Revere murder trial slated to begin

BOSTON – Jury selection is expected to begin May 24 in Suffolk Superior Court where 25-year-old Corey Roche of Lynn stands accused of stabbing his mother to death in her Revere home.Roche was charged with first-degree murder and armed assault with intent to murder for allegedly stabbing 42-year-old Lisa Bryson Roche to death inside her Fernview Avenue apartment on the afternoon of Feb. 25, 2008.Revere Police responded to the scene at about 3:15 p.m. to find Roche holding a knife and his mother suffering grievous injuries, said Jake Wark, spokesman for Suffolk District Attorney Daniel Conley.Police officers ordered Roche to drop his weapon, but he refused and instead extended it toward one of the officers. Roche sustained a single gunshot wound to the torso, fired by Revere Police Officer James Rose.Mother and son were rushed to area hospitals. The victim was pronounced dead on arrival at Whidden Memorial Hospital. The defendant survived his injury, was arraigned at bedside at Massachusetts General Hospital and was subsequently indicted by the Suffolk County Grand Jury.Two days after the slaying, prosecutors unveiled that the motive for the murder apparently stemmed from a heated argument over the defendant’s tax return.Roche purportedly stabbed his mother after she told him she could not help him file his tax returns. At the time, the woman was living in the two-floor apartment with her teenage son, two daughters ages 2 and 6, an adult daughter and her daughter’s fiance. Some of those occupants were at home when the argument erupted and told investigators they heard screams emanating from the first floor of the apartment.The jury selection process was slated to begin May 14 but was postponed due to a crowded court docket.Assistant District Attorney Mark Lee, deputy chief of the district attorney’s Homicide Unit, will try the case. Roche is represented by attorney Robert Wheeler. Judge Charles Spurlock will preside.