Fitzpatrick Found Guilty on Two Counts

WOBURN, Mass. -- A jury has convicted a N.H. man in the 2006 slayings of his ex-lover's husband and another man at a Wakefield business.

A Middlesex Superior Court jury found Sean Fitzpatrick guilty of murder Thursday after deliberating for more than a week.

Fitzpatrick was accused of fatally shooting 39-year-old Michael Zammitti Jr. after Zammitti's wife ended their relationship. Zammitti was the owner of Allstate Concrete Pumping. - WHDH

Justice has been served!

Jury in Fitzpatrick Murder Trial Deadlocked

Woburn- The jury in the Sean Fitzpatrick murder retrial has reached a deadlock following four days of deliberations at Middlesex Superior Court in Woburn.

In a note to presiding Judge Kathe Tuttman, the jury of 6 men and 6 women said Friday they were unable to reach a unanimous decision after a careful analysis of all the evidence. After the jury was brought back into the courtroom, Judge Tuttman said she would give further instructions to the jury when they reconvened on Tuesday.

Fitzpatrick, 46 of Freedom, NH is charged with two counts of first degree murder in connection with the March 13, 2006 shooting deaths of Michael Zammitti Jr., 36 and Chester Roberts, 54 at the Allstate Concrete Pumping Company on New Salem Street. The prosecutors allege that SF stole a neighbor’s truck, drove to Wakefield with a 16 gauge shotgun and committed the murders after an affair with Zammitti’s wife, Michele, ended. If convicted, SF faces life in prison without parole. In SF’s first trial in August, a jury was unable to reach a verdict after three days of deliberations and a mistrial was declared. - Juror Thirteen

If the public (or at the very least Étudiant readers) had their say (according to the poll at right), Fitzpatrick would unanimously be put behind bars for life.

New Poll

Is Sean Fitzpatrick innocent or guilty? A verdict for the re-trial could be reached sometime this week.

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From the Boston Herald:

WOBURN — A jury has started deliberating the case of a New Hampshire man charged with killing his ex-lover’s husband and another man at a Wakefield business.

Sean Fitzpatrick is accused of fatally shooting Michael Zammitti Jr. in March 2006 after Zammitti’s wife ended their relationship. Zammitti was the owner of Allstate Concrete Pumping.

Prosecutors say Chester Roberts, an employee of the company, was shot when he happened to enter the room at the wrong time.

What Happened to Zammitti Retrial Coverage?

Thanks a lot Wakefield Item for posting updates on the retrial three days in a row then forgetting about it for two weeks. Real helpful!

Zammitti Sr. Testifies In Retrial

WOBURN - The first day of testimony in the Sean Fitzpatrick murder re-trial began Friday as Michael Zammitti Sr., the father of victim Michael Zammitti Jr., took the stand for the prosecution. On the stand, Zammitti told the court about what he saw and experienced on March 13, 2006 at the Allstate Concrete Pumping Company on New Salem Street...

Zammitti Sr. told the court that he arrived at Allstate Concrete at at 7:45 a.m. to work on the concrete pumps. As his voice cracked, Zammitti said that when he arrived, he pushed open the door and found Roberts' body inside, lying face down with a gunshot wound to the back... - The Wakefield Daily Item

I'm convinced: Guilty Guilty Guilty

Sean Fitzpatrick Retrial

Time flies. It's hard to believe that the Sean Fitzpatrick murder trial was five months ago. The retrial began yesterday, January 20, with the selection of jurors. Some of the evidence used in the first trial will not be re-introduced, including the recorded EZ Pass times of Fitzpatrick's truck. Also, it doesn't appear that the retrial will be given the same kind of national televised/streamed coverage.

Judge Declares Mistrial

WOBURN, Massachusetts — A judge overseeing the murder trial of Sean Fitzpatrick has declared a mistrial Tuesday after the jury announced for a second time that it was deadlocked.

The final note from jurors, delivered at the end of the fourth day of deliberations, said: “some members expressed conviction they could never vote guilty in the absence of physical evidence.”

