Sentencing Phase Set To Begin For Mother Convicted Of Murdering Her Children

The sentencing phase of the Lisa Greene murder trial begins Friday morning at 9:30 in the Cabarrus County Courthouse. Greene could face the death penalty, or life in prison for killing her two children.

The jury returned guilty verdicts on Wednesday afternoon, convicting Greene of setting fire to her home in Midland and leaving her children inside to die.

Eyewitness News spoke to one lawyer who's tried 12 death penalty cases. Jim Cooney points out that the jury took a while to reach a verdict in Green's case. He's says reaching a unanimous agreement on her punishment will be even more difficult.

"If they were struggling with it in the guilt phase, then we tend to think that they're not gonna impose the ultimate punishment in the sentencing phase," Cooney said.

Right now, there's a hold on the death penalty in North Carolina, pending the outcome of two cases currently in court. Legal experts expect both cases will be resolved by the end of this year. Juries can still issue the death penalty, but the act itself can't be carried out.

If sentenced to death, Green would face lethal injection.

Greene burst into tears Wednesday afternoon as the jury returned the verdict of guilty in all the charges she faced, including two counts of first-degree murder.

Greene's children, Addison Macemore, 8, and Daniel Macemore, 10, died when fire swept through their home in Midland in January 2006.

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In addition to the guilty verdict in the two murder charges, Greene was also found guilty of two counts of first-degree arson, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Both of Greene’s attorneys tried to comfort the woman as she wept while the verdicts were read. Others in the packed courtroom also cried, including some of Greene’s family members who maintained she was innocent and the father of the children and his wife who felt Greene had to be brought to justice.

The jury had been concerned they wouldn’t reach a unanimous verdict on some of the charges. They told the judge just after noon they had made a decision on one charge but were hung on the others. They had a lunch break and after two more hours of deliberations determined they had come to a verdict.

The sentencing phase is set to start Friday at 9 a.m. Greene could receive the death penalty.

A gag order remains in place until the sentencing.

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