LEWISTON — A Sabattus man serving a 55-year prison sentence for killing his ex-girlfriend has asked a judge to either grant him a new trial or send his case back to the state’s highest court for a second look.
Lawyers for 42-year-old Daniel Roberts said during a post-conviction review hearing Thursday that his constitutional rights were violated because members of the public were kept out of the courtroom during testimonial portions of the trial and during the verdict reading.
The Sun Journal reports that his lawyers also questioned whether his constitutional rights were violated by having ineffective counsel at trial.
The judge did not immediately rule.
Roberts was convicted of fatally shooting 29-year-old Melissa Mendoza in August 2005. They were involved in a custody dispute over their 2-year-old daughter at the time.
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