An 18-year-old Lewiston teen who was involved in the deadly Kennedy Park brawl last summer will be tried as an adult.
The Lewiston Sun Journal reports that District Court Judge Rick Lawrence wrote in his 19-page decision that prosecutors demonstrated probable cause that Emmanuel Nkurunziza committed manslaughter when he allegedly threw a rock that struck 38-year-old Donald Giusti in the head.
His defense attorney, Allan Labozzo, told the newspaper Tuesday that “we intend on fighting this case in front of a jury.”
In April, the Maine State Police arrested Nkurunziza, who was then 17, 23-year-old Pierre Musafiri, and a 13-year-old in connection with the June 2018 brawl in Kennedy Park that left Giusti in critical condition. Giusti later died from his injuries. All three were charged with misdemeanor assault, while Nkurunziza was charged with manslaughter.
The Sun Journal reports that Nkurunziza faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted of manslaughter.
A fourth man, 27-year-old Timothy Lamothe, was charged in June with aggravated assault for allegedly using a metal pipe to knock a boy unconscious during the brawl. The Sun Journal reports that Lamothe pleaded guilty to that charge and was sentenced in District Court to seven days in jail, which he already has served. He faced up to 364 days in jail on the charge.