Dean Kapsalis, left, was convicted in a racially-motivated attack that killed Henry Tapia, right. (Kapsalis photo is a screenshot from CBS Boston; Tapia photo courtesy of family friend via GoFundMe)
A 56-year-old white man was convicted of murder in the death of a Black and Latino father of three, who he hit with his truck after hurling a racial slur at him.
Prosecutors said Dean Kapsalis was convicted in the attack that killed Henry Tapia, 34, on Jan. 19, 2021, in Belmont, Mass., just outside Boston. Authorities said it was a road rage incident that escalated from a simple argument over whether a blinker was being used in traffic into a racially motivated slaying on a residential street.
Kapsalis was convicted of second-degree murder, violation of constitutional rights causing serious bodily injury, assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon (motor vehicle) causing serious bodily injury, and leaving the scene after causing injury, prosecutors said. He faces life in prison and will be sentenced on June 27.
The attack escalated from an argument about whether or not a car's blinker was being used in traffic, Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan said in a news conference after the verdict.
"We should make no mistake, this was a racially motivated senseless tragedy," Ryan said. "What is significant about today's verdict is that in Middlesex County, when we have violent incidents that are motivated by hate and bigotry, those will not be seen as just background facts. We will charge those separately, prosecute that crime separately and seek accountability for that piece of what happened."
John Cunha Jr., Kapsalis' attorney, told the Boston Globe that his client said a horrible thing, but it wasn't a hate crime. At trial, the defense argued that Tapia's death was an accident. Cunha also argued that his client drove onto the sidewalk to avoid Tapia, who jumped onto the truck's hood and was killed when he fell underneath the vehicle, the Globe reported.
Cunha told the paper he planned to appeal the verdict, saying jurors found his client not guilty of intentionally leaving the accident scene but guilty of the lesser offense of recklessly leaving the scene.
Authorities said it went down at 4 p.m. on a residential street when Tapia and Kapsalis began arguing about the blinker.
"We learned from neighbors and others who had watched that the two individuals had gotten out of their cars," Ryan said. "They were in the street arguing back and forth. By all accounts, at some point, after some yelling back and forth, that incident seemed to have ended, and both drivers were heading back to their car when Dean Kapsalis turned and hurled a horrific racial insult at Mr. Tapia. He then got into his pickup truck and drove his pickup truck directly at Mr. Tapia, causing those injuries that resulted in Mr. Tapia's death."
Kapsalis dragged Tapia a short distance before he drove off, authorities said.
Police found Tapia on the road near the driver's side of his Honda Civic. He was conscious but had life-threatening injuries and died at a hospital, officials said.
Police issued an alert to be on the lookout for a red Dodge Dakota pickup truck, but Kapsalis turned himself in at a police station 30 minutes later.
Kapsalis was initially charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, a civil rights violation causing injury and leaving the scene causing injury, officials said. Prosecutors later filed additional charges of murder and leaving the scene, causing death.
Tapia's girlfriend, Courtney Morton, told the Boston Globe then that she lost her best friend, soulmate, partner, protector and father to her children.
"He had a smile that could melt your heart, and that's literally what won me over," Morton said, according to the Globe. "That, and his eyes. And the fact that he was like a bear. He was just a cuddly, lovey bear."
She told the Globe he was raising her child as if he was his own.
"He didn't look at him or treat him any different," she told the paper.
