Posted in News Police

Fujita Guilty as Charged

Reaction

Wayland Patch 3/8/13: Family, Friends, Others Focus on Astley’s ‘Light’ in the Wake of Trial Verdict. Prosecutor Lisa McGovern turned to offer Mary Dunne and Malcolm Astley a look of success colored deeply with sadness as a jury declared Nathaniel Fujita guilty of murdering their 18-year-old daughter, Lauren Astley.

Wayland Town Crier 3/8/13: Shared sorrow, call for atonement following Fujita verdict, sentencing. Moments after a Middlesex Superior Court jury convicted the man of murdering his only daughter, Malcolm Astley, crying, walked over and hugged her killer’s parents.

Wayland Patch 3/7/13: Lauren Astley’s Parents Paint a Picture of Their Loss with Victim Impact Statements. Other voices spoke boldly Thursday on behalf of a voice silenced after only 18 short years. Malcolm Astley and Mary Dunne, parents of Lauren Astley, spoke up on behalf of their murdered daughter, poignantly reminding Judge Peter Lauriat what they lost when Nathaniel Fujita took her life.

MyFoxNews 3/7/13: Impact Statement from Malcolm Astley
MyFoxNews 3/7/13: Impact Statement from Mary Dunne

Boston Globe 3/7/13: Nathaniel Fujita sentenced to life in prison in Wayland murder. Nathaniel Fujita was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole Thursday after a jury of eight men and four women found him guilty of first-degree murder in the slaying of Lauren Astley, his former high school girlfriend. Judge Peter Lauriat issued the sentence in Middlesex Superior Court at about 12:20 p.m. Appeal is automatic in first-degree murder cases. Fujita, now 20, acted with both premeditation and extreme atrocity when he lured 18-year-old Astley to his Wayland home on July 3, 2011, told her to park her car out of sight, and then beat, strangled and slashed her to death before dumping her body in a marsh, the jurors found. Before the sentencing, Astley’s parents, who are divorced, gave statements describing the impact of their daughter’s murder. Links to those are just above.

WCVB 3/7/13: Mother of murder victim is haunted by daughter’s death. “I always wonder if she was screaming out or yelling mom,” said Dunne in an exclusive interview with WCVB’s Kelley Tuthill. “I don’t know what it was like and there are a million scenarios and I’ve played every one of them every day. It is torture. I don’t know if that ever goes away. I pray that it does.” [With video.]

WCVB 3/7/13: Murder victim’s dad makes fighting domestic violence his mission. Just hours after Nathaniel Fujita was found guilty of first-degree murder for the death of Lauren Astley, her father, Dr. Malcolm Astley, granted his first interview following the verdict. The families have known one another for years; their children grew up together. Dr. Astley recalled that Lauren and Nate shared many experiences with each other’s families. Following the reading of the verdict, Astley embraced Nate’s parents, Beth and Tomo Fujita. Astley said it was a shared moment of empathy and compassion.

More…

Continue Reading...
Posted in News Police

Week 3 Coverage of Fujita Trial

Friday Live Blog Summaries:

Expert Analysis of Insanity Defense:

Friday Coverage:

NECN 3/1/13: Testimony continues in Wayland, Mass. teen murder trial. Testimony continues Friday in the teen murder of a Wayland, Mass. man. Nathaniel Fujita is accused of killing his ex-girlfriend when they both just 18 years old. The defense in the Nathanial Fujita trial brought their second witness to the stand Friday. Dr. Wade Myers, a forensic psychiatrist, testified that he believes Fujita was suffering from a “brief psychotic episode” when he killed his 18-year-old ex-girlfriend Lauren Astley.

WHDH 3/1/13: Psychiatrist testifies in Wayland murder trial. A forensic psychiatrist testifying for the defense in the trial of a Wayland man charged with killing his ex-girlfriend says the defendant was unable to control himself. Video available online here.

Boston Globe 3/2/13: Psychiatrist says Wayland’s Fujita had explosive impulse during killing. As he wrapped a bungee cord around his former girlfriend’s neck in his ­Wayland garage, Nathaniel Fujita felt nothing, he told a psychiatrist, just numb. When she stopped moving, he went to the kitchen and got a knife. He shut the garage door. He cut her throat. “He’s acting, but his mind is disconnected from his body,” said Dr. Wade Myers, who testified for the defense Friday in Middlesex Superior Court. “He described not having any feelings at all.”

