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Second Baehr Suspect Convicted of Murder

By Bob Smietana

SYRACUSE, NY (November 21, 2000) - Angel Perez of Fulton, New York, was convicted Monday of second-degree murder in the 1997 killing of Mary "Lily" Baehr of Baldswinsville, New York. Bruce Baehr, Lily's son, is the associate pastor of Grace Covenant Church in Clay, New York. Herb Baehr, Lily's husband of 58 years, Bruce and his wife, Barbara, all testified at the trial.

Perez is the second person convicted in connection with the murder. Kenneth Hobart, also of Fulton, is serving 25 years to life after pleading guilty to second-degree murder. The Baehr family gained considerable media attention after Bruce and his family publicly forgave Hobart during his March 17, 1999 sentencing. The Baehr family's story was featured in the July 2000 issue of The Covenant Companion (see Forgiveness).

Bruce Baehr said that despite the difficulty of sitting through the trial, the family has seen God's hand in this situation. "I keep coming back to God's faithfulness," Baehr said. "He was there with us during the whole time. We knew that a lot of people were praying for us - throughout the Covenant, our family and our church. We really knew that God was with us."

At one point in the trial, Baehr had the opportunity to talk with William Reynolds, one of the witnesses. Reynolds, who has struggled with drug abuse, had been a friend of Perez's for years. He had initially refused to testify, but changed his mind during the trial, testifying that Perez admitted killing Lily Baehr.

Baehr sat with Reynolds outside the courtroom – in a room filled with detectives. He said he told Reynolds that he was moved by his testimony. "Your heart is good, but you can't overcome (drugs) without a relationship with Christ," Baehr said he told Reynolds. Before the trial, Baehr said he had been reading Chasing the Dragon by Jackie Pullinger, a story about her outreach to drug addicts in Hong Kong. He said he gave Reynolds a copy of the book and told him to call if there was anything that the family could do for him.

"I know that God can change a heart," Baehr said, "and our God is a God of miracles. I sense that in William Reynolds, who agreed to testify just the day before. I see that as a miracle. He told me, 'I just don't understand how anyone could kill an 80-year-old woman.'"

Most of the Baehr family was in the courtroom when the jury returned its verdict after deliberating three hours. In one of the more moving moments of the trial, Herb Baehr - who for a time was a suspect - was surrounded by several of his grandchildren, his son Rick and his wife, and Barbara Baehr.

Bruce Baehr was outside the courtroom holding his grandson when the verdict came in. He was surprised that the jury returned so quickly as the District Attorney had advised the family to expect a long wait. He says he knew what the verdict was when he saw officers lead Perez from the courtroom in handcuffs (during the trial, Perez had been allowed to come and go without handcuffs). Baehr said the family was prepared to forgive Perez, even if the jury had found him not guilty.

"Not knowing what would happen (with the verdict), we needed to be prepared to do that," he said, "but I was thankful this was not the case. When I saw (Perez) come out, there was a sense of relief. But it's still not over. There will be an appeal and there are two more suspects that the police are pursuing."

Perez's sentencing is scheduled for December 15.

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