116 3rd St SE
Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52401
Man convicted in fatal Waterloo beating
A Black Hawk County jury has convicted a man of voluntary manslaughter in the beating death of a college student in Waterloo.
The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier says the jury returned the verdict Friday afternoon in the case against 20-year-old Paris Anding. He was charged in the August beating death of 19-year-old Marcellus Andrews during a fight.
Prosecutors say Anding swung a baseball bat and hit Andrews in the head. The defense claimed Anding was protecting his aunt.
Andrews' death drew nationwide attention from gay rights activists after witnesses were quoted in local media saying Andrews was taunted with anti-gay slurs. Waterloo police said there was no indication of a hate crime. Andrews' family and friends downplayed the idea and said he wasn't gay.
Paris Anding describes the fight on Aug. 19 that cost Marcellus Andrews his life as Anding takes the stand in his second-degree murder trial at the Black Hawk County Courthouse Tuesday, April 17, 2012, in Waterloo, Iowa. Anding was convicted of first-degree murder Friday in Andrews' death.(MATTHEW PUTNEY / Courier Photo Editor)
Daily Newsletters