PORTLAND, Maine — Editor's Note: The video above aired Aug. 31, 2020.
A Portland man convicted of manslaughter in the March 2019 death of his sister's boyfriend is appealing to the Maine Supreme Court.
Mark Cardilli Jr. was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison in August 2020 for shooting and killing Isahak Muse. The full sentence is 11 years, with all but seven and a half years suspended.
In his appeal, Cardilli argues there wasn't enough evidence to support the trial court's finding that he acted unreasonably when using deadly force, and that the court didn't give proper weight to evidence he believes shows he acted in self-defense.
Cardilli admitted to shooting and killing Muse -- but said he did it in self-defense because Muse was throwing punches at him. The incident happened in Cardilli's home. He also called Muse an intruder.
The prosecution argued that Muse was not an intruder in the home and was unarmed at the time of the shooting. An autopsy also indicated that Muse was shot in the back.
Muse was dating Cardilli's sister. She testified in court, saying her brother had made racist remarks in the past about Somali and Muslim people. Muse was a black, Muslim man.
Cardilli's appeal is set to begin via videoconference at 10 a.m. Tuesday.