Does state owe leniency to cooperating defendant in a triple murder? Where the case stands

PROVIDENCE – Melvin Spivey is seeking what he considers justice for his grandson.

He wants the state to keep its promise that his grandson Donovann Hall would get the best sentencing deal among the defendants in a 2012 triple homicide in exchange for his testimony. And he wants the prosecutor, whose actions played a role in Hall's conviction being overturned, removed from the case as the parties seek a resolution.

“They’re going to have to do my grandson right,” Spivey told The Journal recently.

Spivey’s issue is that Assistant Attorney General James Baum, a deputy chief of the criminal division, had assured his grandson that he would be sentenced more leniently than his three co-defendants in exchange for his cooperation, but then Baum reneged on the deal.

Hall admitted to his role in the crimes just four days after his arraignment in February 2013 and agreed to give eyewitness testimony about the events that led up to the shooting deaths of Michael Martin, Damien Colon and Shameeka Barros on July 30, 2012.

That same afternoon, Hall testified before the grand jury, leading to the indictments of the shooter, Russell Burrell; Quandell Husband; and Timothy “Beeper” DeBritto, who provided the gun used in the three murders.

“[The] State needed [Hall’s] testimony to prosecute the cases against the shooter and the other two defendants, and, without that testimony, the State might not have been able to convict those other defendants,” now retired Superior Court Judge Susan E. McGuirl observed in vacating Hall’s conviction last December.

Baum made a deal with Hall that he would get the “best deal of all those charged,” the judge said. Hall fulfilled his end of the bargain, resulting in four convictions – including his own – only to have Baum later renege.

“It is the opinion of this Court that the State, through its Prosecutor, should not make promises to a defendant in order to obtain cooperation and then not comply with that commitment,” McGuirl said.

The state stands by Baum.

“The Attorney General has full confidence in the attorney assigned to the case, James Baum, who has served with distinction as a prosecutor in this Office for more than 24 years,” Brian Hodge, spokesman for Attorney General Peter F. Neronha’s office, said in an email.

“Given that the case remains pending in court, we have no further comment at this time, “he said.

What sentences did the other defendants receive?

While Hall, who never touched the gun, was sentenced to life in prison, Husband, who admitted to hiding the firearm, received a 20-year term after his conviction was also overturned. The state Supreme Court vacated Husband’s conviction, finding that Superior Court Judge Robert D. Krause abused his discretion by allowing the jury to consider “enormously prejudicial” evidence that should not have been admitted at trial.

DeBritto pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and other charges. He was sentenced to a 40-year term, with 20 to serve, to be served concurrently with 40 years he was already serving in an unrelated shooting.

Burrell – the shooter – is serving three consecutive life terms plus 10 years.

“They told my grandson they’d be right there for him,” Spivey said. “I just want them to do what they should have done. His sentence has to be better than Husband's."

'I would not have agreed to plead guilty'

After McGuirl ruled that Hall’s lawyer was ineffective because he'd failed to tell the sentencing judge about the deal gone awry, Hall was rearraigned on the charges in January and pleaded not guilty.

Over the 10 months since, the state has still not lived up to its deal that Hall would receive the lesser sentence, and Baum has remained on the case, Spivey said.

For his part, Hall told the court that but for the assurances that he would get the best deal, “‘I would not have agreed to plead guilty ...’”

Had he not, Hall would have gone to trial and presumably would not have testified against the other defendants and against himself, McGuirl said. A jury might then have found him not guilty of first-degree murder.

According to Spivey, Baum recently agreed to a sentence of 18 years to serve, but only if there were two decades of probation and a suspended sentence hanging over him. That would mean that Hall would remain under court oversight and could return to prison to serve the suspended term if he commits any infractions.

“He has to get the best deal,” Spivey said.

Hall, 29, who has been held without bail since his arrest in 2013, is being represented by Robert McNelis and Terry McEnaney.

"Attorney McEnaney and I understand the family's frustration in this matter.  However, we also have complete faith in the judicial system, and this is still an ongoing case in Providence Superior Court,” McNelis said in an email.  “We remain confident that any ruling or disposition will be done in the best interests of justice and to all involved parties."

The case is now before Krause, who presided over Husband's trial.

