Jury finds man guilty of murdering Fresno teen

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A jury has found Lorenzo Anderson guilty of first-degree murder in the case of a drug deal that ended with the death of a Fresno teen.

The defendant, Lorenzo Anderson who is now 21, bowed his head as the verdict was read.

Anderson was accused of being involved in the killing of Andrew Vann. The murder happened two years ago when Vann and a friend met a group of men at a Fresno church to buy marijuana.

He was also found guilty of 2nd-degree robbery and now faces a potential sentence of 25 years to life in prison.

Anderson's attorney, Roberto Dulce said the guilty verdict came even though he didn't kill anybody. "No doubt about it. He wasn't the one who did the shooting. No doubt about it."

There was no disputing that from the prosecutor Brian Hutchins. "It's not ever been contended he was the shooter, in this case, his partner was the shooter. He was the one involved in setting up the robbery, and then he participated in committing the robbery at the scene."

Prosecutors said Anderson set up the crime through his Facebook page.

Dulce blamed the guilty verdict on what he considered an outdated state law. "Because what is known as the felony murder rule, a very archaic concept that no longer should be in California, but it is still the law in California."

It's possible Anderson could have been convicted of a lesser crime if he would have identified the gunman.

But Hutchins said he refused. "Mr. Anderson, when he gave a statement to the police, did not give up the identity of the individual, and it is still an ongoing investigation."

Anderson will be sentenced on May 31st.

Enrique Maras, a member of Andrew Vann's family told us, "Ultimately Andrew lost his life, he's 17 years old, for less than an ounce of marijuana. You cant put a price on that. Any punishment is not enough."

Because Anderson did not actually commit the crime, both the prosecution and the defense agree, there is a slim chance the judge could grant probation in this case, although they consider it unlikely.