Ex-Mesa police officer found not guilty of second-degree murder, reckless manslaughter

PHOENIX - Philip Brailsford has been found not guilty of second-degree murder and reckless manslaughter, in the trial of a hotel guest's shooting death nearly two years ago.

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Jurors said they had reached a verdict in Brailsford's murder trial late Thursday afternoon. Closing arguments in the trial concluded Wednesday afternoon, and jurors got updated instructions from the judge. They resume deliberations earlier on Thursday.

Brailsford is charged with second-degree murder in the January 2016 shooting at a Mesa hotel.

The 27-year-old Brailsford has testified about his split-second decision to shoot the unarmed man after responding to a call that someone at the hotel was pointing a gun out of a window.

Brailsford served as a Mesa policeman for about two years before he was fired for violations of departmental policy, including unsatisfactory performance.

On Thursday night, raw bodycam video from the night of Daniel Shaver's shooting was released, showing the situation on that fateful night. Earlier on Thursday, following Brailsford's acquittal, Brailsford's attorney, Michael Piccarreta, spoke out.

I'm sure Mr. Shaver was a fine person, but unfortunately, the circumstances that night that were presented led him to conclude that he was in danger," said Piccarreta, about his client. "Try and make decisions in one second. Life or death. It's pretty hard."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.