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After a three-day trial this week, Wadrickus Howard was convicted in the 2020 murder of Jacoby Cogburn of Troy.

Jury selection began on Oct. 7 and the trial commenced on Oct. 8, presided by 12th Judicial Circuit Judge Sonny Reagan. The case was tried by 12th Judicial Circuit Assistant District Attorneys Ternisha Jones, Greg Locklier and Blake Meadows.

According to a news release, testimony and evidence presented at the trial alleged that on July 13, 2020, Howard – who was 17 years old a the time – lied in wait in a white vehicle at an apartment complex near the Troy City Schools Board of Education on Elba Highway. The prosecution argued that Howard’s purpose was to kill a resident who lived in the complex.

When the apartment opened, Howard began shooting at the first person who walked out of the door, according to the prosecution. Allegedly, Howard shot multiple times from the back seat of the vehicle before he and his co-defendant drove away. According to the prosecution, Howard shot Cogburn instead of his intended victim, striking him in the head and killing him instantly.

Allegedly, Howard made efforts to hide the firearm used in the shooting and fled Troy. Following an investigation from the Troy Police Department, Howard was arrested on Aug. 19, 2020, and charged with Capital Murder by an individual under the age of 18.

Howard denied any knowledge of the event and claimed he was in Montgomery at the time of the murder. During the trial, Howard testified on his own defense and admitted to being present at the murder, claiming that someone else shot first before he opened fired and also admitted to killing the victim.

Following jury deliberation of less than two hours, on Oct. 19, the jury returned a unanimous verdict of guilty of Capital Murder. The Troy Police Department was the lead investigating agency on the case with assistance from Pike County’s Coroner’s Office, Troy Fire and Rescue and the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences.

Sentencing in the case will be set at a later date. The court’s only sentencing options available will be life without the possibility of parole or a juvenile life sentence, which requires 30 years served day-for-day prior to any eligibility for parole.