Jury Reaches Verdict On 3rd Try, Finds Man Guilty In Mpls. Homicide

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A 29-year-old Minneapolis man has been found guilty of shooting a man dead in north Minneapolis in 2012, the Hennepin County Attorney's Office announced Monday.

Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman says it took three tries, but a jury convicted Jermaine Edward Harris of second-degree murder in connection to the death of 30-year-old Richard Jinkins.

According to authorities, Harris had been feuding with Jinkins because Jinkins was seeing Harris' former girlfriend. Then, on Nov. 21, 2012, both men and two others bought some drugs and parked the car just east of 2611 3rd St. N.

Jinkins then got out of the car to urinate against the Interstate 94 sound barrier. While Jinkins was doing that, Harris got out of the car, shot Jinkins multiple times and then drove away.

Two different times last year, a jury was unable to reach a verdict and a mistrial was declared.

"I cannot think of another case in my 16 years as county attorney where we had to try the same defendant three times before we obtained a verdict," Freeman said. "But we believed that Mr. Harris was a danger to the community and needed to be put away. This time, the jury agreed."

Harris will be sentenced March 21.