An Atlanta man who shot and killed another man who was breaking into his car in 2017 has been convicted of murder, officials said.
Josiah Gilbert, 31, was found guilty on charges of felony murder, voluntary manslaughter, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said in a statement.
The victim was identified as 20-year-old Marcus Mitchell of Decatur, according to Gilbert’s indictment. An incident report prepared by Atlanta police confirmed he was likely breaking into a car before he was shot.
The shooting took place June 23, 2017, outside Gilbert’s apartment on Candler Road, an area in DeKalb that falls just inside Atlanta’s city limits. Gilbert told police he heard someone breaking into his car so he grabbed his handgun, Boston said. The defendant shot Mitchell in the back of the head from about 40 yards away.
The incident report said Mitchell appeared to have been shot as he tried to flee the scene. He was taken to the hospital in critical condition. By the time Mitchell was pronounced dead, investigators had reviewed security camera footage of the incident, the report said. The officer wrote that Mitchell was seen “running away from the scene and not being a threat to Gilbert or a third party.”
Gilbert was initially arrested on charges of aggravated assault with intent to murder, but his charges were upgraded when Mitchell died in the hospital several days later.
He is set to be sentenced at a hearing Aug. 25, Boston said.
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