The man charged with fatally shooting rapper Nispey Hussle has been found guilty of first-degree murder.
On the second day of deliberations, a Los Angeles jury convicted 32-year-old Eric Holder of pulling the trigger in the deadly shooting of Hussle, who was 33 at the time of his death,ABC7, NBC News andCBS Los Angelesall report.
Holder’s attorney, Aaron Jansen, admitted during the trial that his client had shot Hussle. But he claimed the shooting was not premeditated, arguing that it occurred in the “heat of passion,“The New York Timesreports.
Nipsey Hussle.David Crotty/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
Hussle, whose real name is Ermias Joseph Asghedomthen, was shot to death in the parking lot of his Los Angeles clothing store in March 2019.
Eric Holder.
Video footage from the incident showed Holder firing a silver revolver and a black semiautomatic handgun Hussle.
Prosecutors said that after the gunfire stopped, Holder kicked Hussle’s body in the head before he ran away. In his closing argument, McKinney said Holder’s actions after the killing showed that the killing wasn’t a spontaneous act.
“Saying, ‘You’re through,’ before shooting him and shooting him a number of times…kicking him in the head, that’s personal,” he said. “What makes this murder first-degree is premeditation and deliberation.”
During pre-trial hearings, Jansen argued that Holder has a history of mental health issues, including undergoing electroshock therapy. He said that Holder’s mother had died shortly before the shooting, and that he was depressed after abruptly discontinuing his medication.
Holder could face up to life in prison.
He will be sentenced at a later date.
source: people.com
