GEORGETOWN, Del. - After roughly eight hours of deliberations, a jury returned a guilty verdict Friday afternoon in a Sussex County murder case involving a Millsboro couple.

The jury found Emmett Taylor, III, 46, of Millsboro, guilty of first-degree murder, according to the Delaware Department of Justice. Taylor was also found guilty of possession of a deadly weapon during commission of a felony and guilty of abusing a corpse.

Taylor could face life in prison without the possibility of parole or even the death penalty for the murder charge, the Attorney General's Office said. The jury is scheduled to return to Sussex County Superior Court on Monday to consider recommending a penalty. The judge will make the ultimate decision on the sentence. No sentencing date has been set yet.

According to prosecutors, Taylor used a frying pan to beat to death his fiancée, Stephanie V. Mumford, 44, of Millsboro, in August 2007. During the trial, prosecutors said Taylor attacked Mumford because he was mad that she did not make him dinner after a long day of work.

The couple was scheduled to get married days later. Family members discovered Mumford's body when she failed to show up for a wedding rehearsal, police said.

Following closing arguments, the judge advised jurors that they had the option to convict Taylor on lesser charges instead of first-degree murder. Instead, the jury returned with a guilty verdict. Deliberations began Thursday afternoon. After a night of rest, the jury returned a guilty verdict around 2 p.m. Friday.

During the penalty phase of the trial on Monday, both the prosecution and defense will make their case to the jury regarding an appropriate sentence.