TyRon Lewis verdict in

TyRon's mother Pamela Lewis walks out of the courthouse.

Jurors sided with the city of St. Petersburg in the TyRon Lewis civil trial Friday.

This means they did not believe Officer James Knight was negligent during a traffic stop that turned deadly.

Lewis' family sued the city for wrongful death seeking $1.7 million in damages. In an earlier trial Officer Knight was cleared of criminal wrongdoing.

After the verdict, city, state and county leaders held a news conference at the St. Petersburg City Hall..

Speakers at the press conference included, St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker, Earnest Williams of the St. Petersburg City Council, Honorable Rene Flowers of District 7 in St. Petersburg, County Commissioner Jim Welch of District 7, Honorable Frank Peterman and Honorable Jim Davis.

"There will be some people in our community who will be upset with the out come of the verdict. That is understandable," said Mayor Baker.

During his speech he urged people in the community to come together. He also talked about the economic development in Midtown.

"We have seen job fairs [in Midtown] because the greatest economic effort is a job," he said.

County Commissioner Ken Welch also gave words of encouragement.

"Midtown is made up of good people. People who work hard and play by the rules and just want to raise their families in peace," he said.

"They want to seek their part in the American Dream. We will continue to make sure their dreamss become a reality," he said.

City attorneys argued Officer James Knight's actions were deliberate, not negligent, when he shot Lewis during a traffic stop in October of 1996.

Earlier this week, Knight testified that he fired because Lewis bumped him with his vehicle. That shooting led to two days of violence in the same area where Wednesday's violence occurred.

An expert witness called by the Lewis' attorneys said the officer's actions were reckless and those who know Lewis, including his mother, took the stand expressing their heartache.

Throughout the case, the city continued to attack Lewis' character and credibility.

Meanwhile, the city of St. Petersburg is quiet after Wednesday night's disturbances.

The disturbances began at about 9:25 p.m. in the area bordered by 5th Avenue South, 22nd Avenue South and 9th Street to 44th Street South. There were reports of people roaming the streets, throwing rocks and bottles, breaking windows and attacking people.

Some cars were set on fire.

Police were investigating a probability that the violence erupted during a memorial march for TyRon Lewis.

Police arrested 20 people, nine of them juveniles, accused of various crimes. Two people were arrested for shooting at police officers. No officers were hurt, but 6-10 civilians were.

Local business owner Leo Calzadilla witnessed some of the violence.

"They were shooting as the police officers were trying to turn away," said Calzadilla, who owns Bad to the Bone Auto Accessories."There were people taking shots at the police officers."

Calzadilla watched his store until 3 a.m. and praised the police response, as did St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Baker.

"We had several instances of criminal violence," Baker said at a Thursday afternoon news conference.

"The officers did great. They acted swiftly to protect the citizens of St. Petersburg. I'm terribly proud of the men and women in the police department for the professional way they acted last night. They will continue to arrest anyone who engages in any kind of criminal activity in our community."

Baker said the city's effort to upgrade the Midtown area will continue.

"If anybody believes that through acts of criminal violence, they can slow down our efforts to change the lives of the people in the Midtown community, they are wrong," said Baker.
 
"We will redouble our efforts to make sure that we stay the course. This will not slow this process down. We are going to protect our community. We are not going to tolerate acts of criminal violence in our community. I think that's evidenced by the activity of the police department last night."

Darryl Rouson, the president of the St. Petersburg chapter of the NAACP, condemned the violence Thursday afternoon.

Rouson condemned the violence

"It is immoral because it seeks to humiliate the opponent," said Rouson. "I condemn the violence. We have to remember that some of what was destroyed last night belongs to us. We despise that. We believe there's another way to express disappointment, to express pain, than to do it through death, destruction and violence.

"We have to concentrate on the good and the positive changes that are taking place in Midtown. We want you to know that the NAACP is not a part of this. We wish we could have stopped this. We don't support what other groups are saying in terms of violence and destruction."

Store front windows were shattered by concrete, and there were dumpster fires, car fires and store break-ins at the Maximo Plaza shopping center.

"This is an unfortunate incident for our city," said Major Cedric Gordon of the St. Petersburg Police Department. "We're going to go out and make sure that our citizens are safe and do our best in making sure no property is destroyed."

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