Murder

Boston Man Wanted for Dorchester Murders Captured in Trinidad

Published on: September 21, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

A Boston man with roots from Mattapan has been captured in Trinidad in connection with the Murder of three people at a Dorchester party last year.

Keron Pierre, 25, had been living in Trinidad with his wife. He was arrested on September 7 in marijuana charges and following his arrest, police discovered he was wanted out of Boston for Murder Charges. It was also discovered that he was also wanted in Trinidad in connection with another shooting there in March 2010.

Boston Police allege that Pierre killed Shacora Gaines of Brockton; Chantal Palmer, also of Brockton, and Anthony Peoples, 19, of Boston. The three friends were reported to have been leaving a party on Mt. Ida Road in Dorchester when Pierre and another man, Nigel A. Nichols, approached them and started hitting on the women. This lead to an argument between the parties, and Pierre then allegedly fired into the car the three were traveling in, killing all three.

Wayland Man Charged with Attempt to Kill at Sudbury Gas Station

Published on: September 20, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Vandie Porter, 67, of Wayland, Massachusetts, was arrested yesterday morning for allegedly attempting to kill or maim after a fight broke out at a Sudbury gas station between him and another man and his son.

Sudbury Police allege that Porter ambushed the unnamed victim after he exited the Valero Gas Station in Sudbury and immediately began assaulting him. Porter also allegedly threatened to kill him and his entire family. Although it is unclear what prompted the altercation, Sudbury Police believe that the two men were acquainted with one another and that this was not a random incident.

Vandie Porter was arrested and charged with Assault & Battery, Attempted Murder, and Threats to Commit Murder.

John Odgren Loses Appeal for Reduced Murder Sentence

Published on: September 16, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Lawyers for John Odgren appealed to Middlesex Superior Court Judge S. Jane Haggerty earlier this week, appealing that his sentence be reduced from First Degree Murder to Second Degree Murder.

Convicted of First Degree Murder for killing 15 year-old classmate James Alenson at Lincoln-Sudbury High School in 2007, Odgren was sentenced to serve a mandatory life sentence in state prison, without the possibility of parole. If the petition was successful, John Odgren would have been parole eligible after serving 15 years in prison.

Although Odgren’s defense focused on Insanity / Lack of Criminal Responsibility, arguing that he was insane at the time of the murder because of his history of emotional problems and mental health issues, including Asperger’s Syndrome. Jurors that heard the case found that he was, in fact, sane at the time of the stabbing.

Boston Man Gets 10 Years on Plea Deal for 2006 Cambridge Murder

Published on: September 9, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Sherrod Bright, 26, was sentenced to 10 years in connection to the 2006 Murder of Corey Davis of Cambridge, Massachusetts. In a plea deal, Bright pled Guilty to Manslaughter, being sentenced to 10 years in state prison, followed by 10 years probation upon his release.

According to the Cambridge Police Department and the Middlesex County District Attorney’s Office, on March 19, 2006, Cambridge Police were called to investigate a shooting on Hamilton Street in Cambridge. Once on scene, officers found Davis lying on the sidewalk suffering from multiple gunshot wounds.

In addition to Sherrod Bright, his brother, Ahmad Bright, 17 of Dorchester, was indicted by a Middlesex County Grand Jury on Second Degree Murder Charges and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm; and Remel Ahart, 21 of Cambridge, was also charged with First Degree Murder, Armed Assault to Murder, and two counts of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm. Cambridge Police allege that Ahart shot Davis from the backseat of a car near where his body was found, and that Bright participated in the shooting as a Joint Venturer. Both Ahmad Bright and Remel Ahart have been previously found guilty of these charges.

Boston Police: Dorchester Man Admitted to Murdering his Wife

Published on: September 8, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Roger Paron, Jr., was arraigned yesterday in the Dorchester Division of the Boston Municipal Court on Murder Charges for killing his wife, Victoria Paron, 39.

This past Saturday, Boston Police Officers responded to Victoria Paron’s home on Bicknell Street in Dorchester to conduct a well-being check. The following day, Boston Police Officers located Roger Paron near Talbot and Blue Hill Avenue in Dorchester and when asked about his wife, he allegedly stated: “She’s dead. I killed her.” Boston Police Officers then went to the couple’s home, where they discovered her body.

