After four days of deliberation, a jury deadlocked in the trial of former Charlotte-Mecklenburg, N.C., Police Officer Randall Kerrick, 27, who was charged with voluntary manslaughter in the 2013 shooting death of 24-year-old former Floridan A&M football player Jonathan Ferrell.
The 12-member jury—consisting of eight women (two African American, two Hispanic) and four men (three white, one African American)—deadlocked at 8-4, leading Superior Court Judge Robert Ervin to declare a mistrial.
Closing arguments began Aug. 18 at 9:30 a.m. and ended around 12:15 p.m. The jury was handed the case at approximately 1 p.m. that day and struggled to come to a consensus on whether or not Kerrick killed Ferrell in self-defense.
Kerrick faced up to 11 years in prison.
As previously reported on The Root, on the night of Sept. 14, 2013, Ferrell, who was unarmed, was seeking help after a severe car accident when he knocked on the door of Sarah McCartney, who was home alone with her 1-year-old child.
Instead of helping him, McCartney slammed the door in Ferrell’s face and called 911 to report that someone was forcibly breaking into her home.
Kerrick was one of several officers who responded. Once they arrived on the scene, police dash-cam footage shows Ferrell calmly approaching them before suddenly attempting to run around them at approximately the 10:09 mark.
Source: The Root | KIRSTEN WEST SAVALI
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