BOSTON, Oct. 28, 2013—A former resident of a Revere group home was convicted of murdering Stephanie Moulton, a 25-year-old employee remembered as deeply committed to the residents she served, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley said.

After about a day and a half of deliberations, a Suffolk Superior Court jury convicted DESHAWN JAMES CHAPPELL (D.O.B. 9/9/83) of first-degree murder under the theory of deliberate premeditation in Moulton’s 2011 stabbing death. Judge Jeffrey Locke sentenced him to the mandatory life term without the possibility of parole a short time later.

Stephanie Moulton, 25, was murdered by a resident at the Revere group home in which she worked as a counselor. The man was sentenced to life in prison withouyt the possibility of parole.

“The facts established that this defendant planned Stephanie’s murder and planned to get away with it,” Conley said. “He waited until he was alone with her. He took steps to cover up the crime, flee the scene, and escape accountability. This verdict was a rejection of the defense that he was not criminally responsible for his actions, and I hope it provides some satisfaction to Stephanie’s family.”

During about two weeks of testimony, including testimony from mental health experts, Assistant District Attorney Edmond Zabin introduced evidence to prove that Chappell was a resident of a group home operated by North Suffolk Mental Health. Residents generally left the facility to work during the day, but on Jan. 20, 2011, Chappell was scheduled to meet with a team of clinicians and remained behind – and alone with Moulton.

Sometime between 10:30 and 11:00 a.m., the evidence showed, Chappell attacked Moulton in a bedroom, leaving a large amount of blood. He killed her, wrapped her body in a sheet, and carried her body to her car. He tried to mop up the blood and then tried to set a fire that Revere firefighters quickly extinguished.

Evidence showed that Chappell drove himself and Moulton’s remains from the scene. He left her body partially-undressed body in the parking lot of a church in Lynn, where he used to live. An autopsy showed that she had been stabbed repeatedly in the neck and throat.

Evidence showed that Chappell then made calls to various family members seeking money and a place to stay. He drove to a shopping center and stole a new set of clothes, then left through a fire door. He snuck into the Fields Corner MBTA station and ultimately made his way to his grandmother’s house. Revere Police and State Police assigned to Conley’s office – who had by this time identified him as a suspect – apprehended him there.

Prior to sentencing, members of Moulton’s family addressed the court.

Kimberly Flynn, her mother, recalled a young woman who was “book smart but also street smart … She would have made a big difference in this world.”

Diane Moulton, Stephanie’s stepmother, addressed the court on behalf of the slain woman’s father. She spoke of a curious and independent person who, when her car broke down, asked her father how to repair it.

“I want to learn to fix my own car,” she said.

Assistant District Attorney Elisabeth Martino second-seated Zabin. Katherine Moran was the DA’s assigned victim-witness advocate. Chappell was represented by attorney Daniel Solomon.

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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.