WILBER, Neb. (AP) — Following a mistrial in 2018, a Gage County man has been convicted in a second trial of first-degree murder in the killing of a fellow inmate during a 2017 Nebraska state prison riot.
Eric Ramos, 33, faces life in prison when he's sentenced in February, the Lincoln Journal Star reported. A Saline County jury found Ramos guilty Tuesday of killing 31-year-old Michael Galindo — one of two inmates slain during the riot at the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution.
Galindo was found dead in his cell on March 2, 2017, following an uprising by prisoners, and investigators said he had been severely beaten and stabbed 130 times. An autopsy determined Galindo died of smoke inhalation from a fire when other inmates set towels on fire and pushed them through a broken window in Galindo's cell.
Investigators said Ramos was one of several inmates who attacked Galindo, but he is the only one to face charges in Galindo's death.
Ramos’ first trial in 2018 ended in a mistrial after the judge learned several investigators who were also witnesses in the case met, despite a court order forbidding it. The Nebraska Court of Appeals later ruled that Ramos should be retried.
In his second trial, prosecutors relied heavily on surveillance video of the attack from which a prison guard identified Ramos as one of the attackers.
Ramos testified in his own defense, denying that he was the attacker seen in the video and insisting he would not have jeopardized his upcoming parole by participating in the attack. His attorney, Tim Noerrlinger, argued the video was poor quality and that investigators did not test blood found on the hands and clothing of other inmates after the attack.
A second inmate, Damon Fitzgerald, also was killed in the riot. No one has been charged in Fitzgerald's death.