A young woman from a small town in Texas moves to New York with aspirations of becoming a dancer. Six months into her dream, the young woman, 25-year-old Laura Garza, meets the son of a deputy police chief, Michael Mele, at a Manhattan club.
After the long trek to Mele's Orange County apartment -- 60 miles away from the city -- Garza sees signs that Mele may have another girlfriend and freaks out, wanting Mele to drive her back. It's late, Mele doesn't want to, and so he chokes the young woman to death. Mele admitted the crime this week and agreed to go to jail for 23 years, reports the New York Post.
For three years, Mele denied killing Garza. In admitting the crime, Mele described Garza getting "loud" about wanting to go home, and him covering her mouth and nose in an effort to quiet her. He says he realized that Garza was not breathing and then freaked out when he realized that she was dead, reports the Post.
Garza described driving Garza's body to a remote part of Pennsylvania, where he disposed of her.
As part of his plea deal, Mele agreed to 23 years in jail, though he could get out in less than 20 years. If he had been found guilty after a trial, he could have spent the rest of his life in jail.
Prosecutors may enter a plea deal with a New York City criminal lawyer for a variety of reasons, including saving the costs of going to trial, saving the time of litigating a case, and avoiding the uncertainty of possibly losing.
In Michael Mele's case, he was sentenced to murder for killing Laura Garza. That's a win for prosecutors, but as Mele could be released before his fiftieth birthday, he may also count the plea deal as a win as well.
Related Resources:
- Find a New York City Criminal Lawyer (FindLaw)
- Cold killer Michael Mele sez 'I killed Laura' (Brooklyn Daily)
- Homicide (FindLaw)
- Taxi Cab Rape Suspect Arrested (FindLaw's New York Criminal Law Blog)
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