AKRON, Ohio — An Akron man charged with shooting and killing his landlord last fall over a rent dispute has been found guilty of murder, Summit County Prosecutor Sheri Bevan Walsh announced Friday.
A jury convicted 23-year-old Eric Pursley of both the homicide as well as two counts of felonious assault, all with firearm specifications. He could now potentially spend the rest of his life in prison.
Pursley's case goes back to Oct. 5, 2022, when he fatally shot 59-year-old Daniel Stein at Pursley's home on Sumner Streer, not far from the University of Akron campus. At the time, police said there had been "an apparent altercation" between the two, the details of which became public in the ensuing months.
According to prosecutors, Stein owned a number of rental properties in the Akron area, including the location Pursley was living in. At the time of the murder, Pursley was several months behind on rent payments, and Stein had come from his native California to address the matter. Once he did, Pursley shot him in the head.
A sentencing date for Pursley has not yet been finalized.