(Reuters) - A white suburban Detroit homeowner was found guilty on Thursday of second-degree murder in the shooting of an unarmed black teen on his porch in a case that set off protests and fanned racial tensions.
A Detroit jury delivered its verdict against Theodore Wafer, 55, on the second day of deliberations.
Wafer fired a shotgun through his screen door, killing Renisha McBride, 19, after she repeatedly knocked on his door seeking help after a car accident on Nov. 2.
The killing sparked protests in Dearborn Heights and comparisons to the 2012 Florida shooting death of Trayvon Martin, a black teenager who was also unarmed.
Wafer also was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter and firearms charges. He faces up to life in prison for killing McBride, who had been drinking and smoking marijuana before getting into a car crash, according to testimony.
"Her life mattered and we showed that," said McBride's mother, Monica McBride, after the verdict. She hugged Wayne County assistant prosecuting attorney Patrick Muscat.
Wafer had said the shooting was an accident and that he had been alarmed by violent knocking on his front and side doors, fearing a break-in. He said he "shot in fear" through the screen door but was not aiming at anything.
But Muscat told jurors Wafer treated his Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun "like a toy" instead of a deadly weapon, and that his actions were unjustified.
"He should have called 911," McBride's mother said.
"That could have been anybody's kid," said Walter Simmons, Renisha McBride's father, when asked if race was a factor. "I think he was ready for whoever came to his door."
Jurors and Wafer's defense attorney, Cheryl Carpenter, declined to talk to reporters.
Wafer must go to jail before being sentenced on Aug. 21 before Judge Dana Hathaway. Hathaway denied a defense request to keep Wafer out of jail before sentencing.
"We sincerely hope that this brings some comfort to the family of Renisha McBride," Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a statement.
(Reporting by Aaron Foley; Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Sandra Maler)
