Guilty Verdict in Dillard Shooting Case
Teah Wimberly found guilty
Amanda Collette, left, and Teah Wimberly
A teen has been found guilty of murdering her classmate in the halls of Dillard High School.
A jury has found Teah Wimberly, 16, guilty of second degree murder in the shooting of her classmate and friend, Amanda Collette, in the November 2008 school tragedy.
The two had been longtime friends, but had had a falling out, police said. Wimberly (above, right) had wanted to be more than just friends, but Collette didn't feel the same way.
According to a police report, Wimberly, upset over the broken friendship, had brought a .22 caliber pistol to school that day, Nov. 12, 2008.
When Collette refused to speak with her and turned to walk away, Wimberly pulled out the handgun and shot her friend in the back, according to the report.
Collette, a 15-year-old sophomore at the performing arts magnet school, was pronounced dead about an hour later at Broward General Medical Center.
Police caught up to Wimberly near the school after she called 911 to turn herself in.
"I shot my friend at Dillard, that was like my best friend since 2nd grade," Teah Wimberly tells a dispatcher in the tape of the 911 call, played for the jury earlier in the trial. "I didn't want to kill her so I shot her in the back...I just wanted to give her the pain she gave me."
Wimberley's lawyer unsuccessfully pushed for an acquittal for the teen, claiming insanity.
Wimberly, who had been charged as an adult, is facing life in prison.
Posted Wednesday, Dec 9, 2009 - 12:06 PM EST
