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Cabdriver charged with shooting alleged robber
Lawyer says client feared for his life
By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff
THE BOSTON GLOBE
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Lawrence -- Bienvenido Rodriguez admits disarming the
safety on his gun and firing at the man who allegedly
robbed him at knifepoint, but he never meant to shoot
anyone, according to a police report.
As a result of his actions, the 42-year-old taxi driver,
who friends say is an immigrant success story with an even
temper, was transformed from a victim to a perpetrator of a
violent crime, authorities said.
Police reports said Rodriguez admitted to detectives that
he fired at Herman Irene as the alleged robber ran away
from him, but that he insisted he never meant to hit him.
"He only meant to scare him and did not think he hit him,
since when he shot the gun off he was aiming high," the
report said.
Rodriguez's lawyer said yesterday that her client feared
for his life, but Lawrence Police Chief John Romero said
Rodriguez went too far.
"When a guy is fleeing, he no longer poses a threat to
you," and a person cannot legally use deadly force as their
attacker runs away, he said.
Rodriguez, who immigrated from the Dominican Republic 22
years ago and is a naturalized citizen, was working his
usual overnight shift early Sunday, driving a minivan for
Liberty Car Services of Lawrence, according to court
records and interviews.
Rodriguez already had one fare on board and was heading to
Haverhill when he stopped to pick up Irene on Springfield
Street in Lawrence.
When the van drove into the darkness of a highway overpass
on Parker Street in Lawrence, Irene allegedly pulled a
knife, forced Rodriguez to pull over, and robbed him of the
cash stuck into the car's visor, according to court records
and Rodriguez's lawyer. The other passenger witnessed the
exchange and called police on his cellphone, records show.
Irene got out of the van and started running, and Rodriguez
reached for the licensed .40 caliber Smith and Wesson
pistol he carried, released the safety, and fired one shot
into Irene's back, authorities alleged.
Rodriguez pleaded not guilty in Lawrence District Court to
charges of assault with intent to murder and assault and
battery with a dangerous weapon and was ordered held on
$10,000 cash bail by Judge Kevin J. Gaffney.
Irene, 36, of Lawrence, was recovering yesterday at Brigham
and Women's Hospital in Boston, where he was arraigned and
charged with armed robbery, according to Essex District
Attorney Jonathan Blodgett's office. Bail was set at
$10,000 cash. Irene also faces attempted murder charges
from a prior domestic violence case, prosecutors said.
Rodriguez's lawyer, Pamela F. Saia, said he should not have
been charged. "He was the victim of a crime," she said.
"Mr. Rodriguez is scared to death. . . . He was completely
afraid he was going to be killed."
About 10 people, including at least one of his teenage sons
and his mother, were in court on Rodriguez's behalf
yesterday.
Saia said Rodriguez has built a successful life through
hard work. He owns a two-family house in Methuen, owns a
car repair shop in Methuen, and works every night driving a
cab in the Lawrence area.
She said Rodriguez purchased the weapon about a year ago
and took a class to learn how to use it properly. Sunday at
1:45 a.m. was the first time he fired the handgun, she
said.
Rodriguez has been associated with Liberty for three years,
according to Maria Romero, office manager. Speaking on
behalf of owner Juan Hernandez, Romero said that Rodriguez
has a job waiting for him.
More at:
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/01/30/cabdriver_charged_with_shooting_alleged_robber/
Jai Maharaj
http://tinyurl.com/yhjyp5
http://www.mantra.com/jai
http://www.mantra.com/jyotish
Om Shanti
Hindu Holocaust Museum
http://www.mantra.com/holocaust
Hindu life, principles, spirituality and philosophy
http://www.hindu.org
http://www.hindunet.org
The truth about Islam and Muslims
http://www.flex.com/~jai/satyamevajayate
o Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the educational
purposes of research and open discussion. The contents of this post may not
have been authored by, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the
poster. The contents are protected by copyright law and the exemption for
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o If you send private e-mail to me, it will likely not be read,
considered or answered if it does not contain your full legal name, current
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FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted material the use of
which may or may not have been specifically authorized by the copyright
owner. This material is being made available in efforts to advance the
understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic,
democratic, scientific, social, and cultural, etc., issues. It is believed
that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title
17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without
profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included
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go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
If you wish to use copyrighted material from this article for purposes of
your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the
copyright owner.
