Former Portsmouth PD officer gets 2.5 years after fatally shooting teenager
PORTSMOUTH, VA (WWBT) - Thursday afternoon, a Portsmouth jury recommended two and a half years behind bars for a former Virginia police officer charged with killing a man.
Earlier in the day, the same jury found Stephen Rankin guilty of voluntary manslaughter for the shooting death of 18-year-old William Chapman, II in April of 2015.
According to WAVY, around 7:35 a.m. on April 22, 2015, security at the Frederick Boulevard Wal-Mart store alerted police to an alleged shoplifter leaving the store.
Chapman was fatally shot during a struggle with a Portsmouth Police officer, dying at the scene around 7:45 a.m.
Voluntary manslaughter was a lesser charge than what prosecutors originally sought, with the Commonwealth seeking a first-degree murder conviction, arguing Rankin intentionally shot and killed Chapman after a scuffle in the department store's parking lot.
Rankin argued he killed Chapman in self-defense.
The judge will formally sentence Rankin on October 12, where Rankin can be sentenced to less time than what the jury recommended, but not more.
Rankin will remain out on bond until his formal sentencing.
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