The trial of a man accused of killing a Massachusetts police officer and an elderly woman in 2018 has begun, with prosecutors and the defense team making impassioned opening statements to the jury Thursday morning.
Emanuel Lopes is accused of murdering Weymouth police Sgt. Michael Chesna and 77-year-old Vera Adams in July 2018, killings that shocked the South Shore community.
The trial, which comes after a week-long jury selection, is expected to feature emotional testimony.
The prosecutor trying the case, Norfolk Assistant District Attorney Greg Connor, told the jury his team would prove the litany of charges against Lopes — he's accused of attacking Chesna with a rock while being arrested for vandalizing a home after being reported for driving erratically.
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"Mr. Lopes then took the gun that he had taken from the ground next to Sgt. Chesna, stood over Sgt. Chesna's body and then fired it eight times into his head and into his chest," Connor said.
Other officers eventually tracked Lopes down, shooting him in the leg before they could arrest him.
Lopes’ relatives and attorneys have said he has severe mental health issues, and the system failed to provide the help he needed.
"When he was examined by multiple clinicians, they gave him a diagnosis of not only major mental illness but something you’ll hear about – cannabis use disorder," defense attorney Larry Tipton said in court.
Chesna left behind a wife and two young children.
The trial is expected to last about four weeks. A jury has been selected from a pool of residents from Worcester County, though the trial will take place in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham.
