Jurors convicted the former officer, Eric Ruch Jr., 34, of voluntary manslaughter and possession of an instrument of crime — his gun — after about 15 hours of deliberation over three days, according to the Philadelphia district attorney’s office. The jury found him not guilty of third-degree murder, a more serious charge. But jurors found that Mr. Ruch, who is white, had acted recklessly when he shot Dennis Plowden Jr. directly in the head. after the crash on Dec. 27, 2017. He could face up to 25 years in prison when he is sentenced on Nov. 17. Judge Barbara McDermott of the Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia revoked Mr. Ruch’s bail and ordered him held pending sentencing, the district attorney’s office said. Larry Krasner, the Philadelphia district attorney, said through a spokesman that he would speak more freely about the case after the sentencing. In a statement, he also thanked the jury — which included six whites, three blacks and three people who identified as mixed race — for their work during the eight-day trial, according to the prosecutor’s office. Mr. Ruch’s conviction came two years after a grand jury recommended that he be charged with first-degree murder – a charge that was eventually downgraded as prosecutors prepared their case, the district attorney’s office said. David Misack, Mr. Rutch’s lawyer, said in a statement that prosecutors “vigorously pursued a conviction of murder.” “This verdict reflects that the court rejected that theory and it was never a case of murder,” he said. “My client will keep all options open going forward.” The initial charges in 2020 were filed at a time when police brutality and killings by police have attracted increased scrutiny following the deaths of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Ky. Mr Ruch had told jurors he feared for his life when he fired, saying Mr Plowden kept his right hand hidden when asked to raise it, the Associated Press reported. Five other officers testified that they believed Mr. Plowden was reaching for a gun during the incident. In fact, Mr Plowden was unarmed during the encounter. Prosecutors said during the trial that the officers were not being truthful because Mr. Plowden had not made any threats as he sat dazed, The Inquirer reported. Mr Plowden’s left hand was raised to his face when Mr Ruch fired his gun at him, which prosecutors said was evidence of a person under submission. The bullet went through Mr. Plowden’s arm and struck his head. The pursuit that led to Mr. Plowden’s death began after Mr. Rutch made a radio call from an unmarked police car asking to check the registration on a white Hyundai driven by Mr. Plowden, prosecutors said. After police learned the registration was valid, they said, Mr. Plowden, who pulled over briefly and then drove away, knocked on the open door of an unmarked police car. That prompted police to follow him “at a high rate of speed until he hit three parked cars, spun and finally stopped after hitting a utility pole,” according to the district attorney’s office. Last year, the New York Times found that questionable police practices during encounters with motorists for traffic stops for minor violations unnecessarily increased the likelihood of dangerous and deadly encounters. Almost a year after the shooting, Mr. Ruch was fired from the Police Department. Last year, Tanya Bond, Mr. Plowden’s widow, received $1.2 million as part of a settlement of her wrongful-death lawsuit against the city, the Associated Press reported.
