Murder Trial Tops Oconee Docket This Week

Braxton Earl

The State’s murder case against Pendleton resident, Braxton Earl, is set to be the first trial in a week of Oconee General Sessions Court. Earl is accused of murdering fellow Pendleton resident, Richard Dennis Keese, in Utica in 2021. The body of 62-year-old Keese was found on a street in the former textile mill community. Prosecutor Jason Alderman will face defense attorney Bruce Byrholt in court, with 10th Circuit Judge Cordell Maddox of Anderson presiding.