Boston Globe 3/1/13: Nathaniel Fujita could not control his actions when he killed his ex-girlfriend, psychiatrist testifies. When Nathaniel Fujita strangled and slashed his ex-girlfriend to death at his Wayland home, he felt that his mind was not controlling his body and he could not understand or control his actions, a psychiatric specialist called by Fujita’s lawyer testified Friday.

Boston Herald 3/1/13: Doc testifies Fujita ‘was no longer controlling his body’ during murde. Nathaniel Fujita had a feeling his “mind was no longer controlling his body” when he strangled girlfriend Lauren Astley until she stopped moving, then a cut her throat in the garage of his home, according to a defense expert. Dr. Wade Myer said in the moments leading up to the murder, Fujita met Astley outside his home and walked her into the garage. She asked Fujita why he didn’t hang out with their friends more. And then, the doctor said, Fujita snapped.

Wayland Patch 3/1/13: Defense Continues to Present Its Case in Fujita Murder Trial. The defense team for Nathaniel Fujita will continue presenting its case Friday in an effort to show jurors that Fujita suffered a brief psychotic episode when he killed 18-year-old Lauren Astley in July 2011. On Thursday, the Commonwealth, led by prosecutor Lisa McGovern, rested its case after calling a string of nearly 30 witnesses — beginning with Wayland Police Officer Seanna Lombardo and concluding with Astley’s mother, Mary Dunne — to the stand since testimony began on Feb. 13.

Wayland Town Crier 3/1/13: Expert: Fujita not criminally responsible for murder. As Nathaniel Fujita strangled and then slashed Lauren Astley’s throat a year and a half ago, his whole body was numb and he felt like his mind wasn’t in control of his body. “He said it wasn’t him controlling himself,” said Dr. Wade Myers, testifying Friday in Fujita’s murder trial in Middlesex Superior Court. “It was his body acting while his mind was disconnected from what was happening.”

Thursday Coverage:

Wayland Patch 3/1/13: Defense Continues to Present Its Case in Fujita Murder Trial. The defense team for Nathaniel Fujita will continue presenting its case Friday in an effort to show jurors that Fujita suffered a brief psychotic episode when he killed 18-year-old Lauren Astley in July 2011.

Boston.com 2/28/13: Mother of Wayland victim describes a disturbing scene. Twice Mary Dunne’s daughter, Lauren Astley, came to her crying at the graduation party: her former boyfriend, Nathaniel Fujita, would not leave her alone.

Wayland Town Crier 2/28/13: . Laying the groundwork for an insanity defense, Nathaniel Fujita’s lawyer put his client’s aunt on the stand Thursday, leading her through a detailed Fujita family history of mental illness.

Boston.com 2/28/13: Lauren Astley’s mother testifies at trial of Nathaniel Fujita, accused of killing her ‘only child’. Mary Dunne’s voice was ragged as she identified the photograph the prosecutor set in front of her on the witness stand in Middlesex Superior Court. “This is my only child, Lauren Astley,” Dunne said, her body shaking. In the picture, her daughter beams, her head tipped to the side. It remained up on the screen Thursday morning as Dunne described her daughter’s love of her friends, of singing, and music, and the last time she saw her alive.

Boston.com 2/28/13: Mental illness runs in Nathaniel Fujita’s family, aunt testifies at murder trial. Mental illness runs in Nathaniel Fujita’s family, and Fujita himself had slipped into a deep depression in the months before his former girlfriend was slain, his aunt testified Thursday as the first witness for the defense. “Nathaniel was withdrawn and seemed depressed,” said Joyce Saba in Middlesex Superior Court. “There was an extreme change in his behavior.”

WHDH.com Channel 7 News 2/28/13: Victim’s mom takes stand in Wayland murder trial. here was more emotional testimony Thursday in the murder trial of a Wayland man accused of killing his high school girlfriend, 18-year-old Lauren Astley. Nathanial Fujita, 20, hung his head and sobbed as Astley’s mother took the stand. Mary Dunne described how her daughter came to her in tears because of Fujita’s behavior at her graduation party. With video online here.

WCVB TV 2/28/13: Murder suspect sobs as victim’s mom describes teen. The mother of a Wayland teen allegedly killed at the hands of her former boyfriend brought the trial to recess Thursday when her emotional testimony caused many, including the defendant, to weep in the courtroom.

