A jury took just 90 minutes Monday to convict a Tucson man of the August 1995 slaying of two teenagers.
Gary Dwayne Skaggs, 45, will be sentenced April 20 to either life with or without the possibility of parole in the deaths of Antonio Rodriguez and Danielle Wessels.
The verdict brought gasps and tears from both sides of the courtroom, which was packed with members of the victims' families and Skaggs' supporters.
Prosecutors say Skaggs beat Rodriguez and Wessels to death with a machete after learning that Rodriguez had a short-term affair with Skaggs' girlfriend, Jerrie Lane, while Skaggs was in jail.
Rodriguez and Wessels, both 18, were beaten to death in their living room in the early morning hours of Aug. 25, 1995. Their 6-month-old daughter was found unharmed in the apartment, in the 2100 block of North Columbus Boulevard.
Authorities found a machete hidden behind a dresser in Skaggs' bedroom three days after the slaying.
Although no DNA could be found on the machete, a medical examiner testified the injuries found on the victims were consistent with those caused by a machete.
One of Skaggs' neighbors testified she noticed a machete missing from Skaggs' brother's house within a day or two of the slayings, and another neighbor testified she overheard Skaggs saying Rodriguez was going to "get it" for sleeping with Lane.
Another of the state's witnesses, Brian Bowen, claimed Skaggs tried to recruit him to hurt Rodriguez. Bowen also said Skaggs later told him he'd taken care of Rodriguez.
Skaggs, who testified on his own behalf Friday, told jurors he didn't even like Bowen and never talked to him much.
Skaggs insisted he was sleeping at a friend's house at the time of the slayings.
A tile setter, Skaggs said right after he got off work on Aug. 24, 1995, he went to a friend's house where they used cocaine and drank beer.
By 1:30 a.m. on Aug. 25, Skaggs said he was so drunk he decided to spend the night. He got up at 4:30 a.m., went home to shower and got to work by 6 a.m.
Skaggs' boss at the time, Charles Martinez, testified Skaggs never missed a Friday because it was payday and he often paid his employees in cash.
