Seager guilty

After less than four hours of deliberation, a South Lee County jury found Monte Wendell Seager guilty of two counts of first-degree murder for the 1978 slayings of Clementine and Karol Beavers in their Mt. Pleasant home.

      Once the verdict was read, the 25 or so Beavers' family members let out a collective sigh of relief followed by many tears.

      "It closes one chapter," said Randy Beavers, the third child of Max and Clementine Beavers. "Sure there were times we didn't know - you can't anticipate what the jury heard or interpreted. No matter the outcome, the victims' family has a life sentence."

      Seager was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences, plus court costs and $4,300 in restitution to Max Beavers for funeral expenses. No bond was set. According to the judge, first-degree murder is not bondable awaiting appeal. Seager was expected to be transported to the Iowa Medical and Classification Center in Oakdale today to begin his sentence.

      The Beavers women were found in the early morning hours of Oct. 30, 1978 - Clementine had been shot in the back of the head, Karol raped and shot twice. Seager was tied to the crime when bullets test-fired from a gun he owned were matched to bullets recovered during the autopsies. He was originally convicted in 1998 for the Beavers' murders, but the ruling was overturned by the Iowa State Supreme Court of Appeals. The court said the judge erred by allowing an officer to give testimony that prejudiced the jury.