Lessie Britton Found Guilty Of Murdering Denver Neighbor After He Used Racial Slur

DENVER (CBS4) - A Denver jury this week found a 76-year-old man guilty of shooting and killing his 46-year-old neighbor last year. Lessie Britton killed Fernando Martinez-Briones after the two had been arguing about use of an alley they shared near the intersection of at MLK Boulevard and Monaco Parkway.

Britton shot Martinez-Briones from his SUV in June 2020 after Martinez-Briones used a racist term to describe him. Martinez-Briones's two children witnessed the shooting. One was a juvenile.

Denver District Attorney Beth McCann said in a prepared statement that the crime was a "horrific act" and that it "traumatized the broader neighborhood." She referred to Britton as a habitual offender.

The jury convicted Britton on Monday after several hours of deliberations on the following charges:

- second degree murder
- criminal attempt to commit murder in the first degree
- first degree assault
- menacing

A sentencing date for Britton hasn't been scheduled yet.