4-4-14 fdl man found not guilty in hammer beating case

A man accused of  nearly beating a Fond du lac man to death with a hammer has been found not guilty.  Following a court trial this week Fond du Lac judge Gary Sharpe found 40 year old James Graham not guilty of first degree reckless injury and not guilty of false imprisonment.  Two other counts had earlier been dismissed.  Graham was accused of bludgeoning Ronald Robertson at an east 9^th Street residence more than five years ago.  Robertson received more than 70 staples to close wounds to his head.  During the court trial Graham claimed self defense and said Robertson was the one who initiated the fight.   He says he panicked and fled to Milwaukee after the incident. Graham was arrested but failed to appear in court in May of 2009.  He was arrested as a suspect in another case, identified through the warrant and taken into custody in January of this year.