Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Prosecution expected to rest its case today in murder trial of Michael Ferreira.
A defense attorney for defendant Michael Ferreira aggressively cross-examined the lead detective looking into the 1969 murder of Johnny McCabe, suggesting that she ignored two viable suspects before making arrests in April 2011. Ferreira, Edward Alan Brown and Walter Shelley were arrested for the kidnapping and murder of the Tewksbury teen after Brown confessed during interrogation by Lowell Police and State Police investigators in March 2011. Ferreira is the first of the three to stand trial, charged with 1st degree murder in Middlesex Superior Court in Woburn. During cross-examination, attorney Eric Wilson repeatedly asked Lowell Det. Linda Coughlin about Richard Santos and Robert Morely two men who were considered possible suspects …
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Jurors hear opening arguments on Day 1 of Cold Case Murder Trial.
The attorney for accused murder Michael Ferreira laid out his strategy during opening arguments in Woburn District Court on Tuesday. Defense Attorney Eric Wilson told jurors that the prosecution's star witness is a liar. Ferreira, 58, of Salem, NH, is accused of 1st degree murder in the 1969 death of Tewksbury 15-year-old Johnny McCabe. Prosecutors allege that Ferreira, Walter Shelley and Edward Alan Brown, all Tewksbury High students at the time, kidnapped McCabe as he walked along Main Street, beat him, then drove him to a vacant lot in Lowell where he was bound in such a way that he died from asphyxiation. Brown, who now lives in Londonderry, NH, is charged with manslaughter in the case. He is the key witness for the prosecution and is …
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
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 …
Friday, August 12, 2011
Judge ruled he could be charged as an adult, despite being 15 at the time of the killing.
A Middlesex County Grand Jury has indicted a third man in connection with the 1969 murder of Tewksbury teen Johnny McCabe. According to District Attorney Gerald Leone, Michael Ferreira, 57, of Salem, NH, was indicted on one count of first degree murder. He will be arraigned in Lowell Superior Court, but a date has not yet been set. Ferreira was 15 years old when he, Walter Shelley and Edward Brown allegedly, all Tewksbury residents at the time, kidnapped McCabe as he walked home from a dance at the Knights of Columbus on a September night in 1969. According to investigators, Ferriera and Brown beat McCabe, a Tewksbury High student in the back seat of the car while Shelley drove to a vacant lot in Lowell. The trio allegedly bound and gagged…
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Juvenile Court judge will determine whether defendant should be charged as an adult in the murder of Johnny McCabe.
UPDATED Thursday, 8:30 p.m. Michael Ferreira was just 15 years old when prosecutors allege he and two other teens murdered fellow Tewksbury teen Johnny McCabe back in 1969. In the next few days, a Lowell Juvenile Court Judge will decide whether or not Ferreira should be tried as an adult for that crime. McCabe was also just 15 years old when he was allegedly kidnapped by Ferreira, Edward Brown and Walter Shelley while walking home from a dance at the Knights of Columbus. Prosecutors allege McCabe was beaten in the backseat of a car by Brown and Ferreira, while Shelley drove to a vacant lot in Lowell, where McCabe was bound and gagged in such a way that he asphyxiated. In a statement to police in March, Brown pointed the finger squarely at …
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Case will be moved to Superior Court.
UPDATED: 9 p.m. Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone announced today that three men have been indicted by a Grand Jury on charges connected to the 1969 murder of Tewksbury teen Johnny McCabe. Alan Brown, 59, of Londonberry, NH, was indicted on one count of manslaughter. Walter Shelley, 60, of Tewksbury, was indicted on one count of first degree murder and one count of intimidation of a witness. Michael Ferreira, 57, of Salem, NH, was indicted on one count of perjury for lying to the Grand Jury. Because Ferreira was 15 at the time of the incident, he is also being charged in juvenile court on one count of first degree murder. Prosecutors have filed a motion to have Ferreira charged as an adult. That hearing has been continued to June 15…
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Brown claims the defendants only wanted "to teach him a lesson."
While confessing to his role in causing the 1969 death of Johnny McCabe, Edward Brown said, on more than one occasion that the death, itself, was an accident. According to court documents, during police interrogation in March, Brown said he, Michael Ferreira and Walter Shelley just "wanted to teach (McCabe) a lesson," and that the death was an unforeseen byproduct of a prank gone horribly wrong. That could be true, at least in part. But there is evidence in the case that raises the possibility that one, if not all three suspects, had an idea that McCabe would die that night in Septemeber 1969. According to Brown, the trio had been out driving around in Shelley's car and drinking alcohol when they decided to track down McCabe. Shelley was …
Bits of knowledge to help make you the smartest parent at your play group.
Here are five pieces of information to help make you the smartest kid on the playground. 1. Quote of the Day: "In my experience, in cases like this, there is an expectation of death. Once you tie the neck, you either don't care if he lives or dies or you intended for him to die." Forensics expert and former FBI agent Mark Sarafik, commenting on the murder of Johnny McCabe and the assertion by one defendant that the death itself was accidental. 2. Today's Weather Forecast: If you liked yesterday's weather, you'll love today's sequel. According to the NWS, today there are showers likely, then showers and possibly a thunderstorm after 5pm. High near 51. East wind between 9 and 11 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. Tonight, there will be …
Monday, May 16, 2011
With Grand Jury indictments against three suspects expected soon, we look back on what we know about the case to this point.
Though no one in the office of District Attorney Gerry Leone's office will go on the record to confirm, all indications are that a Middlesex County Grand Jury will hand down indictments shortly against Walter Shelley, Michael Ferreira and Edward Brown in connection with the 1969 murder of Johnny McCabe, a 15-year-old Tewksbury High student. At that point, the case will shift from District Court to Middlesex County Superior Court, either in Lowell or Woburn. In the meantime, here are 10 facts we know about the case to this point. Brown finally cracks A tip broke open the McCabe murder case in March. According to court documents, that tip led police to haul in Brown for questioning. During that interview, he finally cracked and admitted his…
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Family and friends of murdered teen recall a gentle heart and a winning personality.
- THE NEIGHBORHOOD FILES
- B Schill
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Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Johnny McCabe, as family and friends knew him, was a boy who loved life. His sister, Roberta Donovan, remembers him in the garage at all hours, constantly fiddling with lawnmower parts, playing with mechanical odds and ends, or working to fix up his mini-bike. The garage was a second home to the teenaged boy. “If you looked at his fingernails they were embedded, embedded with oil and dirt from working on engines in the garage,” she said, “He was a boy who liked to get into things, tinkering with his hands." Donovan said she remembered Johnny spending time in the bathroom on the evening of the Knights of Columbus dance in September, 1969, washing the oil and dirt from his hands, using his father’s aftershave to freshen up. “I remember him …
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 . more ›