Teen found guilty of murder in fire that killed NYPD officer

A jury found an 18-year-old guilty of second-degree murder, assault and arson Thursday for lighting a Coney Island fire that led to the death of an NYPD officer and the serious injury of another. Marcell

News 12 Staff

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May 6, 2016, 6:29 AM

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Updated 3,270 days ago

A jury found an 18-year-old guilty of second-degree murder, assault and arson Thursday for lighting a Coney Island fire that led to the death of an NYPD officer and the serious injury of another.

Marcell Dockery now faces 25 years to life in prison.

The April 6, 2014 fire killed Officer Dennis Guerra and injured his partner, Rosa Rodriguez.

The jury deliberated for about four hours at the courthouse in Downtown Brooklyn before delivering the verdict. A juror asked to be taken off the case, but the judge didn't allow it.

Dockery's family seemed shocked after the jury read the verdict.

The defendant leaned over to his mother and whispered, "I love you mom. Don't cry."

The victim's families were also in the courtroom at the time. Several family members cried. They declined to speak to News 12 on camera.

Prosecutors have maintained that Dockery set fire to a mattress in a Coney Island apartment building. They painted him as someone who had an addiction to lighting fires.

Dockery was 16 when he told police he lit the fire, but his defense has maintained that he was coerced into making the statement.

When the teen took the stand in his own defense, he told the jury he had given a false confession.

The jury did ask the judge for leniency when considering Dockery's sentence, which is set to be handed down in June.