A former University of Arizona graduate student was found guilty of first-degree murder for fatally shooting a hydrology professor on campus Tuesday, months after he was expelled.
A Pima County Superior Court jury took less than three hours to reach a verdict against Murad Dervish, 48, in the death of Thomas Meikner, who was shot 11 times near his office in October 2022. Deliberations were held.
Dervish was also convicted of five other felonies, including aggravated assault for a bullet that grazed a building manager. Darvish, who showed no emotion as his sentence was read, is scheduled to be sentenced on June 24 and could face life in prison.
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Meixner, 52, previously served as dean of the university’s Department of Hydrology and Atmospheric Sciences. Darvish was enrolled in a master’s program in atmospheric science.
Darvish was expelled from the school in January 2022, authorities said, and was subsequently expelled after receiving poor grades and citing ongoing issues with professors.
In his closing arguments Monday, defense attorney Leo Massursky told jurors that Dervish was suffering a psychotic episode during the shooting and that the crime was not premeditated.
Murad Dervish, an Arizona graduate student, is on trial on May 8, 2024, in Pima County Superior Court in Tucson, Arizona. Dervish, a former graduate student at the University of Arizona, was found guilty of first-degree murder on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, for fatally shooting a hydrology professor on campus in 2022. This was several months after he was expelled from school. (Mamta Popat/Arizona Daily Star via AP, File)
He urged jurors to hold Darvish responsible but consider the lesser charge of second-degree murder, which could mean confinement in a psychiatric hospital rather than a prison cell.
“Murad Dervish lost his mind on Oct. 5, 2022,” Masulski said. “He had severe mental health issues. He could not distinguish right from wrong.”
But Pima County Prosecutor Mark Hotchkiss said there is evidence that Darvish planned to kill Meikner and purchased a 9mm handgun a month before he used it in the shooting.
“He’s not guilty, but he’s insane. He’s just guilty,” Hotchkiss said of Darvish.
According to the criminal complaint, fliers featuring Dervish’s photo were distributed to university employees in February 2022 with instructions to call 911 if Dervish entered the John W. Hershberger Building, where Makener worked.
The lawsuit also said Dervish has been banned from school grounds and there have been multiple reports of harassment and threats against staff working at Hershberger.
Witnesses said Dervish was wearing a surgical mask and baseball cap as a disguise when he appeared outside Meixner’s office and shot him.
Dervish fled the scene, but was arrested three hours later after Arizona State Police stopped his vehicle on a highway more than 120 miles northwest of Tucson.
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Authorities said a loaded handgun was found inside the vehicle, and the ammunition matched shell casings found at the scene of the shooting.
