Jury finds Chaylin Funez guilty of second-degree murder

A jury has found Chaylin Funez found guilty of second-degree murder with the special allegation of use of a deadly weapon and hit and run.

In May, a car hit 35-year-old Eric Fisher near his Visalia home, then backed up over him and dragged him down Prospect Avenue.

Some of his family members witnessed what happened, and said 18-year-old Funez was the driver of that car.

Funez's attorney, Nick Schuller, said, "Obviously Ms. Chaylin Funez is disappointed with the verdict, but she realizes that the outcome of 2nd degree is preferable to a 1st-degree verdict. I've been telling the DA's Office for months this was not a 1st Degree Murder case-- the jury agreed with the defense position. Chaylin never intended to kill Mr. Fisher. Regardless of the 2nd-degree verdict, to this day Chaylin and Eddie Perez remain devastated by what happened to Mr. Fisher and those impacted by his loss. The next step will be sentencing on January 4, 2018, and preparing the appeal of the case."

Funez will be sentenced on January 4th, where she could receive life in prison.

Stay with Action News for more on this developing story.