The prosecution contends that Mr. Brancato intended to commit burglary. To prove felony murder, it must show that burglary was Mr. Brancato’s intent, and that Officer Enchautegui died as a result.
During opening argument:
....Joseph Tacopina, asked the jury not to “compound one tragedy with another by taking the life of an innocent individual who sits before you in this trial.”
.... Mr. Tacopina said his client, who faces charges of murder and burglary, was not intending to burglarizethe house, did not have a gun, did not know that Mr. Armento had a gun and was not there to hurt anyone.
The blame for Officer Enchautegui’s death, Mr. Tacopina said, lies with Mr. Armento. “The only person responsible for his death is not in this courtroom today,” he said. “That person is Steven Armento, not Lillo Brancato.”
....Mr. Tacopina said, “He certainly succumbed to another substantial temptation, one that ruined his life, hurt his family, and that’s something that he deals with every day: Lillo Brancato is a drug addict.”
More from the AP:
"Lillo was there to satisfy his addiction. But he wasn't there to do violence — and that's important," Tacopina said in his opening statement. Tacopina denied that his client ever entered the apartment, and said Brancato did not know Armento had a gun.
The shooting took place at the home of an older friend of Brancatos, Kenneth Scovotti, who had previously provided Brancato with drugs. Unbeknownst to Brancato, Scovotti had died some months earlier and the home was unoccupied. According to the Times:
Mr. Tacopina said that since his client thought Mr. Scovotti was inside, he kicked a window to get his attention, but broke it. Mr. Tacopina said that Mr. Brancato and Mr. Armento then went to another friend’s home to ask for drugs, a sign that his client was not trying to commit a burglary.
According to
this AP article:
The case could turn on whether the jury believes Brancato knew Armento was carrying a loaded revolver. Prosecutors say Brancato's drug dealer will testify that Armento had pulled the weapon on the dealer earlier in the night in front of Brancato.
But Tacopina branded the drug dealer a liar angling for leniency in his own legal troubles. Brancato was startled that his friend opened fire, and didn't know the man firing back was a patrolman, he said.
The felony murder rule (explained here and in this New York Times article) is an archaic doctrine that needs to be abolished. Go Joe.
