GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The man accused of using an AR-15 to gun down his ex-girlfriend as she sat in a parked car with their young daughter last year has been found guilty of first-degree murder.
Kent County jurors returned the verdict late Wednesday morning against 27-year-old Luis Bernal-Sosa.
Kent County Prosecutor Chris Becker called the May 31 death of Leah Gomez in a downtown Grand Rapids parking lot “an execution.” She was shot several times while parked along Commerce Avenue SW. Her 21-month-old daughter, who was in the back seat, was not hurt.
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The defendant’s attorney did not dispute his client fired the deadly shots. Rather, he asked jurors to find Bernal-Sosa guilty of the lesser offense of manslaughter, noting Bernal-Sosa’s mental state at the time.
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The trial got underway with jury selection on Monday. Testimony was heard throughout the day on Tuesday and closing statements took place Wednesday before the case was turned over to jurors mid-morning.