Dryden resident Justin Barkley claimed paranoia from months of LSD abuse led to the fatal shooting of a man outside Ithaca’s Walmart in December 2016, according to court transcripts obtained by The Ithaca Journal.
Upon completing jury selection on the morning of Jan. 11 for the high-profile case — in which Barkley shot and killed Candor resident William Schumacher in the Walmart parking lot in December 2016 — Tompkins County Judge John Rowley dismissed the jury until the following week citing "unexpected issues" for the delay. That afternoon, the prosecution and defense teams met with Judge Rowley in an unannounced open court session to strike a plea deal for Barkley.
While pleading guilty to first degree manslaughter and menacing of a police officer, Barkley told Rowley the circumstances of the shooting and following standoff.
IthacaJournal.com:
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