Jury Convicts North Port Man in 2025 Home Shooting After Rejecting Self-Defense Claim
A three-day trial ended Wednesday with a Sarasota County jury finding Michael David Reinel guilty of second-degree murder with a firearm.
By Layla Petrov ·
A North Port man faces sentencing after a jury convicted him Wednesday in a 2025 shooting death at a home in Sarasota County.
Prosecutors with the State Attorney's Office for the 12th Judicial Circuit said the case began with a 911 call around 9 p.m. on Feb. 6, 2025. Two people inside the home called after an argument between Michael David Reinel and the victim ended in gunfire. North Port police found the victim in the living room with multiple gunshot wounds. Crews attempted life-saving measures, and the victim was pronounced dead about an hour after the initial call.
Investigators determined the victim was shot five times with a .357-caliber revolver. The revolver, which held five rounds, was later found in Reinel's bedroom. An autopsy found two of the five wounds entered the victim's back, according to the State Attorney's Office. A projectile recovered from the victim matched the revolver, and testing by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement found Reinel's DNA was the only DNA detected on the firearm.
Reinel testified during the trial that he acted in self-defense. The jury rejected that argument and convicted him of second-degree murder with a firearm. The three-day trial concluded Wednesday. A sentencing date has not been set.
