It took a New York jury less than two hours to return a guilty verdict against a 22-year-old man charged with the beating death of his girlfriend inside her college door room. Clayton Whittemore could now be sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the 2012 slaying of Alexandra Kogut, who was found dead at Brockport in upstate New York with 'extensive trauma to the upper body'. As the decision was read aloud, the victim's mother, Becky Kogut, Tweeted: 'Justice for my sweet baby.' Jurors rejected a defense plea to convict the former high school hockey star on a lesser first-degree manslaughter charge, determining Whittemore's childhood of severe abuse at the hands of his father was not a mitigating factor in the murder, according to USA Today. Clayton Whittemore has been found guilty of second degree murder for the beating death of Alexandra Kogut. The jury turned in a unanimous verdict on Friday, taking just just hours to deliberate . The defense argued that Whittemore lost control of his temper the night he killed Kogut because he was 'in the throes of an emotional disturbance' Over three weeks of testimony, with 35 witnesses questioned and hundreds of individual, often graphic photographs and pieces of evidence introduced, District Attorney Sandra Doorley built her case that the early morning Sept. 29, 2012, slaying inside 17-year-old Kogut's dorm was a domestic violence killing fueled by Whittemore's rage and anger. Doorley established that Whittemore had a volatile temper and a pattern of rough, aggressive behavior with his ex-girlfriends. 'This was one of the most brutal and violent murders I have seen in my career,' she said. 'You know, the more I do this, the more personal these cases become for me. 'I really felt connected to the victim. 'I needed to be her voice in the courtroom and I needed to fight for Alex. And, I did.' Whittemore will be sentenced at a hearing July 16. Brutal death: Alexandra Kogut was murdered by her boyfriend Clayton Whittemore in her NY college dorm room, a court has found . Young life: Kogut was found in her dorm room after having suffered extensive trauma . Caught: Clayton Whittemore (left) pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, but was found guilty . Press Connects reported at the time of the murder that Whittemore was not a student at the school, which is a part of the State University of New York system, but his girlfriend was. Her body was found in her room inside McLean Hall on campus. The Utica Observer Dispatch says that the young woman's time of death is being placed between 1.30am and 2am and police only found her body after her mother called the university concerned about her daughter's well-being shortly after the alleged murder. The mother said that she became concerned when her daughter would not pick up her phone. Whittemore was found by state patrols at 4am at a highway rest stop over 100 miles away in Dewitt, New York outside of Rochester. Dewitt is about halfway between the College at Brockport and the American-Canadian border at Niagara Falls. Kogut’s heartbroken family described the young student as 'a bright, beautiful young woman who was thrilled to be beginning her college education'. The school sent an email to students informing them of the death early Saturday and updated their website as the case unfolded. Happiness: Miss Kogut (bottom left) was found in her dorm room after the brutal attack at the school in upstate New York . On the run: Though he apparently confessed to police when they found him, that happened at a highway rest stop more than 100 miles away from the dorm room where the young woman's body was found . School shock: Whittemore is not enrolled at SUNY Brockport, but his girlfriend was a student at the school . While they wrote that the victim's death occurred 'under suspicious circumstances', they wrote that 'there is no reason to believe that any other members of the campus community are endangered in any way.' Whittemore lives in neighboring New Hartford and was a promising hockey star during high school. He was featured as an 'Athlete of the Week' by WKTV Utica in 2010. He is being held under the custody of the Monroe County Sheriff and has yet to be issued bail. 'It's tragic when anyone loses their life,' campus police chief Robert Kehoe told ABC affiliate WHAM. 'When a young lady who's a college student and apparently in a safe environment, is brutally murdered as this young lady was, it's certainly a tragedy for her family and friends and the entire Brockport college community.'
Clayton Whittemore had pleaded not guilty murder to the 2012 slaying of his girlfriend, Alexandra Kogut .
Her body found in her dorm at the College of Brockport in upstate New York with 'extensive trauma to the upper body'
Whittemore, who was a promising hockey star while at school, was found by state patrols 100 miles away in Dewitt, New York outside of Rochester .
A jury took just two hours to find him guilty following a three week trial .
