3 March 2023
TOPEKA (KSNT) – A Shawnee County jury has found a man innocent regarding his involvement in a deadly shooting that killed an innocent bystander.
Tony Baird was accused of shooting and killing Jerrie Ross in August of 2020. Police said Baird and another person were involved in a shooting at a gas station in the 1100 block of Southwest Gage Blvd. in Topeka. Officers found Ross shot at her home across the street and she was pronounced dead on the scene.
Initial charges filed by the Shawnee County District Attorney’s Office included premeditated first degree murder, first degree murder committed during an inherently dangerous felony, criminal discharge of a firearm at an occupied vehicle and aggravated assault.
A jury trial for Baird began in Shawnee County court on Feb. 21, 2023. After about a week and a half, the jury found Baird not guilty, according to documents obtained by KSNT 27 News. Judge William Ossmann signed a custody slip on March 2 that released Baird from custody. The judge cited the reasoning as, “defendant found not guilty following a jury trial.”
KSNT 27 News talked to the family of Ross about a year after the shooting.