Jury Settles on a Verdict in Kyle Jacobs Trial

After a day and a half of deliberations, the jury in the case of a Diamond Bar man accused of killing his former roommate announced they reached a verdict.

That verdict will be read 8:30 a.m. Thursday, according to court officials.

The case was handed over to the jury on Tuesday afternoon after several days of testimony.

Jurors will decide the fate of 26-year-old Kyle Jacobs. He is accused of murdering his former roommate, 39-year-old Ryan Modica, on the morning of April 7, 2011. He could face first or second degree murder. Jurors also have the option to convict of manslaughter.

Modica and Jacobs had been close friends at one time. But methamphetamine use, drug sales, and late rent put a strain on the friendship. And in March, Christine Jacobs, the home’s owner and the defendant’s mother, evicted Modica from the house in the 1100 block of North Del Sol Lane.

That created tensions that exploded the morning of the shooting when officials say Modica confronted Kyle Jacobs in front of the home’s garage. Jacobs shot Modica in the face with a 12-gauge shotgun after the former roommate threatened him with a metal hammer, according to Jacobs’ testimony.

He claims self-defense. But prosecutors insist Jacobs fired out of anger and because he refused to back down from a fight.

The verdict is scheduled to be read at 8:30 a.m. in Dept. M at the Pomona Superior Court.