In the early morning hours of March 23, 2014, Jose “Chepa” Rodriguez, a 25-year-old Hispanic male, was shot and killed in an execution-style slaying outside the Zam Zam hookah lounge on Crooks Avenue in Paterson, New Jersey. Rodriguez had been released from prison just five months prior after serving time on a weapons charge. The attack was brutal; he was shot multiple times at close range in the head, neck, torso, legs, and arms.
The investigation into the shooting led authorities to identify three suspects: Angel Toro, Luis Polanco, and David Lawrence. A woman, Jennifer Suriel, was also alleged to have been with the men when they went to the lounge with the intent to kill Rodriguez. Toro was apprehended in Milford, Pennsylvania, in June 2016, while Suriel and Lawrence were arrested in August of the same year.
All three men were charged with murder and weapons possession.
Despite the arrests and what seemed to be a clear-cut case, the prosecution's arguments were largely circumstantial. During the trial, the state's case lacked direct physical evidence such as fingerprints or DNA linking the defendants to the crime. Defense attorneys highlighted the absence of forensic evidence and pointed out inconsistencies in the accounts of eyewitnesses. A bouncer testified to seeing the men searching for Rodriguez on the night of the murder, and gruesome autopsy photos were presented to the jury. However, after deliberating for six hours over two days, the jury found Angel Toro, Luis Polanco, and David Lawrence not guilty of the murder of Jose Rodriguez. The verdict was met with anguish from Rodriguez's family, who left the courtroom in tears.