It took a New York jury less than two hours to return a guilty verdict against a 22-year-old man charged with the beating death of his girlfriend inside her college door room. Clayton Whittemore could now be sentenced to 25 years to life in prison for the 2012 slaying of Alexandra Kogut, who was found dead at Brockport in upstate New York with 'extensive trauma to the upper body'. As the decision was read aloud, the victim's mother, Becky Kogut, Tweeted: 'Justice for my sweet baby.' Jurors rejected a defense plea to convict the former high school hockey star on a lesser first-degree manslaughter charge, determining Whittemore's childhood of severe abuse at the hands of his father was not a mitigating factor in the murder, according to USA Today. Clayton Whittemore has been found guilty of second degree murder for the beating death of Alexandra Kogut. The jury turned in a unanimous verdict on Friday, taking just just hours to deliberate . The defense argued that Whittemore lost control of his temper the night he killed Kogut because he was 'in the throes of an emotional disturbance' Over three weeks of testimony, with 35 witnesses questioned and hundreds of individual, often graphic photographs and pieces of evidence introduced, District Attorney Sandra Doorley built her case that the early morning Sept. 29, 2012, slaying inside 17-year-old Kogut's dorm was a domestic violence killing fueled by Whittemore's rage and anger. Doorley established that Whittemore had a volatile temper and a pattern of rough, aggressive behavior with his ex-girlfriends. 'This was one of the most brutal and violent murders I have seen in my career,' she said. 'You know, the more I do this, the more personal these cases become for me. 'I really felt connected to the victim. 'I needed to be her voice in the courtroom and I needed to fight for Alex. And, I did.' Whittemore will be sentenced at a hearing July 16. Brutal death: Alexandra Kogut was murdered by her boyfriend Clayton Whittemore in her NY college dorm room, a court has found . Young life: Kogut was found in her dorm room after having suffered extensive trauma . Caught: Clayton Whittemore (left) pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, but was found guilty . Press Connects reported at the time of the murder that Whittemore was not a student at the school, which is a part of the State University of New York system, but his girlfriend was. Her body was found in her room inside McLean Hall on campus. The Utica Observer Dispatch says that the young woman's time of death is being placed between 1.30am and 2am and police only found her body after her mother called the university concerned about her daughter's well-being shortly after the alleged murder. The mother said that she became concerned when her daughter would not pick up her phone. Whittemore was found by state patrols at 4am at a highway rest stop over 100 miles away in Dewitt, New York outside of Rochester. Dewitt is about halfway between the College at Brockport and the American-Canadian border at Niagara Falls. Kogut’s heartbroken family described the young student as 'a bright, beautiful young woman who was thrilled to be beginning her college education'. The school sent an email to students informing them of the death early Saturday and updated their website as the case unfolded. Happiness: Miss Kogut (bottom left) was found in her dorm room after the brutal attack at the school in upstate New York . On the run: Though he apparently confessed to police when they found him, that happened at a highway rest stop more than 100 miles away from the dorm room where the young woman's body was found . School shock: Whittemore is not enrolled at SUNY Brockport, but his girlfriend was a student at the school . While they wrote that the victim's death occurred 'under suspicious circumstances', they wrote that 'there is no reason to believe that any other members of the campus community are endangered in any way.' Whittemore lives in neighboring New Hartford and was a promising hockey star during high school. He was featured as an 'Athlete of the Week' by WKTV Utica in 2010. He is being held under the custody of the Monroe County Sheriff and has yet to be issued bail. 'It's tragic when anyone loses their life,' campus police chief Robert Kehoe told ABC affiliate WHAM. 'When a young lady who's a college student and apparently in a safe environment, is brutally murdered as this young lady was, it's certainly a tragedy for her family and friends and the entire Brockport college community.'
It took a New York jury less than two hours to prison for the 2012 slaying of Alexandra Kogut, who was found dead at Brockport in upstate New York with 'extensive trauma to the upper body'. Young life: Kogut was found in her dorm room Clayton Whittemore (left) pleaded not guilty to phone. Whittemore was found by state patrols at Dewitt, New York outside of Rochester. Dewitt is than 100 miles away from the dorm room where the his girlfriend was a student at the school . Hartford and was a promising hockey star during