Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - A jury has found a 16-year-old Buffalo male guilty of one count of Manslaughter in the First Degree (Class "B" violent felony) and one count of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree (Class "C" violent felony) for his involvement in a fatal shooting in South Buffalo more than a year-and-a-half ago.
Jurors rendered their decision on Monday afternoon after approximately two hours of deliberation following a four-day trial, convicting the juvenile offender of the lesser included offense in the first count and the second count, as charged, in the indictment against him.
It was on Sunday, June 26, 2022 at approximately 12:23 a.m. EST when Buffalo Police responded to a shooting on the 100 block of Spaulding Avenue in the City of Buffalo. Officers found the victim, 24-year-old Morrell Buster, Jr., deceased in the middle of the road. The victim died from a gunshot wound to his neck.
The juvenile offender, who was 14-years-old at the time of the crime, shot the victim with an illegal gun. The weapon was not recovered.
The juvenile offender, who is eligible for youthful offender adjudication, is scheduled to be sentenced before Erie County Court Judge Susan Eagan, a designated Youth Part judge, on Wednesday, April 3 at 9:30 a.m. EST.
He continues to be held without bail in the custody of the Erie County Youth Services Center.
If denied youthful offender status, he faces a maximum sentence of an indeterminate term of three-and-a-third years to 10 years of incarceration.
The Erie County District Attorney's Office will not release the name of the juvenile offender due to his age.
