Mississippi Judge to Decide on Wounded Bystander Case

A Hinds County, Miss., judge will decide if governmental agencies are liable for the wounding of a bystander during a 2008 shooting.

The Clarion-Ledger reports that Circuit Judge Winston Kidd presided over a four-day trial that ended Thursday.

Kidd heard the case without a jury because the lawsuit was filed against the city of Jackson, Hinds County and the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics.

Ronnie Burton, then-26, of Hattiesburg was in town for the funeral of his brother, Bruce Cranford, who was shot to death on Sept. 1, 2008, at the Horseman’s Blues Club.

According to court documents, when authorities went to Cranford’s home, police said someone standing outside the house shot at the officers, sparking a shootout in which Burton was shot in the shoulder.

Burton was treated and released at a local hospital before being arrested and charged with four counts of aggravated assault on police and with shooting into an occupied police vehicle. The charges were later dropped.

Kidd gave both sides 30 days to file final briefs in the case.

The maximum that can be awarded against each governmental entity is $500,000 under state law.