San Diego jury convicts Palm City man of kidnapping, murder

A man who killed one woman and raped another at his Palm City home will be sentenced next year following his conviction on murder, rape, and kidnapping charges.

Rafael Reyes Banda, 47, was found guilty by a San Diego jury last week of killing Jayme Dawn Morton, whose body was found at his home in March 2023.

Prosecutors said he also held another woman captive at the home, raped her, and demanded she help him dismember Morton’s body.

That woman was able to escape the house and flag down a passerby, leading to Banda’s arrest.

While prosecutors said Banda tied up Morton and beat her over the belief that she had stolen property from him, one of Banda’s defense attorneys, Gretchen Von Helms, argued her client lacked injuries to his hands that would indicate he had struck someone.

Von Helms told jurors it was more likely that Morton died of a drug overdose and argued the case against Banda was concocted by the woman who claimed Banda raped her.

Banda is slated to be sentenced in March.