PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Testimony began Monday in the trial of a Maine man charged with killing his sister’s boyfriend in a late-night confrontation in the family home.
Mark Cardilli Jr. waived the right to a jury trial, so a judge will decide his fate.
Cardilli said he shot Isahak Muse in the chest in self-defense during a violent confrontation, but an autopsy indicates Muse was shot in the back.
The shooting in March created tension in the city’s Muslim community. Some called it a hate crime by a white man against a black Muslim man.
Law enforcement officials say the confrontation happened when Muse, who was dating Cardilli’s 17-year-old sister, refused to leave the Portland home over the demands of her parents. Court documents indicate there was pandemonium as Cardilli and his father tried to make Muse leave.
Maine law allows the use of deadly force in self-defense and defense of premises. The defense requested that the testimony be heard by a judge instead of jurors because of the nuances of the legal arguments in the case.
Cardilli was in the process of wrapping up a stint in the Army and was staying in the family home in Portland. After the fight broke out, he went to his bedroom to retrieve a handgun. Muse, 22, died at the scene.
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This story has been corrected to reflect that the trial is not a jury trial. A judge will decide the case.
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