Ballard Gets Life For Fayetteville Double Murder

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. — A jury sentenced Joshua Ballard Monday to life in prison without parole, instead of the death penalty.

Last week, a jury took just five hours to find Ballard guilty of killing Eric Carpenter and Kelsea Helton over drugs in 2001. Carpenter and Helton were expecting a child.

Two other suspects were involved in the case. James Kelliher pleaded guilty earlier this year and is now serving a life sentence. Jerome Branch, the other suspect in the case, is in the Cumberland County Jail awaiting trial.