A St. Clair County jury put a 44-year-old cold case to rest with a guilty verdict Thursday evening, following a two day trial in St. Clair County’s Circuit Court.
Douglas Laming was 70-years-old when he was arrested last December in connection to the 1980 murder of Karen Umphrey, after being identified via forensic genetic genealogy. A St. Clair County jury found him guilty on two murder counts, including a first degree, premeditated charge. The verdict comes following several months of rescheduling the trial, with proceedings officially starting Tuesday, October 8.
Douglas Laming
Umphrey, a Marysville High School graduate and secretary for Marysville Marine Distributors, was found dead in Clyde Township a day after being last seen leaving a party in Port Huron in November 1980. In addition to forensic identification, investigators conducted interviews and found vital connections linking Umphrey and her alleged killer.
Laming’s accomplice in the crime, 63-year-old Anthony Harris, was arrested earlier this year, and pleaded guilty to second-degree murder this past Monday, October 7. Harris agreed to testify against Laming during this past week’s trial, with the jury deliberating for only one hour to find Laming guilty.
Anthony Harris
Harris will be sentenced November 12, while Laming will be sentenced about a week later, on November 18. While both first and second degree murder convictions carry life sentences, those convicted in the second-degree have the possibility of parole after 15 years.
In a statement, the family of Karen Umphrey thanked the detectives and prosecutors who closed the case after 44 years, noting that they hope Laming’s guilty verdict and Harris’ guilty plea will end a cloud of suspicion hanging over Fred Hill, who was Karen’s boyfriend at the time of her death, and that the news would bring him and his family peace as well.
