Murder Defendant Shocks Jury by Pleading Guilty During Trial

ABILENE, TX – An Abilene Man accused of killing his girlfriend halted his jury trial on Thursday to take a plea deal.

According to court documents, on Apr. 29, Gene McCarter, of Abilene, pleaded guilty to the murder of his 49-year-old girlfriend Michelle Rowley.

McCarter was originally arrested for the crime in Feb. 2020. The case went all the way to a jury trial. During the trial McCarter and the district attorney's office agreed to a plea deal giving McCarter 35 years in prison.

Initial reports show that Rowley was found dead in a bathtub at the Emerald Inn. At first McCarter told authorities that he found her in the tub and that she "had perhaps taken too many prescription medications.”

Later McCarter changed his story to him finding her on the bed in a dazed state. He claimed that he slapped her to wake her up then carried her to the bathtub. On the way to the tub McCarter told police that he hit her head which caused a cut. He then attempted to wash it and she drowned.

The truth later revealed during an autopsy showed that Rowley had multiple injuries including fractures in her thyroid cartridge and contusions of the scalp, chest, face, and neck. Doctors believe that she died from asphyxiated, not drowning like McCarter alleged.

McCarter was held in the Taylor County Jail since the incident occurred. Now he will spend the next 35 years in a Texas prison.