The killer of José Sucuzhañay was convicted of second-degree murder as a hate crime on Monday and could be sentenced to life in prison, the New York Times reported.

Keith Phoenix was accused of beating the Ecuadoran immigrant with a baseball bat in December of 2008. The attack occurred on the corner of Bushwick Avenue and Kossuth Place, which is now co-named for the victim. Because José and his brother Romel were targeted on the presumption they were gay, the attack was considered a hate crime.

The brother of the victims, Diego Sucuzhañay, told El Diario La Prensa that the justice system had "done its job and sent the right message which is exactly what our family waited for."

"The guy was trying to get back up and I hit him four times and when he tried to get back up I hit him two times up here," said Phoenix as he pointed to his head in a videotaped confession shown in court.

The Brooklyn jury deliberated for 7 hours before finding 30-year-old Phoenix guilty. Judge Patricia DiMango said Phoenix will be sentenced August 3rd and could get a maximum of life in prison.

Phoenix’s lawyer, Phillip Smallman, said he was shocked with the verdict and that the prosecutor had "persuaded the jury." Phoenix’s accomplice in the crime, Hakim Scott, was found guilty of manslaughter in the case earlier this month.

The guilty verdict comes to the relief of the Sucuzhañay family after Phoenix was acquitted of the hate crime charges in the first trial. After Romel Sucuzhañay testified in court, brother Diego told El Diario that Phoenix "doesn’t have remorse for what he has done. You see clearly that he acted with hate in his heart."