Late night verdict in Tallahassee murder trial

UPDATE: Court records show Cleveland McNair was sentenced to 13 years in prison followed by two years on probation.

The sentence was imposed late Thursday night, soon after a jury found McNair guilty of manslaughter in the 2020 shooting death of John Dees.

Sherill Conner, who is accused as an accessory in the case, is expected in court in February.

UPDATE: A jury deliberated behind closed doors for more than four hours tonight - before finding Cleveland McNair guilty of the lesser charge of manslaughter.

McNair was accused of shooting and killing John Dees. Dees’s body was found on Pecan Road back in January 2020.

McNair now faces up to 15 years in prison and could be sentenced later tonight.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) - The jury is now deliberating in the murder trial of Cleveland McNair. Jurors began deliberations at about 5:15pm Thursday. We’ll keep you posted on a verdict.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) - Cleveland McNair is now on trial nearly three years to the day after a 2020 murder.

McNair is accused of shooting and killing John Dees in January 2020. Dees’ body was found in the woods on Pecan Road on January 13th, and court records say officers found two spent shell casings at the scene.

Initially, officers could not identify the victim and turned to social media to help.

TPD put out a computer-generated composite picture of the victim, along with a drawing of his tattoos, and within 24 hours, tips from the public helped officers identify him.

Just days earlier, on January 9th, court records say, TPD officers responded to a call on Mission Road in which a woman asked officers to escort Dees from her apartment. Court records say that the interaction was captured on the officer’s body camera.

McNair is accused of picking Dees up from her apartment later that night and returning without him.

The woman who lived in the apartment, Sherill Conner, is accused as an accessory after the fact.

Conner will be tried separately, according to Leon County Clerk of Courts records.

Testimony in McNair’s trial is scheduled to last through the end of the week.

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