The state’s decision last week to drop charges against most of the remaining defendants charged with the murder of Lt. Steven Floyd came on the heels of two trials that were plagued by a lack of hard evidence and inconsistent witness testimony, Delaware defense attorneys said.

Prosecutors with the Delaware Department of Justice to date have secured just one guilty verdict in the high-profile murder cases stemming from the 2017 inmate takeover of James T. Vaughn Correctional Center in Smyrna. On March 15, the state announced that it would only proceed with charges against three of the nine inmates still waiting to stand trial in Wilmington for murder, riot and other charges.