A Lima teen has been found guilty of a 2020 murder and robbery.
It only took a jury a couple of hours to find 18-year-old Ja'naz Smith guilty of aggravated murder, aggravated robbery, and tampering with evidence for the death of Danielle Jackson. The judge sentenced him to 28 years to life for the crime. Before the verdict, his lawyer told the jury that Smith may have felt pressured by Lima detectives to admit to the shooting three years ago.
"That two adult detectives in a small room, with a 15-year-old, it's gravy for, it's perfect, perfect kind of scenario for confessions to be false," says Steve Chamberlain, defense attorney.
"Nobody yells, nobody raises a voice, nobody is threatening, it's just a conversation," stated Kyle Thines, Chief Allen Co. Assistant Prosecutor. "That is not pressure, that is not coercion. That is not a false confession."
The other teen involved in the shooting, Jordan Daniel, was also found guilty of murder in Allen County Juvenile Court.
