Man found guilty of murder in the death of Mount Pleasant woman

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) — A Charleston man was found guilty of the murder of a Mount Pleasant woman in 2019 on Wednesday.

Norman Philip Browne was sentenced to life in prison for the charge of murder and five years for grand larceny in a Charleston courtroom.

Browne has been on trial for the past week after he was arrested and charged in 2019 for murder in connection to the death of Ann Witherspoon.

The prosecution gave closing arguments for nearly four hours, going through a detailed timeline of Browne’s whereabouts and the last time Witherspoon was seen. 

Browne, who had been defending himself the whole trial, gave his closing arguments as well, which the prosecutor objected to several times as they claimed he had tried to introduce information that was not in evidence. 

The jury deliberated for about an hour before returning a guilty verdict.

Witherspoon was reported missing by her friend Mary Webb on Feb. 9, 2019. According to the timeline prosecutors provided, Witherspoon and Browne traveled to Myrtle Beach together for business on Feb. 6, 2019.

Witherspoon owned Matco Tool Truck, and prosecutors say she invested $20,000 in Browne’s start-up business. However, she couldn’t get a written contract showing the investment. The pair was traveling to Myrtle Beach to make that contract.

Webb told Mount Pleasant Police that Witherspoon wasn’t returning calls or texts after she reported her missing.

Witherspoon was found dead in her home in the Old Village with her hand by a gun and gunshot wound in the back of her head, prosecutors said in court. Also, in court, prosecutors said that Browne’s DNA was found on the weapon, both on the trigger and grip.

They talked about the awkward position Witherspoon was found in and how it appeared staged.

When Witherspoon’s body was found on Feb. 9, Charleston County Coroner, Bobbi Jo O’Neal, estimated that Witherspoon had been deceased for more than 48 hours.