Deliberations to begin in PA game warden case

(Gettysburg) -- Jurors in Adams County will soon begin weighing the fate of a man charged with killing a state game warden.

Defense attorneys acknowledge Christopher Johnson fatally shot Wildlife Conservation Officer David Grove. But they say Johnson was too drunk to form the intent to kill.

Investigators say Johnson had poached a deer before Grove pulled him over in Freedom Township near Gettysburg in November 2010. A passenger testified that Johnson vowed he wouldn't go back to prison before the shootout that left Grove dead and Johnson wounded.

Prosecutors are seeking a first-degree murder conviction, which could carry the death penalty. Defense lawyers argued for third-degree murder, which could mean a possible 40-year sentence.

The defense rested Monday without calling Johnson to testify. The jury is expected to begin deliberating Tuesday.