Jury finds Lansing man guilty in fatal stabbing tied to domestic incident

LANSING — A Lansing man has been convicted of murder in connection with the stabbing of another man during a domestic incident in June 2023 on Wildwood Avenue.

An Ingham County Circuit Court jury deliberated for about six hours on Thursday and Friday before finding Corey O'Rourke, 34, guilty of second-degree murder in the death of Jeffrey Medina, 41. Jurors acquitted O'Rourke on a separate count of being a felon in possession of ammunition.

Judge Joyce Draganchuk set sentencing for July 2.

The fatal stabbing stemmed from a domestic dispute at a house in the 3600 block of Wildwood on June 20. At least part of the physical and verbal altercation was captured on video recorded by a neighbor.

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Medina was summoned to the house by his cousin, O'Rourke's wife or girlfriend, to come and help her, according to testimony. After arriving at the house, an angry Medina grabbed a piece of a cinderblock and went to the front door, banging on the door and beckoning O'Rourke to come outside.

At some point, O'Rourke retrieved a knife from the kitchen before opening the door and stabbing Medina, witnesses said. Medina fell into the house and died from a knife wound that punctured his liver.

The bloody knife was found inside, but O'Rourke left the scene and was arrested later.

At trial, O'Rourke claimed he acted in self-defense.

Prosecutors sought a first-degree murder conviction, arguing that he had time to reflect on his actions before he retrieved the knife, opened the door and stabbed Medina.

Second-degree murder carries a maximum penalty of up to life in prison.

Contact Ken Palmer at kpalmer@lsj.com. Follow him on X @KBPalm_lsj.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Jury finds Lansing man guilty in fatal stabbing tied to domestic incident