Accused Worcester State shooter pleads not guilty, will remain held
WORCESTER — The alleged gunman in October’s fatal shooting on the Worcester State University campus was arraigned Friday in Worcester Superior Court and is being held without bail after being deemed dangerous.
With rosary beads prominently showing over his prison-issued clothes and a dozen family members in the courtroom, Kevin Jose Rodriguez, 18, of Lawrence, pleaded not guilty to the charges of murder, possession of a loaded firearm without a license and possession of a firearm without a license.
Addressing Judge Karin Bell, Assistant District Attorney Terry McLaughlin said Brian E. Murphy, the attorney for the defense, and the commonwealth have agreed on the recommendation that Rodriguez be held without bail due to dangerousness and without prejudice.
Prior to Bell’s ruling in favor of their recommendation, McLaughlin gave a brief overview of the case.
Two people were shot Oct. 28 when gunfire broke out amid a large crowd in a parking lot on the WSU campus. Randy Armando Melendez Jr., 19, of Southbridge, was pronounced dead at UMass Memorial Medical Center — University Campus, while a second gunshot victim is paralyzed from the waist down, according to court documents.
Rodriguez is accused of fatally shooting Melendez. On Friday, McLaughlin said Rodriguez shot Melendez three times.
According to McLaughlin, police responded to the WSU campus for a double shooting around 2:30 a.m. Oct. 28 in the Wasylean parking lot.
Prior to the shooting, two groups, consisting of four people from Southbridge and six from Lawrence, were at an “18-plus party” at Leitrim’s Pub at 265 Park Ave.
After the bar closed, word spread quickly that an “after-hours party” was happening at WSU, and the two groups made their way to the university’s campus, according to court documents. A confrontation ensued after the groups arrived.
During the altercation, one of the Southbridge men took one of the Lawrence men to the back of a truck.
After the Southbridge man discharged a gun in the air, another car with four people from Lawrence pulled up, McLaughlin said.
Rodriguez could be seen on video exiting the vehicle, approaching the back of the truck, firing three shots and taking off.
A Southbridge man fired and hit a 21-year-old Lawrence man, whose name has not been released. Melendez is seen staggering on the video and collapsing, while Rodriguez takes off.
On Jan. 5, Richard Nieves, 19, of Spencer, and Kenneth Doelter, 20, of Southbridge, were both arraigned in Worcester Superior Court. They are each charged with armed robbery and aggravated kidnapping in connection to the shooting victim who survived.
Nieves, who is accused of shooting the Lawrence man who is now paralyzed, is also charged with armed assault with intent to murder, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon causing serious bodily injury, discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling, possession of a loaded firearm not at home or work and possession of a firearm not at home or work.
Bell ruled that Nieves be committed without bail pending a dangerousness hearing. Bell set Doelter’s bail at $10,000.
Neither the victims nor any of the defendants were students at the university.
Rodriguez's court appearance came a day after the state Supreme Judicial Court, in a 5-4 decision, ruled that life sentences without parole were unconstitutional for offenders who are ages 18, 19 and 20 at the time of their crimes.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Kevin Rodriguez, accused Worcester State shooter, pleads not guilty