NECN 2/28/13: Murder victim’s mother calm, composed as she testifies. For this third week of trial, many have watched painfully as Astley’s mother sat in the front row of the court, physically reacting to details of her daughter’s murder, but Mary Dunne was very calm and composed on the stand Thursday. She was only on the stand for about 10 minutes. Dunne was not very emotional, but admitted killer Nate Fujita sobbed as she described Lauren as a girl in the choir, on varsity tennis, in the a capella group and someone always with her friends. Fujita’s sobs could be heard over Dunne’s testimony. It was the most emotional he has been during the trial.

Wayland Patch 2/28/13: Astley’s Mother Testifies, Fujita Breaks Down. The short testimony of Lauren Astley’s mother proved emotional for the many people gathered in Courtroom 530 in Woburn on Thursday. As Mary Dunne told jurors about her daughter’s petite frame — 5 feet and just under 100 pounds — quiet tears and the crinkling of people reaching for tissues could be heard throughout the room at Middlesex Superior Court.

Thursday Live Blog Summaries:

Wednesday Coverage:

Boston.com 2/27/13: Friend describes frantic search for Lauren Astley the night she was killed, in trial of Nathaniel Fujita. One of Lauren Astley’s best friends described a frantic search for the young Wayland High graduate that took place after she failed to answer phone calls and text messages the night of July 3, 2011. Her battered body was found in a marsh the next day. The dramatic testimony came Wednesday in the trial of Nathaniel Fujita, who is accused of luring 18-year-old Astley to his home, telling her to park out of sight, and then beating, strangling and slashing his former girlfriend to death in the garage.

NECN 2/27/13: Emotional testimony from victim’s best friend in Mass. murder trial. Perhaps the most emotional testimony came from one of Astley’s friends, who was possibly the last person to speak with Astley before, of course, Fujita. Ariel Chates, now a college sophomore, also had contact with Fujita before everything unraveled.

Wayland Patch 2/28/13: Combination of Strangulation, Incised Wounds Killed Astley, Medical Examiner Says. The courtroom Wednesday responded with silent tension as the state’s chief medical examiner described the myriad of wounds he found on the battered body of Lauren Astley. At the defendant’s table, Nathaniel Fujita, now 20, sat hunched almost to the point of laying his upper body on the table in front of him while Chief Medical Examiner Henry Niels testified about the results of his July 5, 2011, autopsy of Astley.

CBS Boston 2/27/13: Nate Fujita Hangs Head, Cries As Expert Details Last Moments Of Astley’s Life. Nate Fujita hung his head and cried as the medical examiner took the stand and detailed the last moment’s of Lauren Astley’s life. With audio report, and video.

Wayland Town Crier 2/27/13: Medical examiner details injuries to slain Wayland teen. The medical examiner who performed the autopsy on Lauren Astley in 2011 described what appeared to be a violent death in which she was strangled, her throat slashed and her body covered with scrapes and bruises.

Wednesday Live Blogs:

Tuesday Coverage:

Wayland Patch 2/27/13: Investigators: Blood Stains in Fujita Garage, Car; Wet, Muddy Clothes in Defendant’s Home. State trooper Anthony DeLucia told jurors Tuesday that he poked his head through a crawlspace opening in the ceiling of Nathaniel Fujita’s bedroom and found a pair of stained sneakers and a trash bag holding wet, muddy clothing.

Metrowest Daily News 2/27/13: Investigators detail evidence found in Fujita’s home, computer.When police searched Nathaniel Fujita’s Wayland home the day after authorities say he murdered Lauren Astley, they found bloody and wet clothing hidden in his room, an investigator testified Tuesday.

Boston Globe 2/27/13: Stained and muddy sneakers, bungee cords found at Nathaniel Fujita’s home after ex-girlfriend’s slaying. When police went to Nathaniel Fujita’s home after his ex-girlfriend’s body was found in a Wayland marsh, they discovered two pairs of sneakers – one pair soaked and muddy and the other stained with appeared to be blood, according to court testimony Tuesday.

Boston Globe 2/26/13: Blood stains found at Nathaniel Fujita’s home. When police searched ­Nathaniel Fujita’s Wayland home hours after the body of his former girlfriend was pulled from a marsh, they found soaking wet clothing stuffed in a crawl space and blood in the kitchen and all over the garage, according to court testimony Tuesday. Later, when a cyber specialist searched Fujita’s computer, she found a Google search about how to get rid of fingerprints and evidence that Fujita had joined a Facebook group called “Have you seen Lauren Astley,” his former high school sweetheart.

