PORTLAND – A homeless man who seriously injured another homeless man in an attack near Sewall Street a year ago was found guilty Friday of aggravated assault.

The jury, which deliberated for 10½ hours, returned the verdict after failing to reach a consensus on a more serious charge of elevated aggravated assault against Adam Delano, 24, for the Sept. 16, 2012, attack, which left Jeffrey Fry, 48, with broken bones in his face, skull fractures and internal injuries.

Lawyers called 11 witnesses in the trial, which started Tuesday in Cumberland County Unified Criminal Court, including Fry and another man, Kaysean Moss, who was implicated but never charged in the attack.

“It is unclear from multiple eyewitnesses, but Jeffrey Fry testified that Adam Delano was on top of him hitting him and that Kaysean Moss was the one kicking him,” Delano’s attorney, Peter Richard Jr., said following the verdict.

Moss was called as a defense witness during the trial.

Richard asked Judge Jeffrey Moskowitz to delay sentencing for at least 70 days to allow time for a mental health expert to evaluate Delano. The judge ordered Delano held without bail until then.

Delano faces up to 10 years in prison on the charge of aggravated assault. He could have faced up to 30 years in prison if he had been convicted on the charge that divided the jury, elevated aggravated assault.

“I can’t assume what the jurors were thinking, though I have full faith and confidence in their verdict,” Richard said. “I will never know why they decided not to convict Adam of elevated aggravated assault, but my gut reaction is that they did not think a shoe was a dangerous weapon.”

The prosecutor, Assistant District Attorney Tracy Gorham, declined to comment as she left the courtroom following the verdict.

 

Scott Dolan can be contacted at: 791-6304 or at:

sdolan@mainetoday.com