PORT ARTHUR, Texas — The murder trial for a Port Arthur man accused of a 2018 murder ended Thursday with a guilty verdict and a life sentence.
Joshua Henderson was indicted on the charge in October 2018 after investigators said he shot and killed Floyd Dergent, 49, of Port Arthur, at the Prince Hall apartment complex.
A mistrial was declared in Henderson's July 2021 trial because the jury couldn't reach a unanimous verdict. His new trial started Monday, Nov. 18, 2021.
Surveillance video from the Prince Hall Apartments on March 18, 2018, showed Henderson shooting Dergent and then kicking Dergent while he was on the ground. Evidence showed Dergent was shot in the head and through both legs, according to court documents.
“The jury took their time to view not only the video that followed Henderson throughout the housing complex for several hours, but also the other five discs of all camera angles, as well as the photos admitted during trial taken from Facebook that showed Henderson posing with a handgun in his waistband,” Prosecutor Philip Smith said.
The jury returned its guilty verdict after deliberating for more than three hours, prosecutors said. Henderson chose to go to court for sentencing.
After hearing punishment testimony, Jefferson County Judge Raquel West of the 252nd Criminal District sentenced Henderson to life in prison.
“This was a senseless and brutal murder. The family of Floyd Dergent now has closure and they are appreciative of the work of the Port Arthur Police Department, and the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office,” Smith said.
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