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Citing his ‘exceptional behavior’ in prison and rapidly failing health, judge grants Michael Monroe’s motion to suspend remainder of his sentence

By Dean Shalhoup - Senior Staff Reporter | Dec 24, 2021

The Telegraph story reporting Michael Monroe's sentencing hearing appeared on the front page of the Feb. 9, 1996 edition.

NASHUA — While not overlooking the “gruesome nature” of the “horrific attack” that caused the death of Nashua resident Theresa Levesque in March 1993, and for which her son-in-law, Michael Monroe, was tried, convicted and sentenced to 40 years to life in prison, a Superior Court judge recently granted Monroe’s motion to suspend the remaining 12 or so years of his sentence based chiefly on two factors.

One is the “somewhat extraordinary” record and “exceptional behavior work history” that Monroe compiled during his 27 years behind bars; the other, the fact that Monroe’s days are numbered due to the series of serious aliments that have left him with a dire prognosis.

As of several months ago, Monroe, now 72, has served two-thirds of his minimum 40-year sentence, making him eligible to file the sentence reduction motion.

Judge Jacalyn Colburn, who presided over Monroe’s sentence reduction hearing in November and subsequently issued the order granting the motion, wrote that the fact that Monroe disputed his culpability in the murder, including filing two ultimately unsuccessful appeals, “whether he was wrongfully convicted or not is not before the court, and it will not be addressed.”

The murder of the 66-year-old Levesque would divide the large, extended family, a dynamic that, judging from the numerous emails the prosecution and defense both received around the time of the hearing, has changed little over the years.

Colburn also wrote that considering Monroe’s “very poor health and prognosis … his reduced mobility,” and that he will be in the care of family members, he will be “highly unlikely to engage in future criminal behavior.”

The prosecutor, Senior Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey Strelzin, in arguing against Monroe’s motion, rejected the defense notion that suspending the rest of Monroe’s sentence would be the compassionate thing to do given his deteriorating health.

Colburn addressed that issue in her 6-page order, writing that “the court agrees with the state that Mr. Monroe is not automatically owed mercy or compassion, given that he showed neither to the victim.”

The murder of Levesque, a well-liked neighbor whose Marshall Street home bordered Lyons Field, rattled the neighborhood and devastated her family and others close to her. The fact the murder went unsolved for nearly a year and a half only added to those emotions and concerns.

It wasn’t until August 1994 that police announced they had arrested Monroe as a suspect in the murder. Despite confessing on more than one occasion, Monroe later maintained his innocence, but was eventually brought to trial in the fall of 1995.

The trial, which lasted nearly three weeks, culminated in the jury’s verdict of guilty on the charge of second-degree murder.

Superior Court Judge Bernard Hampsey, now retired, handed down the 40 years to life sentence in February 1996. Hampsey credited Monroe with the 528 days he’d spent in jail awaiting trial.

Now that the remainder of Monroe’s sentence has been suspended, “it will be up to the Parole Board to determine his next steps,” Colburn wrote in conclusion.

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.

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