Ryan Frederick Convicted of Voluntary Manslaughter (UPDATE and Bump)

Ryan Frederick is the 28-year-old Chesapeake, Virginia man facing murder charges for killing a police officer during a drug raid (see this wiki for more on Frederick's case). Prior coverage of his trial here.

This afternoon, the jury convicted him of voluntary manslaughter. Interestingly, they did not convict of him of manufacturing marijuana, only of simple possession. Frederick was also facing a charged related to the use of a handgun in the commission of a felony, but the Virginian-Pilot report doesn't indicate the jury's decision, there. Voluntary manslaughter is a felony, so I would guess he'll get time tacked on for the handgun.

The maximum sentence for manslaughter in Virginia is 10 years.  Maximum sentence for simple possession (a misdemeanor) is 12 months 30 days.

I had a feeling that the jury would take a "split the difference" approach once the judge agreed to allow them to consider lesser charges. Looks like that's what happened.

MORE: The jury recommended the maximum sentence of 10 years.