Verdict expected in trial over St. Petersburg shooting by deputy
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Delvin Ford, 26, leaves the courtroom during his murder and attempted murder trial at the Pinellas County Criminal Justice Center. Photo: Kathryn Varn/Axios
A verdict is expected this week in a trial that calls into question the official narrative of a fatal shooting by a Pinellas County sheriff's deputy nearly four years ago.
Why it matters: How the jurors rule in the case against Delvin Ford, 26, will be as much a judgment of Deputy Richard Curry and his agency's account as a statement of Ford's guilt or innocence.
State of play: Ford faces charges of second-degree murder and attempted murder of a law enforcement officer for what authorities say was his role in the January 2020 shooting that killed his friend, 29-year-old Marquis Golden.
- While Curry fired the shots that killed Golden, Florida law allows authorities to charge someone with murder if they take part in certain crimes that result in someone's death.
The latest: Ford, 26, took the stand Friday, telling jurors he, Golden and another friend were hanging out in a music studio in the alley behind his family's St. Petersburg home off 36th Street South on the night of the shooting.
- Golden told him about a shooting that had happened near the house earlier in the day, which Ford said left him concerned. He called a few family members to pick him up, but none were available.
- He spotted a car parked in the alley, grabbed a handgun from the studio and went outside to check it out, keeping the gun hidden, he told jurors.
- Ford acknowledged that, because he had previously been convicted of several drug-related felonies, he shouldn't have had a gun at all.
- He couldn't see through the tinted windows, he said, so he went to the driver's side window and tapped on it.
The intrigue: This is when the accounts diverge. Police said it was Golden, not Ford, who approached the car and knocked on the window.
- The case hinges on whether the men knew Curry was a cop. If it was Golden who approached the car, only Curry could describe their interaction, because Golden died that night.
Zoom in: Ford told jurors the person in the car cracked the window maybe an inch. He couldn't see who was inside, he told the jury. The person told him to get away from the car.
- He backed away toward the music studio and saw that Golden had come outside with a rifle. Keeping the barrel pointed down, Ford said, Golden asked him what the person in the car said. Ford said he tried to wave off the car like, "You can't park here."
- The person in the car then got out and started shooting at them, Ford said. Ford ran away down the alley, firing five shots behind him as he went.
- He said he never knew the man was a deputy.
What he's saying: "I never knew I was running from the police," he said. "My mind was everywhere. I was confused, scared, nervous."
The other side: Curry said during his court testimony last week that he rolled the window about three-quarters of the way down, that he was wearing a vest that said "SHERIFF" in bold white letters and that the man called him a slang word for police.
- Then, according to Curry, one of the men pointed a rifle at him. Curry, concerned about being trapped in the car with bullets flying, got out of the car and started shooting.
What's next: Lawyers for each side are expected to make closing arguments today, after which the judge will release the jury for deliberations.