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Thursday, February 05, 2015

Accused murderer Matthew Burton returns to Delaware for trial

Accused murderer Matthew Burton has exhausted his appeals in Maryland and has been extradited to Delaware, paving the way for him to stand trial for the 2012 slaying of Nicole Bennett.

Carl Kanefsky, spokesman for the Department of Justice, said Burton is being held at Sussex Correctional Institution. Attorney Dean Johnson of the Delaware Public Defender’s Office has been assigned to represent Burton.

Jurisdiction in the case became an issue because Bennett's body was found off a rural road in Worcester County, Md., but Delaware and Maryland State Police later determined the crime took place in Sussex County.

Bennett's father-in-law, Bob Bennett, said, "We're thankful it is finally moving forward. It's been two-and-a-half years. We just want justice."

Then-Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley signed Burton’s extradition back to Delaware in Oct. 2013; Maryland withdrew charges against Burton, who will be charged in Delaware with first-degree murder and failure to reregister as a sex offender.

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11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thank God for this blessing.

Anonymous said...

Well I did feel sorry for this family until I read they are suing the church for employing a sex offender.
She was an adult. Doesn't personal responsibility exist anymore? I doubt if the church made her come in by herself, after hours, when Burton the custodian was there.
I don't understand the lackadaisicalness of some and the compelling need of others to shift the blame when a tragedy occurs.

Anonymous said...

Hope he chokes on a chicken bone and DIES!

Anonymous said...

4:25, disagree. If the church knew he was a sex offender, but Ms. Bennett was not informed, they endangered her. If they didn't do a background check, they endangered her.

And even if everyone did know, since when is it a woman's fault if she can't into some place alone, especially a church, where trust in one's own safety would supposedly be the highest?

I feel bad for the church, but I cannot blame the parents for suing them.

Ms. Bennett is not, repeat not, responsible for being sexually assaulted and murdered. It makes me sick that in this day and age, women are still blamed for terrible things like this happening to them.

Anonymous said...

Of course she is not responsible for her sexual assault and murder. No need to repeat it either. The person ultimately responsible is Burton, but that does not negate the fact that the sexual offender registry is public and is available for all to use and responsible people use it and use it often.
Adults should not expect someone to always be holding your hand and walking you through life. It's not responsible behaviour. Unfortunately there are many Burton's out there and it is one's own responsibility (not to mention the prudent thing to do)to be aware of them.

Anonymous said...

A woman putting herself in the position of being alone with a man she doesn't know much about, could be putting herself in a precarious situation. It's the sad reality and while it may not be right, I'll repeat it's reality. Add to that MB's status as a SO, and the situation then becomes precarious.
There are tools like the SO registries and in MD, judiciary case search for the public to use.
As stated above, as adults we should not expect that someone is going to be holding our hand as we walk through life which can be dangerous at times.

Anonymous said...

Unfortunately there are many more monsters like Burton out there. Please please ladies, do your due diligence and don't rely on others to do it for you. Your life and/or your family's life could depend on it. Check anyone you come into contact with, with a fine tooth comb. The tools are available. Even just Googling someone can give you info and insight.

Anonymous said...

7:00-You might as well be talking to the wall.

Anonymous said...

The church SHOULD be sued.As a place of congregation which includes women and children,they completely dropped the ball when they allowed this human excrement to work for them.The church had a responsibility not just to its members and their families,but to the employees as well,to making the church safe for everyone.

Anonymous said...

4:25 It is people like you who allow these predators to find safe havens in churches. If you only knew.

Anonymous said...

While I feel sorry for this woman who was murdered the only person who dropped any ball was her.
Burton was the custodian who worked after hours when no one else was supposed to be around. She is indirectly responsible for her own murder by not doing her due diligence and putting herself in a situation like she did. Almost all murder victims become victims because they put themselves in compromising situations. It's silly to blame the church when the sex offender registry is online for the public to view.