Hofstra coach killing retrial: 6-page confession key evidence against Gary Lawrence, ADA says

A six-page confession admitting to the fatal shooting of Hofstra assistant football coach Joseph Healy in 1990 is the key evidence, prosecutors said, that proves the guilt of Gary Lawrence, the man who went on trial a second time Monday for the 36-year-old killing.

Lawrence was convicted in 1992, along with Christopher Ellis and David Liles, of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree attempted robbery, two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, and third-degree criminal possession of stolen property.

But Lawrence, who lives in Georgia now, and his co-defendant Ellis had their convictions set aside after the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office determined that police had withheld hundreds of pages of investigation notes.

Ellis was acquitted at retrial last year and has sued the Nassau County Police Department for suppressing evidence in his case.

Nassau County prosecutor Daryl Levy told a jury during opening arguments Monday that Lawrence, who was 20 years old at the time, was picked up by police four months after the shooting and interrogated, along with the others, in the Freeport police station.

During a 14-hour interview with detectives — from 2 a.m. to 4 p.m. — Levy said police repeatedly informed Lawrence of his rights to remain silent and to have an attorney represent him. He even signed a form acknowledging that he knew his rights and had decided to waive them, Levy, the homicide bureau chief, told the jury.

"Given every chance to say, ‘I want a lawyer, I don’t want to talk to you’ ... he made a choice," the prosecutor said. "The law is, if you find that confession to truthful, honest reliable, his words ... that’s it. That’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt."

In the confession, Lawrence said he was driving east on Hempstead Turnpike with Liles and Ellis on the morning of the shooting, armed with two guns. He said they were planning to rob drug dealers when they got hungry and decided to stop at an Arby's fast food restaurant.

Healy, who had been bar hopping with some out-of-town friends, was sitting on the curb by the takeout window when Lawrence said he and Liles approached the group.

"What are you doing sitting there?" Liles asked, according to the written statement, and Healy got up to respond.

Lawrence said Liles had his gun on Healy, who was moving side to side with his hands up.

"Then the coach tried to snuff the gun (like smack it out) and the gun went off," Lawrence said in his confession.

In her rebuttal, defense attorney Emma Vasta-Kuby noted the evidence that had been withheld at trial could have not only prevented her client’s conviction, but could have led to the arrest of another suspect.

"That is so unfair for Mr. Lawrence," she said. "He deserved better and, frankly, Joseph Healy deserved better too."

The defense attorney also suggested that police rushed the investigation, which she said had racial undertones.

"One of the reasons was because all of the witnesses were all white and the suspects were Black in 1990, and there was a lot of pressure to solve this case," she said.

Vasta-Kuby said the Lawrence confession was coerced and should not be considered credible by the jury.

"They physically and verbally abused him," she said of the police. "He’s getting worn down, he’s sleep-deprived, he’s terrified, he’s getting interrogated by three armed detectives. He said he was the third person in a crime committed by two people; he was scared and he didn’t know what to do."

The jury also heard testimony on Monday from a responding police officer and two women who were with Healy’s group when the shooting happened.

Stephanie Scheele, a dance major at Hofstra University at the time of the shooting, recalled the smell of gun smoke and the sight of the blood after the shooting.

She testified that one of the men told the group: “You have three seconds to stand up.”

She said that less than 30 seconds later, she heard a man say, “Just do it. Do him,” and then heard a gunshot.

Defense attorney Ron Kuby asked Scheele whether she heard either man ask the group why they were sitting there or if she saw Healy try to smack the gun away, as Lawrence said in his confession.

She said no to both questions. She identified Ellis in a police lineup, but could not identify Lawrence.

Eyewitness Kristen Baecker, who also majored in dance, said she also did not recognize Lawrence in a police lineup, but she did point out Liles as the shooter.

Testimony continues Tuesday.