Staff Writer
Facing the possibility of a deadlocked jury and a mistrial, attorneys in the trial of a teen accused of murder reached a compromise Saturday morning.
Johnny Dinh, 17, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and received a seven-year prison sentence followed by 13 years' probation, said Assistant District Attorney Adam King.
"It was a good compromise under the circumstances," he said.
Mr. Dinh was 14 when he shot 20-year-old Rodney McGhee Jr. to death in 2006. The two were neighbors on Keron Way in Hephzibah.
The victim's father testified this week that he never heard of any problems between his son and Mr. Dinh, who lived nearby with his grandfather. Mr. Dinh would play basketball sometimes at the McGhee home.
About 8 p.m. May 3, 2006, Mr. McGhee was found by his father on the side of the street not far from the family's mailbox. He had been shot once in the chest.
Mr. Dinh had no reason to shoot Mr. McGhee unless he was being attacked, as he told investigators that night, defense attorney Jacque Hawk told the jury in his closing statement.
Mr. Dinh initially claimed someone else must have killed Mr. McGhee. The second story he gave was that when the two crossed paths, an intoxicated Mr. McGhee grabbed him and tore his shirt. Mr. Dinh said he tried to warn off Mr. McGhee by firing his grandfather's .22-caliber Luger at the ground, but Mr. McGhee charged at him and Mr. Dinh fired in self-defense, he told detectives.
That account didn't fit an eyewitness's account, the prosecutor countered.
The witness saw Mr. Dinh arguing with Mr. McGhee before walking away from the teen, Mr. King said.
Two shell casings from the gun were found 15 to 20 feet from Mr. McGhee's body, Mr. King said. How, he asked the jury, can you be in jeopardy from an unarmed man 15 to 20 feet away?
A person is entitled to defend himself if he "reasonably believes" using deadly force is the only answer, but a person can't use deadly force just because someone tore his shirt, Mr. King argued to the jury.
Mr. Dinh told investigators he was scared of Mr. McGhee and of what happened that night. But Mr. King said that after emergency workers and sheriff officers arrived, Mr. Dinh returned to the scene, so how does that fit being scared?
Mr. Dinh's attorney asked the jury to consider the situation from a 14-year-old's perspective. Young teens often don't act reasonably, Mr. Hawk said.
He asked the jury to consider the fact that Mr. Dinh shot Mr. McGhee only once. If he intended to kill, he would have fired several times, Mr. Hawk said.
Jurors deliberated most of the day Friday before announcing they had been deadlocked for hours, Mr. King said. Judge James G. Blanchard Jr. sent them home about 5 p.m. They returned Saturday morning, and the plea deal was reached about an hour later.
Reach Sandy Hodson at (706) 823-3226 or sandy.hodson@augustachronicle.com.
