FRESNO, Calif. -- A California man who is authorized to grow marijuana under the state's medical marijuana law has been convicted of fatally shooting a man who was trying to steal his pot.
Phayvanh Dydouangphan of Fresno admitted firing a shotgun at a group of California people he caught breaking into his backyard marijuana garden on Sept. 8, but said he acted in self-defense because they were armed.
But a jury accepted prosecutors' contention that the shooting was unjustified and convicted the 47-year-old Dydouangphan of voluntary manslaughter Tuesday in the death of 40-year-old Stanley Wallace.
The slaying prompted Fresno County California lawmakers to ban outdoor medical marijuana growing.
Dydouangphan faces a maximum prison term of 25 years to life when he is sentenced Feb. 9