Jury rules former deputy accused of murder not guilty on all counts

The jury ruled on Monday that a former El Paso County sheriff’s deputy accused of killing his wife was not guilty on all counts.

Nikolas Gianes was being tried for first degree murder in the death of Fawn Gianes.

Prosecutors say Gianes shot his wife during an argument at their home on Babcock Place in northeast Colorado Springs last October.

During opening statements on June 15, the prosecution said that there were four children in the home and that they saw Nikolas Gianes punch Fawn Gianes in the stomach and heard two gun shots.

The prosecution said that Fawn Gianes was shot in the throat and that the bullet dislocated her spine, killing her instantly.

The prosecution said Fawn Gianes was armed with a knife at one point during the fight, but that the killing was not self-defense.

In its opening statements, the defense argued that Fawn Gianes was the aggressor. It said that during the course of the fight, Fawn Gianes grabbed a steak knife and stabbed the TV seven times.

The defense said that later, Fawn Gianes charged Nikolas Gianes with a gun and that he accidentally shot her while trying to get the gun away from her.

The defense will try to make the case during the trial that Gianes was trying to get the gun away from his wife for his own safety and that the shooting was just a terrible accident.