Preston Walls, 19, had been charged with first-degree murder in the deaths, but jurors found him guilty of lesser charges. That seemed to indicate jurors accepted Walls’ claim that he fired on the students because he feared for his life.
If Walls had been convicted of first-degree murder, he would have faced a mandatory sentence of life in prison. His conviction of second-degree murder in the death of Carr and voluntary manslaughter in the death of Dameron means he will be eligible for parole.Defense attorneys acknowledged Walls killed the two students and shot Keeps, but they argued he did so because he believed his.
“I was scared to walk out of that school at 1 o’clock. They waited outside the school for me before,” Walls told jurors. Police arrested Walls less than an hour after the shooting. Another person, Bravon Tukes, is scheduled to stand trial on murder charges on Oct. 2. He’s accused of picking up Walls after the shooting and driving away from the area.