Theodore Wafer, the Dearborn Heights, Mi., homeowner who fatally shot 19-year-old Renisha McBride on his front porch last November, was convicted of second-degree murder, manslaughter and using a firearm in the commission of a felony by a jury of four African-Americans and eight whites, the Detroit News reports. The verdict came during the second day of deliberations. Wafer, 55, who had been free on bond, was ordered to jail immediately and could face life imprisonment. He will be sentenced Aug. 21. The News said the verdict “closes a chapter in a racially charged case that spotlighted the conditions under which a man can defend himself with fatal force on his own property.”
Walter Simmons, the victim's father called Wafer ” a cold-blooded killer” and said he hopes he is sentenced to life imprisonment. During his 11-day trial, prosecutors characterized Wafer as an angry and paranoid man who kept a loaded Mossberg 500 shotgun at his home after he suspected neighborhood kids were responsible for vandalizing his vehicle with paint balls. Wafer testified that he feared for his life after hearing banging on his side and front doors. He said he pulled the trigger “to protect myself, to save myself. It was them or me.”