A Chautauqua County jury found 24-year-old Barbara J. Redeye not guilty of second-degree murder Friday in County Court. P-J file photo by A.J. Rao

MAYVILLE — Seven months after Barbara J. Redeye stabbed and killed her older half-brother, a jury of peers determined her claim of self-defense still held up.

On Friday, Redeye, 24, was found not guilty of second-degree murder, a charge that could have sent her to prison for a maximum 25-years-to-life.

Twelve jurors — seven men and five women — reached their verdict in just over three hours.

Redeye, visibly elated, smiled and hugged her defense team when the verdict was rendered. Her lead counsel, Nathaniel Barone, said he couldn’t be happier with the result and acknowledged the hard work of his team.

“We’ve devoted weeks to this trial and we were lucky enough to have a jury that was truly committed and dedicated,” he said. “To walk away on a second-degree murder charge is extremely difficult … so I’m very happy for my client.”

Redeye was accused of murdering 36-year-old Dale A. Redeye on the night of Aug. 14, when both shared an upstairs apartment at 501 Lakeview Ave. in Jamestown.

Patrick Swanson, Chautauqua County district attorney, argued that Redeye stabbed and killed the victim in a fit of anger, insisting the numerous wounds on the victim’s body, coupled with Redeye’s shifting version of events, reflected someone who acted intentionally and with reason to lie.

Barone, however, argued his client “instinctively” defended herself from Dale A. Redeye, a man he described as a “vicious, aggressive abuser” who was intoxicated and the initial aggressor during the confrontation.

Prosecutors were tasked to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Redeye killed the victim with intent and without justification — the final point, according to Swanson, being the rub.

“(Justification) is a difficult element in New York state … (especially) when the only witness present was the defendant herself,” he said. “In a self-defense case, we’re charged with having to prove that (self-defense) didn’t happen … and sometimes that leaves you with having to prove a negative.”

Two key components that likely swayed the verdict, according to Barone, were the lack of forensic evidence at the crime scene and the dubious history of Dale A. Redeye.

During a lengthy, one-hour summation, Barone recounted to the jury how despite a bevy of evidence showing what appeared to be a blood-strewn crime scene, no analyses were conducted by Jamestown police to confirm whether the red substance observed was indeed blood, and if so, whose blood was it.

Moreover, he argued, blood swabs used to obtain DNA were never tested, nor were fingerprint tests completed on a range of items, including a red-smudged kitchen knife, a broken pair of glasses and a Seneca Nation identification card.

“Juries want to see some DNA testing and some fingerprints … and there wasn’t that in this case,” Barone said. “I think that was a big help to us.”

Swanson rejected the notion that the Jamestown Police Department may have undermined his case, insisting the department did a “fantastic job.”

“We had all the evidence that was needed and available … they do good work,” he said.

In terms of Dale A. Redeye’s past, Barone recounted how the deceased used to be a juvenile delinquent, guilty of sodomizing a 3-year-old. Dale A. Redeye, he said, had a pattern of getting intoxicated and getting violent, assaulting a young woman, a boyfriend and even police officers.

“Dale Redeye didn’t care about anyone or anything,” Barone told the jury.

Swanson’s summation focused on the defendant’s questionable actions following the incident, including her initial claim to police that a white male, dressed in black, stabbed her half-brother while she was in the bathroom.

It took “minutes,” he said, for Redeye to get help after stabbing Dale A. Redeye, with bloody footprints indicating she traveled back and forth from the bathroom, likely trying to get her story straight.

Swanson also emphasized the difference between self-defense and overreacting, claiming Redeye became livid over a comment her half-brother made and allowed her anger “to get the best of her.”

Following the verdict, Swanson said his team provided all the necessary arguments and pieces of evidence they possibly could.

“I’ll never complain about the process … we have to deal with the cases that we have and the evidence that come with them,” he said. “We did everything we could in this case and the jury just didn’t see it our way and sometimes that happens.”

Redeye, who had been in the Chautauqua County Jail since Aug. 14, is now free.

“She was extremely happy (when the verdict was rendered) … almost in a state of shock,” Barone said. “This is just overwhelming for her.”

The Redeye murder trial lasted eight days and was presided over by the Hon. David Foley.