Colella jury hears DA’s 5 jail tapes

SALEM – Jurors in the trial of Swampscott native Blake Colella, charged with stabbing a man outside a Lynn 7-Eleven in 2006, heard taped conversations Wednesday in which Colella’s father tells his son “Things are coming together. I’m trying to put this thing to bed.”A Superior Court jury comprised of eight men and six women, including two alternates, heard five calls made by Colella to his father, Angelo, in May 2006 from the Middleton Jail in which his father also tells him that “none of this should have happened” and that he will have to “get out of Lynn” when this is over.Assistant District Attorney Michael P. Hickey introduced the monitored taped conversations from May 21 through May 26, when Colella was being held on $25,000 cash bail on the case, as part of evidence to show jurors how his father may have influenced witnesses not to testify about the stabbing.Within the conversations, his father also dials numbers for his son for three-way conference calls with other witnesses in the case.The commonwealth had issued a subpoena for Angelo Colella as a witness in the case. He showed up on the first day of trial, but has been absent since. The judge issued a warrant for his arrest.He appeared Wednesday with his attorney, Michael Natola, and asserted his fifth-amendment privilege not to testify in connection with the case or to answer any questions concerning his failure to appear.It is not known yet if he will be charged with contempt for failing to appear.Colella, 25, who had been living at 164 Essex St., in Lynn, is on trial for assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and assault and battery causing serious bodily injury in connection with the May 19, 2006 stabbing of Richard Dalton, 21.Another indictment for assault with a dangerous weapon concerning the attack with a knife on Dalton’s younger brother, Joseph, was directed out of the case by Judge David A. Lowy Wednesday, after defense lawyer Ronald J. Ranta argued that the commonwealth had not proven the charge against his client.The Daltons and their female cousin, Starann Butler, 19, testified earlier and their recollection of the incident was diminished from when they were interviewed and testified before the grand jury.Jurors earlier viewed the store surveillance tape of the incident.Dr. Michael Walger took the stand Wednesday and testified that when Richard Dalton was treated at Salem Hospital on May 19, he had three slash wounds near his collarbone, one of the wounds was larger than the two others.The case is expected to go to the jury Thursday morning after closing arguments and jury instructions from Lowy on the two remaining charges.The commonwealth had dismissed an attempted murder charge against Colella just prior to the trial commencing.Colella remains in custody at the Middleton Jail pending the outcome of his case.He faces up to 15 years in state prison, if convicted on both charges.