Following his Arraignment on Murder Charges, Roger Paron, Jr., was ordered held without bail.

Boston Murder Numbers Rise on Labor Day Weekend

Published on: September 7, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

This Labor Day Weekend saw an increase in Boston’s Murder rate in three separate incidents resulting in two deaths.

On Sunday, Boston Police Officers responded to Bicknell Street in Dorchester for a ‘well-being’ check on Victoria Paron, 39, after they had received an anonymous call. Upon their arrival, Paron was pronounced dead and her husband has been charged in her Murder. Roger Paron, 51, who had recently moved into the Dorchester residence, is scheduled to be arraigned in Dorchester District Court this morning on Murder Charges. The cause of death has not been disclosed at this time.

Another person was shot at 8:30 p.m. last night in Boston in the area of Astoria and Elizabeth Streets. The unidentified victim was taken to Boston Medical Center where he was pronounced.

Boston Police Arrest 3 in Murder of Hyde Park Delivery Driver

Published on: September 4, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

The Boston Police Department reported this morning that they have arrested 3 persons in connection with the Murder of Richel Nova, 58, of Hyde Park, who was shot while delivering pizza to a vacant house on Hyde Park Avenue.

According to the Boston Police Department, two men and one woman allegedly placed an order with Domino’s Pizza and gave the address of the vacant house. Once Nova arrived to deliver the pizza, he was lured into the house where he was stabbed. The three suspects then drove off in his own car. The vehicle was found this past Thursday at a church parking lot on River Street in Hyde Park. Without disclosing what was found in the car, the Boston Police Department stated that a substantial amount of evidence was found in the vehicle.

Cambridge Man Turns Himself In to Answer Medford Murder Charges

Published on: August 29, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

According to the Medford Police Department, Christopher Toppi, 28, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, turned himself into police last night in connection with an apparent homicide in Medford. The victim, Brian Fahy, of Weymouth, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Shortly after the Medford Police Department had sought a warrant for Christopher Toppi on the charge of Murder, Toppi turned himself in. He is being held at this time pending his arraignment in Somerville District Court for Murder.

The Massachusetts State Police and the Medford Police Departments, which are leading this investigation, have not released any details regarding the incident, other than to say that they did not believe it to be random; that Toppi and Fahy were known to each other; and that the death appears to have resulted from a confrontation.

Brockton Woman Gets Murder Conviction Reversed by Massachusetts Supreme Court

Published on: August 23, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Sheila Barry, of Brockton, Massachusetts, was convicted in 2006 in Plymouth Superior Court for the Murder of Admilson Goncalves. Today, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court reversed her conviction, citing she was mentally ill when she committed the assault.

At her Murder trial, Plymouth County prosecutors alleged that Barry attacked Goncalves with a cinder block as he sat in his bicycle in Brockton in 2002 and that she continued to beat and assault him with the brick until it shattered.

In reversing her Murder conviction, the Massachusetts Supreme Court concluded that the legal rules regarding a defendant claiming an Insanity Defense need to be changed. Prior to this decision, a defendant who voluntarily consumed alcohol could not then claim the Defendant of Lack of Responsibility, or more commonly known as the Insanity Defense.

Phillip Markoff, Alleged Craigslist Killer, Found Dead from Apparent Suicide in Jail Cell

Published on: August 15, 2010 | by Lefteris K. Travayiakis, Esq.

Phillip Markoff, dubbed the “Craigslist Killer” by the media who was held without bail pending his Murder trial, was found dead at the Suffolk County Jail on Nashua Street yesterday morning from what appears to have been a suicide.

According to sources from the Boston Police Department and the Suffolk County Sherriff’s Department, Markoff was found alone in his cell with a plastic bag tied over his head. One other source also stated that Markoff had also cut one of his arteries.

Markoff charged with the April 2009 Murder of Julissa Brisman, whom he allegedly met at the Marriott Copley Hotel in Boston after locating her on a Craigslist ad. The Boston Police Department and Suffolk County Prosecutors alleged that Markoff struggled with her in the hotel room before shooting her 3 times in the chest.