Ratliff found guilty of occupational murder of 22-year-old Ryan Birse

A Kentucky jury has found Joshua Ratliff guilty but mentally ill for the murder of 22-year-old Ryan Birse.

The jury is reconvening today for sentencing which could be 20 to 50 years or life imprisonment.

Ryan Birse (Birse family collection)

On the night of February 25, 2016, Birse was packing chicken at a KFC/Taco Bell restaurant where he worked.

Ratliff, a co-worker who was not working that night went into the restaurant, walked behind the counter and shot Birse in the side and eight more times in the back.

Birse died of his injuries. Ratliff left the restaurant but was apprehended later.

Birse was one of at least 2,000,000 Americans who are victimized by workplace violence each year. However, the actual number of workers who experience workplace violence is likely much higher.

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration ("OSHA") "many" cases of workplace violence are unreported.

Sources: http://www.thenewsenterprise.com/content/murder-trial-verdict-guilty-mentally-ill

https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/workplaceviolence/