Brothers Charged In Death Of Army Sgt. 1st Class Richard Lopez - Page 2

Jason_ · 03-28-2009, 16:21

"To charge Eduardo Capote Jr. with manslaughter, Oldham said she would have had to prove that he was “reckless” and that he knew one punch would kill Lopez."

A two second internet search found this

Manslaughter, NOUN
The unlawful killing of a man, either in negligence or incidentally to the commission of some unlawful act, but without specific malice, or upon a sudden excitement of anger.

What frigging law school did this DA go to? Does she not have a computer?

uboat509 · 03-28-2009, 18:26

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jason_

"To charge Eduardo Capote Jr. with manslaughter, Oldham said she would have had to prove that he was “reckless” and that he knew one punch would kill Lopez."

A two second internet search found this

Manslaughter, NOUN
The unlawful killing of a man, either in negligence or incidentally to the commission of some unlawful act, but without specific malice, or upon a sudden excitement of anger.

What frigging law school did this DA go to? Does she not have a computer?

So you did a two second search on the internet and that makes you an expert on the law in Colorado? Perhaps you might want to peruse CoLawman's post above which specifically states the laws in Colorado.

SFC W

**Bill Harsey** · 03-28-2009, 18:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by uboat509

So you did a two second search on the internet and that makes you an expert on the law in Colorado? Perhaps you might want to peruse CoLawman's post above which specifically states the laws in Colorado.

SFC W

uboat509,
This is a topic of discussion in Steamboat too, "Why No Manslaughter Charge?": (You will have to Google the Steamboat Pilot, my link to story didn't work)

I have the highest degree of respect for CoLawman and his knowledge of the law when it comes to homicide but am still trying to get my brain around how this is being played out. It's not mine to change how this gets done but it still doesn't feel right.

My fear is Steamboat Springs legal system is soft. Hope I'm wrong.

**The Reaper** · 03-28-2009, 19:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by uboat509

So you did a two second search on the internet and that makes you an expert on the law in Colorado? Perhaps you might want to peruse CoLawman's post above which specifically states the laws in Colorado.

SFC W

Exactly.

TR

**Bill Harsey** · 02-10-2010, 15:43

Trial now in jurys hands...
http://www.steamboatpilot.com/news/2...-capote-trial/

02-10-2010, 20:41

Capotes not guilty of 3rd-degree assault in Steamboat case
Jury deadlocked on 2nd-degree assault charge for Eduardo Capote, who will be retried
By Zach Fridell Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Steamboat Springs — A jury found Eduardo and David Capote not guilty of third-degree assault today after a day and a half of deliberations, but jurors could not reach a decision on the more serious charge of second-degree assault against Eduardo Capote.
Jurors said the group deadlocked on the final charge with seven jurors saying Eduardo Capote was guilty and five saying he was not. The jury needed to reach a consensus on the charge.
Attorneys on both sides said they will have renewed vigor for the retrial, scheduled for May 10 to 21.
The men were charged with assault after an altercation in downtown Steamboat Springs on Jan. 1, 2009, with Michael Wesley “Wes” Mottlau, Timothy Mottlau and Richard Lopez. Lopez died as a result of his injuries.
The third-degree assault charges stemmed from the Capote brothers’ alleged fight with Michael Mottlau, and the second-degree assault charge stems from Eduardo Capote’s alleged fight with Lopez.
Defense attorney Charles Feldmann said he plans to call more expert witnesses and said he expects the retrial to last at least as long as the original, even though there are fewer charges.
“Certainly it’s not the outcome we had expected or hoped for, but I could see in the jury’s faces that they worked hard in this case,” he said. “It was painful for everyone.”
Fourteenth Judicial District Attorney Elizabeth Oldham said the decision, while not ideal, does not rule out the possibility of conviction.
“It’s better than not guilty,” she said. “We get another chance.”

sauce · 02-12-2010, 17:31

Thought I'd throw my thoughts in here as I am a current resident of Steamboat. I've lived here a couple years now and have got to know the area and the residents quite well. Reiterating what Firebeef stated earlier, the town does in fact lean a little left, however, drive 5 minutes in any direction outside the town and it moves strongly to the right. The overwhelming majority of people I know up here are Military supporters. I would also say that the Hippy feel that Firebeef speaks of is mostly from younger guys and gals that move to this town for a couple years to take some time off, relax after college, etc...

My overall feeling toward the judicial system up here is that it is soft. From my perspective, the system is and has been gentle on charges and punishment. I have been following this case very closely as it's a very rare case for Steamboat and occurred in an area I frequent. At the beginning, it seemed like everyone had already convicted the Capotes (including the Steamboat Pilot) and it has been somewhat weird to see the turnaround (read comments in the Pilot after the articles). Also in the comment section of one of the more recent articles, you can read comments posted by the ex-wife of Lopez, pretty sad stuff.

Personally, I am completely upset at the outcome of the trial and hope that justice will eventually be served.