Video: Chaos in court as victim's relative charges at murder suspect
LAWRENCE, Mass. -- An outburst from a murder victim’s relative forced a courtroom evacuation at a Massachusetts arraignment Monday, reports CBS Boston.
32-year-old Tony Ventura was in a Lawrence court Monday morning, charged with first-degree murder in the killing of his girlfriend, 32-year-old Maria Morton. Morton’s body was found in her Lawrence apartment Sunday afternoon, and Ventura was reportedly arrested later that night.
Chaos erupted in the courtroom when a member of Morton’s family jumped over a bar and attempted to charge Ventura, the Essex District Attorney’s Office told the station. The relative was tackled by court officers, and the courtroom was temporarily evacuated, the station reports.
Ventura was ordered held without bond. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the victim’s family member would be charged in connection to the outburst.