Man acquitted of murder in fatal shooting at Wichita apartment

A 24-year-old man put on trial for the shooting death of a Potwin man late last year has been acquitted.

Jurors found Kirby Lewis not guilty of second-degree murder last week in the December killing of 28-year-old Robert Young, according to Sedgwick County District Court records. Officers found Young with several gunshot wounds in a hallway of Woodgate Apartments near 21st and Edgemoor on Dec. 29, 2016. He died early the next morning at a Wichita hospital.

Police have said Young was visiting a friend and his roommate at the apartment complex and were drinking when an argument broke out between the men. Young and the roommate left after the fight but returned a short time later. Young hit the door for several minutes before Lewis reportedly opened it and fired.

Lewis during his trial claimed he was acting in self defense and in defense of his home because he thought Young was trying to break in and possibly harm him, according to court records. Jurors reached a verdict on Nov. 9.

This story was originally published November 13, 2017 at 1:01 PM with the headline "Man acquitted of murder in fatal shooting at Wichita apartment."