A deadlock was declared Wednesday in the trial of two Akron men accused in the deadly I-77 shooting of 24-year-old Marquise Banks after jurors failed to reach verdicts on all but one of the counts presented.
They found 19-year-old Sirvonte Suggs guilty of having weapons under disability, which means he had a weapon when he was legally prohibited from having one.
Summit County prosecutors accused Suggs of shooting and killing Banks from a vehicle that pulled alongside Banks' Jeep on Aug. 3, 2023, on Interstate 77. The shooting caused the Jeep to careen across the median, striking another vehicle and injuring the driver. Ahmere Williams, 21, is accused of ordering Suggs to kill Banks.
Attorneys will meet at 1 p.m. on March 11 for a status conference to decide on a possible retrial in Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Kelly McLaughlin's courtroom.
Suggs has five remaining counts. He's charged with aggravated murder, murder, felony murder, felonious assault, discharge of a firearm over a public roadway and firearm and drive-by shooting specifications, which could result in additional prison time if found guilty.
Williams is charged with aggravated murder, murder, felony murder, felonious assault and associated firearm specifications.
Both defendants were returned to the Summit County Jail on Wednesday with their bonds reinstated.
"I consider this a victory. It's not an acquittal, but it's better than a guilty verdict," said Noah Munyer, attorney for Williams. " Jurors said there was not enough evidence to convict."
Munyer's co-counsel attorney Jeff Laybourne said jurors were skeptical about a unanimous decision as early as Friday, one day after they broke for deliberations.
Laybourne described the investigation into his client as "flawed," something he and Munyer argued throughout the trial.
