A Saginaw County man was recently acquitted of several serious assault and other felony charges in connection with an armed robbery and shooting that took place last May, outside of Celebration Hall in Saginaw. Had Demonte M. Anderson, 20, been convicted he may have been facing up to life in prison. Anderson was accused of one count of armed robbery and two counts of assault with intent to murder, as well as 8 other felonies.
Anderson was charged with attempting to rob a man named Travon McDuffy. According to prosecutors, the robbery was interrupted by a friend of McDuffy’s, Kendrick Rogers, and Anderson preceded to shoot Rogers in the leg. McDuffy reportedly then ran away with Anderson shooting at him as well but missing. A third victim, Kyrie Green, also suffered minor injuries from a bullet grazing. McDuffy and Green testified at the trial last week, but Rogers was kept away due to his wounds, which required a partial amputation.
Jury ultimately acquits Anderson
Over the course of two days the jury deliberated on the charges, before ultimately acquitting Anderson on the most significant of them. However, the jury did not reach a verdict on the remaining 8 felony charges, including another assault charge, and Saginaw County Circuit Judge Darnell Jackson ruled a mistrial by hung jury. Prosecutors intend to retry Anderson on the remaining charges.
Prior to the trial Anderson declined a plea deal, in which the assault with intent to murder charges would have been dropped in exchange for pleading to lesser assault charges and the other offenses. While the acquittals are certainly good news for Anderson, the hung jury on the other counts is not. Most Saginaw County Criminal Defense attorneys would probably tell you that the odds of obtaining a conviction after a hung jury favor the prosecution in a case like this.
The full story can be found here in on mlive.com.