MyFoxBoston 2/26/13: Prosecutors display blood-stained clothing in Fujita murder trial. Prosecutors in the murder trial of 20-year-old Nathaniel Fujita displayed some of the items seized during the investigation in court on Tuesday. Link to video online here.

WHDH 2/26/13: Bloody details come out in Wayland murder trial. Testimony in the murder trial of 20-year-old Nathanial Fujita brought a mother to tears on Tuesday. Fujita, 20, is accused of killing his ex-girlfriend, 18-year-old Lauren Astley, and dumping her body in a marsh in Wayland in July 2011. Astley’s mother fought back tears in court as prosecutors showed the jury the clothing she was wearing the day investigators found her body. Video online here.

Tuesday Live Blog Coverage:

Monday Coverage:

Boston Globe 2/25/13: Nathaniel Fujita lost his temper at Wayland High graduation party, victim’s best friend testifies. Nathaniel Fujita showed up drunk at a Wayland High School graduation party, confronted his ex-girlfriend Lauren Astley, and then angrily shoved a tent pole so hard that the tent nearly collapsed, Astley’s best friend testified Monday.

Wayland Patch 2/25/13: Friend Says Fujita Lost His Temper, Acted Out at June 2011 Party. A close friend of Lauren Astley returned to the stand Monday, where she told jurors that Nathaniel Fujita, the man now accused of killing Astley, became so upset when his ex-girlfriend wouldn’t talk to him at a party that he threw his fist into a tent pole, nearly bringing the tent down on the party goers underneath.

Metrowest Daily News 2/26/13: Friend: Angry Fujita harangued Astley at graduation party. The night before Nathaniel Fujita and Lauren Astley graduated from Wayland High School in 2011, Fujita harangued his 18-year-old ex-girlfriend and showed an explosive temper before more than 100 people at a party, a friend said Monday.

NECN 2/25/13: Broadside: The Fujita Trial. Monday night, Broadside features a focus on a crime that goes back to 2011. Nathaniel Fujita is on trial, accused of killing Lauren Astley. Both were 18 at the time and had just graduated from high school. The testimony is raising questions about the state of mind of the defendant. “Broadside” host Jim Braude is joined by attorney and legal analyst Phil Tracy and Evan Allen, who has been covering the Fujita trial for The Boston Globe. Watch the attached video for their complete discussion.

MyFoxBoston 2/26/13: Fujita trial: Lead trooper describes discovery of victim’s body, weapon. Thus far, the trial of Nathan Fujita, a then high school senior accused of murdering his ex-girlfriend after she broke up with him, has been emotional to say the least. On Monday, the Massachusetts State Police Trooper who led the investigation went into detail regarding the condition of Lauren Astley’s body, as well as the discovery of one of the murder weapons. With video.

CBS Boston 2/25/13: Victim’s Best Friend Testifies About Fujita Anger, Relationship Before Murder. There was more damaging testimony Monday against Nate Fujita, the young Wayland man on trial for the brutal murder of his ex-girlfriend Lauren Astley. Video here: http://boston.cbslocal.com/video?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=8487536

Monday Liveblogs:

Summaries before the week begins:

NECN 2/25/13: Testimony resumes in the trial of a Wayland, Mass. man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend when the two were teenagers.

Wayland Patch 2/25/13: The trial of the Wayland man accused of brutally slaying his 18-year-old classmate and ex-girlfriend opens its third week of testimony today with a friend of his alleged victim on the stand.

Week 2 Coverage: online here
All Coverage: online here

Continue Reading...
Posted in News Police

Week 2 Coverage of Fujita Trial

Week 2 Daily Live Blog Summaries:

Boston Magazine 2/22/13: Nathaniel Fujita Trial Conjures Up Painful Evidence. The murder trial of Lauren Astley, the bright-eyed Wayland High School graduate killed on July 3, 2011, is underway, which means the public is getting a closer look at what happened in the days and months leading up to her death. By most accounts, it was a time like any other for recent high school graduates—the wild abandon of graduation parties giving way to the nervous excitement of heading off to college in the fall. Astley was to attend Elon College in North Carolina, but something went terribly wrong.

Articles on Friday’s testimony:

Boston Globe 2/22/13: Cousin: Nathaniel Fujita said he wouldn’t be tied to ex-girlfriend’s slaying. On the day his ex-girlfriend’s battered body was pulled from a Wayland swamp, Nathaniel Fujita sat on his cousin’s bed at her Framingham home and assured her that the police officers searching his house would not find anything connecting him to the slaying, according to court testimony Friday.

