Gebrayel plans to appeal verdict; sentencing set April 5

Sheridan resident George Gebrayel will appeal his convictions for attempted murder and solicitation of murder, according to his attorney.

“Mr. Gebrayel intends to appeal his convictions and looks forward to obtaining appellate relief,” attorney Zachary Stern told the News-Register.

Gebrayel, 80, was found guilty by a Yamhill Circuit Court jury last week of hiring an associate to kill his Beavercreek Road neighbor Rebecca Summers, and Yamhill County code enforcement officer Mike Kemper, following escalating disputes with both.

Geybrayel will be sentenced on April 5. All four charges are Class A felonies, each carrying a 20-year sentence, fines up to $375,000, or both, according to Oregon law.

Attempted murder is a Measure 11 offense, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 90 months. Measure 11 convicts aren’t eligible for early release or sentence reduction for good behavior, according to Oregon law.

The five-day trial concluded Friday morning when the jury returned a guilty verdict for two counts of attempted murder in the first degree and two counts of solicitation to commit murder, after nearly five hours of deliberation.

State prosecutors Elijah Michalowski and Colin Benson relied heavily on secretly recorded conversations between Gebrayel and associate Charles “Chris” Jones to prove their case, playing the majority of four recordings during the trial and replaying snippets during closing arguments.

While much of the recordings are hard to understand due to the remote location and building interference, Gebrayal can be heard telling Jones to shoot Summers and her boyfriend, confirming the payment amount for the killings and discussing stun guns and fentanyl, which was the planned method to kill Kemper, according to prosecutors.

Stern argued Gebrayel was entrapped by Jones and Yamhill County Sheriffs and that he called off the killings by text messages, but the jury disagreed.

“Though we are disappointed with the verdict, we are tremendously thankful for the jury’s time and consideration on such an important case,” Stern said of the ruling.