Today, a jury found Michael Washington guilty of the 2013 Charlotte, NC murder of 48-year-old Marine Corps veteran Oren Reed.
The case originally went to trial in 2016. That jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict and Michael was released. Homicide prosecutors retried the case to seek justice for Mr. Reed and his family.
As a result, Michael will spend the rest of his life in prison. The second trial began May 13, 2019. The jury found Michael guilty as charged.
Michael was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, as well as an additional 17-30 months in prison. In November 2013, a relative went to Mr. Reed’s Charlotte home and discovered his body. He had been shot multiple times. Police determined that someone had broken into the home through the back door.
Within days, Michael was arrested while attempting to break into another home. In his pocket was the gun that firearms testing showed killed Mr. Reed. Further analysis showed that DNA discovered on Mr. Reed’s back door matched Michael.
