Michael Dunn Trial: Mistrial Declared on Murder Charge in Loud Music Killing Case
Feb. 15, 2014— -- A Florida jury found Michael Dunn guilty on four of the five charges in a case in which he was accused of shooting a teenager to death over loud music, but they could not come to a decision on the murder charge and a mistrial was declared on that count.
Dunn, 47, had faced a first degree murder charge for the shooting death of Jordan Davis, 17, in a Jacksonville convenience store parking lot on Nov. 23, 2012.
The judge had instructed the jury that they could consider lesser charges, including second degree murder, manslaughter, justifiable homicide or excusable homicide, but they said the could not come to an agreement on any of those charges.
Dunn was found guilty of three counts of attempted second degree murder for shooting at other teens in car and one count of firing a gun into a car.
Prosecutors alleged that Dunn fatally shot Davis after he asked the teen and his friends to turn down their music.
Dunn testified that he feared for his life and thought Davis was going to kill him, prompting Dunn to pull out his gun and fire nine times at the car that the teenagers were sitting in.
Assistant State Attorney Erin Wolfson told jurors that Dunn "fired round after round after round" at Davis and his friends as they sat in their car. She said Davis was inside the SUV when he was killed. Dunn claims the teen had gotten out of the vehicle.
In his closing argument, Dunn's attorney Cory Strolla said that his client had a right to "meet force with force." He said the state has the burden to prove that Davis didn't brandish a gun at Dunn, as Dunn has claimed.
