Peter C.Contos is found guilty of massacring his mistress & their 2 small son-slaves,gets Life prison sentence,no chance for parole,in MA
Joe1orbit
A few days ago I posted an update on the trial of triple family murderer
Peter Contos in Massachusetts. Peter ADMITS to strangling to death his 35 year
old mistress, AND both of the child-slaves that they had together, one aged 4
years, and the other only an infant of 2 months of age. At trial, Peter's
lawyer's acknowledged that he did indeed commit this massacre, and they went
with a Not Guilty by reason of insanity defense, citing the ABUSE that Peter
suffered as a child at the hands of his Mommy, coupled with the violent
military training and service that Peter engaged in, over in Panama, about a
decade ago. They also argued for a MANSLAUGHTER, rather then a murder
conviction, citing the fact that the murders occured during a "heat of the
moment" type of argument and that 35 year old mistress Catherine had GOADED
Peter into committing the killings, by VOWING to TELL his wise about their
secret affair and the fact that he had fathered two child-slaves with her. I
think the fact that she did GOAD him is undeniable. Obviously she wasn't
expecting him to respond with homicidal rage. But she took it upon herself to
THREATEN Peter, to make a serious verbal threat against him. IMO, this fact
should have warranted the charges being reduced to manslaughter, by
prosecutors. But they managed to shove a 1st degree murder charge down the
throats of the jury.
Well, it's my sad duty to have to report that the trial has come to an end,
and the jury has totally rejected the mental illness claim, IGNORING the
testimony of a LICENSED psychiatrist, who testified that Peter was indeed
legally insane when he committed the massacre. He has been found GUILTY of all
three counts of first degree murder.
34 year old Peter now faces an automatic Life prison term, with no chance for
parole. Oh well, at least there is no legal murder via the death penalty
involved.
Incidents like this one occur in a DISEASED society that sanctifies the
useless and toxic cultural custom of marriage. There is NO rational reason why
a man shouldn't have sex with and father numerous children, with numerous
different women. And as long as he is willing to SEVER all of his parental
RIGHTS to the children, he should be FREED of all parental RESPONSIBILITY to
the children. Meaning: Moolah. There is NO rational reason why Peter should be
legally obligated to have payed a single penny of child support for the 4 year
old and 2 month old children of his mistress, IF he simply was willing to BREAK
OFF all contact with the 2 kids, for the next 18 years.
It's not totally clear whether child support was a primary motivating factor
in Peter's homicidal rage. But it probably played a role.
In court yesterday. Peter maintained a stoic demeanor, and showed no emotion
as the three murder convictions were read to him. To view a rather cool black &
white photo of Peter, looking very clean-up and militaristic in appearance, as
he looked in court either yesterday or today, simply point your web browser to:
http://www.msnbc.com/local/WJAR/123663.asp
Take care, JOE
The following appears courtesy of today's Associated Press news wire:
Man Convicted of Triple Murder
By ALEXIS CHIU
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) -- A married man who admitted strangling his mistress and
their two small boys to keep her silent about the affair has been convicted of
murder.
Peter Contos, 34, faces an automatic life prison sentence without possibility
of parole on the three first-degree murder convictions. He was to be formally
sentenced today.
Both sides agreed Contos' double life led to the September 1997 killings of
Catherine Rice, 35, and their two boys -- Benjamin Rice, 4, and 2-month-old
Ryan Contos.
Contos admitted he strangled all three at their Lowell home, and that he then
stuffed the boys' bodies in his locker at Otis Air National Guard Base in
Bourne on Cape Cod.
Defense attorney Stephen Hrones, a former technical sergeant at the base,
argued the crime happened in the heat of the moment and was manslaughter, which
would have carried a sentence with a maximum of 20 years in prison.
Contos and his wife lived in Stoneham while he kept up an affair with Rice. She
allegedly was threatening to expose the relationship to his wife when Contos
killed her.
Hrones portrayed Contos as the product of a troubled childhood, saying he
simply snapped when confronted with the possible loss of the wife he loved. He
said Contos had planned to talk with Rice -- not kill her -- when he went to
her house the night of the murders.
Prosecutors depicted Contos as a cold-hearted Don Juan who bragged about his
ability to keep a mistress -- allegedly telling a buddy, ``It's good to be
king.''
