A California jury was deliberating Tuesday in the criminal trial of former Bank of America banker Anthony Duwayne Turner, who is charged with raping and murdering BofA executive Michelle Avan, his former girlfriend, four years ago.
The trial at Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center in Los Angeles started June 16 and stretched for 27 days before it went to the jury, online court records show. The jury in the case (#25CJCF00398-01) started deliberating Monday afternoon after lawyers wrapped up, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Offce told ThinkAdvisor by email Tuesday.
The 56-year-old defendant has pleaded not guilty to murder, burglary and forcible rape charges in connection with Avan's slaying, and to two “special allegation” charges — murder while committing a rape and murder while committing a burglary — that could result in the death penalty or life in prison without parole if he is convicted.
He is is accused of murdering Avan, 48, in her home on Aug. 3, 2021. Her son reportedly discovered her battered body two days later.
The Los Angeles Daily News reported last week that Turner's defense attorney contended that the case was akin to putting the former banker's sexual preferences — Bondage, Discipline, Sadism and Masochism — on trial, while a prosecutor argued that Turner's polished appearance masks a violent and controlling personality.
The prosecutor argued that Avan had planned a trip with friends and Turner considered it disrespectful, the Daily News reported.
Turner testified during the trial, saying that he had gone to her Reseda home after a party to break up for good and that Avan was alive when he left early the following morning, according to the news outlet, which also reported he told the court that he and Avan were in a dominant-submissive relationship, although not at work.
The prosecutor, however, argued that Turner lied about the reason for his trip to Avan's home and that the dominant-submissive testimony was a cover for domestic abuse, the Daily News reported.
Avan had been promoted to Bank of America senior vice president, head of global women's and under-represented talent strategy global human resources, about two months before she was killed. She had been a Merrill Lynch managing director for nearly 23 years, according to her LinkedIn profile.
In 2020, BofA appointed Turner to be global commercial banking market executive for the greater Los Angeles and Inland Empire markets, overseeing a 17-banker team.
Turner was registered with Merrill for about eight months in 2004 and 2005, and again for roughly three years from 2016 to 2019, then with BofA Securities from 2019 to 2022, according to Financial Industry Regulatory Authority BrokerCheck; he worked as a business banker for BofA from 2016 to 2022.
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