Western Mass. man found guilty of murder in the fatal shooting of his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend

A Pittsfield man was found guilty of murder on Thursday in connection with fatally shooting his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend in September 2022, the Berkshire County District Attorney’s Office announced.

After six hours of deliberations, a Superior Court jury convicted 45-year-old Desmond Phillip on a first-degree murder charge and three gun charges in the death of 43-year-old Teddy Cepeda, the district attorney’s office said in a press release.

What happened the night Cepeda was killed

Pittsfield police began investigating Cepeda’s killing in the early evening hours of Sept. 30, 2022, after responding to the home Phillip shared with his girlfriend, Courtney Haner, at 7 Goodrich St., the district attorney’s office said. At the scene, officers found Cepeda unresponsive on the ground with a gunshot wound to his chest. He was rushed to Berkshire Medical Center, where he was declared dead.

The investigation revealed that he had gone to the home to pick up Haner, who was his ex-girlfriend, the district attorney’s office said. Phillip had a history of jealous behavior, and when Cepeda arrived, the two men got into an argument.

Eventually, Phillip shot Cepeda once in the chest, the district attorney’s office said. During the trial, prosecutors used crime scene photos, security video footage, communications via Facebook and eyewitness testimony to make the case that Phillip knew Cepeda was coming to the home and armed himself with a loaded, illegal gun in preparation.

The defense argued that Phillip shot Cepeda in self-defense, but Massachusetts law holds that a person who feels threatened by another must attempt to retreat from the situation prior to killing someone out of self-preservation, the district attorney’s office said. Prosecutors successfully showed that Phillip made no attempt to back away from Cepeda before killing him.

Phillip is set to be sentenced on July 10, the district attorney’s office said. In Massachusetts, a charge of first-degree murder carries a mandatory minimum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

“My thoughts are with Mr. Cepeda’s family and friends today. While the guilty verdict will not bring back their loved one, I do hope it provides an opportunity to feel some sense of justice,” Berkshire County District Attorney Timothy Shugrue said in the release. “I thank the jury for their dedication to this case and thoughtful deliberation.”

Phillip’s account of what happened

On Monday and Tuesday this week, Phillip took the stand to give the jury his account of what happened, The Berkshire Eagle reported. On the day Cepeda was killed, he parked his car near the top of the driveway outside Phillip’s and Haner’s home, Phillip testified.

Haner joined him inside the car, and the two argued as Phillip, who’d also exited the home, watched from a distance, Phillip told the jury, according to the Eagle. Eventually, according to Phillip, Cepeda turned to him and said, “I’m going to f— you up,” before grabbing something from the car and walking towards Phillip.

Phillip testified that he assumed Cepeda had grabbed a firearm, and that this was why he then took a gun out of his pocket and shot Cepeda, the Eagle reported. Phillip told the jury he was trying to protect himself from a man who had previously threatened to “clap,” or kill him, twice.

But Cepeda had actually reached for a cellphone and was unarmed when he was killed, the Eagle reported. During cross-examination, Phillip said he was so afraid of Cepeda that he didn’t wait to see if Cepeda had grabbed a gun and that he didn’t think to take any alternative actions, such as running away.

How prosecutors countered

The two men previously got into a fight about six months ago during which Cepeda hit Phillip in the face with a pole, the Eagle reported. But a witness in the trial testified that this happened after Phillip chased Cepeda with a knife.

Prosecutors argued that Phillip was motivated by jealousy, despite his testimony that he never felt any “animosity” towards Cepeda, the Eagle reported. They characterized the situation as a love triangle that arose because Cepeda remained in Haner’s life after their breakup.

Prosecutors also rebutted the idea that Phillip acted in self-defense based on the fact that he denied shooting Cepeda in his initial police interview, the Eagle reported. They argued that he hid the clothing he was wearing when he shot Cepeda, as well as the gun he used, and lied to police because he knew he’d committed a crime.

Legal experts say that only about 50% of defendants testify during their trials, but that it is crucial that they do when using a self-defense argument, TIME magazine reported in 2021. This is because no witness can speak to the fear a defendant claiming self-defense felt in the situation better than they can.

However, legal experts also told TIME that putting a defendant on the stand carries many risks, such as opening defendants up to tough questions from prosecutors. It can also cause the jury to feel the defendant must prove their innocence, even though, legally, the burden of proof is on the prosecution to prove a defendant is guilty.