HOUSTON (CN) - A Texas jury acquitted a man of murder after he shot an escort he found on Craigslist; he claimed she took his money and refused to have sex with him.
The Bexar County jury last week found Ezekiel Gilbert not guilty of murdering 23-year-old escort Lenora Ivie Frago, whom he shot in the neck and paralyzed on Christmas Eve 2009.
She died seven months later.
Gilbert, 30, testified that he paid Frago $150 for sex after finding her ad on Craigslist, according to the San Antonio Express-News.
Gilbert testified that she walked around his apartment for 20 minutes and left without having sex with him, saying she had to give the money to her driver.
Gilbert's defense attorney claimed the driver was her pimp and accomplice in the theft.
During closing arguments Gilbert's attorney admitted that his client shot Frago, not intending to kill her, because he wanted to retrieve the $150.
The jury returned the verdict after two days of testimony and 11 hours of deliberation.
Prosecutors argued that the Texas law allowing people to use deadly force to recover stolen property was meant for "law-abiding" citizens.
Gilbert said he was remorseful for killing her.
"I sincerely regret the loss of the life of Ms. Frago," Gilbert said, according to the Express-News said. "I've been in a mental prison the past four years of my life. I have nightmares. If I see guns on TV where people are getting killed, I change the channel."
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