Arrr! A lass from Georgia be scufflin' in court, aye, fer takin' down a scurvy stranger in a citizen's arrest!
2023-12-13
Avast, me hearties! Hannah Payne, a lass of 25 summers, be found guilty of the crime o' murder in a Georgia court on Tuesday. She didst pursue 62-year-old Kenneth Herring, after a clash o' carriages, and didst fire upon him in a noble attempt at a citizen's arrest. Arrr, justice be served!
A woman named Hannah Payne was convicted of felony murder, malice murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, and weapons possession charges in a Clayton County court in Georgia. The incident occurred after Payne witnessed a minor traffic crash caused by Kenneth Herring running a red light. Payne claimed that she intended to take down Herring's license plate number for 911 dispatchers but witnesses testified that she cut off Herring with her car, punched him, and then threatened to shoot him before actually doing so. The jury took only two hours to reach a verdict, and Payne sobbed as it was read.During her testimony, Payne stated that she never intended to fire her gun and believed that Herring shot himself during a struggle for the weapon. She explained that she pursued Herring in her car after he left the scene of the crash because she wanted to ensure he didn't cause another accident. However, multiple 911 operators had explicitly told her not to chase him. Prosecutors argued that she used deadly force as the initial aggressor and refuted her self-defense claim.
After shooting Herring, Payne called for an ambulance and later claimed to be overwhelmed and scared. Her sentencing is scheduled for Friday. Her defense attorney argued that she was a young girl caught in the wrong situation and was trying to do the right thing. Herring's family expressed relief and rejoiced at the verdict.