By Associated Press - Thursday, October 20, 2016

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) - Attorneys for a Cheyenne teenager who shot a man in the head at point-blank range are appealing their client’s conviction.

The Wyoming Tribune Eagle reports (https://bit.ly/2dCT6Po ) that public defenders representing 17-year-old Phillip Sam submitted documents to the state Supreme Court last week arguing why the conviction should be thrown out.

Sam was sentenced in January to life in prison in connection to the Oct. 5, 2014, death of 19-year-old Tyler Burns. Sam was convicted in August of first-degree murder and 12 counts of aggravated assault and battery with a deadly weapon.

Prosecutors say he took a gun to a pre-arranged fight at a park, fired the weapon at a group of his peers and then approached Burns and shot him in the head as he pleaded for his life. Sam’s attorney argued that Sam acted in self-defense.

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Information from: Wyoming Tribune Eagle, https://www.wyomingnews.com

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