A jury has found one of three inmates charged in a deadly 2017 prison riot in Delaware guilty of reckless murder and murder of a law enforcement officer while on duty.
The jury convicted Dwayne Staats on all charges except for intentional murder in connection to the 18-hour uprising at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center near Smyrna, which left correctional officer Lt. Steven Floyd dead.
After three days of deliberations, the jury also found Jarreau Ayers guilty on charges of riot, conspiracy, kidnapping, and assault.
A third defendant, Deric Forney, was found not guilty on all counts in the first of several trials of all 18 inmates charged in connection with standoff.
Ayers and Staats, who represented themselves at trial, already are serving life sentences for murder. Forney, who is serving 11 years for various firearm and drug convictions, will be released in 2023 if he serves his entire sentence.
Throughout the four-week trial, the defendants testified that they wanted to protest poor conditions at the prison, but they never intended to kill Floyd.
(Click on the headline below for the full story from WHYY)
Jury in first Delaware prison riot trial convicts two, one of murder
