Teenage girl found not guilty of Columbus murder, but convicted on different charge
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COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A jury has found a Columbus teenager not guilty of all but one charge after being tried as an adult for the 2021 murder of another girl.
Marizah Thomas, now 19, was found not guilty of murder and aggravated murder in Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Tuesday afternoon. She was accused of murdering 17-year-old Jayce O’Neal after the two fought in the 1800 block of Ridgebury Drive, located in the Sweetwater neighborhood south of Hilliard.
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On July 12, 2021, Columbus police responded to reports of shots fired and found O’Neal suffering from a gunshot wound to her throat. O’Neal was taken to OhioHealth Doctors Hospital, where she later died. Witnesses stated that O’Neal arrived at the home and began yelling and kicking Thomas’ car door. Thomas then came outside and the two began to fight.
After the two were separated, Thomas reportedly went inside the home, retrieved a gun, and shot O’Neal. Thomas, who was 16 at the time of the shooting, fled the scene but was arrested the following day.
In May 2022, Thomas was indicted on two counts of murder, aggravated murder and tampering with evidence. The first three charges included a firearms specification. In June 2022, Thomas’ case was transferred from juvenile court to the Court of Common Pleas after a motion was granted to try Thomas as an adult, though she remained incarcerated at the Franklin County Juvenile Intervention Center.
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Defense attorneys entered a plea of not guilty and filed a motion on Jan. 5 announcing they would argue self-defense, stating that Thomas, “had reasonable grounds to believe that she was in imminent danger of death or grave bodily harm.” Additionally, they filed a motion to exclude body-cam footage from responding officers, due to what was stated as an inflammatory nature subject and perceived unfair prejudice it may have with a jury.
While the jury cleared Thomas of any kind of murder charge, they did find her guilty of tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony. Online court records did not show a scheduled sentencing as of Wednesday for the guilty verdict.
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