Wayland Patch 2/22/13: Cousin Confronted Fujita About Murder Hours After Astley’s Body was Found. Caroline Saba said she asked Nathaniel Fujita on July 4, 2011, whether police would find anything at his house connecting him to the death of Lauren Astley. He replied that police wouldn’t find a weapon there.

CBS Boston 2/22/13: “It was me,” Nate Fujita told his cousin moments before his arrest for the murder of his ex-girlfriend Lauren Astley. She had asked him how Astley’s car got to the Wayland Town Beach after she disappeared. This near-confession came out in testimony during his trial Friday. His close cousin, Caroline Saba, took the stand and talked about the night Astley was murdered. Fujita called Saba that night, asking if she wanted to “hang out.” She didn’t know it then, but it was only moments after the murder. “He sounded like hyper,” said Saba.

Wayland Town Crier 2/22/13: Cousin: Fujita said police would not find murder weapon. Shortly after authorities say Nathaniel Fujita murdered Lauren Astley in his Wayland home, he called his cousin and asked her to hang out, she said Friday in Middlesex Superior Court.

Articles on Thursday’s testimony:

Boston Globe 2/21/13: Uncle: Nathaniel Fujita chatted at barbeque shortly before ex-girlfriend’s slaying. An hour before he allegedly killed his former high-school sweetheart on July 3, 2011, Nathaniel Fujita chatted happily with his uncle about football at a family barbeque in Framingham, according to court testimony Thursday.

Boston Globe 2/21/13: Detective describes arresting Nathaniel Fujita after his ex-girlfriend was found dead in Wayland marsh. Nathaniel Fujita was quiet and compliant when police arrested him at his aunt’s Framingham home after his former girlfriend, Lauren Astley, was found dead in a Wayland marsh, one of the main detectives in the case testified Thursday.

Wayland Patch 2/22/13: Thursday’s Testimony: Keys In a Storm Drain, Fujita’s Behavior at July 3 Party and His Arrest. Testimony Thursday in Nathaniel Fujita’s murder trial led the jury through the defendant’s July 5 arrest as well as his time spent at a family party just hours before prosecutors say he killed 18-year-old Lauren Astley.

Wayland Town Crier 2/21/13: Uncle: Fujita was happy in hours before slaying. The day Nathaniel Fujita killed his ex-girlfriend Lauren Astley in 2011, he seemed happy, his uncle said Thursday in Middlesex Superior Court.

Articles on Wednesday’s Testimony:

Wayland Patch 2/21/13: Trooper Said Tests Revealed ‘Potential Blood’ in Fujita Home. Trooper David Twomey spent the better part of Wednesday morning on the witness stand, extending an already long testimony that began Tuesday in the first-degree murder trial of Nathaniel Fujita.

Wayland Town Crier 2/21/13: Trooper says he found blood in Fujita home. A state trooper searching Nathaniel Fujita’s Wayland home during the investigation into his ex-girlfriend’s death said he found blood in several areas.

Boston Globe 2/20/13: Best friend tearfully recalls Wayland victim’s last day during Nathaniel Fujita trial. In their senior year at Wayland High School, Geneveive Madelaine Flynn considered Nathaniel Fujita a friend: they hung out with the same tight group, ran track together, and he was dating her best friend, Lauren Astley. On Wednesday, Flynn’s voice shook as she identified Fujita in Middlesex Superior Court in Woburn; she wept as she remembered the last day of Astley’s life.

WCVB 2/20/13: Trooper: Bloody fingerprint matched Wayland teen accused of murder. With video.

CBS Boston 2/20/13: State Police: Blood Found In Nate Fujita’s Home, Car After Ex-Girlfriend’s Murder. It may be a glimpse into the Wayland High School football star’s insanity defense in the alleged murder of his high school sweetheart. On the fourth day of testimony in his trial, Nate Fujita’s attorney questioned one of his former teammates about some hits he took on the football field. “Do you remember him getting hit, I think it was a Lincoln-Sudbury game, so hard he was spitting up blood?” asked William Sullivan. Ronald Bolivar answered, “yes.” With video.

My Fox 25 2/20/13: Slain Wayland teen’s best friend gives tear-filled testimony. With video.

