Second Hofstra conviction in 1990 killing of assistant football coach overturned, court papers show

A Nassau judge has tossed out the second-degree murder conviction of a former Hempstead man who spent 24 years in prison for the 1990 slaying of a Hofstra assistant football coach, ruling that authorities violated the man’s rights by withholding exculpatory evidence at his trial. 

Gary Lawrence, 52, is the second defendant to have his conviction overturned in the murder of Joseph Healy, who was 25 years old when he was gunned down outside a Hempstead Turnpike Arby’s. Christopher Ellis, also 52, was freed from prison shortly after his conviction was overturned in July 2021 and more than 30 years after he was first incarcerated. Both signed confessions their lawyer said were coerced. 

Acting Supreme Court Justice Howard Sturim ruled in papers dated Jan. 5 and filed with the court on Jan. 12 that Nassau police hamstrung Lawrence’s defense during his trial for Healy’s killing by withholding notes and files that included statements identifying additional suspects, leads, and witnesses. 

The police, according to court documents, developed at least 11 leads in the Healy case, and none of them were shared with Lawrence’s lawyers. A 1963 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Brady v. Maryland, requires prosecutors to provide exculpatory evidence to defense attorneys.

“The Brady violations were substantial, and because of them the People failed to provide access to meaningful witnesses and information,” Sturim wrote in his decision, referring to the 1963 U.S. Supreme Court decision. “The notes, and their subsequent disclosure, could have provided leads for additional admissible evidence and avenues of alternative theories for the defense," the rule said.

Papers filed by Manhattan attorney Ilann Maazel, who represents Lawrence and Ellis, said that Nassau police concealed a detective’s memo book containing the names of potential suspects and witnesses until 2020 and a file with more than 200 pages until 2021. Sturim cited both the memo book and the file when he ordered the conviction vacated. 

“The defense could have pursued leads from four murder confessions, at least 11 suspects…This was a gold mine of exculpatory information. The NCPD kept it to themselves,” Maazel wrote. 

Healy was fatally shot outside an Arby’s fast-food restaurant near the Hofstra campus in September 1990 in what Nassau police described as a robbery attempt. Lawrence, 20 at the time of the klling, was sentenced to 25 years to life and served 24 1/2 years in prison. He was released on parole in 2015 and now lives in Georgia, according to Maazel. 

“Gary is innocent, and he has lived for years with the stigma of being called a murderer,” Maazel said. “He expresses his condolences to the family for this tragedy, but he had nothing to do with it.” 

Brendan Brosh, a spokesman for Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly, said prosecutors intend to retry Lawrence but declined further comment. Prosecutors also intend to take Ellis to trial again, he said. 

"We are extremely disappointed in the district attorney’s decision," Maazel said. "Gary served his complete sentence in prison and on parole and has been a solid citizen ever since his release in 2015."

Det. Lt. Richard LeBrun, Nassau police spokesman, issued a statement saying, “The Nassau County Police Department stands behind the original convictions in the case and is pleased that the District Attorney will retry both cases in the interest of justice.”

Healy family members could not immediately be reached for comment.

Nassau police arrested Lawrence, Ellis and a third man, David Lyles of Freeport, four months after Healy was killed, during a February 1991 drug sting in Freeport. Authorities alleged the three tried to rob a drug dealer, then fled in a stolen car that crashed into a utility pole. Police said they found two loaded pistols in the vehicle, but they never recovered the weapon used in Healy’s killing.

Lawrence was convicted of second-degree murder, two counts of first-degree attempted robbery, two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, and third-degree criminal possession of stolen property. Maazel’s motion asked Sturim to vacate only the murder conviction. 

According to papers filed by Maazel, Lawrence was pressured into signing a false confession by cops who assaulted him after he was arrested. He was denied food, water and sleep for 19 hours. One detective pulled out his gun after Lawrence denied any involvement in the Healy killing, according to the papers. 

“Nobody knows where you are, nobody cares,” the court papers quote the police officer as saying. “And you’re not going to leave here until you tell me about your role in the Arby’s incident.” 

Ellis also claimed he signed a confession under duress and Acting State Supreme Court Justice Patricia Harrington vacated his second-degree murder conviction in July 2021, ruling that prosecutors had withheld the detective’s memo pad, which allegedly contains the names of at least two people who claimed to have committed the murder.

“The failure to disclose it severely erodes the public’s sense of justice in this case,” Harrington wrote at the time.

Healy was taking graduate business classes at Hofstra while also working as an assistant coach. He and several friends had visited several bars before he was fatally shot and ended the night outside an Arby’s at the corner of Duncan Road and Hempstead Turnpike, according to court papers filed by Maazel. 

They were eating outside the restaurant at approximately 4 a.m. on Sept. 29, 1990, when they were approached by two men. One of the men shot Healy, and the two fled the scene. 

Before the arrests, police had no positive leads after tracking 300 tips and distributing more than 1,500 of the sketches, even after Healy’s family and a Hofstra alumni club offered a combined $15,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction. The prosecution later contended at Ellis’ trial that he had been driving a getaway car, that Lyles had been the shooter and that Lawrence acted as the lookout.

Lyles, who has not filed papers seeking to overturn his conviction, was also convicted of second-degree murder. State records show he was released on parole in February 2021. 

Lawrence told police that had spent the night of Healy’s slaying with his mother, according to court papers, and three eyewitnesses to the slaying could not identify him. One eyewitness, who knew Lawrence from the neighborhood, repeatedly told cops that he was not there. The only eyewitness who placed Lawrence at the scene admitted that he was intoxicated and not sure he had identified the right person.

“No physical evidence, no forensic evidence, and no credible eyewitness tied Lawrence to the crime,” Maazel said in court papers.