October 21, 2015

Benjamin Cayea took the stand Tuesday in his trial for the murder of Shannon Jones ’15, telling jurors that her death was an accident resulting from a sexual encounter gone wrong.

Cayea is on trial on a charge of second degree murder of Jones, who he confessed to strangling in a December interview with law enforcement. However, during Tuesday’s trial Cayea testified that he had lied during the initial interview with police at the sheriff’s office.

During his testimonial, Cayea said that almost the entire story he initially told the police — that he “just snapped” and intentionally killed Jones — was false. In the transcript of his initial interview, Cayea told police, “I lost my shit and I killed my girlfriend.” On the stand, Cayea said ofthe passionate and often physical arguments between the couple had “ebbed,” though they continued to engage in BDSM — erotic practices often involving bondage and discipline, dominance and submission and sadomasochism — during sex, Cayea said.

The couple got into an argument at their shared apartment on Triphammer Road on the evening of Nov. 27, 2014, or Thanksgiving Day, according to Cayea. He testified that he “tried to walk away” from Jones into different rooms of the apartment to dispel the fighting.

Though he sometimes left the house during arguments, Cayea testified that he was confident the couple could resolve the argument.

However, the argument turned physical. When Jones walked into the bathroom, Cayea followed her “to continue the discussion.” According to Cayea, Jones initiated sexual contact in the bathroom. While