Gulfport Man Found Guilty in Murder Retrial

A Pinellas County jury found Riley Bryan guilty of first-degree murder on Friday in the 2009 shooting death of his roommate, Donald Price. The judge then sentenced him to the mandatory sentence, life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Bryan was tried earlier this year on the same charges and argued that he shot Price in self-defense. The jury in the first trial was unable to reach a unanimous verdict. The hung jury necessitated the May retrial.

On the night of the shooting, neighbors called police and reported hearing shots. When police responded, they found Price shot to death. Authorities say Bryan shot Price once in the head and killed him after an argument.

According to the original news release from the Gulfport Police Department, Ryan and Price had a disagreement, Riley grabbed a gun and started shooting. There were three witnesses in the room, including the Price’s wife. Ryan told police he was the shooter and claimed self-defense.

The jury’s guilty verdict this time around took almost five hours of deliberation.