Fitzpatrick was charged in the double murder of his ex-lover’s husband and the husband’s employee. - CNN Insight

Yesterday, a jury member kind of screwed it up by consulting an outside source for information on window replacements. You clearly aren't allowed to do that.

Fitzpatrick Case Deadlocked

WOBURN, Massachusetts — On the third day of deliberations, 12 jurors deliberating over the fate of Sean Fitzpatrick sent a note to the judge saying that after careful consideration of the facts and several votes, they are deadlocked. Shortly after, the judge, Kathe Tuttman, sent the panel home and ordered them to return to court tomorrow at 9 am. At that time, Tuttman will read a so-called “Rodriguez charge” — essentially instructing the jury to continue deliberations in an attempt to break their impasse.

Fitzpatrick stands accused of gunning down Michael Zammitti, Jr. on March 13, 2006, after Zammitti’s wife, Michele, told Fitzpatrick that she was ending their affair and staying with her husband. Chester Roberts, the second murder victim, apparently stumbled across the crime in progress, and was killed to eliminate a witness. - CNN In Sight

Juror #1: "He's guilty."

Juror #2: "Please. He's as innocent as a koala bear."

Juror #3: "I'm not sure, I'll let you guys decide."

Sean Fitzpatrick On Witness Stand

WOBURN, Massachusetts–Defendant Sean Fitzpatrick is being cross-examined by prosecutors as he begins a second day on the witness stand. He’s hoping to convince the jurors that he is not the person who brutally shot Michael Zammitti, Jr. and Chester Roberts on March 13, 2006.

After three weeks of the prosecution’s case, on Wednesday the defense began its case and Fitzpatrick finally stepped up to the plate. Prosecutors believe that Fitzpatrick murdered Zammitti because he was in love with Zammitti’s wife, Michele. Roberts, they contend, was killed simply because he stumbled across the shooting, a classic case of a victim in the wrong place at the wrong time.

But on the stand, Fitzpatrick insisted that he was an innocent man. “Did you shoot Chester Roberts and Michael Zammitti?” “I did not. I had nothing to do with these homicides. No way.” Fitzpatrick has pleaded not guilty to the double murders. - CNN In Session

Beyond reasonable doubt? Now, I'm not even sure. I'm kind of like Barack Obama when it comes to this murder trial.

Speaking of Bizarre Love Triangles:

Every time i think of you
I feel shot right through with a bolt of blue
It's no problem of mine but it's a problem I find
Living a life that I can't leave behind
There's no sense in telling me
The wisdom of a fool won't set you free
But that's the way that it goes
And it's what nobody knows
While every day my confusion grows
Every time I see you falling
I get down on my knees and pray
I'm waiting for that final moment
You'll say the words that I can't say

Sean Fitzpatrick = Owned

WOBURN, Massachusetts–The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has rested in its case against defendant Sean Fitzpatrick – the man charged with the double murder of his ex-lover’s husband and the husband’s employee. Now it’s the defendant’s turn – and Sean Fitzpatrick has just taken the witness stand. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges in this case.

In its opening statement, the prosecution promised jurors that it could prove that Fitzpatrick’s DNA was on the steering wheel of his neighbor’s pickup truck, which authorities believe the defendant drove immediately before and after the murders were committed. With its last witness, the Commonwealth fulfilled that promise.

According to Amy Barber, a DNA analyst with the Massachusetts State Police crime lab, “The DNA profile obtained from the steering wheel indicated the presence of a mixture [of DNA]; Sean Fitzpatrick was the major donor of the profile . . .” “What is the statistical calculation of someone randomly selected matching the profile to the extent Mr. Fitzpatrick does to the steering wheel?” “One in 931.1 thousand [931,100] of the Caucasian population.” - CNN

The consensus is unclear. Some empathize with him while others...don't. Michele, the wife of Zammiti, sure is under fire. Almost everyone thinks she is doing a great job acting sad.