Lawyer of alleged gang leader dies before jury selection

The men accused of calling the shots leading to the murder of Bronx teen Lesandro "Junior" Guzman Feliz were back in court Monday--awaiting trial--that has now been pushed back because of a death.

News 12 Staff

Jan 6, 2020, 10:02 PM

Updated 1,584 days ago

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The men accused of calling the shots leading to the murder of Bronx teen Lesandro "Junior" Guzman Feliz were back in court Monday--awaiting trial--that has now been pushed back because of a death.
Instead of starting jury selection, the judge informed the court that suspected gang leader Diego Suero's lawyer died over the holidays. Suero, the alleged leader of Los Sures chapter of the Trinitarios gang, is waiting to be tried in the murder of Feliz.
Junior, 15, was stabbed to death outside a bodega in June 2018. As of now, Suero will be tried with Frederick Then, who is also accused of dishing orders to other gang members.
Prosecutors say Junior was a mistaken rival. There is no word on how Suero's lawyer Jorge Guttlein died.
The judge appointed Suzanne Mcelwreath as his new defense, and she declined to comment. The judge has given her time to prepare for the case and says he would like a progress report by March 11.
The aim is to begin the trial sometime in April or May.
For now, a couple of matters have been tabled, including Suero's former lawyer's request for his client to be tried separately from his co-defendant.
Six more defendants have a court appearance on Thursday.


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