By Thomas Tracy
As it winds down to a close, area cops are flooding Brooklyn Criminal Court to learn the outcome of the People vs. Marlon Legere, a convicted felon charged with gunning down two 67th Precinct detectives in 2004. “A few guys go every day and sit in on the proceedings,” said Inspector Robert Boyce, the commanding officer of the 67th Precinct, where Detectives Patrick Rafferty and Robert Parker walked the halls, investigated crimes and chatted with their friends and colleagues before Legere allegedly shot them both down as they tried to apprehend him on East 49th Street. “We’re want to know what’s going on.” Officials from the Kings County District Attorney’s office said Wednesday that they are still presenting their case against Legere, who was indicted on six counts of murder for shooting down the two detectives on September 10, 2004. During his arraignment roughly two years ago, Assistant District Attorney Ken Taub said that the additional homicide counts were added on because Legere’s alleged heinous acts met different parts of the murder statute. “The evidence against this defendant is overwhelming,” Taub told reporters. “I cannot imagine any circumstance whatsoever that would not result in this defendant spending the rest of his life in prison.” Legere allegedly gunned the two seasoned officers down while they tried to stop him from stealing his mother’s car at 519 East 49th Street. Officials said that as Legere was being pulled out of the car when he grabbed one of the detective’s guns and started blasting away. Although shot, Rafferty managed to pull his pistol and fire back at Legere, striking him in the ankle. Witnesses told police that Legere fled the scene after carjacking a minivan. Police tracked him to 662 Brooklyn Avenue, where he was ultimately taken into custody. Police said that the suspect, now 30 has been in and out of prison since the early 1990s for assault, sexual abuse and drug possession. When the trial began last week, among the witnesses to testify for the prosecution is Legere’s mother Melvere, who described how her son wrestled a gun away from the two detectives and shot them both. The jury also heard the heart wrenching 911 call from the wounded and dying detectives, asking for help. If convicted, Legere could face life in prison without the possibility of parole. Legere’s attorney claims that his client did not know that the two men who confronted him were police officers and that he was merely defending himself. During his time on the stand, Legere said matter-of-factly that he didn’t know who the two men were that stopped him from driving off with his mother’s car. “They should have pulled out their badges,” he said coldly. Legere testified that the two detectives were both alive when he fought them off and ran away. He claimed to hear gunfire behind him as he made his escape.
