INGLEWOOD, Calif. – A jury has found a 24-year-old man guilty of voluntary manslaughter in the shooting death of a pastor outside his church last year.
Aaron Deon Seymour was acquitted of first and second degree murder charges Friday. He faces six to 21 years in prison.
Pastor Charlie Williams, 70, was found in an alley near the Christian Unity Missionary Baptist Church, which he helped found.
He was shot outside the church following Bible study on April 27, 2005. His wife Lois, who was inside the church, said she heard gunshots, then her husband shout, "Man, what are you trying to do?"
Seymour told investigators the shooting was an accident. He argued that he was jittery after having been shot two months earlier, and was spooked when he bumped into the pastor. Seymour said he pulled out his gun, which accidentally discharged after a struggle with Williams.
Prosecutors said Seymour had been trying to rob Williams and argued that ballistic evidence refuted his story.
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