A Gibson County, Indiana jury acquitted Patrick Waite on all charges arising from a nighttime shooting, returning its verdict after roughly three hours of deliberation [1]. The case proceeded to trial in Gibson Circuit Court in Princeton, Indiana on three counts of murder and one count of attempted murder [1]. The central dispute at trial was whether Waite acted in lawful self-defense, and the jury's swift return suggests it resolved that question in the defense's favor across all counts [1].
Trial testimony focused on the circumstances of the shooting and Waite's claim that he acted to protect himself [1]. The defense framed the victims as members of a drug cartel, a characterization that shaped the self-defense narrative presented to the jury [1]. The prosecution did not persuade the jury that Waite was the aggressor on any of the four counts, and the acquittal was complete, with no hung counts and no convictions on lesser included offenses [1].
Because the jury returned a full acquittal, no sentencing hearing is scheduled [1]. Under the Double Jeopardy Clause, the state cannot retry Waite on any of the four counts now resolved in his favor, and the verdict carries immediate finality.