A New Zealander has been convicted of first-degree murder in California.
New Zealander Clinton Thinn Photo: Supplied / Instagram
Clinton Thinn, 31, who is the stepbrother of National MP Nikki Kaye, was found guilty of killing his cellmate Lyle Woodward by strangling him with a prison shirt.
Woodward was found lying on the cell floor on 3 December, 2016 after Thinn summoned deputies and asked for a nurse to examine his cellmate.
Woodward died a week later after he was considered brain dead and his life support system was turned off.
Thinn was in prison for an attempted bank robbery in Chula Vista, near San Diego, to which he had pleaded not guilty.
He did not testify at the murder trial but his lawyer Keenan Gultekin argued Thinn was only defending himself against Woodward, and had urged an acquittal.
Thinn was found guilty by a jury of seven women and five men.
Neal Putnam, reporter for The Star News, said Thinn showed little reaction as the verdict was read out.
He told Morning Report Thinn's lawyers would appeal against the conviction.
Thinn has not yet been sentenced, but could face life imprisonment.
It was the New Zealander's second trial.
The first was declared a mistrial in February after jurors could not agree on what crime he had committed.
