Teens not guilty in deaths of men who killed each other

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) -- Two teens who were accused in the murder of two people in 2023 were found not guilty by a Jackson County judge after testimony during their trial revealed the dead men killed each other.

Here's the timeline as laid out by the Jackson County District Attorney's Office:

In the early hours of December 3, 2023, there was a party at the Charles Point apartment complex in south Medford. During the party, "multiple masked men" with guns went into the apartment. The DA's office said the "juveniles", in masks, arrived at the party with another masked man, Christian Torres, as part of the group that intended to assault someone at the party.

Torres, armed with a gun, confronted Dontrell Manninen in the kitchen of the apartment. Manninen pulled out his own gun. A number of shots were fired, including one that hit the refrigerator in the kitchen.

Investigators later determined Torres, 26, and Manninen, 33, shot and killed each other.

As the investigation rolled along, one of the youths admitted firing the shots that hit the refrigerator "but claimed he did so in an attempt to break up the fight between Mr. Manninen and Mr. Torres – not to hurt or kill anyone."

The other youth was not armed.

Eight days after the shootings, both teens were arrested and charged with 2nd-degree murder and burglary. They stayed locked up in the Jackson County Juvenile Facility until their trial began August 4.

Judge Charles Kochlacs dismissed the charges against the unarmed teen 3 days into the trial because his "involvement in the crime was limited."

Then after closing arguments on Monday, Judge Kochlacs acquitted the other teen -- the one who shot the refrigerator -- of all charges because of information that showed the " juveniles and Mr. Torres may have been allowed to enter by a resident of the apartment prior to the shooting," which gave him reasonable doubt.

Investigators earlier determined "Torres was likely criminally culpable for the events that night."

The teens have since been released from custody.

In a statement, the Jackson County DA's Office said, "We very much regret that we were not able to secure a better result for (the Manninen family) in this case.”