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Jury finds man not guilty on all charges in Portsmouth 1-year-old’s murder

Posted at 10:11 AM, May 17, 2017
and last updated 2017-05-17 18:16:35-04

Jerry Atkinson
(Portsmouth Police Department)

PORTSMOUTH, Va. - Jerry Atkinson Jr. was found not guilty on all charges by a jury on Thursday.

The 20-year-old faced 10 charges after an armed robbery attempt took a violent turn on June 27, 2015.

One-year-old Dion Loften Jr. was shot and killed inside his home after police say three men pulled guns after trying to rob the occupants.

Dion Loften

Jerry Atkinson Jr. was arrested and charged along with Anthony Holley and Marquis Hinton. Holley and Hinton pleaded guilty to their involvement last year.

Atkinson's trial began last week and was originally scheduled to last three days.

Closing arguments wrapped up on Thursday morning and the jury began deliberations.

Previous coverage:

Defense calls witnesses in trial of Portsmouth man charged with killing 1-year-old

Prosecution rests in trial of Portsmouth man charged with killing 1-year-old

Third person arrested in death of 1-year-old boy in attempted robbery