MAN SENTENCED TO 50 YEARS FOR WASHINGTON CO. MURDER

  

A 28-year-old man has been sentenced to 50 years in prison for a 2009 murder in Washington County.

Taylor Edmiston
(Washington Co. mugshot)

Taylor Hutson Edmiston pled guilty to the murder of Vincent Gourley and was sentenced by plea agreement to 50 years confinement in the 21st District Court on Friday.

On February 27, 2009, Edmiston, a Blinn student as the time, went to a home located on a ranch in Chappell Hill- 12655 Hwy 290 East. According to a confession given to law enforcement, Edmiston planned on stealing firearms and buying crack-cocaine.

When he arrived at the home, Vincent Gourley, a part-time ranch hand that lived at the home was present. Gourley and Edmiston were acquaintances. Gourley let Edmiston into the home, believing he was giving him a place to sleep that night.

After Gourley fell asleep, Edmiston removed several firearms from the home. He then used one of the stolen firearms to fatally shoot Gourley in an attempt to cover up his crime.

The case remained unsolved until 2013. After coming into office, Sheriff Otto Hanak and District Attorney Julie Renken reopened the murder investigation. Investigator Mark Widden from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office, assisted by Texas Ranger Jeff Wolf, led the new investigation which ultimately led to Edmiston being indicted on April 21, 2015.

Judge Reva Towslee-Corbett presided over the hearing, and District Attorney Julie Renken, represented the State. The defendant was represented by Robert Morrow and Gerald Bourque of The Woodlands.

After the hearing, Renken released a statement saying, "We are pleased to finally help this family grieve and get justice for Vince." She explained that the family agreed with the final offer, saying "The Gourleys can now take an important step toward putting this tragedy behind them. The case is over, Edmiston waived all rights of appeal."

"This case has all but gone cold, but thanks to the tireless efforts of law enforcement, we were able to identify and convict Taylor Edmiston of murder" said Renken.

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2 Comments

  1. Now isn’t it messed up that this murderer is only serving 50 years, yet there are people serving LIFE SENTENCES (sometimes double life) for completely VICTIMLESS crimes…? Honestly, when is our justice system going to wake up and realize that there is something wrong with this picture? It really is all about the money though.

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