Boston Globe 2/20/13: Apparent bloodstains found at Nathaniel Fujita’s home, trooper testifies at murder trial. When police searched Nathaniel Fujita’s home in the days following the 2011 slaying of his former girlfriend, they found what appeared to be bloodstains in the kitchen and bathroom, as well as a reddish brown stain on the floor of the garage, a State Police trooper testified.

Articles on Tuesday’s Testimony”

Boston Globe 2/20/13: Ex-teacher testifies in Wayland murder trial. Fujita familiar with site where body left, she says.Nathaniel Fujita had visited an isolated area in Wayland, where his former girlfriend’s body was later found, as part of a project for his environmental science class, according to testimony from his former teacher. In March 2011, Fujita was one of many volunteers who worked on a fence to protect wildlife around Water Row, where Lauren Astley’s body was discovered July 4, 2011, a day after her death. The new details of the months leading up to Astley’s death came from testimony Tuesday from Emily Norton, who taught both Fujita and Astley in the class at Wayland High School.

Wayland Patch 2/20/13: Testimony of Trooper Will Continue Wednesday in Fujita Trial. Prosecutor Lisa McGovern was in the midst of her questioning of State Trooper David Twomey when Judge Peter Lauriat adjourned court in the trial of Nathaniel Fujita on Tuesday.

CBS Boston 2/19/13: Video here: Prosecutors Show Video Of Lauren Astley At Work Before Her Murder.

Wayland Town Crier 2/19/13: Wayland teacher: Fujita was silent, indifferent student. Wayland High School science teacher who taught Nathaniel Fujita during his senior year described a student whose grades dropped dramatically, showed almost no emotion and did not participate in class.

WHDH Channel 7 2/19/13: Video shows Wayland murder victim’s last days. Some dramatic moments unfolded Tuesday in the trial of the Wayland man accused of killing his high school sweetheart. Jurors watched surveillance video that showed the victim on the day she was murdered. News video online here: http://wn.whdh.com/global/video/popup/pop_playerLaunch.asp?vt1=v&clipFormat=flv&clipId1=8434416&at1=Station 1&h1=Video shows victim’s last day&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

WBZ CBS Boston 2/19/13: Prosecutors Show Video Of Lauren Astley At Work Before Her Murder. Lauren Astley’s mother wept quietly in the courtroom Tuesday as she saw video of her daughter at work at the Natick Mall on the last day of her life.

Wayland Patch 2/19/13: Fujita Trial Resumes Tuesday with Full Day of Testimony Expected. Testimony is expected to resume today in the first-degree murder trial of Nathaniel Fujita, the Wayland man accused of murdering 18-year-old Lauren Astley in 2011. The trial began Feb. 11 with two days of jury selection, during which Judge Peter Lauriat and attorneys for both sides interviewed about 140 individuals before settling on a panel of 16 jurors, 10 men and six women. Only 12 jurors will decide the final verdict, though all 16 will hear the case. Four will be named alternate jurors before deliberation begins.

Boston Globe 2/19/13: Trial resumes of Nathaniel Fujita, accused of killing ex-girlfriend in Wayland. The second week of the trial of Nathaniel Fujita opened with testimony from the Wayland police sergeant who interviewed Fujita in the hours after Lauren Astley’s death. One of Fujita’s teachers also took the stand, describing the Wayland High School senior as a reserved honors student whose grades fell precipitously over the course of the school year.

Metrowest Daily News 2/19/13: Police testimony: Fujita expressed worry about Astley after she went missing. In the hours after Lauren Astley was reported missing in 2011, Nathaniel Fujita expressed worry about her, a retired Wayland Police officer said today. Richard Manley, testifying in Middlesex Superior Court during Fujita’s murder trial, said he met with Fujita twice in the early morning of July 4, 2011.

Continue Reading...
Posted in News Police

Fujita Trial Resumes Tuesday with Full Day of Testimony Expected

Wayland Patch 2/19/13: Fujita Trial Resumes Tuesday with Full Day of Testimony Expected. Testimony is expected to resume today in the first-degree murder trial of…

Continue Reading...
Posted in News Police

Jury Visits Sites in Wayland on Third Day of Trial

Wayland Town Crier 2/16/13: Jury visits sites in Wayland murder case. Jurors on Friday toured sites in Wayland key in the murder case against Nathaniel Fujita, accused of strangling his ex-girlfriend and hiding her body in a marsh more than a year and a half ago. The jury of 10 men and six women hearing the Fujita murder case in Middlesex Superior Court went on a view of several sites in Wayland, which lasted about two and a half hours.

