Wyoming v. Cantrell | |
---|---|
Court | Sweetwater County District Court |
Full case name | State of Wyoming v. Edward Lee Cantrell |
Decided | November 30, 1979 |
Verdict | Not guilty |
Charge | First-degree murder |
Court membership | |
Judge sitting | Kenneth Hamm |
State of Wyoming v. Ed Cantrell (officially the State of Wyoming v. Edward Lee Cantrell) was a state trial of Wyoming police officer Ed Cantrell for the killing of Michael Angel Rosa, an undercover narcotics agent in Rock Springs, Wyoming.[1] Rosa had previously been working towards uncovering the immense corruption in the city.[2]
After only three hours of deliberations, the jury accepted Cantrell's self-defense argument, and acquitted him of first-degree murder.[3]
Famed lawyer Gerry Spence won the acquittal of Cantrell in what was deemed an "impossible case".[1]