GUILTY!
Jury Returns Verdict
in High Profile Case

By Caroline Dries
Reprinted with permission of The Daily Planet

After Chloe Sullivan's damning testimony yesterday, Metropolis titan Lionel Luthor was found guilty of murdering his parents in a tenement fire. Luthor's attorney Gwendolyn Reed's case was shattered by the surprising return of Sullivan who was presumed dead just forty-eight hours ago. Reed rushed out of the courthouse without her confident swagger. She promised to appeal the jury's "idiotic decision."

The key evidence existed in a ten-second sound bite obtained by Sullivan in which Luthor admitted to the murder.

"Did you order Morgan Edge to kill your parents?" Chloe asked after activating the voicemail on her hidden Verizon cell phone.

"Of course," said Luthor. "Their life insurance provided the seed money I needed to start my company."
The confession was enough to get the jury's unanimous guilty verdict.

Luthor's son Lex was among the many attendees crammed into the at-capacity courtroom. Witnesses claim to have seen the emotionally reserved Lex breathe a sigh of relief after the jury announced its decision. "It's over and we can all move on with our lives," he said before he slid into his Carrera. With his father now behind bars, Lex will now officially assume Lionel Luthor's former role as CEO of LuthorCorp.

Sullivan fielded questions on the courthouse steps. "It took a lot of stars to line up just right in order for us to get Lionel Luthor behind bars," Sullivan said. "Oh, and P.S., those of you who bounced early at my wake -- ya missed a stellar cheese tray."