SPRINGFIELD, Va. — A 19-year-old from Springfield, Virginia was found guilty by a jury on two counts of manslaughter in the 2021 shooting deaths of two high school classmates, according to the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney's Office.
Zachary Burkard, a then-18-year-old aspiring drug dealer, shot and killed 17-year-old Ersheen Elaiasher and 16-year-old Calvin Van Pelt after a social media beef. The two teens allegedly showed up to fight Burkard in his friend's garage.
Becky Campbell, the public information officer for the Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney's Office, confirmed that Burkard was found not guilty on two counts of firearm use in a felony.
Jurors had been deliberating the case since Wednesday. Burkard admitted he shot his two South County High School classmates, but his lawyer maintained that it was self-defense after a series of back-and-forth social media threats that ultimately turned violent.
Jurors were presented with a video from the first police officer to arrive immediately after the shooting on April 25, 2021. They heard audio of the gunshots and have seen the vile threats – including the n-word -- made by Burkard in a Snapchat video the day before the shootings, while he was waving a gun outside a house he thought was the home of one of the teens.
The shooting happened in the 8000 block of Winding Way Court in a Springfield neighborhood on a Sunday afternoon.
Prosecutors say what Burkard did was first-degree murder. Burkard - the only one armed that day - seized the opportunity "to take out someone he didn’t like," according to Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Joseph Martin.
Burkard’s lawyer, senior public defender Bryan Kennedy, maintained that his client shot Elaisher to protect another friend, who was allegedly on the verge of losing consciousness from being beaten. He told jurors Elaiasher’s "One Way" crew had threatened Burkard and his friends. Additionally, they'd come to the garage after the social media challenge, but then jumped Burkard’s friend four on one.
Burkard, testifying in his own defense, claimed he tried to shoot between Van Pelt and another man as they were moving toward him. However, the medical examiner testified that Van Pelt had been shot twice in the back.
In audio from bodycam footage of first responders on the scene after the shooting, an officer can be heard saying that Burkard was "trying to help the person he shot." Kennedy argued that Burkard's actions, including trying to save his victim's life, were "not the actions of a murderer."
Burkard's sentencing hearing was set for 1 p.m. on Monday. WUSA9 will update this story when sentencing details become available.
The Van Pelt family released the following statement after the verdict was announced for the man who shot 16-year-old Calvin:
“Although we disagree with the verdict, we thank the jury for their service. There is some consolation in knowing that some degree of justice has been served. We continue to grieve for our son, Calvin who was a bright light in our family. We pray that no more families have to endure the agony of losing a child to gun violence.”