Photo: CBS 12
A homeless drifter charged with stabbing a teen to death in Palm Beach Gardens has been convicted, but not of the most serious charge.
Prosecutors were pushing for a First Degree Murder verdict against Semmie Williams, but they didn't get it. Instead the 12-person jury of his peers found Williams guilty of the lesser charge of Second Degree Murder.
During testimony, Williams talked about how organizations were out to get him and espoused numerous conspiracy theories regarding the Illuminati and numerology. He was deemed competent to stand trial despite being diagnosed with schizophrenia.
After 90 minutes of deliberations yesterday, it took jurors another several hours today to come up with the verdict.
Court watchers speculate that the jury may have struggled with premeditation in the murder of 14-year-old Ryan Rogers and that's why jurors did not go with First Degree Murder.
Williams was only facing life in prison and not the death penalty. He could still get life with today's conviction.
Sentencing has not yet been set.