The verdict in a 12-day trial of a man charged in the death of a St. Olaf football player acquitted him on the two major charges related to the case.
Terrell Anthony Ranzy was acquitted of one count of unintentional murder while committing a felony and one count of second-degree manslaughter.
He was found guilty of one count of possession of a firearm by an ineligible person. That was due to a 2025 conviction for threats of violence.
The crime happened in September 2025. Authorities were called to a home in South St. Paul overnight on a report of an unresponsive 20-year-old.
Officers were told the man was in an upstairs bedroom.
Police pushed the door open and found two men who had been shot. According to court documents, Matthew Lee, 20, was lying on the floor and had blood on his clothing. He was declared dead at the scene.
Another 20-year-old man, identified in a criminal complaint as Keith Brian Woodson Cox Jr., was found suffering gunshot wounds to his arms and torso, and had a tourniquet on one of his arms.
Officers also found a handgun on a table in the room.
After speaking with witnesses, investigators learned that the two gunshot wound victims and Ranzy had been hanging out in a group that evening and went to the home in South St. Paul around 3 a.m.
The group was in the bedroom when Ranzy and Woodson Cox Jr. began comparing their guns.
A witness, Woodson Cox Jr. and Lee went into the bathroom together, and Woodson Cox Jr. told them he was going to rob Ranzy of his gun. Court documents state that both Lee and the witness told him not to do it.
Despite their pleas, when they returned, Woodson Cox Jr. pulled out his gun and attempted to rob Ranzy of his gun. Ranzy fired his gun first into the ceiling and then at the group, hitting Lee and Woodson Cox Jr. The witness saw both Woodson Cox Jr. and Ranzy firing their guns. Two people jumped out the window to avoid being shot.
The witness described Lee as an “innocent bystander” in the situation, court documents state.
While searching the bedroom, investigators found 14 total casings — including 9mm and 40 caliber casings, suggesting two guns had been fired.
Ranzy ran from the home after the shooting, prompting a brief shelter-in-place in the area, but was found in a nearby shed and arrested.
He is set to be sentenced on July 15. He will stay at the Dakota County Jail until that date.
Woodson Cox Jr. was charged with one count of first-degree attempted aggravated robbery. He has an omnibus hearing on May 27.
