Plea Bargains Possible With Two Of Three Defendents In McCabe Killing
Prosecutors in conversations with Walter Shelley and his attorney.
The McCabe family waited more than 41 years for arrests to be made in the murder of their son/brother.
Their pursuit of justice may be nearing a conclusion.
In April, 2011, law enforcement officials arrested Edward Brown of Londonderry, NH, Michael Ferreira of Salem NH and Walter Shelley of Tewksbury in connection with the death of Johnny McCabe. The 15-year-old Tewksbury High student was walking home from a dance at the Knights of Columbus on Sept. 26, 1969, when he was grabbed off the street, driven to a vacant lot in Lowell and tied up in such a way that it caused him to suffocate.
Brown, 60, whose confession during a March 2011 interrogation led to the arrests, has been charged with manslaughter. Shelley, 61, and Ferreira, 58, have each been charged with 1st degree murder.
Ferreira's trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 9 in Lowell Superior Court, with Shelley's trial set to begin on Dec. 3. However, prosecutors from the office of District Attorney Gerry Leone appear now to be focusing their efforts on Ferreira.
According to a source close to the investigation, Shelley and his attorney were scheduled to meet with prosecutors on Tuesday, July 24, to discuss a possible plea bargain. But the meeting was postponed to Aug. 2.
Any deal with Shelley would likely involve him pleading guilty to a lesser charge in exchange for his testimony against Ferreira. In Brown's confession to investigators in 2011, he accused Ferreira of being the member of the trio most directly responsible for McCabe's death. It was Ferreira, said Brown, who tied a rope around McCabe's neck and then tied it to his legs, which ultimately resulted in his death.
Brown claimed that he and Shelley just wanted to scare and humiliate McCabe.
Brown has not pled guilty in the case but no trial date has been set either. It's possible that prosecutors already have a deal in place in exchange for his testimony against Ferreira.
Marc
3:23 pm on Wednesday, July 25, 2012
god the bullying never stops..even back then before i was born sad a life taken because kids have nothing better to do..I hope they hang their butts after all these years. they're close to croking age at this point but im sure they lived a long happy life now time to lock them up for good..
Lois Sheehan
5:47 pm on Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Those three don't deserve to see the light of day for the remainder of their lives. The McCabe family has lived all these years wondering what happened to their beloved son. No human being deserves to have happen to them what "those three" perpetrated on Johnny McCabe. The plea deal should keep each of them in prison for the rest of their earthly lives. They should die in prison, away from their amilies.
Lori
8:39 pm on Wednesday, July 25, 2012
They all caused Johnny McCabe's death. If just one of them had an ounce of compassion after they did this heartless thing, and called the police, perhaps they could have rescued him in time before he suffocated. What a horrible death for anyone, but especially a child. What was going through his mind while he lay there helpless and suffocating? How could all three just then carried on with their lives for many years, had families, experienced the joys of life, and did things that Johnny was never able to do because of their selfishness and total apathy for another human being's life. They are evil, I'm sorry, and they all deserve the same fate as Johnny.
jeanie miller
7:44 pm on Thursday, July 26, 2012
So sad....thoughts are with the McCabe family.
marybeth petros
9:33 pm on Wednesday, January 16, 2013
I hope righteousness prevails for the McCabe family and all who loved young Johnny McCabe. 43 years. 3 men finally being accountable for murdering him. They did it. The hush hush is over. These 3 men will now suffer the consequences of their actions. 3 against 1. You all were cowards as boys. And cowards still to this day.
...
dennis
1:58 pm on Tuesday, April 2, 2013
I agree with all the comments but they did do the crime because they were sceen leaving the body in the field and getting in the car and drive off .Mr. Brown had a white tee shirt on and Mr. other one had a black long sleeve shirt on .John had maroon shirt and black pants and black soxs and shoes .