A Chattanooga man pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter nearly one year after a jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict during his trial.
Marvin Lebron Fallins Sr. was sentenced Friday to 15 years in prison for the 2021 fatal shooting of Frank Usher, according to the Hamilton County Criminal Court Clerk’s Office.
Fallins, 55, was initially charged with first-degree murder.
However, Judge Barry Steelman granted a motion for judgment of acquittal on that charge at Fallins’ August 2024 trial, meaning second-degree murder was the highest charge the jury could consider.
After about 15 hours of deliberation, Steelman declared a mistrial. Jurors later convicted him of being a felon in possession of a firearm during the second phase of his trial.