A Nevada jury has chosen not to convict a landlord on first-degree murder charges after he shot two unarmed trespassers, killing one of them, last year.
According to the Associated Press, 74-year-old Wayne Burgarello was also found not guilty of voluntary and involuntary manslaughter, in addition to second-degree and attempted murder charges yesterday. In February 2014, Burgarello fatally shot Cody Devine and severely injured Janai Wilson at an abandoned Reno, Nev. duplex he owns:
Wilson testified during the two-week trial that she stayed at the duplex off and on for three years. She said Burgarello opened fire without provocation while she and Devine were sleeping in a makeshift bed on the floor.
Neither trespasser had a firearm, but Burgarello told police Devine's arm came up like a gun.
Ristenpart said he might have mistaken a black flashlight found at the scene for a gun and had only a split second to respond. She said it was Devine and Wilson, not Burgarello, who created the dangerous, threatening situation, trespassing, getting high on meth and being where they shouldn't be, where they had no right to be.
If convicted of first-degree murder, Burgarello could've faced life in prison without the possibility of parole.
[via Associated Press]
