Marcelo Lucero's killer, Jeffrey Conroy, was convicted of manslaughter as a hate crime today in Suffolk County, NY. In these videos, Joselo Lucero describes what it has felt like for him and his family to live through the hearings and trials of the defendants charged with the hate-based killing of his brother.
Since the tragic killing of Marcelo Lucero, Not In Our Town has been following the community of Patchogue, NY as it deals with issues of race, immigration, hate and intolerance. The upcoming feature documentary, Not In Our Town III, chronicles the efforts of Patchogue's diverse residents and leaders as they grapple with the aftereffects of the murder and begin to take action to make their community safe for everyone.
Now one chapter of this story has come to an end. Today marked the end of the trial of Jeffrey Conroy, one of the seven young men charged in connection to the killing of Marcelo Lucero, and the only one charged with murder. The jury found Conroy guilty of manslaughter as a hate crime, but acquitted him of the top charges of second-degree murder and second-degree murder as a hate crime. After his arrest the night of the killing, Conroy confessed to stabbing Lucero, though he later testified that defendant Christopher Overton had done it. Nicholas Hausch, one of the other assailants, testified against Conroy. Joselo's Journey follows Joselo Lucero in his ongoing quest for justice for his brother.
For Joselo, his mother, Rosario, and his sister, Isabel, this is not the end of their ordeal. Conroy will be sentenced next month, and Anthony Hartford and Christopher Overton have yet to stand trial. Your messages of support have meant a lot to the Lucero family, and we encourage you once more to leave messages of support in the comments section below.
Comments
Lecero Family
Dear Lucero Family,
I want you to know my prayers are for your strength and peace of mind to carry on in memory of Marcello. I am so sorry for your loss and the hatred that caused this senseless loss. I just want to send a note and let you know you are not alone, we are brothers in this sea of humanity. God bless
to the lucero family:
Marcelo's death changed the history of Suffolk County. He did not die in vain!
God bless you all!
Powerful messages from the students (repost)
Dear Jose Lucero and Family.
More Messages of Support....
We posted a blog a couple weeks ago when the trial was about to start. Many people wrote messages of support and in case you did not have a chance to read the comments, we wanted to post a link so you can read more comments.
We encourage you to continue to write messages of support for the Lucero family. We will be sending the Lucero family a link and compilation of all the messages, and I am sure yours will be appreacited.
- Kirthi from The Working Group/ Not In Our Town
joselo and family
dear joselo and family,
My heart goes out to you and your family, your mother is an incredibly strong person by wanting to forgive jeff and the other 6 boys, and for that she should be commended. I lost my 24yr old brother 10yrs ago, although not the same way you did. At first its hard to comprehend, that the person that is gone will no longer be on this earth, but as time goes by, you learn to live only with the memories that you've made with your brother. As a juror on this case,I saw your family as well as Jeffrey Conroys family, and i pray that we made the right decision, and gave your brother justice. Hopefully as time goes on, things in Patchogue will change, and hopefully time will make people realize that we all need to coexist together as one. Being on this case made me actually realize how much hate people have for one another, for no reason other than the color of their skin. Your brothers legacy will live on forevever.
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