Boyfriend Convicted Of Murdering Fairfield Native

FAIRFIELD, CT — A Virginia man has been convicted of murdering Fairfield native Dawn Meade in a domestic violence incident last year in Virginia. Gregory Veres was convicted by a Louisa County jury Thursday of first-degree murder and felony hit and run. The jury is recommending the maximum sentence under the law of life plus 10 years, according to officials.

“This is a tragic case where the defendant killed his girlfriend and treated her worse than a dog,” Louisa Commonwealth’s Attorney Rusty E. McGuire said in a news release. “He killed her in the middle of the night and left her alone, cold, and in the dark, on the side of the road.”

Meade, 40, was found dead by a neighbor on the morning of Sept. 22, 2017 in Virginia after a hit-and-run. Veres had been arguing with Meade over a restraining order before she separated from him and walked home, prosecutors said during the trial.

“The defendant hunted her down and drove all four wheels of his grandmother’s car off the road and struck the victim going 60 mph,” according to the news release. “The defendant struck her so hard the car’s grill left an imprint on her leg. The defendant took the stand and testified it was an accident and suggested that he was too drunk to know what he was doing. The defense also called Richard McGarry, an expert witness, to opine the defendant’s BAC would have been too high to know what he was doing. The Commonwealth called Dr. Jim Hutchings who works for the Department of Forensic Science, who refuted McGarry’s claims.”

In closing argument McGuire and Co-counsel Robert Wood argued “the defendant’s changing of his clothes from a bright fluorescent shirt to a dark sweatshirt before he killed the victim, coupled with his aggressive driving demonstrated a premeditated intent to kill.”

Veres is scheduled to be sentenced on March 25, 2019.

Meade had moved to Virginia to “better her life,” her son Joseph Muratori wrote on a GoFundMe page that was created last year to assist with funeral expenses.

“She began telling me what was happening,” Muratori wrote in the post. “I begged my mother to come home. Well, on September 22 2017, my mother was killed by her abusive boyfriend. Anybody in any type of relationship that is abusive or know someone that is don't hesitate to reach out for help.

"Mom you were taken from us to soon. When the sun rises in the sky and sets beneath the shoreline, it shines your beauty on everything it touches. You will never really leave us. You are everywhere that is beautiful. You don't understand what I would give up or do to hear your voice one more time or give you the biggest hug of all time."

Photo via Go Fund Me / Go Fund Me is a Patch promotional partner.

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