ROCKINGHAM — Christopher Mark Robson pleaded guilty to lesser charges in court Tuesday as part of deal in a double murder case from 2017.
Court records show that Robson was convicted on two counts of second-degree murder and one count of possession of a firearm by a felon in the deaths of Joseph and Katherine Cassidy on Aug. 20, 2017.
According to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office at the time, the two were found dead in a vehicle on Lee Thee Church Road by troopers with the N.C. State Highway Patrol. A small child was reportedly in the back of the vehicle secured in a safety seat.
Deputies tracked Robson down and found him as the passenger in a pickup truck, which led to a short foot chase and his arrest.
Robson was initially charged with charges related to the pursuit, then firearms charges and eventually charged with murder.
Prosecutors had initially sought the death penalty in the case.
According to court records, the following charges were dismissed: assault with a deadly weapon with a minor present; larceny of a firearm; possession of a stolen firearm; fleeing to elude arrest with a motor vehicle; reckless driving to endanger; and resisting a public officer.
The district attorney also dismissed charges of resisting a public officer and possession of a weapon by a prisoner related to an incident at the jail in late 2021.
Sentencing information was not available at the time of this writing.
Robson had been released from prison in 2014 after serving three years for assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, according to records with the N.C. Department of Adult Correction.
Other prior convictions include assault on a female, communicating threats, assault and battery, breaking and entering, and larceny.
Jail records show there are 22 defendants awaiting trial on murder charges dating back to 2019. All defendants facing criminal charges are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
