Yusuf Bey IV guilty of 1st degree murder

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- A jury Thursday found former Your Black Muslim Bakery leader Yusuf Bey IV and his associate Antoine Mackey guilty of first degree murder in the 2007 death of Oakland journalist Chauncey Bailey.

Nearly four years after Bailey was gunned down in Oakland, his family says justice has finally been served.

"Journalists have a job to do and they should not be squashed in what they do and unfortunately that's what they tried to do with Chauncey," Bailey's cousin Wendy Ashley-Johnson said.

The jury spent 10 days deliberating after hearing hours of testimony from dozens of witnesses.

Inside the courtroom, Bey and Mackey showed no emotion as the guilty verdict was read.

Bey's mother stormed out of the courthouse after missing the verdict reading because she was late.

"Ultimately, god has the final decision and that's what I rest on and I believe in my son's innocence, I do," Daulet Bey said.

Prosecutors say the verdict sends a strong message.

"I hope this sends the message that the First Amendment is not going to be murdered by murdering journalists," deputy district attorney Melissa Krum said.

It was a case that came down to the testimony of one man: the prosecution's star witness -- former bakery handyman Devaughndre Broussard.

Broussard admitted to shooting Bailey, but he told the jury Bey ordered him to pull the trigger. He said Bey wanted the Oakland Post editor dead to silence him for a story he planned to publish about the bakery's financial troubles. Mackey drove the getaway car.

In a plea deal, Broussard will serve 25 years in exchange for his testimony.

Lawyers for Bey and Mackey say they will appeal.

"It's very, very disappointing, frankly; they'll be an appeal filed, yes," Bey's attorney Gene Peretti said.

"I don't think there's much more I can say; that's how the system works and the next step in the process of criminal justice and justice for my client is the appeal process," Mackey's attorney Gary Sirbu said.

Bey and Mackey were also found guilty in the murder of Michael Wills. The district attorney said Bey ordered Mackey to shoot Wills dead simply because he was white.

The jury also found Bey guilty of the murder of Odell Roberson, a homeless man who was related to the man convicted of killing Bey's older brother. The judge declared a mistrial for Mackey on that count because the jury was split on his role.

Prosecutors say Bey thought he was above the law.

"So far in the community of Oakland, Chauncey Bailey hasn't been replaced, that voice of his, what he stood for, he hasn't been replaced," Bailey's friend Derrick Nesbitt said.

Bey and Mackey will be back in court on July 8 for sentencing. They both face life in prison.

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murder, trials, crime, alameda county, oakland, east bay news, cecilia vega

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