A Michigan judge has rejected a self-defense claim by a Detroit-area man who fatally shot an unarmed woman.
Theodore Wafer says 19-year-old Renisha McBride was trying to break into his home. Wafer's accused of shooting McBride in the face on his front porch, through his screen door, in the middle of the night.
Civil rights groups say race may have played a role in the shooting.
Now a jury will deliberate.
“A Michigan judge ruled there's enough evidence to let a jury decide whether Wafer is guilty of second-degree murder and manslaughter. He's pleaded not guilty,” reports CNN’s Susan Candiotti.
“What Wafer didn't know was that McBride had crashed her car several blocks away, after a night of heavy drinking and smoking pot. The judge is questioning whether the homeowner had to pick up a gun at all,” Candiotti says.
Defense attorneys had theorized that Wafer feared for his life, which made the prosecution furious.
McBride's family now wait to learn whether someone will be held responsible for their daughter's violent death.
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