Mississippi Burned Woman Trial: Jury Deadlocks

COURTLAND, MS — After jurors couldn't reach a unanimous verdict in the capital murder trial of a Mississippi man charged in the December 2014 burning death of a woman, a judge declared a mistrial. The jury deliberated between nine and 10 hours in the trial of Quinton Tellis, 29, beginning Sunday and ending Monday.

Tellis could have faced up to life in prison without parole. It was not immediately clear whether prosecutors will retry the case.

Jessica Chambers, 19, was found along a road near her burning car the night of Dec. 6, 2014 in Courtland, Mississippi, about 60 miles south of Memphis, Tennessee. Firefighters and paramedics treated her at the scene and talked to her. Third-degree burns covered most of her body and she died hours later at a Memphis hospital. (For more information on Tellis's case and other Across Mississippi stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app.)

Firefighters testified Chambers told them someone named "Eric" or "Derek" set her on fire. Some first responders said Chambers looked like a "zombie," with burned skin and hair, when she walked from a wooded area in Courtland, Mississippi, on Dec. 6, 2014. She died hours later.

District Attorney John Champion said Chambers' throat was damaged and she could not pronounce the letter T. He said she could have been trying to say "Tellis."

Defense attorneys argued the wrong man is on trial.

Photo credit: Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press