Recently, our criminal defense team, led by Mark Jetton and Michael Fanous, secured a Not Guilty verdict on all charges in a first- degree murder trial after a week-and-a-half-long jury trial.  

Our client was facing life in prison, without the possibility of parole, and from day one, he maintained the same position: He acted to protect himself and his family.  

A Situation That Escalated Over Time 

In August of 2021, tensions escalated between our client and his child’s step-grandfather, who was a convicted felon and registered sex offender.  

Our client became concerned after observing inappropriate behavior toward his 9-month-old child. When he attempted to set boundaries, the situation quickly turned volatile.  

During this prior confrontation, the step-grandfather pointed a gun at him, and threatened to kill him.  

Following this incident, our client attempted to take legal action to protect himself and his family, including asking law enforcement to investigate this individual for possessing a firearm as a felon, swearing out a criminal summons for Assault by Pointing Gun, and attempting to get a restraining order against this individual. Those efforts did not result in any immediate action, and the situation remained unresolved.  

The Day of the Incident 

Months later, while planning his child’s first birthday party, the mother of the child told the step-grandfather that he was not permitted to attend due to the prior altercation and because of the individual’s status as a registered sex offender. 

Despite that, he showed up, and what followed was a rapid escalation.  

Upon his arrival, the step-grandfather aggressively and violently confronted our client with a gun in his possession. Our client attempted to disengage and run from the situation but eventually, the step-grandfather caught up to our client and began beating him. During the attack, the step-grandfather reached for his firearm, the same firearm he threatened our client with months prior. In defense, our client fired his gun once striking the step-grandfather in the arm. After being shot in the arm, the step-grandfather continued advancing toward our client with his firearm. Our client, in an act of self-defense, fired additional shots toward his attacker. This individual later died from their injuries.  

Our client was cooperative with the police during the entire investigation, waived his rights to have an attorney present during questioning, and sat down with detectives for an extensive interview on the same day of the incident. After a 5-hour interrogation, and before police finished their investigation, they arrested our client and charged him with First Degree Murder.   

After being retained, our criminal defense team got to work, conducting a comprehensive investigation and trial preparation process that revealed critical issues in the State’s case:  

• Video surveillance footage showing our client attempting to retreat rather than engage  

• Multiple witnesses supporting the presence of an immediate and ongoing threat to our client and his family.  

• Key evidence and context that had not been fully developed or considered before police charged our client with First Degree Murder.  

From the beginning, our client maintained that he did not act with premeditation or intent to kill, but rather out of fear for his safety during a violent and rapidly escalating situation. 

Our defense team focused on: 

• Demonstrating the lack of premeditation 

• Highlighting the immediate threat and physical danger our client faced 

• Presenting the full context of prior interactions and escalating tensions 

• Ensuring the jury understood the circumstances surrounding the incident 

THE VERDICT 

After a week-and-a-half-long trial, the jury returned its verdict:  

NOT GUILTY ON FIRST-DEGREE MURDER, NOT GUILTY ON SECOND-DEGREE MURDER, AND NOT GUILTY ON VOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER 

For our client, this verdict secured his freedom and the ability to return to his life and his family after years of uncertainty. 

This verdict reflects the jury’s careful consideration of the facts and the effectiveness of a defense grounded in preparation, strategy, and advocacy.