Naples Doctor Arrested for Random Shooting in Vermont in 2019

Dr. Jozsef Piri

Police say Dr. Jozsef Piri did not know Roberto Fonseca-Rivera, of Boston, but they have charged him in Fonseca-Riveras homicide along Vermont Rte. 103 in November, 2019. Details are still limited, but police say they have surveillance footage, GPS data, pictures, and other evidence that indicate Dr. Piri was driving his pickup directly in front of Fonseca-Rivera’s delivery truck the day he was killed. Fonseca was found shot to death in the head and neck in his truck, which had been pulled to the side of the road. They zeroed in on the silver Toyota pickup not long after the homicide, and believe Dr. Piri was driving a truck matching that description in the area at the time (he lived in Connecticut and was returning from Vermont.).

Dr. Piri has been arrested in Naples, where he worked as a doctor for Physician’s Regional Hospital. He is awaiting extradition to Vermont where he will face murder charges. The fact pattern suggests a possible road rage situation, but that’s unclear as there are so few details so far.

Police photo of the Toyota

*UPDATE: I found a story from the time of the incident where Vermont Police released a photo of the Toyota pickup they had been looking for. It’s not clear what connection Dr. Piri may have to the truck. Notable, the photo released clearly shows a person sitting in the passenger seat, which means if the truck was involved, there must be a witness. Also, it happened in the middle of the day, between 1 and 1:30 p.m.

Boston Judge Arrests a Defense Lawyer for Arguing Her Case

Susan Church

Yesterday in Boston, Judge Richard Sinnott had defense lawyer Susan Church arrested and removed from a courtroom as she tried to read case law relevant to her client’s case. This is wildly inappropriate behavior from the judiciary in any circumstance. Even though the judge released her, several hours later, without pursuing contempt charges, the intent and possible effect of threatening to jail a lawyer for doing his or her job is to discourage lawyers from advocating for their clients. The judge told her her didn’t her to turn the hearing “into theater”, then proceeded to perform the great theater of having her taken into custody. Said Church, “[I] sat there wondering if I was going to jail that night, whether I’d be able to see my children at dinner that night, what I was going to do about my work and my clients.” She continued, “My biggest concern is that this doesn’t have a chilling effect for all the other lawyers out there who are fighting the good fight,” via BostonGlobe.com.

The backstory is that Judge Sinnott was already feeling the heat by going against the prosecutor’s decision not to file charges, and refusing to dismiss this and several other cases the prosecution had already decided were not appropriate to be prosecuted related to protesters against the white supremacist “Straight Pride Parade” in Boston last week. So, when Church was citing case law, she was specifically pointing out the legal authority that said the judge had acted illegally in refusing to dismiss the case. Instead of listening to the legal precedent, he had Ms. Church removed. He didn’t like being told what he was doing was wrong, and he responded by arresting the messenger, who bravely persisted in doing her job in the face of threats to advocate for her client.

Since that episode in court, the prosecutor has filed an emergency petition with the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to overturn Sinnott’s ruling. DA Rachel Rollins argued that the judge, “ignored the clear and unambiguous constraints placed on the judiciary by the separation of powers.” Church cited a 1991 Supreme Judicial Court case for exactly that proposition. It sounds like the case law will require the decision to be reversed, and the Judge may face discipline for his encounter with Ms. Church. Susan Church is a hero.

Lawsuit Claims Apple’s Face-Recognition Software Led to Wrongful Arrest

A New York teenager, Ousmane Bah, was arrested at his home in November and charged with stealing from an Apple store. He didn’t do it, and a photo of the the culprit on the warrant did not look like Bah. He was accused of several thefts from Apple stores, including one from Boston on the same day he was attending his senior prom in New York City. He’s now suing Apple, and his suit alleges that Apple’s facial recognition software mistakenly connected the thief’s face with his, possibly from the thief using his stolen identification.

Bah is suing Apple for a billion dollars, which seems kind of high.

Whitey Bulger Laid to Rest

 

James “Whitey” Bulger

Yesterday was the funeral for convicted gangster James “Whitey”. Bulger, a notorious leader in Boston area organized crime gained even more notoriety when he hid out for decades while sitting atop the most wanted lists. When they finally caught up to him, Bulger claimed immunity from prosecution as he had been cooperating with government investigators. That defense didn’t work, and Bulger was sent away to prison. He was murdered last week the very day he was transferred to a new facility, bringing to a close a dark chapter in Boston history.

Bulger was played by Johnny Depp in the biopic “Black Mass”, and influenced other stories, such as Martin Scorsese’s  award-winning “The Departed”.

Holy Cow: Aaron Hernandez Acquitted in Double Murder Trial

Aaron Hernandez

A jury today found former Gator and Patriot football player not guilty on two counts of murder, along with the attempted murders of the other passengers and the intimidation charge against the State’s key witness. He was found guilty of illegal firearms possession, and sentenced to four to five years in prison, most of which he has already served. Now, this acquittal may be all for naught, as Hernandez is already sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Odin Lloyd, for whom he was convicted of killing in 2013.

