DAYTON — A jury has reached a verdict in the trial of a man accused of killing a high school student near the downtown RTA hub last spring.
News Center 7’s Mike Campbell has been following this case since the beginning, he will have the latest LIVE on News Center 7 at 5:00 and 6:00.
Julius Williamson Jr., 24, was found guilty on all counts, including murder.
As News Center 7 has previously reported, Alfred Hale III, 18, was waiting for a bus to take him to Dunbar High School, where he was a senior.
The shooting happened early in the morning, around the time that hundreds of Dayton Public School students arrive at the RTA hub and transfer buses to get to school.
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Hale went to a store that was 100 feet away to buy snacks, but a confrontation led to a shooting that led to bystanders trying to save his life.
Vokachantelle Vaughn, a witness, said “I believe a young man has been shot; he’s in the store screaming, I smell the gun residue, yeah, he’s shot in the chest.”
The woman who made that 911 call testified in court that she is a nurse. You could hear her working on the teen and encouraging him as Dayton medics rushed to the scene.
Store surveillance video showed that Vaughn carried a bag with gloves and other medical equipment and began working to help the teen.
“He was breathing, he was moving, asking for help,” Vaughn said.
She said she noticed a tussle outside the In-N-Out Convenience store just before she heard a gunshot, and then the teen walked into the store and collapsed.
Prosecutors also called the store’s owner to the stand. Mohammed “Mike” Wilhelm said, “I was in the cashier area, a guy with a blue hoodie, then falls to the ground.”
The store owner testified that on video you could see him briefly walk past the victim and check outside. He said he wanted to make sure there were no more gunshots or danger so they could safely concentrate on trying to save Hale’s life.
“I tried to push on his chest. We could not save him. I’m sorry for everyone, but that’s what happened,” Wilhelm said.
This shooting caught the attention of state lawmakers, who passed a law last summer banning students from using RTA buses to get to class. However, Dayton Public Schools filed a lawsuit seeking to allow students to continue using the RTA.
A judge granted a preliminary injunction. That case goes to trial in September.
Sentencing will happen at a later date.
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