January 7, 2022
By: Dwayne Page
A Liberty man tried and convicted two months ago in the voluntary manslaughter of his stepson may learn his fate next week.
(Read the WJLE story about the trial at the link below)
https://www.wjle.com/news/jury-selection-begins-today-wednesday-in-2019-halloween-murder-trial/
51-year-old Albert Wayne Fisher, Jr. is facing a possible prison sentence of from 3-6 years as a range one offender in the death of 37-year-old Tyler Durden. The shooting occurred outside the Fisher residence on Eckles Heights in Liberty on October 31, 2019.
The sentencing hearing is set for Tuesday, January 11 in DeKalb County Criminal Court.
Fisher stood trial on the more serious charge of second-degree murder which carries a range of punishment as a Class A felony of 15-25 years, but the jury found him guilty of the lesser crime of voluntary manslaughter.
Because of a Halloween disguise he was wearing at the time, the Fishers didn’t recognize Durden until he removed his mask after being shot and called out “Mom I have been hit”.
It took the jury of eight men and four women about an hour and fifteen minutes to reach the verdict after a six-hour trial that featured six witnesses for the state and Fisher himself, who testified claiming his motive for the shooting was in self-defense.
After the verdict, Judge Wesley Bray granted a motion by state prosecutors that Fisher’s bond be revoked and that he be sent to the county jail, pending the outcome of a sentencing hearing scheduled for January 11, 2022.
“The Department of Corrections has done a pre-sentencing report that encompasses all his (Fisher’s) criminal history and all the facts related to this case. We will now go back in front of Judge Bray and he will fix the sentence on January 11”, said Assistant District Attorney General Greg Strong.