More: Man convicted of RI murder said he was innocent. These college students may help free him.

Spivey is also upset with Baum's objections to his grandson's efforts to be released on bail, which Spivey said unfairly portray Hall as a danger. Hall's lawyers had argued that he had no criminal history prior to the 2013 case and didn't pose a flight risk due to his strong family ties.

But Baum successfully countered that Hall should remain behind bars, due to the "nature and extent of his crimes and danger to the community," as the parties try to reach a resolution.

If the parties fail to do so, the case would be retried.

A botched robbery leads to senseless deaths

According to testimony at Husband’s 2014 trial, it was Hall who hatched the plan to rob Martin, from whom he purchased $700 in marijuana each week, of drugs and money.

Hall and Burrell met at DeBritto's apartment in Providence’s North End and picked July 30, 2012, as the night. Husband joined them at the last minute, with DeBritto providing the distinctive 9 mm Glock pistol with a red laser sight. Burrell was delegated to carry the gun.

Hall, Husband and Burrell cut through lawns to get to the Arbor Glen apartment at 151 General St. DeBritto stayed behind. Hall testified that he tapped on the window to get Martin's attention. Martin let them in, leading them to the kitchen, where his friend, Colon, was seated at a table. Martin's girlfriend, Barros, 22, slept on the couch in the living room.

Barros' girls, ages 3 and 5, and her 6-year-old brother were sleeping in another room. Colon, 22, had stopped by after work.

Burrell pulled out the gun, aiming it at Martin's chest. Martin told Burrell to chill. Instead, Burrell fired the gun, Hall said.

Hall heard more shots being fired as he fled to DeBritto's place. Burrell fired 17 rounds. The only survivors in the apartment were Barros' daughters, her brother, and her small Chihuahua-mix dog.

Burrell, then 18, provided chilling testimony, coolly describing shooting Martin, whom he called the "white guy," along with Colon and Barros. He then hid the gun in the basement of the building he lived in with the Husband family. Husband later took the gun from Burrell.

Providence police found the gun wrapped in cloth under a pile of wood behind 105 Atlantic Ave. The gun was determined to be the same one DeBritto had used months earlier to shoot a romantic rival.

Prosecutor's role in a case investigated by Department of Corrections

Baum played a central role in a state Department of Corrections investigation that determined that one of the men who participated in killing Kerry Mello in 2015 had sex with his girlfriend in the attorney general’s office at the Licht Judicial Complex while in state custody as Baum and a state trooper stood by.

Mello’s family was left wondering if the desire to keep that alleged encounter under wraps influenced the plea deals the state reached with the defendants, at least one of whom — the man who met with his girlfriend — walked out of the courthouse at sentencing. Mello’s family always thought the sentences for killing the 36-year-old father of three and dismembering him and throwing his body parts into the ocean were far too lenient.

Hodge previously acknowledged that in 2017, before Neronha’s administration took office, a defendant in the Mello case — Graig Bustillo — was brought into the courthouse to meet with the prosecution to discuss the case.

More: A murder defendant allegedly had sex in custody. Did it influence his sentence?

“At that time, the prosecution team inadvisably afforded the defendant a brief period to meet alone with family members. The current administration has made it explicitly clear to all members of the criminal division that this practice — to the extent it has happened in the past — is strictly not permitted,” Hodge said in an email.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant Attorneys General Baum and Timothy G. Healy, with Rhode Island State Police Detective Adam Kennett leading the investigation, according to court records.

Neronha recently announced that he had named Baum to lead a newly created cold case unit. Baum is joined by Special Assistant Attorney General Jessica A. Villella and investigators Timothy C. McGann, with the Providence Police Department from 1994 to 2023, and Theodore "Teddy" J. Michael, a former Providence detective who specializes in electronic evidence. The unit will also be staffed by Attorney General Bureau of Criminal Identification and Investigations investigator Scott Sullivan, with the Pawtucket Police Department from 1996 to 2023, and investigator Eric Yankee, who served as a Special Agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives from 2001 to 2021.

Neronha waged a high-profile fight with Gov. Dan McKee in the last budget season over his request for 20 new hires to help establish the unit. State lawmakers ultimately granted Neronha 15 of the 20 positions he sought.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Family of defendant in RI murder case seeks promised leniency