Manatee jury expected to start deliberations in double-murder case Friday

The case against Dwayne Cummings, charged with the 2016 murders of Karl Tuxford and Jordan Finlon, is expected to be handed over to a Manatee County jury on Friday.

The trial is expected to resume at 9 a.m., when both sides will present closing arguments. Following instructions from the judge, the case then will be in the jury’s hands.

Cummings, 40, is charged with two counts of first-degree murder and one count of armed kidnapping. If convicted of first-degree murder, he would automatically get a life term in prison.

Just before 1 p.m. on Jan. 19, 2016, Tuxford, 38, was found shot dead and partially hanging out of his Jeep when Bradenton police officers responded to the 1100 block of Eighth Avenue East to reports of a shooting. Tuxford, who had been shot five times, was declared dead at the scene.

Less than an hour later, Finlon’s body was found by Manatee County Sheriff’s Office deputies on the side of Bishop Harbor Road in Terra Ceia Preserve State Park in northern Manatee County after getting a call from motorists who spotted her body when they drove past. Finlon had been stabbed between 40 to 44 times, an autopsy revealed.

On Thursday, the State Attorney’ Office finished presenting its case against Cummings following the testimony of Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Russell Vega. Cummings’ defense team later presented its case.

Cummings’ co-defendant, Ahmad Dunbar, was recalled to the stand by the defense. Dunbar testified against Cummings on Wednesday as part of his own plea deal in the case. Initially charged with second-degree murder in Tuxford’s death, Dunbar pleaded guilty to accessory to first-degree murder and was sentenced to the 18 months he served, one year of house arrest and one year of probation.

The defense also called one of the motorists who found Finlon’s body, a friend with Cummings at the time of his arrest and Detective Daniel Dickerman of the Manatee County Homicide Investigative Unit.

Cummings exercised his right not to testify in his own behalf.

This story was originally published November 16, 2017 at 6:49 PM with the headline "Manatee jury expected to start deliberations in double-murder case Friday."