The trial of an Outlaws Motorcycle Club member charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Oak Bluffs firefighter Eric Voshell has been postponed. The trial was slated to begin Jan. 18, but has been rescheduled by Bristol County Superior Court Judge Raffi Yessayan to Aug. 22. The alleged shooter, Joseph Noe, was charged with murdering Voshell during a melee outside JC’s Cafe in Fall River on the night of Sept. 13, 2019.
Voshell, a member of a rival motorcycle gang, the Sidewinders, a Hell’s Angels affiliate, was among a group of armed Sidewinders who backed Noe up to a fence outside the cafe, court records allege. Noe drew a gun, but didn’t discharge it at the bikers surrounding him, court records allege. The bikers around Noe broke away to join a group assault of Noe’s uncle, Jonathan Noe, according to the records.
“Video footage reveals that the defendant’s uncle was being repeatedly assaulted by multiple Sidewinders who [are] seen on the video footage with a range of weapons that included hammers, knives, brass knuckles, and more,” a defense motion states.
The motion further states, “The homicide victim, Eric Voshell, was part of the armed Sidewinders (Voshell held a pipe-like object), who initially confronted the defendant but then moved in the direction of the attack on the defendant’s uncle.”
Court records indicate Noe allegedly fired at his uncle’s assailants, killing Voshell and wounding two others.
In Bristol County Superior Court on Monday, Rob Galibois, Noe’s attorney, asked about the commonwealth’s disposition toward a motion that seeks potentially exculpatory DNA evidence from some weapons recovered from the scene — a knife and two ballpeen hammers. Prosecutor Michael Cahillane told the court criminalistic test work had been authorized, but he didn’t expect DNA results back until June or July.
“We obviously want the results by July,” Judge Yessayan said.
Galibois requested greater latitude in Noe’s release conditions, which have kept him under house arrest except for going back and forth to work. Galibois asked if his client could grocery-shop for his family.
Cahillane objected to loosening the strictures of Noe’s release. Judge Yessayan agreed with the prosecution. “He’s fortunate to be out at all right now,” the judge said.
In a short statement to The Times, Galibois wrote, “We are looking forward to the DNA analysis of the weapons discarded by those assaulting his uncle, Jonathan Noe.”
A voicemail left for a spokesman of the office of Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn III was not immediately returned Monday.
A status hearing in the case is expected in March.
I will ask everyone here —If your uncle was being beaten with “hammers, knives, brass knuckles, and more”,( a pipe for instance ) by a bunch of thugs that were part of a motorcycle gang, and you were armed with a legal weapon, what would you do ?
Comments are closed.