PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A jury found Brandon Hickman guilty of 1st-degree manslaughter in the 2013 shooting death of his cousin in a crime prosecutors said was brought on after the men had sex with each other.
The jury returned the verdict Thursday, 8 days after the trial began. Though found guilty of manslaughter, the jury found Hickman not guilty of murder.
Sentencing will be in October.
Gresham Police first responded to reports of a shooting on September 9, 2013 at the Pine Square Apartments. When they got there, they found Makeitho De Monz Herring — who went by the name “Tito” — bleeding on the ground. The 37-year-old died from a single gunshot wound to the head.
Herring and Hickman, although first cousins, were reportedly involved in a sexual relationship since 2005, according to prosecutors.
Herring, police said, was “outing” Hickman as a homosexual by telling people about his sexual partners.
The cousins had reportedly taken interest in the same man, police said.
Detectives learned Hickman was the victim of a “blast” threat with Herring reportedly threatening to tell more people, including gang associates, about the supposed sex acts between the two men.
Witnesses said before the shooting occurred, Herring was seen standing in the parking lot, calling to an open window in Hickman’s apartment.
Hickman fled to Las Vegas where he was arrested by United States Marshals on October 13, 2013. Initially, he denied being at the scene, records show. Detectives told Hickman video showed him running from the scene.
While both men were known to police as having gang associates at the time of the shooting, the case was not investigated as a gang-related homicide.
Filed under: Crime, Multnomah County
