Connecticut awards $5.9 million to family of disabled man convicted of 1992 murder
Connecticut will pay nearly $5.9 million to the family of a disabled man who was freed in 2015 more than two decades after his 1992 murder and rape of his 88-year-old grandmother was overturned.
Richard Lapointe, who died in 2020 at age 74, suffered from Dandy-Walker syndrome, a rare congenital brain malformation that his lawyer said he was falsely claiming A factor in the admission of guilt. Lapointe was never declared innocent, but his attorneys and the state attorney general’s office finally agreed after years of legal battles.
The state’s Office of Claims Commissioner set the amount of money that would be awarded to families on Jan. 2, though it still needs to be approved by the Legislature. The Office of the Commissioner of Claims determines whether people can bring a lawsuit against the state or under the state’s wrongful imprisonment law.
Claims Commissioner Robert Shea Jr. said his office agreed the award was “reasonable and appropriate.”
Bill proposed by Connecticut lawyer would legalize sports betting to and from state
On April 10, 2015, photo center of Richard Lapointe with Kate Germond, left, and Paul Casteleiro After raising the arms of Centurion Ministries and being released from the Connecticut Supreme Court in Hartford, Connecticut. (AP)
Lapointe’s attorney, Paul Casteleiro, said the award was “recognition that the state made a mistake in prosecuting and imprisoning an innocent man. Sadly, Richard did not live long enough to see his final defense.”
“This award is in no way intended to compensate Richard Lapointe for everything he has done,” Casteleiro said Friday.
The attorney general’s office said in a statement on Friday that “the claims were negotiated in the interest of all parties. This is reflective of that process.”
In 1987, Lapointe’s wife’s grandmother, Bernice Martin, was found stabbed, raped and strangled in her burning apartment in Manchester, Connecticut.
Lapointe was convicted of Martin’s murder in 1992 and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Key evidence in the case includes Lapointe’s confession during a nearly 10-hour interrogation by Manchester police.
His lawyers argued that his mental disability was attributable to him giving a false confession and that the confession was coerced without a lawyer present.
Lapointe was convicted of murder in 1992 and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of release. (iStock)
The state Supreme Court ruled 4-2 in a 2015 ruling that Lapointe was denied a fair trial because prosecutors failed to disclose police notes that might support an alibi defense. Later that year, prosecutors said new DNA testing did not implicate Lapointe and all charges were dropped.
No one else has been charged in Martin’s killing.
Shortly after, Lapointe was released from custody and left the Hartford courthouse wearing a black T-shirt, his hand in the air as he held it in victory.
“Of course, I didn’t do that,” Lapointe said at the time. “That’s not me. I wouldn’t do that to anyone. I wouldn’t even kill my worst enemy.”
Castrillo said the case against Lapointe has devastated his family, who shunned him.
Biden wide lane of ‘non-violent’ prisoners includes Connecticut killer
The state Supreme Court ruled 4-2 in a 2015 ruling that Lapointe was denied a fair trial. (iStock)
Click here to get the Fox News app
Before Martin’s death, Lapointe and his wife, who has cerebral palsy, “were living together. They were doing OK,” Castelliro said. But after his arrest, his wife divorced him and he and his then-young son lost everything.
After his release from prison, Lapointe began to suffer from dementia, was placed in a nursing home in East Hartford, and fought with the 19-year-old, according to his attorney. Later died.
Lapointe is supported by several advocates, including Richard Lapointe and friend of Centurion’s group, the Casteleiro organization that works for wrongful convictions.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
