Massachusetts

Newton Man Who Allegedly Hired Hitman to Kill Estranged Wife's Boyfriend Faces Retrial

Before opening statements for a retrial for a man accused of hiring an ex-convict to murder his estranged wife’s boyfriend began Thursday, the jury went on a jury view to see the Newton parking garage where the crime happened.

The scene of the crime was 345 Boylston Street in Newton, Massachusetts.

Before the jury left to view the scene, the prosecution and the defense both asked the jury to look at different aspects of the scene.

"You will be asked to note certain spaces and areas of the garage, and you'll be asked to note a certain design feature of the garage," Assistant District Attorney Adrienne Lynch told the jury.

The defense then responded with its own requests of the jury.

"When we're there, look at the relationships of the stairs, the elevactors, where the offices are and parking spaces - where each parking spaces are located," Defense Attorney Alan Black said.

The jury, made of 7 men and 9 women, then heard opening statements in the retrial of James Brescia, 59, who was convicted nearly 10 years ago for the 2006 shooting death of Edward Schiller. In 2009, Brescia was convicted of first-degree murder in Newton.

That conviction was overturned after the suspect’s attorneys said Brescia suffered a stroke while testifying in his own defense. The state’s highest court viewed videotapes that were provided by NBC’s Dateline and ruled that the fairness of the trial was "hampered" by his medical condition.

Prosecutors now want to use parts of Brescia’s original testimony in the retrial.

Schiller, 39, was found dead in a car in a parking garage in Newton. Brescia allegedly paid Scott Foxworth $10,000 to shoot the victim.

Brescia appeared at approximately 9 a.m. at the Middlesex Superior Court.

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