Boston Globe 2/16/13: Fujita murder trial tours Wayland crime scenes. Jurors in the Nathaniel ­Fujita trial were taken by bus Friday to three Wayland locations allegedly tied to the slaying of Lauren Astley. As the first week of the trial ended, jurors visited the Fujita home, the nearby Wayland Town Beach, and a secluded site off Water Row, where ­Astley’s body was found, partially submerged in mud.

Boston Globe 2/15/13: Jurors in Nathaniel Fujita trial visit crime scenes in Wayland today. Jurors in the murder trial of Nathaniel Fujita, the man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend, on Friday morning visited three locations in the Wayland area that played key roles in the death of Lauren Astley. The jurors visited the Fujita home, where prosecutors allege the defendant lured Astley on July 3, 2011 and allegedly attacked her.The juors stayed for about a half hour.

Wayland Patch 2/15/13: Fujita Chooses Not to Accompany Jury on Site Visits in Wayland. Friday morning, jurors who will decide the verdict in Nathaniel Fujita’s murder trial visited three locations in Wayland that figure prominently in that case. The defendant chose not to take part in those visits.

Wayland Patch 2/15/13: Jurors Will Visit Wayland Spots Today Relevant to Fujita Murder Trial Jurors are expected to gather at Middlesex Superior Court Friday morning only briefly before they will board a bus for a trip to Wayland. In Wayland, Prosecutor Lisa McGovern and Defense Attorney William Sullivan will explain to jurors what they are viewing as they visit sites in town important in the murder trial of Nathaniel Fujita.

Continue Reading...
Posted in News Police

Coverage of Second Day of Fujita Trial

WHDH 2/14/13: Victim’s co-worker takes stand in Wayland trial. Testimony in the trial of a Wayland man charged with killing his ex-girlfriend continued on Thursday. Former co-workers of Lauren Astley, who prosecutors say was strangled and stabbed to death by 20-year-old Nathanial Fujita in July 2011, took the stand Thursday. They said Astley was going to meet up with Fujita after work because she was worried about him. Hours later, Astley was dead.  Video online here.

Boston Herald 2/15/13: Cop: Fujita calm after killing ex-girlfriend. Nathaniel Fujita calmly answered a police officer’s questions about his missing ex-girlfriend — as the desperate search for Lauren Astley was under way — showing nothing that would indicate he had brutally murdered his former high school sweetheart and dumped her body in a marsh just five hours earlier, a police officer testified yesterday.

Fox25 2/15/13: Fujita trial: Coworkers recall confrontation before brutal murder. The murder trial of Nathanial Fujita continued Thursday morning with statement from the victim’s coworkers recalling the days before her death. Video here.

Metrowest Daily News 2/15/13: Officer: Fujita said he had ‘awkward’ talk with Astley the day she went missing. When police questioned Nathaniel Fujita about Lauren Astley the night she disappeared in 2010, he could not provide details of what he said was a brief conversation with her at his Wayland home.
Wayland Police Sgt. William Smith, testifying Thursday in Middlesex Superior Court during Fujita’s murder trial, said he went to Fujita’s 108 West Plain St., home early on July 4, 2010, as part of the search for the missing Astley.

Wayland Patch 2/14/13: Live Blog from the Wayland Patch.

CBS Boston 2/14/13: Co-Workers Say Wayland Teen Murder Victim Afraid, Concerned About Fujita. Lauren Astley’s co-workers say she talked about being afraid the night she left work to meet with her ex-boyfriend, Nate Fujita. That was the last time they ever saw her. A year-and-a-half later, Fujita is now on trial for her murder.

Live Updates from Channel 5

Boston Globe 2/14/13: Mother of accused killer Nathaniel Fujita had serious conversation with his girlfriend before she was murdered. A distraught Beth Fujita, the mother of accused murderer Nathaniel Fujita, had a serious conversation with Lauren Astley at the Natick Mall, where Astley worked at a boutique, in the weeks before Astley was killed, according to testimony today from the boutique manager.

CBSLocal 2/14/13: Keller @ Large: Fujita Insanity Defense Likely Won’t Work. As if the family and friends of Lauren Astley haven’t suffered enough since her brutal murder in July, 2011, they must now endure a trial in which the defense lawyer for her accused murderer, Nathaniel Fujita, plans to mount an insanity defense. We’ll see what evidence unfolds in court, but chances are this ploy won’t work. Insanity defenses rarely do.

