Pianist Found Guilty on Murder Charges

A jury has found Zachary Hughes guilty in the stabbing death of Christina Parcell

South Carolina’s Greenville County Circuit Court has found Zachary Hughes guilty of murdering his best friend’s ex-wife Christina Parcell, 41, in October 2021. Hughes, 33, is a graduate of The Juilliard School, where he studied with Jerome Lowenthal. 

Hughes was also found guilty of second-degree harassment, possession of a weapon during a violent crime, and burglary. 

As reported by Greenville News, Circuit Court Judge Patrick Fant III sentenced him to life in prison on the murder charge and five years concurrently served on the possession and burglary charges.

In a recent testimony, Hughes admitted to killing Parcell in her home. Parcell and Hughes’s friend John Mello shared a daughter and were involved in a custody battle. Hughes said he killed Parcell to save the child from sexual abuse.  

The 13th Circuit Solicitor and prosecutor Walter Wilkins pointed out malice, calling Hughes a “cold-blooded murderer” who could’ve changed his mind at any point but committed the murder to help Mello have sole custody of his daughter.

Hughes’ attorneys, Andrew Moorman and Mark Moyer, said they are expecting to appeal the verdict. 

“(The case) was very emotional for us, very emotional for the jurors, very emotional for the courtroom,” added Wilkins, who led the prosecution. “And we’re just glad that this jury did what they did, and they got some sort of justice for Christina and her family.”