KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Jurors have sentenced a Kentucky man to life in prison without parole in the carjacking, rape and murder of a young Tennessee couple. The same Knoxville, Tenn., jury that convicted 26-year-old Letalvis Cobbins of murder on Tuesday took less than three hours to decide against the death penalty. Cobbins took a deep breath and then sat down after the jury foreman finished delivering the sentence on Wednesday. Cobbins is the first of four defendants to be tried in the January 2007 attack on 21-year-old Channon Christian and her 23-year-old boyfriend Christopher Newsom. They were on a date when they were snatched from a parking lot and killed. Christian's parents pleaded for a death sentence for the torture their daughter suffered. Cobbins' sisters and cousins begged for mercy. THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below. KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) _ The jury that convicted a man of murder in the brutal carjacking, rape and murder of a young Tennessee couple will be asked to decide if he should live or die. The six men and six women on the jury decided Tuesday in Knoxville that Letalvis Cobbins was guilty of 33 of 38 counts in the 2007 carjacking slayings of 21-year-old Channon Christian and her 23-year-old boyfriend Christopher Newsom. The jury returns Wednesday for the sentencing phase of Cobbins' trial. The jury said the 26-year-old Lebanon, Ky., man facilitated Newsom's death, but was guilty of first-degree murder and felony murder in Christian's death _ which can carry the death penalty. Christian's parents are expected to testify. Cobbins has three co-defendants who will be tried later.
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