S.C. pianist convicted of murder, sentenced in Killing on Canebrake

GREENVILLE, S.C. (FOX Carolina) - After brief deliberations, a jury convicted South Carolina man Zachary Hughes of murdering Christina Parcell in October 2021.

Parcell was found stabbed to death in her home on Canebrake Drive in Greer.

She had more than 30 stab wounds including to her jugular and carotid arteries. Rose petals were scattered around the crime scene.

Initially, there was seemingly no connection between Hughes and Parcell.

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However, a court filing in September 2022 revealed Hughes and John Mello, the father of Parcell’s child, were close friends. Hughes worked with Mello to harass the victim in the months before her death.

Hughes and Mello exchanged more than one thousand text messages, including on the day Parcell was killed. Hughes’ DNA was found under Parcell’s fingernails even though he tried to clean them with paint thinner.

Hughes testified during the trial, itting to killing Parcell. However, he argued it did not constitute murder because he did it for “a just cause.”

After three hours of deliberations, the verdict was returned for the charges as follows:

• murder - guilty
• possession of a weapon during violent crime - guilty
• burglary 1st degree - guilty
• harassment 1st degree - not guilty
• harassment 2nd degree - guilty
• conspiracy to commit harassment 1st degree - not guilty
• conspiracy to commit harassment 2nd degree - guilty

PROSECUTION CLOSING

Solicitor Walt Wilkins tried to drive home the prosecution’s argument that Zachary Hughes is a confessed killer with a “heart as cold as ice.”

Over the two-week trial, Wilkins sought to prove the state’s theory on motive: Hughes wanted to help his friend John Mello win a bitter custody battle with Parcell.

“John Mello had a custody problem and the only way to solve it was murder,” Wilkins said in his closing argument.

The prosecution called 32 witnesses and presented nearly four terabytes of evidence to their claim that Hughes committed murder with malice.

Hughes said he killed Parcell to save her daughter from abuse. The solicitor said he believes a lot of Hughes’ testimony about the killing, but he also thinks a lot of it was rooted in narcissism and trying to paint himself as a hero.

The state argued Hughes stabbed Parcell more than 30 times to ensure Mello gained custody.

Wilkins said if people take the law into their own hands, “There will be a lot of people stabbed to death and I’ll be out of a job because all we’ll have is vigilante justice.”

Wilkins cited what he called “revenge porn” as evidence of Hughes’ malice. Hughes and Mello mailed out nude photos of Parcell in the months before her death. Both were both charged with harassment because South Carolina does not have a revenge porn law.

Wilkins said Hughes left rose petals at the scene as “some sort of sadistic, artistic sign” and planted a bag of cocaine to help Mello win his custody case.

“Christina Parcell didn’t have to die,” Wilkins said. “Zack Hughes had a million opportunities to not do this.”

DEFENSE CLOSING

Hughes’ defense argued he killed Christina Parcell at her home on Canebrake Drive in October 2021 for what he believed was “a just cause.”

Defense attorney Andrew Moorman said the heart of the whole case hinges on Hughes’ intent. He challenged the jury to consider if the state proved he had malice.

During his testimony, Hughes testified that although he had never met Parcell, he killed her to protect the child at the center of her custody battle with Mello.

“What was Zack thinking?” Moorman asked in his closing argument. “What has the state been able to prove beyond a reasonable doubt about what was in his heart and what was in his mind?”

He argued the case does not show malice because the child’s mother, Parcell, was the threat. He also said the timeline for Hughes’ involvement in the case contradicts the state’s argument that he killed Parcell to help Mello.

“Zack agonized over it,” Moorman said, recalling Hughes’ testimony about his hands shaking and feeling like he was going to throw up.

Moorman referenced scrambled WhatsApp messages between Hughes and Mello and noted investigators couldn’t decode at least one of them.

“In a lot of cases, planning can be good evidence,” Moorman said. “One of the most unique aspects about this case is the person who Zack believed posed the danger was the mother to her own child.”

In addition to the murder charge, the jury will also have to weigh the harassment charge for Hughes. Moorman also said the state’s witnesses didn’t prove Parcell suffered mental distress when nude photos of her were distributed, allegedly by Hughes and Mello.

He struck back at Wilkins’ comments on vigilante justice, saying the prosecution was asking the jury to make broad decisions about law and order.

“He did what he believed he had to do to save an innocent child,” Moorman said.

DELIBERATIONS

The jury deliberated for about three hours in the case. Shortly before 4:30 p.m., they asked the judge to clarify the definition of malice and if it was a requirement for a guilty verdict.

The judge called the jury into the courtroom to explain the definition of malice aforethought and said it is a requirement for a guilty murder verdict. Malice aforethought relates to the suspect’s mindset at the time of the killing and what they intended.

The jury returned to deliberations. They asked follow-up questions about the distinction between different degrees of harassment.

Shortly before 6:30 p.m., the judge read the verdict convicting Hughes of murder.

SENTENCING

The prosecution asked for a life sentenced for Hughes.

Parcell’s sister, Tina, spoke at the sentencing. She said she believes Hughes is a risk of reoffending. She argued that Hughes entered the military, specifically the infantry, because he wanted to kill someone.

She revisited the defense’s closing statements, where they stated Parcell was not “visibly distressed” after nude photos of her where distributed. She pointed out that Hughes did not shake, or cry, or appear nauseous during the trial.

“All of these men did nothing but use my sister,” Tina Parcell said.

Hughes’ father also spoke at the hearing, specifically responding to the prosecution’s statements about Hughes being a “cold-blooded killer.”

“He has a strong moral com,” Hughes’ father said.

He started to address Tina Parcell, but was cut off by the judge. Instead, he quoted the statement often attributed to Edmund Burke: “The only thing for evil to prosper is for good men to do nothing.”

Hughes’ father said he has no criminal record except for a traffic ticket while he was in Italy with Mello.

The judge sentenced Hughes to life in prison for murder and burglary. He was also sentenced to 5 years for possession of a weapon during a violent crime.

“There’s no winners today,” Wilkins said after the sentencing. “Everybody lost something in that courtroom today.”

Hughes’ defense said they plan to appeal the conviction.

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