould, and Chenango County Undersheriff Daniel Friar standing for a photo while speaking to press on the Chenango County Courthouse's steps Friday, just after a jury convicted Ernest Franklin for the murder of his son. (Zachary Meseck photo)