Jackie Garcia Haley last week. (Reuters pool photo)
After four days of deliberations, a Miami jury has found Eric Rivera
Jr. guilty of second-degree murder in connection with the 2007 shooting
death of Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor.
Rivera, 23, and four other men were accused of the shooting. Three
pleaded not guilty and are awaiting trial; a fourth is in prison after
pleading guilty to second-degree murder. The 12-member jury also found
Rivera guilty of a gun charge, according to the Miami Herald. Rivera had been charged with first-degree murder, but still could face life in prison despite the second-degree finding.
Taylor, who was in Florida recovering from a knee injury, surprised
intruders inside his Palmetto Bay, Fla., home on Nov. 26, 2007. Taylor,
his girlfriend and 18-month-old daughter were awakened by the burglars
and Taylor was shot as he entered a hallway with a machete. The bullet
struck his femoral artery and he suffered massive blood loss, dying the
next day.
It took 2,169 days since the death of former Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor, but justice has been served.
Eric Rivera was convicted of second-degree murder nearly six years following the death of Taylor after being shot during a burglary attempt at Taylor's home in Florida.
Rivera faced first-degree murder charges, but the jury — after a
16-hour deliberation — convicted him on the lesser charge of
second-degree murder and he still could be sentenced to life in prison.
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