Jury set to decide on man accused of trying to kill Rock Hill police officer

Jurors are expected to begin deliberating today the fate of a Rock Hill man accused of shooting at police in 2016.

John Perry is on trial on a charge of attempted murder. Prosecutors allege Perry shot at Rock Hill Police Department officer Dalton Taylor as Perry was fleeing on foot after a traffic stop. Taylor returned fire, hitting Perry in the torso.

Taylor was not wounded.

When Perry was arrested days later near Columbia, he told officers he tried to throw away the gun and that it went off, but that he never pointed at police, according to his statement played in court.

Perry, who has a criminal record dating back more than 25 years, admitted to police in the statement that he knew he had warrants against him for a previous arrest. He said in the statement that he wanted to get rid of the weapon.

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This story was originally published September 20, 2017 at 11:03 AM with the headline "Jury set to decide on man accused of trying to kill Rock Hill police officer."