Court affirms murder conviction

HOUGHTON (AP) — The Michigan Court of Appeals has affirmed the murder conviction of a man who killed his newlywed wife from Iran before she started graduate school at Michigan Technological University.

Sanaz Nezami’s family in Iran allowed her heart, lungs and other organs to be given to seven people. Marquette General Hospital communicated with relatives over online video after putting the 27-year-old’s name into a Google search.

Nima Nassiri was convicted of second-degree murder in 2014. He raised many issues on appeal, including claims of an ineffective attorney and a jury influenced by publicity in the Upper Peninsula. But the appeals court wasn’t swayed.

Nassiri admits he struck his wife but says he didn’t intend to kill her in 2013. He’s eligible for parole in 2033.