Honken given death penalty in drug killings

A jury has made their decision about the fate of drug kingpin Dustin Honken. After two and a half days of deliberations, a federal jury in Sioux City has decided that Dustin Honken should receive the death penalty for the drug- related deaths of five north-central Iowans. The jury started their deliberations on Thursday, but one of the jurors was replaced on Monday after an investigation into that juror’s boss making inappropriate comments such as “killer” and “fry him” on days she went to work. Honken was found guilty two weeks ago of the 1993 murders of drug-dealers turned informants Greg Nicholson and Terry De-Geus, as well as Nicholson’s girlfriend and two daughters. Their bodies were buried southwest of Mason City, not being found until November of 2000.