Fall River Man Sentenced to Two Decades in prison for 2010 Shooting Death
Bristol County District Attorney’s Office
Thomas M. Quinn III
District Attorney
Press Release
March 22, 2016
Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced today that Errol Powell was convicted of manslaughter connected to the 2010 slaying of Jonathan Nieves in Fall River.
Mr. Powell was sentenced to serve 20 to 20 years in state prison after pleading guilty charges of manslaughter, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, and carrying an illegal firearm.
At around 2:30 a.m. on February 27, 2010 Fall River Police responded to St. Anne’s Hospital, where emergency room doctors were attempting to resuscitate Mr. Nieves, and where doctors were also treating his brother, Jacobo Nieves, for non-fatal gunshot wounds. Jonathan Nieves died shortly after arriving at the hospital.
Through an extensive investigation by state and local police, it was determined that the defendant shot the brothers while they sat in the backseat of an SUV in the Sunset Hill Housing Complex in Fall River. Mr. Powell was eventually arrested The evidence suggests the shooting was the result of an ongoing gang-related dispute that was occurring in the City of Fall River at the time. However, it was also determined that the shooting victims had no role in the gang dispute and were innocent victims.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Stephen Nadeau, and the sentence was handed down yesterday afternoon by Superior Court Judge Renee Dupuis.
The defendant had initially been indicted on a charge of murder, but the charge was reduced to manslaughter due to issues with the reliability of a key witness.
“The case relied primarily on the testimony of two cooperating witnesses, whose reliability could have been seriously questioned during their testimony at trial,” said District Attorney Quinn. “The sentence the defendant received is equivalent to that of a second degree murder conviction. Given the state of the evidence, I felt this disposition was appropriate. The defendant will be off the streets for a very long time.”
Contact:
Gregg Miliote
Director of Communications
508-997-0711
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