The teen was shot nine times on Saginaw’s East Side.
SAGINAW, MI — The accused killer of a 16-year-old boy who was shot nine times nearly five years ago to the date was found guilty Friday.
A jury declared Shawn Michael Highshaw guilty Friday, Nov. 17, of first-degree murder, felon in possession of firearm and two counts felony firearm, said Saginaw County Assistant Prosecutor Trevis Ruffin.
The punishment for first-degree murder is mandatory life without parole. Highshaw, 25, was charged with open murder, which meant jurors could have chosen first- or second-degree murder.
The victim in the case, 16-year-old Walter Riley III, was shot five times in the head and four times in the body on Nov. 16,2012, in the 3300 block of Rust in the city of Saginaw.
«It’s a great thing to be able to bring justice and closure to Camisha Simpson and Walter Riley’s family,» Ruffin said after the verdict.
It was the second time a jury heard the case against Highshaw.
The first trial against Highshaw was declared a mistrial March 31 after jurors failed to reach a verdict following three days of deliberations.
The jury in this trial reached their decision within a day-and-a-half. The case was heard before Circuit Judge Andre R. Borrello.
Prosecutors previously said Highshaw took the young man’s life after a loud argument in the street, and that the only two witnesses to the killing didn’t immediately speak up out of fear.
A sentencing date for Highshaw hasn’t been set.
