Murder Conviction for Man in Shooting Injuring Atlanta Falcons CB Corey Ballentine
A Kansas jury on Friday convicted a man of shooting and killing a college football player and wounding another athlete - Corey Ballentine - who recovered from the incident and is now under contract with the Atlanta Falcons.
Francisco "Franky" Mendez, 21, was found guilty of first-degree murder in the April 28, 2019, death of Dwane Simmons, 23, a cornerback for Washburn University in Topeka.
Ballentine also played at Washburn and on that night was with friends and teammates celebrating the fact he'd just been drafted in Round 6 by the New York Giants.
Mendez was convicted on four counts of attempted murder for shooting at Washburn players Channon Ross, Kevin Neal Jr., J.J. Letcher Jr. and Ballentine, wounding Ballentine, as the Topeka Capital-Journal reported.
The other three men were not injured.
Testimony at the trial indicated Simmons and Ballentine were shot as they stood outside a Topeka house where they were attending a party to celebrate Ballentine having been drafted. A car driven by Mendez arrived at the scene and he asked the partygoers if they had any marijuana.
The players said they did not.
Mendez and the other occupants of the vehicle fired at least 19 shots at the players, witnesses said. Simmons died at the scene. The other players ran as the shooters walked toward them, a witness said.
Mendez was also convicted on seven counts of aggravated robbery linked to crimes committed in the days before and after Simmons and Ballentine were shot.
A sentencing date hasn't been set.
Ballentine, 25, joined his fourth NFL team by signing a futures contract with Atlanta after the end of the 2021 season.
