Jury finds Minneapolis man not guilty in connection to drive-by shooting

A jury has acquitted a Minneapolis man in a case stemming from a shooting that left a woman injured in January.

Court records show prosecutors initially charged Norman Wesley Parker, 36, with two counts of attempted second-degree murder, one count of drive-by shooting, and one count of illegal possession of a weapon. The attempted second-degree murder charges were amended to attempted first-degree murder in July 2023, according to court documents.

Following a trial, Parker was found not guilty on all counts on Tuesday, according to court records.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Shooting suspect pursued through Minneapolis charged with attempted murder

As previously reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, officers from the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) were informed that a woman had shown up at a nearby hospital with gunshot wounds to the lower part of her body, according to a criminal complaint.

The complaint states the driver of the victim’s vehicle told officers Parker allegedly pulled alongside the vehicle at a red light and fired a gun at them multiple times. The witness then told law enforcement that prior to the shooting, she and the victim had stopped at a residence on Fremont Avenue where an argument with Parker happened.

Parker was arrested in March 2023 after officers from MPD and deputies from the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office found Parker inside a stolen vehicle near 22nd Avenue North and Emerson Avenue.

As previously reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, when law enforcement tried to stop the vehicle, it rammed three deputies’ squads and fled, leading to a pursuit that eventually ended when the vehicle crashed near Central Avenue and University Avenue Southeast. Parker was a passenger in the vehicle and was arrested after he was released from the hospital.