AUTO GLASS BUSINESS MAN CONVICTED OF THE ATTEMPTED MURDER AND OTHER OFFENSES IN THE SHOOTING OF CAR REPAIR HANDYMAN IN HUNTS POINT

Bronx District Attorney Robert T. Johnson announced today that the owner of an auto glass business in Hunts Point has been convicted of trying to kill a car repair handyman. Hector Rodriguez is facing a maximum sentence of up to 25 years imprisonment when he appears for sentencing before State Supreme Court Justice Ethan Greenberg in Part T 29 on Friday, August 3, 2007.

Rodriguez, 46, of 1102 Garrison Avenue, the Bronx, was found guilty of Attempted Murder in the 2nd degree, Assault in the 1st degree, and Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the 2nd and 3rd degrees in the shooting of Julio Miguel Verase.

Verase, 32, was shot once in the buttocks and once in the arm on December 26, 2005 near the defendant’s place of business, All Boro Auto Glass, at 1102 Garrison Avenue. The shooting was the culmination of a verbal confrontation between the two men that quickly escalated into an “arms race” that ended with shots being fired.

The jury heard testimony that Rodriguez did not want Verase running a curbside business, fixing broken headlights and tail lights, directly across the street from his auto glass shop. Rodriguez stepped onto the sidewalk with a knife and began yelling at Verase, who in turn grabbed a hammer, crossed the street, and approached Rodriguez. As the two men continued arguing, Verase attempted to hit Rodriguez with the hammer but missed and hit the shop’s door frame instead. Rodriguez immediately fled inside, locked the front door and retrieved a handgun. When Rodriguez unlocked the door and stepped outside brandishing the gun, Verase started to run and was shot twice. The jury rejected Rodriguez’s claim that he had fired in self defense after viewing a videotape of the shooting which was recorded by a security camera at the defendant’s place of business. The justification statute requires that a person whose life is in danger first retreat to safety if possible before the use deadly physical force is permissible.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Shareema Gadson-Shaw of Trial Bureau 20/50.