STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.— After just over a day of deliberations, jurors assigned to the Carlos Rivera manslaughter trial returned a verdict of not guilty to the top charges.

Rivera, 38, of Stapleton, was accused of killing a man who was known to him during a street fight on the afternoon of June 17, 2024. The incident unfolded on a commercial block in Stapleton, resulting in the death of 41-year-old Joel Badillo.

The jury, who heard the case in state Supreme Court, St. George, acquitted the defendant of first-degree manslaughter and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. Had Rivera been found guilty of manslaughter, he was facing significant prison time due in part to multiple, prior non-violent convictions.

The defendant was, however, found guilty of felony tampering with evidence,

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