Neighbor Convicted Of Murder After Dog Poop Dispute

Philadelphia, PA – A Philadelphia man, 28-year-old Tyrirk Harris, has been convicted of a 2012 Valentine’s Day murder of his neighbor. Authorities say Harris and his Tacony area neighbor, 47-year-old Franklin Manuel Santana, were at odds over Harris’s dogs repeatedly defecating on Santana’s lawn. The dispute over animal waste escalated to murder when Harris shot Santana on February 14, 2012.

Police arrested Harris after he allegedly killed Santana. He confronted Harris over his dogs. Harris aimed and fired a Smith & Wesson 9mm at Santana, fatally shooting him multiple times in the chest and face. Santana’s family is grief-stricken; wishing Harris instead sought a more amicable resolution.

Santana, his wife, and infant daughter had only just moved to the area, living there about a month prior to the shooting. Neighbors said Santana wasn’t the first person to complain about Harris’s Chihuahua and German shepherd, running free and relieving themselves on lawns.

In his testimony, Harris argued that he acted in self-defense because Santana had threatened him. Defense attorney, James Berardinelli, said that Harris is not guilty because he acted under the state’s Castle Doctrine, a law that permits an individual the right to use deadly force in the case of self-protection.

Friday a jury returned with a guilty verdict for third-degree murder and possession of an instrument of crime against Harris. Sentencing is scheduled for April 26, 2013.

Assistant District Attorney Deborah Watson-Stokes intends to seek the maximum penalty for third-degree murder, 20 to 40 years in prison. She felt the case held the merits of a first-degree murder case given Harris shot an unarmed man.

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