Lawyer says client feared for his life
By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff
THE BOSTON GLOBE
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Lawrence -- Bienvenido Rodriguez admits disarming the
safety on his gun and firing at the man who allegedly
robbed him at knifepoint, but he never meant to shoot
anyone, according to a police report.
As a result of his actions, the 42-year-old taxi driver,
who friends say is an immigrant success story with an even
temper, was transformed from a victim to a perpetrator of a
violent crime, authorities said.
Police reports said Rodriguez admitted to detectives that
he fired at Herman Irene as the alleged robber ran away
from him, but that he insisted he never meant to hit him.
"He only meant to scare him and did not think he hit him,
since when he shot the gun off he was aiming high," the
report said.
Rodriguez's lawyer said yesterday that her client feared
for his life, but Lawrence Police Chief John Romero said
Rodriguez went too far.
"When a guy is fleeing, he no longer poses a threat to
you," and a person cannot legally use deadly force as their
attacker runs away, he said.
Rodriguez, who immigrated from the Dominican Republic 22
years ago and is a naturalized citizen, was working his
usual overnight shift early Sunday, driving a minivan for
Liberty Car Services of Lawrence, according to court
records and interviews.
Rodriguez already had one fare on board and was heading to
Haverhill when he stopped to pick up Irene on Springfield
Street in Lawrence.
When the van drove into the darkness of a highway overpass
on Parker Street in Lawrence, Irene allegedly pulled a
knife, forced Rodriguez to pull over, and robbed him of the
cash stuck into the car's visor, according to court records
and Rodriguez's lawyer. The other passenger witnessed the
exchange and called police on his cellphone, records show.
Irene got out of the van and started running, and Rodriguez
reached for the licensed .40 caliber Smith and Wesson
pistol he carried, released the safety, and fired one shot
into Irene's back, authorities alleged.
Rodriguez pleaded not guilty in Lawrence District Court to
charges of assault with intent to murder and assault and
battery with a dangerous weapon and was ordered held on
$10,000 cash bail by Judge Kevin J. Gaffney.
Irene, 36, of Lawrence, was recovering yesterday at Brigham
and Women's Hospital in Boston, where he was arraigned and
charged with armed robbery, according to Essex District
Attorney Jonathan Blodgett's office. Bail was set at
$10,000 cash. Irene also faces attempted murder charges
from a prior domestic violence case, prosecutors said.
Rodriguez's lawyer, Pamela F. Saia, said he should not have
been charged. "He was the victim of a crime," she said.
"Mr. Rodriguez is scared to death. . . . He was completely
afraid he was going to be killed."
About 10 people, including at least one of his teenage sons
and his mother, were in court on Rodriguez's behalf
yesterday.
Saia said Rodriguez has built a successful life through
hard work. He owns a two-family house in Methuen, owns a
car repair shop in Methuen, and works every night driving a
cab in the Lawrence area.
She said Rodriguez purchased the weapon about a year ago
and took a class to learn how to use it properly. Sunday at
1:45 a.m. was the first time he fired the handgun, she
said.
Rodriguez has been associated with Liberty for three years,
according to Maria Romero, office manager. Speaking on
behalf of owner Juan Hernandez, Romero said that Rodriguez
has a job waiting for him.
More at:
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/01/30/cabdriver_charged_with_shooting_alleged_robber/
Jai Maharaj
http://tinyurl.com/yhjyp5
http://www.mantra.com/jai
http://www.mantra.com/jyotish
Om Shanti
Hindu Holocaust Museum
http://www.mantra.com/holocaust
Hindu life, principles, spirituality and philosophy
http://www.hindu.org
http://www.hindunet.org
The truth about Islam and Muslims
http://www.flex.com/~jai/satyamevajayate
o Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the educational
purposes of research and open discussion. The contents of this post may not
have been authored by, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the
poster. The contents are protected by copyright law and the exemption for
fair use of copyrighted works.
o If you send private e-mail to me, it will likely not be read,
considered or answered if it does not contain your full legal name, current
e-mail and postal addresses, and live-voice telephone number.
o Posted for information and discussion. Views expressed by others are
not necessarily those of the poster who may or may not have read the article.
FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted material the use of
which may or may not have been specifically authorized by the copyright
owner. This material is being made available in efforts to advance the
understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic,
democratic, scientific, social, and cultural, etc., issues. It is believed
that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title
17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without
profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included
information for research, comment, discussion and educational purposes by
subscribing to USENET newsgroups or visiting web sites. For more information
go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
If you wish to use copyrighted material from this article for purposes of
your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the
copyright owner.
