'I loved my wife,' Griffith testifies
By Kat Russell, Reporter
The Paducah Sun
February 18, 2015
http://www.paducahsun.com/news/local/i-loved-my-wife-griffith-testifies/article_f9798b3a-5ad8-11e7-9587-10604b9f0f42.html
Kat Russell / The Paducah Sun
Accused of killing his wife, defendant Keith Griffith, 56, took the stand Tuesday in McCracken Circuit Court and declared in a low scratchy voice: "I did not kill my wife. I loved my wife."
Police claim Griffith shot his wife three times before setting fire to their home with her and their two dogs inside.
He is being tried for murder, tampering with evidence, first-degree arson and two counts of first-degree animal cruelty.
Dressed in a blue-collar shirt, a gray sweater and khaki pants, Griffith recounted his alibi for the night his wife Julie Griffith was killed.
In his testimony, Griffith said he left the Comfort Suites in Jefferson, Indiana - where he said he was staying for work - and went for a walk. He said he then changed his clothes and visited a massage parlor, two bars and two strip clubs.
He stayed at the second strip club until last call for drinks, he said, and then went to sit by the riverfront and watch the boats. After a while, he said, he noticed it was getting close to 5:30 a.m. and decided he should go back to the hotel and get a couple hours sleep before work.
Griffith said he was aware he was on camera when he left the hotel and that he left in the hopes he might "hook up" with a woman that night.
That account was different from the one Griffith gave the McCracken County Sheriff's Department on Jan. 17, 2014, the day the house was burned. He said then that he had stayed at the hotel all night except for when he went to a Krispy Kreme doughnut shop to a store to buy a soda.
While on the witness stand, Griffith told the jury he lied to cover up his double life.
"At that time, not thinking I was a suspect - I hadn't killed my wife, I hadn't done anything wrong - and nobody knew what I was doing out on the road but me, and I didn't want anybody to know," he said. "I was embarrassed and ashamed of what I was doing the night my wife died."
Police claim Griffith shot his wife three times before setting fire to their home with her and their two dogs inside.
He is being tried for murder, tampering with evidence, first-degree arson and two counts of first-degree animal cruelty.
Dressed in a blue-collar shirt, a gray sweater and khaki pants, Griffith recounted his alibi for the night his wife Julie Griffith was killed.
In his testimony, Griffith said he left the Comfort Suites in Jefferson, Indiana - where he said he was staying for work - and went for a walk. He said he then changed his clothes and visited a massage parlor, two bars and two strip clubs.
He stayed at the second strip club until last call for drinks, he said, and then went to sit by the riverfront and watch the boats. After a while, he said, he noticed it was getting close to 5:30 a.m. and decided he should go back to the hotel and get a couple hours sleep before work.
Griffith said he was aware he was on camera when he left the hotel and that he left in the hopes he might "hook up" with a woman that night.
That account was different from the one Griffith gave the McCracken County Sheriff's Department on Jan. 17, 2014, the day the house was burned. He said then that he had stayed at the hotel all night except for when he went to a Krispy Kreme doughnut shop to a store to buy a soda.
While on the witness stand, Griffith told the jury he lied to cover up his double life.
"At that time, not thinking I was a suspect - I hadn't killed my wife, I hadn't done anything wrong - and nobody knew what I was doing out on the road but me, and I didn't want anybody to know," he said. "I was embarrassed and ashamed of what I was doing the night my wife died."
Kat Russell / The Paducah Sun
The next morning, Griffith said, he got the call that his wife had been killed.
"I just sat on the bed for a few minutes, just stunned," he said. "I couldn't believe what I'd heard."
After the call, Griffith said he filled up his 2005 Ford Expedition at a gas station and drove back to his house.
He said arriving at the burned remains of his home was "gut wrenching."
"The whole left side of the house was gone," he said. "I was just stunned â ¦ I couldn't think straight."
During his testimony Griffith repeated more than once that he did not commit the crimes he is accused of.
In its cross examination, the prosecution focused on the lies Griffith allegedly told throughout the yearlong investigation.
"Have you made any effort to count the number of lies that you have said about your whereabouts and your various connections to this case?" Assistant Commonwealth Attorney Jim Harris started. "You've lied to a whole host of different people about your whereabouts and I want to ask you about why you lie when you lie?"
