MIAMI – Jurors heard closing arguments Monday in the trial of Kadel Piedrahita and came back with a verdict after only a few hours of deliberations.
He was found guilty of second-degree murder for the shooting death of cyclist Alexis Palencia and guilty of aggravated assault with a firearm on a second cyclist named Cesar Sosa.
The state alleged Piedrahita killed Palencia in cold blood back in 2019 on the Rickenbacker Causeway, saying that he was fueled by hatred displayed first in a Facebook livestream posted prior to the shooting.
5 p.m. report:
Piedrahita alleged he was defending himself from attacks by Sosa and Palencia, and that Sosa gave Palencia a weapon.
His defense told jurors to consider the words of Piedrahita himself.
After beginning their deliberations at approximately 2:30 p.m., jurors requested to see several exhibits from the trial, including camera footage and photos from the incident and its aftermath, around 5:30 p.m.
About 30 minutes later, jurors alerted the judge that they had reached a verdict.
Piedrahita will now await a sentencing hearing, which is expected to be in around two months. He faces up to life in prison.
After the guilty verdict, Miami-Dade County State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle released the following statement:
“The 2019 fatal shooting of bicyclist Alexis Palencia on the Rickenbacker Causeway appalled our entire community and particularly shocked members of Miami-Dade’s tight-knit bicycling community. Despite Kadel Piedrahita’s claim that he shot in self-defense, the jury decided otherwise. They weighed all the evidence, heard all the testimony, and decided that Piedrahita was indeed guilty of 2nd degree murder.
“I applaud the talented prosecutorial team of Assistant State Attorneys Arvind Singh and Conor Soper for effectively bringing forth the important case elements that drove Piedrahita to commit this senseless act of violence.
“I hope that the family of Alexis Palencia has gained some sense of justice with this verdict knowing that nothing can replace the senseless loss of a loved family member.”
Miami-Dade County State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle