DA's Office Drops Trial Against Man Convicted Of Braintree Murder

BRAINTREE, MA — A man who has spent decades for a murder he said he did not commit will remain free without a new trial.

The Norfolk County District Attorney's office announced Monday that they will not seek a new trial against Frederick Weichel, who was convicted the murder of Robert LaMonica. He was granted a new trial in April and allowed to remain free on $5,000 bail.

Weichel was believed to be the man who killed Robert LaMonica in Braintree in 1980. In an interview, he placed the blamed on Whitey Bulger, claiming it was the famous gangster who gave his name to police.

Weichel's conviction was in part due to a witness that identified Weichel as the killer. In April, a Norfolk Superior Court judge wrote in his decision that the trial may have turned out different if the defense obtained a police report which indicated that 10 prison guards identified the shooter as someone else, based on a composite sketch.

In his request for "nolle prosequi," District Attorney Michael Morrissey wrote that many of the witnesses needed for a retrial are no longer available. At least six witnesses are dead, one is not competent due to dementia, and one is suffering from serious health issues. The murder weapon has been destroyed and the crime scene diagram on which witnesses marked their locations has been lost or misplaced.

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