A New Orleans jury has found Corey “C-Murder” Miller guilty of second-degree murder, in relation to January 12, 2002 death of 16-year-old Steve Thomas.
The jury reached a verdict earlier this morning, although the judge has order them to continue to deliberate as one juror may have been in a rush to end the trial.
A jury of seven women and five men told Judge Hans Liljeberg they were deadlocked over Miller's guilt regarding the shooting death of the teenager during a dispute in Club Platinum, a defunct nightclub in Harvey.
Around 3:00 PM yesterday, the jury told Judge Hans Liljeberg that they were deadlocked after deliberating for about three hours, in a case that only took a week to try.
Judge Liljeberg ordered them to continue deliberating stating that he had juries with lessor charges deliberate for over eight hours.
Prosecutors wrapped up their closing arguments to the jury around 10:00 am, while Miller’s attorney finished his around 10:40 AM yesterday.
The jury asked Judge Hans Liljeberg to clarify the definition of second-degree murder twice during their deliberations.
The trial comes seven years after Thomas’ death, who would have been 23-years-old this year.
Miller was convicted of second-degree murder in September of 2003, but the verdict was overturned in Louisiana Supreme Court, after it was revealed that prosecutors expunged several witnesses’ criminal backgrounds in hopes of boosting their credibility.
Under Louisiana law, Miller must serve a mandatory sentence of life in prison if he is found guilty.
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