Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2015 | 5:03 p.m.
CARSON CITY — The Nevada Supreme Court today denied the appeal of Derrick L. McKnight, convicted of first-degree murder in the robbery and slaying of a former professional basketball player in Las Vegas in 2006.
The court rejected arguments that McKnight should have had a separate trial from his co-defendant, Timothy Burnside, who was sentenced to death.
The two men followed Kenneth Hardwick from a Las Vegas Strip casino to the drive-thru window of a fast-food restaurant, where Hardwick was shot several times, according to court records.
McKnight, who received consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole, also argued one of the jurors at his trial fell asleep a number of times.
The Supreme Court said the trial judge had kept a close eye on the jury and rejected McKnight’s argument that there should have been further investigation into the claim of the sleeping juror.
The court also noted that McKnight and his lawyer did not make the allegation during the trial and didn’t detail when the juror was allegedly sleeping or for how long.
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