Jimmy O’Neal Spencer was found guilty this afternoon of seven counts of capital murder in the 2018 deaths of Martha Dell Reliford, 65, Marie Kitchens Martin, 74, and Martin’s great-grandson, Colton Ryan Lee, 7, according to news reports.

The jury reportedly deliberated for less than 30 minutes.

The judge told the jury that the penalty phase will start Friday and that they will either recommend life without parole or execution.

Spencer was accused of killing the 74-year-old Guntersville woman and her seven-year-old great-grandson in a robbery that garnered $13.

At the time of the murders, the homeless convict was a violent offender just out of prison.

Prosecutors said Spencer made some progress out of prison initially, according to WAFF. He was employed at a chicken plant and worked at a body shop, eventually buying a trailer, WAAY reported.

But then he lost his job and his car, and trailer was impounded. Eventually, he found work doing odd jobs for Reliford, living occasionally in a hotel and on the streets.

Some have suggested that Spencer’s 2017 parole helped motivate a decline in the number of paroles granted by the state, according to an Alabama Political Reporter article.

WHNT reported Prosecutor Edward Kellet told the jury that Spencer went to Reliford’s house with a hatchet to get money. He killed her and made off with $700.

After that money was spent, Spencer went to Martin’s house, killed the woman and child, and took $13.

Prosecutors said Spencer killed both women for money and valuables, while the child was killed because he was a witness to his great-grandmother’s murder.

The defense, in its opening statement, asked jurors to “give Jimmy a fair trial and follow the evidence.”

This is a developing story and will be updated.