MIAMI – Prosecutors have downgraded the charge against a man accused of delivering a fatal backhand to a fellow customer at a Miami Beach convenience store earlier this month.
"The state has stipulated that there is no probable cause to second-degree murder," the judge said in court Wednesday morning.
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Roger Perry is now charged with manslaughter in the death of Mohammad Hussein, 58, who fell and cracked his skull on the floor of the M&L Food Market. After nearly two weeks in a coma, hospital workers took him off life support last weekend.
Perry was initially arrested on a felony battery charge, but when the victim passed away as a result of his injuries, police sought to additionally charge him with murder.
The new manslaughter charge concedes Perry didn't intend to kill Hussein, with whom he was arguing about their places in line. But the Miami Beach police officer who arrested him provided new details about Perry's actions after the incident that seems to indicate Perry knew he was facing serious trouble.
"He went to an apartment where he ended up collecting personal things and fled from the area," the detective said in court. "About a week into the case, he dyed his hair, changed his appearance and was finally captured in Palm Beach, where he surrendered."
Perry was given a $100,000 bond, but if he is released from jail, he will be placed on house arrest.
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