A man who admitted he hit an 18-year-old Somali immigrant whose dead body was found in a ditch in North Dakota was found guilty of murder and criminal conspiracy Thursday.
A jury of eight women and four men deliberated for a day and half before finding Leron Howard, 35, guilty in the April 2011 killing of Abdi Ali Ahmed.
Howard's attorney, Steve Mottinger, had asked the jury to find Howard guilty of a lesser charge of manslaughter. Howard testified on his own behalf during the five-day trial, saying he hit Ahmed twice but that another person, Janelle Cave, stabbed him.
Cave was convicted in February of manslaughter and criminal conspiracy in the case and is serving an 11-year prison sentence. She is appealing.
The state medical examiner testified that Ahmed died from two severe blows to his head. He also was stabbed twice. His body was found in a ditch.
Following the guilty verdict, Judge Thomas E. Merrick ordered a pre-sentencing investigation, which could take up to eight weeks. Howard faces up to a life in prison without parole when sentenced.
Source: NECN.com
A jury of eight women and four men deliberated for a day and half before finding Leron Howard, 35, guilty in the April 2011 killing of Abdi Ali Ahmed.
Howard's attorney, Steve Mottinger, had asked the jury to find Howard guilty of a lesser charge of manslaughter. Howard testified on his own behalf during the five-day trial, saying he hit Ahmed twice but that another person, Janelle Cave, stabbed him.
Cave was convicted in February of manslaughter and criminal conspiracy in the case and is serving an 11-year prison sentence. She is appealing.
The state medical examiner testified that Ahmed died from two severe blows to his head. He also was stabbed twice. His body was found in a ditch.
Following the guilty verdict, Judge Thomas E. Merrick ordered a pre-sentencing investigation, which could take up to eight weeks. Howard faces up to a life in prison without parole when sentenced.
Source: NECN.com
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