A jury took only four and a half hours Tuesday to find a convicted sex offender guilty of murdering a woman at the Galleria Mall because she was white.

Phillip Grant, 44, was found guilty of second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon in the stabbing death of 56-year-old legal secretary Connie Russo Carriero. Grant had confessed to police that he wanted to kill a white person. DNA evidence also tied Grant to the crime. Carriero?s family members became emotional hearing the verdict and said they are glad the trial is finally over.

Grant is the first person to be tried for murder as a hate crime in Westchester County. He faces 25 years to life when he is sentenced on September 11. His attorney vows to appeal the verdict.

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