NY - Ex-cop fights life sentence in bizarre murder case

http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/19/justice/diguglielmo-new-york-deli-killing/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

Programming note: Join CNN TV for more about this fascinating murder case. Watch "CNN Presents" Sunday night, January 22, at 8 and 11 ET.


Napanoch, New York (CNN) -- Inside the fortress-like walls of the Eastern New York Correctional Facility, Richard DiGuglielmo Jr. is plagued by a question that has haunted him for more than 15 years: "What would you do if someone were swinging a baseball bat at your father's head?"

The choice he made on a crisp autumn day not only changed his life, it cast doubt on an entire justice system in Westchester County, New York.

That's because after serving 11 years in prison for the murder of 37-year-old Charles Campbell, DiGuglielmo was released on appeal after a judge ruled the former NYPD officer was charged inappropriately and evidence withheld by local prosecutors would likely have changed the jury's guilty verdict.
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DiGuglielmo immediately found a job and an apartment. During a night out with friends who had stuck by him, Richie -- as his friends called him -- met the love of his life, who would soon become his wife. For the next year-and-a-half, DiGuglielmo led an idyllic life.

It all ended in 2010 with a stunning twist of fate. New York state's highest court overturned the lower court and said new evidence would not have influenced the jury.

The four-judge panel sent DiGuglielmo back to prison to finish his 20-years-to-life sentence.

More at link....

Stuff like this really angers me to no end. It's ridiculous that this man was arrested. He shouldn't be in prison, he did nothing wrong. He should have received an award for bravery for saving his father's life, not in prison over a criminal committing suicide. This is outrageous.

I totally disagree. Just my opinion, but shooting someone attacking someone ESPECIALLY when you're an officer is deserving of charges against you. He probably got 20 because he was an officer who is expected to understand and uphold the law, and while i understand the man was attacking his elderly father, using lethal force was not necessary. JMO, but why wouldn't he have handed the man his cell and shirt, and let his father go inside and go back to business? If it were my father, i would have defended him too, but to say three bullets killing someone was defensive in some way, especially when this is an officer trained to handle these kind of situations, is ludicrous.

Officers aren't trained to shoot someone in the leg or arm...or even the head. They are trained to shoot to stop someone, & the easiest target is the torso. If I saw someone attacking my father with a baseball bat ( which very well could be lethal) I'd shoot them too with no hesitation. At least I like to think I wouldn't hesitate, but who really knows. Until you are in that situation you can't really say for sure what you'd do.

I can't understand why this man is in prison. I'd defend my parents, or my siblings, with no hesitation. He deserves to be set free, it is horrible that he was sent to prison....but then sent back....unreal.