Yesterday, an Alameda County jury acquitted 26-year-old Harry Black of first-degree, premeditated murder in the Jan. 1, 2023, shooting outside a smoke shop in East Oakland, but could not agree on several other charges. The split decision keeps Black, who has already pleaded no contest to a felon-in-possession count, locked up at Santa Rita Jail while prosecutors decide whether to take him back to trial or strike a deal. The shooting left 55-year-old James Stephens dead and another man wounded, and jurors spent hours studying video of the confrontation at the heart of the case.
Partial verdict leaves key questions
The panel returned a not-guilty verdict on the first-degree murder charge, according to the East Bay Times. Jurors also sent the judge a note explaining that they were stuck on the remaining counts, which kept the most serious unresolved allegations hanging in the air. Prosecutors now have to decide whether to gear up for a second trial or pursue a negotiated plea.
How jurors split and what they saw
Jurors reportedly came back with near-verdict tallies, voting 11-1 on the murder charge and 10-1 with one abstention on a voluntary manslaughter count, as reported by The Mercury News. The shooting unfolded on the 6900 block of International Boulevard on New Year’s Day 2023, where prosecutors say Black confronted Roger Johnson and, after a scuffle, fired at least one shot that killed Stephens and hit Johnson in the leg. Defense attorneys told jurors that Black showed the butt of an AR-style weapon tucked in his waistband in an attempt to avoid a fight and that he pulled the trigger only after Johnson reached for the gun.
Witness testimony and the video
At a November 2024 preliminary hearing and again at trial, Johnson testified that he grabbed for Black’s gun and at one point told jurors, “He just shot my friend and shot me. Why not?” according to the East Bay Times. Court records and testimony show that jurors repeatedly reviewed video of the confrontation as they tried to sort through dueling self-defense stories. The footage, the clashing witness accounts, and uncertainty over who started the fight all became key issues in the jury room.
Black has already entered a no-contest plea to being a felon in possession of a firearm and will be sentenced on that count only after the unresolved charges are sorted out, The Mercury News reports. Prosecutors and defense lawyers now have a choice to make, either prepare for a second jury trial on the remaining counts or hash out a plea agreement that would close the book on the case. For now, Black remains held without bail at Santa Rita Jail while both sides weigh their options…