A judge declared a mistrial Friday after jurors failed to reach a verdict in the case of a man accused in the Halloween 2010 shooting death of a 5-year-old boy in South Los Angeles.
Aaron Shannon Jr. was posing for photos in his Spider-man costume when two men fired shots at the boy and his family members, police and relatives said. Leonard Hall Jr., 24, the man accused of firing the shots was charged with murder and attempted murder.
Jurors deadlocked at 9-3 in favor of a guilty verdict. Deliberations are expected to continue with a read-back of testimony May 9.
Aaron was getting ready to attend a Halloween party in the backyard of his home on the 1000 block of East 84th Street in South LA when he was shot in the back of the head. He died the next day at the hospital.
Aaron’s grandfather, William Shannon, and uncle, Terrence Shannon, were grazed by bullets, but the wounds were not considered serious.
Police said the two men who fired the shots were members of the Kitchen Crips Gang, and mistakenly fired shots at the boy and his family thinking the house belonged to rivals.
Marcus Denson, who was 18 at the time, also was arrested in the case. He is due in court in May, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Inmate Locator website.
Photo Credit: AP