Trial of Ed Cantrell
| Wyoming v. Cantrell | |
|---|---|
| Court | Sweetwater County District Court |
| Full case name | State of Wyoming v. Edward Lee Cantrell |
| Decided | November 30, 1979 |
| Verdict | Not guilty |
| Charge | First-degree murder |
| Court membership | |
| Judge sitting | Kenneth Hamm |
State of Wyoming v. Ed Cantrell (officially the State of Wyoming v. Edward Lee Cantrell) was a state trial of Wyoming police officer Ed Cantrell for the killing of Michael Angel Rosa, an undercover narcotics agent in Rock Springs, Wyoming. Rosa had previously been working towards uncovering the immense corruption in the city.
After only three hours of deliberations, the jury accepted Cantrell's self-defense argument, and acquitted him of first-degree murder.
Famed lawyer Gerry Spence won the acquittal of Cantrell in what was deemed an "impossible case".