What we learned during the Huguenot graduation shooting trial

• It also gave insight into the relationship between Pollard and Jackson, two childhood friends who once "played at each other's homes as young boys," wrote RPS Superintendent Jason Kamras after the plea.
• "Now one is dead at the hand of the other, and both families are forever destroyed."

State of play: Pollard's case hinged on proving the 20-year-old acted in self-defense after Jackson, along with three armed friends and his stepfather, approached him.

• That fell apart Thursday when the judge refused to believe there was no intent to kill, reports the Times-Dispatch.
• Evidence showed Pollard shot an unarmed Jackson six times before Smith pulled out a gun and shot back.
• Two of Jackson's friends also fired their guns, but police considered it self-defense. Both were charged with reckless handling of a firearm, per WTVR.

Zoom in: After shooting Jackson, Pollard went into a nearby parking deck, where he ran into a VCU officer and said, "I'm sorry … I thought they were going to kill me."

• Pollard later told a detective he blamed Jackson and his friends for killing one of his close friends in 2021 but that "it was not retaliation."

What we're watching: The trial only focused on Jackson, and ballistics reports in court showed Pollard didn't kill Smith.

• Pollard's attorney said a stray bullet from Jackson's friends did, according to the Times-Dispatch.
• But that hasn't been confirmed, and it's unclear whether anyone has been charged for Smith's death or the shootings of five other bystanders who were injured.
• Richmond Police Chief Rick Edwards told WRIC there are two more trials pending "where some of that information will come out."