AP-NY-02-05-99
------------------------------------------------------------
The following two news articles both appear courtesy of the 2/5/99 online
edition of The Boston Globe newspaper:
Contos found guilty of killing his mistress, their two sons
By Andy Dabilis, Globe Staff, 02/05/99
After two hours of deliberation, a Middlesex Superior Court jury yesterday
convicted a 34-year-old Stoneham man, a former National Guard sergeant, of
killing his mistress, strangling their two sons, and putting the children's
bodies in a locker.
The conviction of Peter C. Contos on three counts of first-degree murder
carries automatic life sentences without parole. He will be sentenced today by
Judge Robert Barton, after a victim impact statement from the family of
Contos's former mistress, Catherine Rice of Lowell.
Contos did not react to the verdict. Prosecutors had depicted him as a
cold-blooded murderer who killed Rice and their two sons, 4-year-old Benjamin
Rice and 2-month-old Ryan Contos, two years ago to keep the relationship hidden
from his wife.
Anson Kaye, a spokesman for District Attorney Martha Coakley, said, ''The
district attorney's office is very pleased with the verdict. The jury spent two
weeks looking at and listening to very graphic testimony. This may be the best
outcome that could come from a tragic set of circumstances.''
Defense Attorney Stephen Hrones acknowledged during the trial that Contos had
killed Rice and the two boys, but argued that his client had snapped at the
thought of his wife finding out about his double life. Hrones asked the
Cambridge jury to convict Contos of the lesser charge of manslaughter.
''We knew it was a tough case and this might be the verdict, so we weren't
really surprised. We did have a basis to argue a lesser degree but with two
kids dead in addition to the woman, it was an awful tough sell,'' Hrones said.
A manslaughter conviction carries a maximum of 20 years in prison.
The first-degree murder conviction means there will be an automatic appeal to
the state Supreme Judicial Court, and Hrones said he will argue that a
prosecution psychiatrist improperly questioned Contos and testified he was
capable of premeditated murder.
The defense lawyer said today's sentencing will be important because the life
sentences could be made concurrent, or consecutive. ''It could make some
difference down the line in terms of commutation or the perspective some court
takes on the case,'' he said.
Hrones argued to the jury that Contos was a military man with a troubled
childhood who had gone to see Rice in September 1997 to talk with her because
she allegedly was threatening to expose the relationship to his wife.
Assistant District Attorney Richard Grundy told the jury, ''This defendant
deliberately premeditated and killed each one of these individuals.''
Rice's body was found in the bathroom of her Lowell apartment, while the bodies
of the children were found in Contos's locker at Otis Air National Guard Base
in Bourne. Benjamin, dressed in Batman pajamas, was found alongside his infant
brother inside a knapsack, a towel wrapped around them.
Contos lived in Stoneham with his wife Robyn while carrying on the affair with
Rice. The defense said he could not face the thought of losing his wife if she
were to find out.
Prosecutors, on the other hand, said Contos had bragged about his double life
and ability to have a wife and mistress and had told a friend, ''It's good to
be king.''
Contos's father, Christos, said he had no comment on the verdict.
Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.
This story ran on page B05 of the Boston Globe on 02/05/99.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Contos gets consecutive life sentences for murders
Associated Press, 02/05/99
CAMBRIDGE - A judge on Friday imposed three consecutive life sentences on a man
convicted of killing his mistress and two young sons to cover up his double
life.
Peter C. Contos, 34, was convicted Thursday of three counts of first-degree
murder in the September 1997 slayings of his girlfriend, Catherine Rice, and
their children, ages 4 and 2 months.
The charges carry an automatic sentence of life in prison with no possibility
of parole. But at the formal sentencing hearing Friday in Middlesex Superior
Court, Judge Robert A. Barton said Contos deserved harsher punishment.
''This defendant deserves no less than the death sentences he imposed on
Catherine Rice and his own children,'' Barton said. ''However, I do not have
that authority.''
Contos, a former technical sergeant at Otis Air National Guard Base in Bourne,
was married and living with his wife in Stoneham while carrying on an affair
with Rice, 35, in Lowell.
Prosecutors said he committed the murders at Rice's home and then drove to the
military base, where he stuffed the bodies of 4-year-old Benjamin and
2-month-old Ryan into his locker.
Before Contos killed her, Rice had threatened to expose her relationship with
Contos to his wife.
At the hearing, Rice's father, Dr. Cecil Rice, said his family was pleased with
the verdict and proud of his slain daughter.
''We are proud that our daughter was able to stand up to him, and ask that he
stop being a boy and become a man,'' he told the court. ''She asked him to take
responsibility for his sons and stop living a double life.''
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