Emanuel Lopes attends day one of his trial for the 2018 murder of Weymouth Police Sgt. Michael Chesna and Vera Adams, Thursday, June 8, 2023, in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)
Bumpy deliberations ended Monday with jurors deadlocked on whether a man truly knew what he was doing when he shot and killed both a police officer and an elderly bystander. First they had to restart for an alternate on Wednesday when one of them had to leave for a pre-scheduled vacation, according to NBC Boston. Then things grew tense among the panel, with one of them refusing to step into the deliberation room on Friday, the Norfolk Superior Court clerk in Massachusetts said, according to the outlet.
The judge declared a mistrial in the murder case on Monday, reported Boston.com. The defendant, Emanuel Lopes, 24, will face a retrial on July 21.
Authorities said officers got a call about an erratic driver near a hospital at about 7:32 a.m. on July 15, 2018. The vehicle crashed and the driver, later identified as Lopes, fled. Weymouth Police Sgt. Michael Chesna, 42, was one of the officers giving chase. He found Lopes, drew his gun and confronted him. Lopes attacked him, striking him in the head with a large rock. The defendant then grabbed the gun and shot Chesna several times in the head and chest.
Other officers opened fire, and hit the suspect in a leg below the knee. Nonetheless, Lopes allegedly led officers on a foot chase. During this time, he opened fire three more times, killing Vera Adams, 77, as she was sitting on her porch.
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The state argued Lopes knew what he was doing. Prosecutor Greg Connor argued that Lopes acted with premeditation, according to Boston.
The defense maintained their client was mentally ill.
“Up to that point, everything that Mr. Lopes has done is not logical, it’s not rational because it’s not based in reality,” defense lawyer Larry Tipton said.
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