ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Friday, February 14, 1997 TAG: 9702140057
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: PRINCE GEORGE
SOURCE: Associated Press
A judge returned a first-degree murder conviction Thursday against a man who strangled his pregnant girlfriend, then abandoned the woman's young child in Chesapeake.
Circuit Judge James Luke sentenced Malcolm Thomas Ruffin to 50 years in prison for the Aug. 19 slaying of Antitca Monique Hurt.
Ruffin's lawyer, Paul Bland, unsuccessfully argued that Ruffin should be convicted of second-degree murder because he said the crime was not premeditated.
Bland contended that Ruffin, 32, killed Hurt after an argument over their unborn baby escalated into a fight. Hurt, 20, was nine months' pregnant when she died.
Commonwealth's Attorney Martin Robertson used Ruffin's confession to bolster his case that he had looped a belt around Hurt's neck, buckled it tightly and left it there for more than 30 minutes.
In Ruffin's interview with police on Aug. 22, he confessed to killing Hurt in his car. Hurt's 1-year-old daughter, Jaliyuah, was in the car at the time.
Police said Ruffin drove to an isolated area and dragged Hurt into the woods. He then drove back to his home and switched cars, taking Jaliyuah with him. He dropped her off in Chesapeake.Police found the girl the next day.
LENGTH: Short : 35 lines KEYWORDS: FATALTIYby CNB