Harris went on to list the lies Griffith told while being interviewed the night of Jan. 17 by McCracken County Sheriff's Capt. Matt Carter.
According to Harris, Griffith told the detective he was at the hotel the whole night, then changed his story to say he had left to go to a Thortons gas station and then again to say he had gone out for a soda and doughnuts.
Moreover, Harris accused Griffith of lying to everyone at some point or another whether it was to officials about his alibi, to his family and friends about his affairs, or to his church about his character as a moral and upstanding person.
"Would you explain to the jury what it is about your conscience that compelled you to tell a lie?" Harris asked, especially interested in why Griffith lied to detectives after being told his wife was killed.
"At that point, I didn't really think I was a suspect," Griffith answered, "I had been doing things that I was embarrassed about doing while my was being killed and nobody in my family, none of my friends, knew what I did and I didn't want it out and I knew they'd catch the right person."
"You're a liar and a hypocrite," Harris said. "You held yourself out to be a good, moral and faithful Christian man, didn't you, sir."
Griffith said he wasn't a perfect man.
As Harris continued to hammer him with lie after lie, Griffith got a bit heated.
"Have you ever lost a wife?" Griffith retorted. "Do you know how distraught a person a person is when they've lost their wife and are being accused of murdering them when they didn't?"
Griffith accused the sheriff's department of doing a poor job with the investigation and of zeroing in on him as the killer without considering other suspects.
After Griffith's testimony, son Aaron Griffith took the stand and testified on his father's behalf, saying he was a good father and husband.
Today's testimony marked the end of the defense's case. Both sides are scheduled to give closing statements starting at 10 a.m. today.
The case will then go to the jury.
Contact Kat Russell, a Paducah Sun staff writer, at 270-575-8653.
"I just sat on the bed for a few minutes, just stunned," he said. "I couldn't believe what I'd heard."
After the call, Griffith said he filled up his 2005 Ford Expedition at a gas station and drove back to his house.
He said arriving at the burned remains of his home was "gut wrenching."
"The whole left side of the house was gone," he said. "I was just stunned â ¦ I couldn't think straight."
During his testimony Griffith repeated more than once that he did not commit the crimes he is accused of.
In its cross examination, the prosecution focused on the lies Griffith allegedly told throughout the yearlong investigation.
"Have you made any effort to count the number of lies that you have said about your whereabouts and your various connections to this case?" Assistant Commonwealth Attorney Jim Harris started. "You've lied to a whole host of different people about your whereabouts and I want to ask you about why you lie when you lie?"
Harris went on to list the lies Griffith told while being interviewed the night of Jan. 17 by McCracken County Sheriff's Capt. Matt Carter.
According to Harris, Griffith told the detective he was at the hotel the whole night, then changed his story to say he had left to go to a Thortons gas station and then again to say he had gone out for a soda and doughnuts.
Moreover, Harris accused Griffith of lying to everyone at some point or another whether it was to officials about his alibi, to his family and friends about his affairs, or to his church about his character as a moral and upstanding person.
"Would you explain to the jury what it is about your conscience that compelled you to tell a lie?" Harris asked, especially interested in why Griffith lied to detectives after being told his wife was killed.
"At that point, I didn't really think I was a suspect," Griffith answered, "I had been doing things that I was embarrassed about doing while my was being killed and nobody in my family, none of my friends, knew what I did and I didn't want it out and I knew they'd catch the right person."
"You're a liar and a hypocrite," Harris said. "You held yourself out to be a good, moral and faithful Christian man, didn't you, sir."
Griffith said he wasn't a perfect man.
As Harris continued to hammer him with lie after lie, Griffith got a bit heated.
"Have you ever lost a wife?" Griffith retorted. "Do you know how distraught a person a person is when they've lost their wife and are being accused of murdering them when they didn't?"
Griffith accused the sheriff's department of doing a poor job with the investigation and of zeroing in on him as the killer without considering other suspects.
After Griffith's testimony, son Aaron Griffith took the stand and testified on his father's behalf, saying he was a good father and husband.
Today's testimony marked the end of the defense's case. Both sides are scheduled to give closing statements starting at 10 a.m. today.
The case will then go to the jury.
Contact Kat Russell, a Paducah Sun staff writer, at 270-575-8653.