Keep in mind, a criminal acquittal is not proof that he did not do it (cough cough – OJ – cough cough). It merely means that the state did not convince the jurors beyond and to the exclusion of any reasonable doubt.  The state’s case was based on the testimony of Alexander Bradley, a convicted violent drug dealer who says he was there and Hernandez did it. Hernandez’s attorney Jose Baez (who famously defended Casey Anthony) did a great job of casting doubt on Bradley, his motivations, and suggesting that it may have been Bradley who did the shooting. Without corroborating evidence, accepting Bradley’s testimony to convict was presumably to hard for the jury to swallow.

Hernandez’s other conviction is being appealed and will be heard by the Massachusetts Supreme Court, probably later this year.

Closing Arguments in the Aaron Hernandez Murder Trial

Aaron Hernandez

The prosecution and Defense concluded their closing arguments this afternoon. The jury is expected to begin deliberations tomorrow. The Defense attacked the state’s star witness, himself a violent drug dealer with reason to blame Hernandez instead of himself. Jose Baez made some colorful arguments that the state did not prove their case.

Hernandez’ arm, with possibly incriminating tats

The State argues their witness was credible, and that the evidence supports his claim. They say Hernandez had motive, opportunity, and they allege that a tattoo he later got equates to a confession. This is not the first time tattoos have allegedly documented a crime. A verdict is expected in the coming days.

Aaron Hernandez’ Fiance Again Testifies Against Him

Shayanna Jenkins-Hernandez

The prosecutors offered immunity to the fiance of Aaron Hernandez in order to get her to testify on their behalf in both of his murder trials. She testified in the second case this week, but she was definitely not there to help the prosecution. In fact, she gave Hernandez an alibi, saying that he was in a hotel with her at the time the murders allegedly took place. Prosecutors rebutted that evidence, by showing that a call was made from Hernandez’ phone to her from Boston’s South End just minutes after he allegedly shot two men after a dispute at a Boston nightclub. A federal agent testified that cell phone records indicated there was “absolutely no way” he could have been in Plainville when she claimed.

Jenkins-Hernandez was a reluctant witness for the prosecution, to say the least. After the previous trial where Aaron Hernandez was convicted of the murder of Odin Lloyd, she not only maintained her engagement to him, but she even added is name to hers as a hyphenate. They are not legally married, and apparently Massachusetts does not allow conjugal visits, even if they were married. While she testified for the prosecutors, if they secure a conviction, it will be in spite of her testimony, not because of it.

The prosecution is expected to rest their case today or early next week.

Star Witness Testifies Against Aaron Hernandez

Aaron Hernandez

The second murder trial of Aaron Hernandez has been underway in Boston, and the key witness against him recently took the stand. Holy cow the testimony was a doozy! Dan Wetzel did a great story detailing the testimony and the twisted background that let up to it. In short, after he allegedly shot the two men for the slight of spilling a drink on him at a nightclub, Hernandez grew more and more paranoid, and ultimately shot his friend in the face to prevent him from having a chance to turn him in. That friend, Alexander Bradley, survived only to refuse to break code and snitch on his friend. You should really go read the whole piece by Wetzel.

From a legal point of view, the case is fascinating. Bradley puts Hernandez at the scene, and describes him committing the murder. But Bradley’s testimony is going to be mercilessly attacked by defense attorney Jose Baez, who will claim that he’s the actual shooter. It’s his word alone that can convict Hernandez, and he has a motive to testify against the man he now says shot him in the face. The fact that Bradley initially refused to finger Hernandez as the man who shot him may actually help his credibility. The evidence suggests that these two men were in the car, and that one of them committed the crime. Bradley has his own charges, ranging from drug dealing and assault to shooting up a bar on another occasion. The State’s star witness is no angel. Regardless of the outcome, Hernandez is not likely to ever be released from prison, having already been sentenced to life for the murder of Odin Lloyd, though he is appealing that decision.

via Yahoo! Sports

Boston Bomber Gets Death

Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Mug Shot

The jury did not need the weekend to decide to sentence Boston Marathon Bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to the death penalty. His appeals will be mandatory, but a long shot. He now faces death by lethal injection, though imposition o f sentence will take many years.

Aaron Hernandez Guilty of First Degree Murder

Aaron Hernandez

Former NFL tight end Aaron Hernandez was found guilty today of First Degree Murder in the killing of Odin Lloyd. The jury deliberated for about a week before reaching the verdict. There is no death penalty in Massachusetts, so the judge went ahead and sentenced Hernandez to life in prison, which carries no possibility of parole.

Jurors gave a press conference afterword. They were apparently not impressed by the defense version of the story, and surprised at the fact that his attorney conceded he was present at the scene of the murder. However, they also were pretty moved by the State’s evidence, so they may have found him guilty if the Defense hadn’t present a theory of the case. They just needed a better one, but the evidence didn’t allow it.