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You are here: Home / Lapointe / New Trial for Richard Lapointe!

New Trial for Richard Lapointe!

October 1, 2012 By Alice

Richard A. Lapointe

The Connecticut Appellate Court ordered a new trial for Richard Lapointe. From the Hartford Courant: “In a stunning decision, the state Appellate Court Monday ordered a new trial for Richard Lapointe, a mentally disabled dishwasher convicted of a murder a quarter century ago, concluding that state prosecutors wrongly withheld a police report that tends to support Lapointe’s alibi defense.

“We cannot say that (Lapointe) is factually innocent and did not commit the crimes for which he was convicted,” the decision said. “However, we do conclude that there is a reasonable probability that the result of his criminal trial would have been different had” the police report been disclosed to Lapointe’s lawyers at his trial.

The appellate decision, written by Judges Bethany J. Alvord, Stuart D. Bear and Joseph H. Pellegrino, said the failure of police and prosecutors to provide Lapointe with a police report on the duration of a fire set when the victim was killed “deprived him of a fair trial.” The court also concluded that Lapointe’s defense was hurt further by the failure of one his lawyers to press the fire report issue during an earlier habeas corpus hearing.

Accordingly, we reverse in part the judgment of the habeas court and order a new trial,” the decision, written by Alvord, said.”

This is fantastic news, the kind we all have waited for. If you have followed Richard’s case here on DCC than you know I doubt this man is responsible for the murder of Bernice Martin. Now we finally get a new day in court, a new chance to present ALL the evidence and ALL the reports.

In a ruling last April, Superior Court Judge John J. Nazzaro rejected the second habeas corpus petition. Nazzaro found there was no proof that DNA samples found in Martin’s apartment, which could not be linked to Richard, belonged to the killer, and that the evidence did not exonerate Richard or prove his innocence.

The court said it ordered a new trial because the state didn’t disclose an expert opinion about the burn time of the fire in Martin’s apartment that potentially supported Richard’s alibi.

Judge Bethany Alford wrote in the 3-0 ruling that the state failing to disclose the information to the defense “affected the overall fairness of the trial and was so unfair as to undermine our confidence in the jury’s verdict.”

Judge Whitehead? I hope that you will come to the same conclusions as Judges Bethany J. Alvord, Stuart D. Bear and Joseph H. Pellegrino in the case of William Thomas Zeigler. Withheld evidence would certainly have made a difference, Judge. Not disclosing evidence undermines anyone’s faith in the system and in the decisions reached. And you know exactly which pieces of evidence I’m talking about.

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Filed Under: Lapointe, Miscarriages of Justice Tagged With: Arson Detection, Autopsy, Bernice Martin, Connecticut, DNA, Faulty Evidence, Miscarriage of Justice, Police Misconduct, Prosecutorial Misconduct, Richard A. Lapointe

Reader Interactions

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  1. CT Supreme Court hears Lapointe case Sept 17, 2013. says:
    October 31, 2015 at 10:31 am

    […] CT Supreme Court hears Lapointe case Sept 17, 2013. This fantastic news came from the Bellingham Herald. Almost a year ago, I posted that Richard Lapointe was going to get a new trial. […]

  2. Case of the Month: Bernice Martin says:
    October 31, 2015 at 10:28 am

    […] Supreme Court will hear the State’s appeal on September 17, 2013. Lapointe was granted a new trial last year, October […]

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Author Notes

On my website, I write about old, unsolved cases. Most are from the pre-DNA era and need renewed media attention. I only do research and leave active investigation of these cases to the professionals.

My posts are about homicides, missing and unidentified people, wrongful convictions, and forensics as related to these cases.

On book reviews: I only review select works of true crime, crime fiction, and historical fiction/mysteries. The stories have to fit my website's theme and research. It remains my prerogative to not review a book. Please check the FAQ page for more!

My database has hundreds of cases listed by the victim’s last name. You will find a brief description there as well. The database is free to the public.

All writing suggestions for cases that come in by email are added to my to-do list in the order in which they were received. Please be patient. My to-do list is very long but no case gets dropped and I will get back in touch.

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Thank you,

Alice de Sturler

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William Thomas Zeigler

Category: ALL POSTS

On March 31, 2016, an evidentiary hearing was held to request touch DNA testing. On July 18, 2016, Judge Whitehead denied that request.

On November 23, 2016, an appeal was filed with the Florida Supreme Court. On April 21, 2017, the Florida Supreme Court denied the request for touch DNA analysis.

On May 8, 2017 a motion for a rehearing with the US Supreme Court was filed. It was denied November 13, 2017.

In the summer of 2019, the appeal for DNA testing to the Florida Conviction Integrity Unit was denied.

Richard Lapointe

Category: ALL POSTS

In March 2015, the Connecticut State Supreme Court ordered a new trial for Richard lapointe. On Oct 2, 2015, International Wrongful Conviction Day, Richard was set free. The judge ruled that he cannot be retried for the 1987 rape-murder of Mrs. Bernice Martin. Richard Lapointe died on Aug 4, 2020 of Covid19 complications.

In 1987, someone killed Bernice Martin. I hope that she will not become a forgotten file.
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Copyright: Please add a link back if you use my work. Let your readers know where you found your information. I do the same for you. If you need help with this, just contact me. Thank you, Alice de Sturler

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