HILLSBORO (AP) — A former eastern Missouri police officer has been convicted of second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of his fiancee six years ago.
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports yesterday's verdict marked the second time 43-year-old Robert Brooks was convicted of the charge in Jefferson County Circuit Court.
The Missouri Supreme Court threw out the earlier conviction, citing improper comments by prosecutors.
Brooks was a Calverton Park police officer when he shot 26-year-old Amanda Cates, a school resource officer at Normandy Middle School, in August 2006.
Brooks claimed he fired in self-defense after struggling with Cates at the home they shared in Crystal City.
He testified yesterday Cates had threatened him with a loaded gun after he came home from a night of drinking with another woman.
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