Cranston Man Found Guilty of Murder

James Adams, 34, has been found guilty of murder, felony assault and other crimes in connection with the brutal killing of Mary Grier in a garage at a Cranston apartment complex after meeting her on Backpage.com in the summer of 2012.

A trial found Adams, who lived in Warwick at the time of his arrest, guilty of two counts of assault with a dangerous weapon, one count of first degree robbery, and one count of possession of a firearm while having been previously convicted of a crime of violence. The charges are from three separate incidents involving three separate victims.

The jury returned the verdict in four hours after a nine-day trial presided over by Superior Court Justice Robert D. Krause.

Adams allegedly beat Grier to death on July 15, capping off a crime spree that began on June 24 during which he raped two women, assaulted a third and used a gun and heavy metal object during the assaults.

Grier, who was 20 when she was killed, was living at the house at 391 Farmington Ave. since 2010.

During the trial, lawyers for the state showed how Adams invited a woman he met at Ultra Night Club back to his house for an “after hours” party and then when she got back to the house, “quickly realized there was no party,” said Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin in a release.

Adams robbed the woman of $300 and then, a week later, arranged his next encounter with an escort through the Backpage.com website.

That woman agreed to meet Adams at a garage at the Farmington Avenue apartment complex.

When the victim approached Adams outside the garage, he brandished what appeared to be a black handgun and demanded she get into the garage. She refused, turned, and attempted to get away. Adams chased her and struck her on the back of the head with a hard object, causing the victim to fall to the ground. A nearby light came on, distracting Adams, enabling the victim to flee. Adams also fled.

Two weeks later, on July 15, Adams arranged to meet Grier.

Her body was found five days later inside the garage at 391 Farmington Ave.

An autopsy indicated that Grier died of homicidal violence and there was a ligature around her neck.

Phone and cell phone tower records put Adams at the scene and also showed that he was engaging in text message communications with Grier before her murder.

A pair of boxer shorts found at the scene had Adams’ DNA, police said.

“Within the span of three weeks, James Adams’ violence and rage escalated from robbery to felony assault and murder. His growing appetite for violence and easy access to victims proved to be a deadly combination,” said Attorney General Kilmartin. “He used backpage.com to scout victims to exact his violence and rage upon. Despite ongoing and increasing evidence that the website is being utilized by individuals for criminal purposes, including activities resulting in charges of solicitation, rape, human trafficking and even murder, the company continues to allow the activities to continue, and even flourish,” Kilmartin said.

The sad twist for Grier’s friends and family was the fact that Adams was a convicted felon with an alarmingly violent past.

Adams was charged with first-degree sexual assault and kidnapping in 2005 after he reportedly showed up at home of a woman he described as a “casual friend” and persuaded her to give him a ride in her car.

Once in the car, Adams brandished a knife and forced her to drive him to his house where he raped her in his driveway. He then forced her to drive through City Park in Warwick before releasing her.

He was held without bail as a probation violator after he was first arraigned in March of 2005. He was on probation for a domestic disorderly conduct charge out of Johnston, serving a six-month suspended sentence with probation.

Two years later, in 2007, Adams eventually pleaded no contest to the charge of first-degree sexual assault and a charge of felony assault. Other sexual assault charges and the kidnapping charge were dismissed.

Adams was sentenced to 20 years in prison, seven to serve. Thirteen years of his sentence were suspended. He was also sentenced to 13 years of probation and ordered to attend a sex offender program and a mental health program as well as have no contact with the victim.

Adams is due to be sentenced at a later date.

He remains held at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston.

Cranston police led the investigation.