Man aquitted on murder charge, found guilty of illegal firearm possession

A man accused of killing his then-girlfriend’s estranged husband has been acquitted of second-degree murder but may still see jail time.

James Edward Hagen, 33, was found not guilty of second-degree murder in Ramsey County Court but was found guilty of illegally possessing a firearm.

Hagen was arrested back in July 2024 when police were called to a St. Paul home for reports of a man who had been shot.

St. Paul Police said they found 35-year-old Jonathon Diaz, who had been shot multiple times outside of a house.

Despite life-saving measures, Diaz died from his injuries.

Witnesses later identified Hagen as the shooter, stating he had shot Diaz and later got on a bike and left.

The criminal complaint against Hagen stated the two had not gotten along after Hagen began to date Diaz’s estranged wife.

Court documents alleged Diaz’s 13-year-old daughter, who was home at the time of the shooting, said Hagen was the one who shot Diaz and that the two had been violent to each other in the past.

A prior incident to the house had taken place in August 2023, where St. Paul police found Hagen with two gunshot wounds to his legs. The teenager claimed Diaz had been responsible for that incident.

According to Diaz’s estranged wife, Diaz would occasionally drive by the house to see his child, which reportedly upset Hagen after he learned about it. The teen told police Hagen had said he would kill Diaz the next time he saw him.

On the night of Diaz’s death, while in the kitchen with her mother, the teen said they heard more than 10 loud bangs followed by Hagen yelling at the girl’s mother, “I told you I was going to kill him!” before he reportedly fled.

His sentencing has been set for March 17; he faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison for the illegal firearm charge.