A 54-year-old man convicted of a 35-year-old rape and murder was supposed to be formally sentenced in Greensville County Circuit Court on May 27 at 9 a.m. but the sentencing has been delayed until July 8.
Convicted sex offender Thomas Pope Jr., was convicted of the rape and murder of Eva King Jones, a retired school teacher who lived across the street from the Emporia Police Station, on Jan. 2, 1975.

The jury, after convicting Pope, sentenced him to 35 years for raping the 88-year-old victim. The minimum sentence he could have received was five years. The maximum was life.
For the killing of the elderly woman, who was brutally attacked, robbed, and raped before being murdered, the jury sentenced Pope to life in prison, plus a $100,000 fine (the maximum).

The defense attorney asked for a presentence report and asked Judge Allan Sharrett to consider suspending some of the sentence.
The judge will impose a sentence on Pope. It is up to him whether he accepts the jury's recommendation on sentencing or decides to sentence Pope otherwise. Because the rape and murder happened in 1975, Pope will be parole eligible.

More than 30 years after the crime, which shocked and outraged the community, Pope's DNA was matched to the DNA left at the crime scene after a review of old DNA evidence.
Pope said he is innocent of the crime but a jury of his peers felt otherwise.

Reprinted with permission from the Independent-Messenger