Crime & Safety

Last Defendant In Matthew Chew Case Given Prison Sentence

Marquis Singleton sentenced to serve eight years for role in murder of 25-year-old New London man in 2010

After a week of impact statements and final words from the state and defense, the final defendant in the 2010 murder of Matthew Chew was sentenced on Friday.

Marquis Singleton, 19, will serve 16 years in prison, suspended after eight years, with five years of probation. As with the other defendants sentenced this week, Singleton must obey the law, have no contact with Chew’s family or his co-defendants, pay the Chew family $4,200 in restitution, not possess any weapons, undergo psychiatric and substance abuse evaluation and treatment if necessary, pursue his education, complete at least 15 hours of community service each week if not employed, and have no contact with drug users, drug dealers, gang members, of convicted felons.

At each sentencing, members of Chew’s family spoke to Judge Susan B. Handy and played a video slideshow of photographs of Chew from his childhood to his last years. Senior Assistant State’s Attorney Steve Carney said he was not sure if the repetition would dull the impact of the Chew family’s statements, but felt it had the opposite effect. He said one photo in the video, of Chew and his siblings lying on the floor watching television, reminded him of his own children.

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“Everyone who works here would agree that each day becomes harder and harder, not just for the family but for the staff,” said Carney.

Carney said there was some question of whether Singleton was directly involved in Chew’s murder, but that Singleton has denied this allegation and the state would be unable to prove the allegation beyond a reasonable doubt.

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“There is some evidence, not brought up at [co-defendant Idris Elahi’s] probable cause hearing, that this defendant also had a knife,” said Carney.

Carney’s statements during the trial have accused the six men involved in the random attack on Chew of not only having an impact on his family but on the New London community as a whole.

“This is a community that suffered greatly because of this defendant and his five cohorts,” said Carney. “People spoke about being afraid to come downtown because of the actions of these six men.”

“Invaded by nightmares”

In referencing the testimony that the attack was motivated by boredom, Chew’s sister—Mindy Fowler—questioned how Singleton would cope with stronger emotions. She said Chew’s death had deprived her youngest children of any chance to know their uncle except through photographs and family photos.

“The opportunity to have even one memory of him has been stolen,” said Fowler.

Richard Chew, Matthew’s father, said the incident left him struggling to come to terms with “a world that contains more hatred and violence than I ever appreciated.” He spoke of Chew’s appreciation for music and art, including the last text message he ever received from his son: a painting of a dog that was to be the first in a series.

Chew’s mother, Marilyn Chew, said the sentencing process has been difficult because it brings back memories of the night of Chew’s stabbing. She said she worked to collect as many pictures of her son as possible after his death and looks at them each day.

“My days and nights are invaded by nightmares of what happened to Matt,” she said.

Marilyn said she was concerned with what Chew went through in his final moments, and that it was four months before she found out the details about how he was first found by a passing driver.

“The only comfort I’m able to find here is that he was conscious when the Good Samaritan found him, and he went unconscious knowing that help was on the way and he was not alone,” she said.

"He's not an animal"

Singleton’s defense attorney, Joseph Elder, said it would be easy to conclude that Singleton is “nothing more than an animal.” However, he said Singleton was not a member of the “Goon Squad”—the gang the defendants were allegedly members of—and had in fact been “brutalized” by the gang in the past. He said he thought a co-defendant tried to shift blame onto Singleton by accusing him of having a knife on the evening of Chew’s murder.

Elder also spoke to Chew’s family, saying he found the circumstances of Chew’s murder difficult to comprehend and that he had never been as moved by a sentencing hearing in his 30 years of legal practice.

“Our whole society lost, but we have memories,” said Elder. “I hope you find some comfort in that.”

James Singleton, Singleton’s father, said he was also horrified by Chew’s murder and apologized to Chew’s family.

“He’s a good kid. He’s not an animal,” said James. “I’m sorry that it happened, and I hope you accept my apology.”

