TULSA, Okla. (AP) - The Latest on Oklahoma man convicted of killing his Lebanese neighbor (all times local):
4:45 p.m.
An Oklahoma prosecutor says a murder and hate crime conviction in the fatal shooting of a Lebanese man is “vindication” for the victim’s family.
Jurors on Wednesday found 63-year-old Stanley Vernon Majors guilty in the shooting death of 37-year-old Khalid Jabara outside his Tulsa home.
Prosecutors alleged Majors killed Jabara after bombarding him with racial insults in a feud with Jabara’s family that lasted several years. Majors’ attorneys claimed he was insane.
Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler says the case also “exposed an ugly but real segment of the population whose prejudice oftentimes dictates their actions toward other human beings.”
Kunzweiler called on state lawmakers to stiffen the penalty for committing a hate crime, which is a misdemeanor in Oklahoma.
___
3:25 p.m.
An Oklahoma man accused of fatally shooting his Lebanese neighbor has been convicted of first-degree murder and hate crime charges.
The 12-member jury on Wednesday found 63-year-old Stanley Vernon Majors guilty in the August 2016 shooting death of 37-year-old Khalid Jabara outside his Tulsa home. Prosecutors alleged that Majors killed Jabara after bombarding him with racial insults in a feud with Jabara’s family that lasted several years.
Majors previously pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and malicious intimidation and harassment, which is Oklahoma’s hate-crime law.
Majors had undergone a mental competency examination and been found competent to stand trial. But defense attorneys had argued in court papers that Majors showed signs of dementia and appeared to have problems with his long-term memory. They said those issues interfered with their ability to prepare a defense.
___
2:50 p.m.
An Oklahoma jury has begun deliberating the fate of a man charged with first-degree murder and a hate crime in the 2016 killing of his Lebanese neighbor.
Lawyers in Stanley Majors’ case gave closing arguments Wednesday, then jurors got their instructions. Majors is on trial in Tulsa for the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Khalid Jabara.
Prosecutors say the 63-year-old Majors was motivated by hatred and jealousy and bombarded Jabara and his family for years with racial epithets before the killing.
Defense attorneys asked jurors to find Majors not guilty by reason of insanity. A psychiatrist for the defense testified that Majors couldn’t fully understand or appreciate his actions when he shot Jabara.
Majors previously pleaded not-guilty to first-degree murder and malicious intimidation and harassment, which is Oklahoma’s hate-crime law.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.