White Alabama officer convicted of manslaughter in death of unarmed black man
A jury in Ozark, Alabama, on Friday found a white officer guilty of manslaughter in the 2016 shooting of Greg Gunn, an unarmed black man, a CBS affiliate in Montgomery reported. District Attorney Darryl Bailey said the state will ask for the maximum sentence, according to the station.
Prosecutors had charged Aaron Cody Smith with murder, but jurors returned the unanimous verdict on the charge of manslaughter, The Associated Press reported.
Smith shot Gunn, 58, when he was walking home late at night in Montgomery, Alabama. Smith stopped Gunn for a stop-and-frisk, according to the AP. During the stop, Gunn allegedly fled from Smith, and the defense said Gunn grabbed a painter's poll from a nearby porch. Prosecutors argued that Gunn was never a threat, the AP reported.
The defense cited Alabama's Stand Your Ground Law, the first time the law has been used by an officer in the state.
The trial was repeatedly delayed as eight successive judges recused themselves from the case, according to The New York Times.