Lynette Singleton, Singleton’s mother, spoke briefly to say she has been praying for the Chews since the murder and continues to do so today. Singleton said he did not think anyone would be killed and apologized for his role in Chew’s death.

“I feel like I took somebody from you,” he said.

The attack on Matthew Chew

Past court testimony has indicated that the six defendants in the case met on the evening of Oct. 29, 2010 at Elahi’s home. After playing video games and watching TV, they became bored and decided to go into New London to assault a random person.

Three of the men testified at Elahi’s probable cause hearing that Rashad Perry dared Elahi to stab someone, and that the two started to “dap it up”—or make an oath committing to the act—before two others stopped them from doing so.

Chew, 25, was walking to his Washington Street apartment on the evening of Oct. 29, 2010 after finishing his shift as a chef at 2 Wives Pizza. Carney said the group surrounded Chew as he was walking down Huntington Street. Matias asked Chew for a lighter, striking him in the face as Chew was reaching for it. Chew was further assaulted and ultimately stabbed six times; he was taken to Lawrence + Memorial Hospital and then Yale-New Haven Hospital, where he died of his injuries early the next morning.

According to a police affidavit, Singleton initially told police that he was walking downtown alone on the evening of Oct. 29 to return an iPod to a girl. He said he saw a group of men outside 35 Union Street and that he later met Bundy before the two walked home.

Other defendants said Singleton had taken part in the assault, and he admitted to doing so while giving testimony at Elahi’s probable cause hearing. Singleton said he saw Elahi leave his house with a knife, but did not know Chew had been stabbed until hearing the news the next morning.

The police affidavit said Singleton was also indirectly accused of taking part in the stabbing of Chew. The girlfriend of co-defendant Matias Perry said Matias told her Singleton had a box cutter and that both he and Elahi stabbed Chew.

Elahi, 19, entered an Alford plea to murder on Feb. 22, 2012; he is serving a 35-year prison sentence following his sentencing on May 23.

Plea agreements

Each of the five remaining defendants in the case—charged with murder in Singleton's case and accessory to murder in the other cases—accepted a state offer to enter a plea to first-degree manslaughter. Carney and defense attorneys at this week’s sentencings have argued that the five men other than Elahi did not intend to commit murder when they went out to attack someone.

Carney said he felt that the manslaughter convictions were appropriate since each of the other defendants displayed “reckless disregard” for human life by taking part in the attack or failing to stop it. He said a conviction at trial on the stronger charges was less certain since the state would have had to argue the Pinkerton doctrine, in which a co-conspirator is liable for a crime even if another defendant commits it.

Singleton considered going to trial on his murder charge, but Handy warned him that his past testimony could be used against him and that the state would be likely to win a conviction, allowing the court to sentence him to up to 60 years in prison. Singleton accepted an agreement on Dec. 27 to enter a plea to first-degree manslaughter and serve eight years of a 16 years sentence, the same offer that was accepted by co-defendants Brian Rabell, 21, and Tyree Bundy, 20.

Rashad and Matias—both 19 and unrelated—also accepted a state offer to plead to first-degree manslaughter. They were sentenced this week to serve 20 years in prison, suspended after 15 years, with five years of probation. Neither cooperated with investigators and Carney said they also had more responsibility in the circumstances leading up to Chew’s death.

The last sentencing

Handy said she feels she has gotten a sense of who Chew was over the course of the sentencings. She said she had learned about his commitment to family and friends, his artistic talent, and his fun-loving personality. She told Singleton he had contributed to Chew’s death, taking him away from his family and friends and losing part of his own future in the process.

“You’re going to live with that for the rest of your life,” said Handy. “And I want you to honor Matthew Chew by being a better person and making better choices.”

Handy said she also hopes the sentencings in the case will have a deterrent effect on other violent incidents.

“As a judge, I am hopeful that some message has been sent this week that violence is unacceptable in a civilized society and will not be tolerated,” she said.  


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