PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The murder conviction of a former Gladstone police sergeant in the death of his estranged wife has been reversed by the Oregon Court of Appeals.
Lynn Edward Benton was found guilty in 2016 on multiple counts, including aggravated murder, in connection with the 2011 death of his wife Debbie Higbee-Benton.
Higbee-Benton was found dead in her Gladstone salon on May 28, 2011. Authorities said it wasn’t until her autopsy that it was determined she had been shot in the back and had been strangled, ruling her death as a homicide.
Prosecutors argued Benton conspired with his close friend, Susan Campbell and her son, Jason Jaynes, to have his wife killed.
According to prosecutors, Benton was worried his wife was going to file a police report over domestic violence allegations.
Prosecutors said Campbell shot Debbie Higbee-Benton and Jaynes went to the salon and finished the job.
A jury found Benton guilty of two counts of aggravated murder, two counts of conspiracy, and one count of attempted murder. The then 54-year-old Benton was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in October 2016 days after the conviction.
In a filing on Wednesday, the Oregon Court of Appeals found that a jailhouse informant was acting as a state agent after coming to authorities with information, resulting in the informant’s information being tossed if the decision is made to retry the case.
After a 2019 appeal, the panel of judges ruled on Wednesday to reverse Benton’s convictions, and that the aggravated murder and conspiracy convictions must be sent back to trial.
Benton will remain in prison at Coffee Creek Correctional Facility.
KOIN 6 spoke with the Clackamas County District Attorney’s office to ask if they plan on appealing the judge’s decision to the state supreme court – they said that it’s under consideration.
KOIN 6 also reached out to the attorney general’s office and the public defender who appealed Benton’s case and have not heard back.