Latest news with #MatthewLindquist
Yahoo
06-03-2025
- Yahoo
Man serving life for brutal killing of Griswold family appeals conviction before CT Supreme Court
An attorney representing a man sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in the brutal killing of a Griswold couple and their adult son in 2017 has argued that the murder conviction should be overturned on the basis that prosecutors used what she alleges was an illegally-seized cell phone to convict him. The appeal, filed in 2022 by attorneys representing Sergio Correa, was argued Wednesday before the Connecticut Supreme Court during a hearing at Yale Law School. Jennifer Smith, assistant public defender with the Office of the Chief Public Defender Legal Services Unit, argued that investigators seized Correa's cell phone 'without probable cause and without exigency' when he was not a suspect in the killing of Kenneth, Janet and Matthew Lindquist. She also argued that a judge should have granted a motion to suppress evidence found on the phone prior to Correa's trial in New London Superior Court. Correa was found guilty of murder with special circumstances, home invasion, arson and robbery charges and was sentenced in May 2022 to life in prison without the possibility of parole plus 105 years behind bars. Sergio Correa sentenced to life without parole, sister receives 40 years in the deaths of Lindquist family In December 2017, Correa and his sister, Ruth Correa, traveled from Hartford to Griswold to carry out a plan to trade drugs and cash to 21-year-old Matthew Lindquist in exchange for his help stealing guns from his parents, court records show. He was experiencing withdrawals from heroin at the time and was pleading with Correa for drugs. Once in Griswold, Correa and his sister chased the 21-year-old into the woods and attacked him with a machete, leaving him to die, according to court records. They then went to his parents' home where Correa struck Kenneth Lindquist's head with a baseball bat, court records show. Correa then sexually taunted, beat and strangled Janet Lindquist before he and his sister stole the family's Christmas presents and Matthew's car, setting the house on fire before they left, according to court records. Authorities responding to the home found the dead couple inside and could not immediately locate their son, according to Correa's appeal. Believing the son could be a suspect, police obtained location data from his cell phone and found that it was in the area of an apartment complex on Donald Street in Hartford, court records show. Data obtained by investigators also showed that the phone had been used to contact a phone number associated with Correa through the TextNow messaging app, according court records. Finding that Correa had a criminal record, including a conviction for arson, and lived on Donald Street, police interviewed him on Dec. 28, 2017, the appeal states. When investigators told Correa they believed Matthew Lindquist had killed his parents and that police knew Correa was familiar with the son, Correa asked for a lawyer and grabbed his cell phone from a table. Smith argued that police, at the time, had no reason to believe there was evidence related to the crime on Correa's phone. The phone was seized and was later examined after police obtained a search warrant for the device. Correa's defense team unsuccessfully tried to have evidence on the phone suppressed prior to his trial. Smith said the 'illegally obtained evidence' from the phone was later used in Correa's trial, making up nearly 40 exhibits. She said the prosecution relied heavily on evidence from the phone to help repair damage done to the credibility of two of the prosecution's 'self-interested' witnesses. She also argued that a judge erred when he denied the defense team's motion to suppress. Ronald Weller, senior assistant attorney representing the prosecution, argued that the evidence found on the phone fell under the 'harmless error' doctrine and did not affect the verdict returned by a jury. Weller said prosecutors also had overwhelming amount of evidence, including that Christmas presents and two rifles from the Lindquist home were found in Correa's car. He said Correa had also reportedly confessed to his girlfriend that he killed the couple. During her arguments, Smith also contended that Ruth Correa's testimony against her brother was self-serving, leading to her receiving a 40-year sentence that will allow for her release from prison someday. According to Smith, Sergio Correa's defense team believes Ruth Correa and another man committed the crimes. Smith said the man's DNA and fingerprints were found in multiple areas of the crime scene. Ruth Correa pleaded guilty to three counts of murder and was sentenced in May 2022. She remains in custody. According to the appeal, Sergio Correa is seeking for his conviction to be overturned and a new trial. The Connecticut Supreme Court is expected to make a ruling in the coming months.
Yahoo
01-03-2025
- Yahoo
State Supreme Court to hear appeal from man convicted in Griswold triple murder
The state Supreme Court next week will hear an appeal of the conviction of Sergio Correa, the Hartford man sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the violent murders of three members of a Griswold family in 2017. Correa's attorney, Assistant Public Defender Jennifer B. Smith, will argue that a warrantless seizure of Correa's cell phone by police was not justified under a legal term known as exigent circumstances, or exceptions to requirements for a warrant. The appeal also claims the search of the contents of the phone violated state and federal constitutions. Correa's appeal was rejected at the Superior Court level. The Correa matter is among the 10 cases slated to be taken up by the state's high court beginning on March 3. Correa's appeal will be heard Wednesday at Yale Law School in New Haven as part of the court's On Circuit" program in which it holds arguments at colleges and law schools. Another appeal challenging a Stonington murder conviction is scheduled to be taken up by the Supreme Court on March 7 in Hartford. Correa is serving a life sentence for the Dec. 20, 2017, murders of Kenneth, 56, and Janet Lindquist, 61, along with the couple's 21-year-old son Matthew Lindquist. Correa's sister, Ruth Correa, is serving a 40-year prison sentence for her role in the murders. Correa and his sister had traveled to Griswold on the night of the murders to meet up with Matthew Lindquist, who had agreed to exchange access to his father's guns for drugs and cash. But Correa and his sister instead stabbed Matthew Lindquist to death and left him in the woods near his home before going inside to torture and kill Kenneth and Janet Lindquist. Sergio Correa beat Kenneth Lindquist to death with a baseball bat and similarly beat and strangled Janet Lindquist. The siblings stole valuables from the home and set fire to the home before fleeing. Police seized Correa's phone during questioning and despite Correa locking the phone, were able to extract its contents, which were later used to find text messages between Correa and Matthew Lindquist. Senior Assistant State's Attorney Ronald G. Weller is handling the Correa case for the state. Eric Lindquist, son of the late Janet and Kenneth Lindquist, said this week he was aware of the upcoming hearing but declined to comment. The Supreme Court, on March 7, will hear arguments in an appeal for Carlton Henderson, a Pawcatuck man sentenced to 70 years in prison for the 2019 stabbing death of his former girlfriend Brandia Irvin in Stonington in the presence of his young son. During the case tried before Judge Shari Murphy in New London Superior Court, his defense had unsuccessfully argued for a special jury instruction on extreme emotional disturbance. His attorneys have argue that the trial court abused its discretion and violated the defendant's right to present a defense by denying his request...' Attorneys for Henderson will argue the admitted PCP addict was stressed over the loss of the relationship with his girlfriend and son, which led to increased consumption of alcohol and drugs.
