Final verdict reached in Hadiya Pendleton murder case
A jury has wrapped up convictions in the 2013 murder of King College Prep sophomore Hadiya Pendleton. Mickiael Ward has been found guilty of all counts.
Ward was also found guilty of aggravated battery to Sebastian Moore and Lawrence Sellers. They were Pendleton’s King College Prep classmates who were injured when Ward allegedly fired a round of shots.
In the end, the verdict centered on a video where Ward confessed. His attorney argued it was coerced by detectives.
It took five years for the legal proceedings to run their course, but only three hours for a jury to come to a verdict.
Ward is the second defendant to be convicted in the case. The alleged getaway driver, Kenneth Williams, was also found guilty of first degree murder and two counts of aggravated battery by a separate jury.
Ward is a suspected gang member. He claims he was ordered to fire on the group of King College Prep students by Williams because they were believed to be rival gang members.
A sentencing date has not been announced yet.
