I didn't want to register, so I didn't read the full article.
I wonder if he had a history of physical abuse or something like that, which might justify the charge.
Okay, this reply is 2-years later, but I just found this web site. FYI - I am a friend of the murder victim Julie Grace. They CAN prove first-degree murder. Not only did George Thompson beat her and cause her to hit her head against the dresser - he left her lying on her bedroom floor for three days and only called the paramedics after she was dead. He has a history of domestic abuse and if beating someone and leaving them to die isn't first-degree murder, I don't know what is.