Brockton man released from prison 4 months after 9-year sentence faces new murder charge
BROCKTON — A Brockton man who was released from prison just four months after being sentenced to nine years is back behind bars after being arraigned on a new murder charge.
Donta Hood, 33, pleaded not guilty late Wednesday afternoon in Brockton District Court to one count each of murder, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, discharging a weapon within 500 feet of a building, possession of a firearm without a license and possession of ammunition without a firearms license.
Hood is accused of fatally shooting 35-year-old Marvin Hill, of Brockton, on Dec. 5.
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What happened on day of shooting
Brockton police responded to the area of 28 Lexington St., near the corner of Green Street, about 6:17 p.m. on that day. Officers found a man, later identified as Hill, suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. He was taken by ambulance to Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton, then flown by medical helicopter to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, where he was pronounced dead the next day.
A joint investigation was conducted by Brockton police detectives and Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to the Plymouth County District Attorney's Office.
"As a result, on December 8, investigators sought and obtained an arrest warrant for Hood," the Plymouth County DA's office said in a written statement Thursday. "Massachusetts State Police have been actively searching for Hood since that date."
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When was Donta Hood arrested?
Hill was arrested in Assonet on Wednesday and taken to Brockton District Court for arraignment. A judge ordered Hood held without bail.
Previous manslaughter conviction
Hood was released from state prison on Feb. 1, 2022, a spokesperson for the Massachusetts Department of Correction confirmed in an email to The Enterprise.
Hood had been sentenced to nine years in prison on charges of involuntary manslaughter, illegal possession of a firearm and illegal possession of a loaded firearm on Oct. 12, 2021, in the May 14, 2013, death of Charles "Church" Evans in Brockton. But he received credit for time previously served in custody because he was originally convicted of the manslaughter charge in 2016, but won an appeal.
The Massachusetts Appeals Court issued a decision in June 2019 reversing Hood's convictions for involuntary manslaughter and gun charges. Hood argued that the trial judge erroneously denied his motion to suppress portions of his interrogation, which were submitted to the jury. During the questioning, Hood said he was holding a gun when it went off during a struggle with the victim, immediately fled and disposed of his blood-stained shirt in a dumpster.
The Appeals Court found that, at one point in the interview, Hood "unambiguously stated that he was done answering questions" and, therefore, the judge should have suppressed his statements.
The Plymouth County DA's office planned to retry Hood on the charges, but he decided to plead guilty on Sept. 27, 2021. He was then sentenced on Oct. 12, 2021.
Freed from prison in Dookhan lab scandal
Lab scandal fallout Brockton man freed from prison in Dookhan lab scandal standing trial for murder
Hood was also previously freed from prison in the wake of the Annie Dookhan state drug lab scandal in 2012. Hood had been behind bars due to a 2009 drug conviction for dealing cocaine in Brockton.
Dookhan, the state drug lab chemist at the center of the mishandling of an estimated 60,000 drug samples, testified at Hood’s trial in 2009.
A Brockton Superior Court jury convicted Hood on Aug. 14, 2009, based on evidence tested by Dookhan. He was sentenced to five years in prison and given credit for time served before the trial.
In the wake of the scandal surrounding Dookhan, lawyers for Hood petitioned Brockton Superior Court for a new trial on Sept. 27, 2012. A day later, his criminal sentence was vacated.
By 2012, the drug samples used to convict Hood in 2009 had been destroyed, officials said.
On Nov. 14, 2012, Hood’s drug case was dismissed due to lack of evidence.
Six months later, Hood was arrested on May 16, 2013, for the killing of Evans who was gunned down outside 227 Belmont St. in Brockton.
Hood is now due back in court on Jan. 25 on the murder charge.
Enterprise senior reporter Cody Shepard can be reached by email at cshepard@enterprisenews.com.
This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Brockton's Donta Hood charged with murder in death of Marvin Hill
