Jury acquits Quinton man of second-degree murder, finds justification in self-defense

A Quinton man has been acquitted of second-degree murder following a two-day jury trial in New Kent.

Jason Tyler Boyd, 41, was found not guilty of the aforementioned charge and use of a firearm in commission of a felony following the Dec. 7-8 trial.

On Nov. 12, 2022 during the late hours of the night, two men came to the former resident of Boyd, located at the 9200 block of Pine Hollow Road. The two men inside were Charles Bailey and Eric Sluder, with the latter being alleged to have known Boyd.

At that time, Bailey knocked on the door harder, disturbing Boyd’s wife. The defendant’s wife woke him up, showing footage of the Ring door camera of the individual at the front door. Eventually, Bailey left and the family went back to sleep.

But the disturbance worried the defendant’s family, as the children came into the backroom saying they saw someone in the back room. This time, Boyd arose from his bed and grabbed his .40 caliber pistol and loaded it with one bullet.

Boyd, who elected to testify on his behalf, said that Sluder was on the porch yelling and screaming at him. Boyd added that Sluder lunged at him, resulting in the defendant firing a shot blindly and saying it was self-defense. The bullet struck Sluder in the right side of the head above the eye.

Boyd called the police after the shot was fired but did not call authorities prior to the discharge of the gun. Boyd placed the gun on the counter until the officers arrived.

The trial shifted gears with New Kent Commonwealth’s Attorney Scott Renick pushing that the shot was not in self-defense and that malice was the reason Boyd pulled the trigger.

“He said that he did not call the police because he did not have time,” Renick argued.

At the time of the incident, Sluder was deemed to be intoxicated according to testimony in court. Renick stated that even though the Sluder was under the influence, Boyd still had to come outside. The Commonwealth’s Attorney added that the threat was tamed at the time and debated whether Sluder was standing on the ground or on the step when the shot was fired.

“I feel Mr. Boyd has changed his story about that location,” the Commonwealth’s Attorney argued.

Defense Attorney Craig Cooley argued that Boyd was protecting his family at the time of the incident. Cooley argued that Renick’s point about not calling the police and why the defendant didn’t have time to call authorities.

“There was a crazed man on the back porch who could have easily gained entrance into the home,” Cooley said. “How long would it have taken for the police to get there? It was almost 11 at night.”

The defense attorney continued his reasoning of why Boyd had a gun, stating that a lung condition resulted in the defendant missing two years of work and physically unable to attack an intruder. And when the defense attorney asked Boyd about him cooperating with the police, the defendant answered about him wanting to keep his household safe.

“I never refused to talk with the police,” Boyd commented. “I only wanted to protect my family. I can’t even hunt if I wanted to.”

During closing arguments, Renick wanted the jury to take it in consideration if it was really self-defense that was used in the situation.

“If it was his intention to protect his family, he could have barricaded himself in the bedroom,” Renick said. “When you claim self-defense, you can’t be the aggressor. He (Boyd) was on a mission.”

Renick added emphasis on how Boyd couldn’t remember what phone he used to call 9-1-1 and added that the police could have been there as it took them seven minutes to arrive at the defendant’s home. But Cooley rebutted, saying that his client only fired once and any type of malice would have seen multiple shots fired.

“It’s all his (Boyd) fault that he didn’t call the police, but he has a right to have a firearm,” Cooley said. “He has the right to protect his family. There is no malice, there is no manslaughter. This is Jason Boyd protecting his family.

“Send him home,” he told the jury. “The evidence proves that beyond a reasonable doubt that he is innocent.”

After a 90-minute session, the jury returned, agreeing with Cooley. Boyd was cleared of both charges.