A jury on Friday night found Cristobal Palacio guilty of second-degree murder and two counts of child abuse in the death of his ex-wife’s new husband.
Palacio, 46, was charged with first-degree murder in the killing of Paul Winter four years ago in Palacio's Kendall driveway.
But the jury opted to convict him of the lesser murder charge instead, as well as child abuse. Palacio gunned down Winter in a jealous rage in front of his 6-year-old twins and his ex-wife, Jennifer Winter, according to authorities.
Jurors deliberated for almost 20 hours over two days before coming back with their decision.
"I don't know what case they watched," defense attorney Michael Walsh said. "I don't know what facts they listened to."
On the last day of his trial on Wednesday, Palacio tearfully told the jury he acted in self-defense.
But when the verdicts were read Friday, Palacio did not show emotion. He looked forward and blinked.
"He's just in shock," Walsh said. "He doesn't even know what just happened."
On Wednesday, Palacio described why he shot Paul Winter six times. He said he thought Winter, who wasn't armed, was going for a gun.
"He comes out like he’s so pissed, angry, I mean, you could see the veins,” Palacio said. “I hadn't done nothing to this guy. He starts coming at me."
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After the trial's conclusion on Friday, Walsh also gave an explanation for why his client shot six times.
"When you squeeze that trigger, you can fire 10 bullets in less than three seconds, so in three seconds when your life is threatened, you're not really counting bullets, you're just squeezing," he said.
