John Jefferson
Glenroy Roberts (Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office).
A Georgia man has been convicted and sentenced for the rage-induced murder of his wife — which he tried to blame on suicide.
The killer’s excuse, however, was quickly undone by the sheer number of gunshots the woman suffered before she died, along with the testimony of a witness inside the residence who heard the barrage.
On Aug. 2, 2022, Glenroy Roberts, 53, killed Claudia Roberts, 45, because he was upset about how she celebrated her birthday.
On Thursday, Gwinnett County jurors condemned the man and a judge sent him to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the woman’s murder, according to the Gwinnett County District Attorney.
“This couple has sons who have to grow up without either of their parents at home,” Gwinnett County District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said in a press release. “Domestic violence is a tragedy. We extend our condolences to each and every loved one and member of this family.”
The couple’s 10-year-old son told police he heard at least four shots fired inside their apartment in Lawrenceville — a medium-sized suburb located some 30 miles northeast of Atlanta — prosecutors said.
In the 911 call, oppositely, Glenroy Roberts told the dispatcher his wife took his gun out of his closet and, in an ensuing struggle between the pair, the trigger was squeezed and left Claudia Roberts dead.
But the husband did not keep his story straight.
Glenroy Roberts later told investigators he was not actually in the room at all when the shot rang out. Rather, the since-convicted killer said, he heard gunfire and ran to see what happened — discovering his wife dead in the closet from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
During the trial, evidence showed the husband was irate at his wife because she took a trip to New Jersey to mark her 45th birthday with her mother. Then, he ensured the celebration was short-lived.
“I guess he wasn’t pleased with her for going,” the victim’s mother, Delores Squire, told Atlanta-based ABC affiliate WSB-TV. “She shouldn’t have gone down like that. She didn’t deserve that.”
Prosecutors also presented evidence — including the instrumental medical examiner’s report that prompted the arrest — showing that she suffered two gunshot wounds and that her injuries could not have been self-inflicted. One of those wounds was to her head.
“I knew my mother went down fighting,” the victim’s oldest daughter, Samantha Phillips, said in comments reported by the TV station. “She wanted to live. She wanted to make everybody move, you know.”
The slain woman’s family eulogized her in an online fundraiser:
Claudia Dionne Roberts was the mother of five children, an only daughter to a grieving mother, a daughter to a father, a sister to four brothers and two half sisters, a niece to many aunties and uncles, an aunt to many nieces and nephews and a friend, mentor, caregiver and motivator to everyone. She had a laugh that was contagious and made the room light up with her presence. She was a provider and hard worker, devoted and ambitious in making life easier for her family.
A jury of the defendant’s peers deliberated for around two hours before rendering guilty verdicts. The judge overseeing the case quickly handed down the sentence.
Roberts was also sentenced to an additional, somewhat symbolic, prison term of five years for other crimes he committed that fading summer day. In sum, the condemned was convicted of one count each of malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault and three counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
The warning signs were there. According to the victim’s mother, Claudia Roberts had long suffered domestic violence from her husband of 21 years — but she gave him additional chances to maintain the family unit.
“She wanted to see them grow up with a father,” Squires added in comments to WSB-TV. “If a person should ever hit you, don’t let it happen a second time, because it’s going to continue.”
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