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Jaheim Campbell Found Not Guilty Of Murder In Shooting Death Of South Bend 7-Year-Old Girl

Justin Hicks/WVPE

 

After deliberating for more than seven hours Thursday, a jury found 19-year-old Jaheim Campbell not guilty of murder in the death of a 7-year-old girl who was killed in a South Bend drive-by shooting last August.

 

Chrisyah Stephens was attending a birthday party at High and Donald streets near Riley High School. Prosecutors said Campell opened fire on the gathering, aiming for another man, and hit Stephens instead.

 

They also said he admitted to the shooting on Facebook and made incriminating statements during interrogation.

 

In his defense, Campbell said someone created a fake Facebook account in his name and that he only made incriminating statements due to police pressure.

 

Campbell was arrested last October and was charged with murder and attempted murder. He was acquitted on both charges.

 

Contact Jakob at jlazzaro@wvpe.org or follow him on Twitter at @JakobLazzaro.

 

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Jakob Lazzaro came to Indiana from Chicago, where he graduated from Northwestern University in 2020 with a degree in Journalism and a double major in History. Before joining WVPE, he wrote NPR's Source of the Week e-mail newsletter, and previously worked for CalMatters, Pittsburgh's 90.5 WESA and North by Northwestern.