Continue Reading...
Posted in News Police

Coverage of the first day of the Fujita Trial

Twitter Feeds of reporters in the courtroom: https://twitter.com/waylandenews/fujita-trial

ABC News 2/14/13: Trial Begins for Man Charged With Killing Ex-Girlfriend. The lawyer for a 20-year-old Massachusetts man, charged with stabbing and strangling his ex-girlfriend, says his client killed the woman he loved because he took the breakup hard and was suffering from a psychotic episode. Nathaniel Fujita faces life in prison without parole if he’s convicted in the 2011 death of Lauren Astley. Astley’s body was found July 4, 2011, in a swamp near the couple’s hometown of Wayland, Mass. Fujita has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder.

Boston Globe 2/14/13: Wayland teen’s erratic behavior described at murder trial. Nathaniel Fujita was humiliated when his high school sweetheart broke up with him in the spring of their senior year. He pleaded with her to come back, and when that did not work, he began harassing her, ranting and raving and nearly knocking over a tent in a fit of rage at her graduation party, prosecutors say. On July 3, 2011, Fujita allegedly invited 18-year-old Lauren Astley to his parents’ Wayland home, told her to park her car out of sight, and then strangled her with a bungee cord, slashed her throat, and hit her, prosecutor Lisa McGovern told jurors Wednesday at Fujita’s murder trial in Middlesex Superior Court.

Wayland Patch 2/13/13: Fujita Could Take the Stand in His Murder Trial. The 92-name witness list in the trial of Nathaniel Fujita does not include the defendant’s name, but that doesn’t mean he won’t testify. According to defense attorney William Sullivan, the decision as to whether his client will testify in his own first-degree murder trial “has not been made yet.”

Boston Globe 2/13/13: Wayland man killed his former girlfriend because he was humiliated by their break-up, prosecutor tells jury. The prosecutor in the trial of Nathaniel Fujita told jurors this morning that the Wayland man killed his one-time girlfriend because he was humiliated when she broke up with him and he murdered her in revenge. Fujita is accused of strangling and slashing to death Lauren Astley on July 3, 2011. Both were 18 years old at the time, and were college-bound Wayland High School graduates; Fujita was an accomplished athlete and Astley a talented singer.

Boston Herald 2/13/13: Murder trial in Wayland slaying kicks off. Former Wayland high school football star Nathaniel Fujita was “not criminally responsible” for killing his 18-year-old ex-girlfriend because he was suffering from major depression that sparked a “psychotic episode,” the defendant’s lawyer told jurors at the opening of his murder trial in Middlesex County Superior Court today.

NECN coverage:

WCVB.com 2/13/13: Wayland teen was depressed before girlfriend’s death, defense says. A Wayland teen charged in connection with the death of his ex-girlfriend had been diagnosed with a depressive disorder weeks before the victim was found dead in a marshy area, his attorney said during opening statements Wednesday.

WHDH 2/13/13: Wayland man’s murder trial begins. There was chilling testimony in the first day of 20-year-old Nathanial Fujita’s murder trial. Fujita pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the July 2011 death of his ex-girlfriend, Lauren Astley. Both were 18 at the time and had just graduated from Wayland High School. Prosecutors say Fujita was so humiliated Astley broke up with him he wanted to inflict pain and he wanted to end her life. Video here

Wayland Patch 2/13/13: Live Blog: Defense Says Fujita Suffered from ‘Major Depressive Disorder’ at Time of Killing. Wayland Patch will be posting regular updates from the courtroom at Middlesex Suprior Court in Woburn as Nathaniel Fujita, now 20, stands trial for the murder of 18-year-old Lauren Astley in July 2011. The most recent updates will be at the top of the article with a timestamp.

Metrowest Daily News 2/13/13: Fujita suffered from major depressive disorder says defense. There is no doubt who killed Lauren Astley on July 3, 2011 – Nathaniel Fujita. Both prosecutor Lisa McGovern and Fujita’s lawyer, William Sullivan today told the jury during their opening statements during Fujita’s Middlesex Superior Court that he killed his 18-year-old girlfriend. However, they both told the jury different reasons for her death. McGovern said the murder was planned by a young man who was angry and had his ego hurt when Astley broke up with him for good earlier in the year. But Sullivan told the jury it was the actions of a man who suffered a brief psychotic episode due to a major depressive disorder.

Continue Reading...