LAKE CITY, Fla. (WCJB) — The trial of Matthew Rice continued on Thursday morning, marking the second prosecution in the shooting death of 12-year-old Mariah Smith.
Rice, now 18, was 17 when he was arrested in February 2024. He faces one count of murder and two counts of attempted murder in connection with the August 2023 shooting that killed Smith while she sat on a couch in her home.
The case involves three teenagers in total. Last month, 17-year-old Jayden Burch was found guilty of second-degree murder for Smith’s death. Gunfire ripped through the girl’s home in August 2023, fatally striking her as she sat inside.
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Burch is set to be sentenced on Monday. The court records don’t show a trial date for