Two people were led away in handcuffs after the verdict was read in a Syracuse murder trial, but neither was the person on trial. As our Katie Gibas reports, family members of the slain man were so upset over the not guilty verdict, they lashed out at the defendant's family.

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Emotions ran high outside the courtroom just moments after the not guilty verdict was read in the trial of Jeffrey Peterson. He was cleared of the second degree murder charge stemming from the shooting death of Shaheen Bean last June.

Many of Bean's family members stormed out of the courtroom after hearing the verdict. Then a fight broke out between the two families. More than a dozen police officers ran to break up the fight. At least two people were taken away in handcuffs.

The verdict came after just about three hours of deliberations.

"We spent two and a half weeks examining 87 seconds. That's how long this horrible attack on Jeff Peterson and his wife took. The trial went on for a long time. It was an extremely serious matter. And thank god for the jury," said Defense Attorney Edward Menkin.

Peterson wrestled the gun from Shaheen Bean after the man tried to rob Peterson and his wife at gun point last June. Prosecutors accused Peterson of murder, saying after the two men struggled over the weapon, Peterson shot Bean in the back of the head as he lay face down on the ground. But jurors decided Peterson was acting in self-defense.

"The jury was here for two and a half weeks. They got it. They understood what was going on that the lady that called 911 did the right thing, but she was mistaken about a number of important details. And she was a good citizen who was in a highly emotional state and there was a lot of evidence that contradicted what she said she saw," said Menkin.

After the fight broke out, Bean's family said they would not comment on the jury's verdict.

Peterson's mother says justice prevailed and that her son was just doing what was necessary to protect his wife and himself.

When we tried to get a comment from the District Attorney's office, we were told Christine Garvey, the attorney who prosecuted the case had left through another exit and was no longer in the building. The DA's office said they have no comment at this time.