AP News, December 19th, 2006
A judge on Tuesday refused to grant bail to a man charged with killing his wife and baby, denying a request to let the man return to his parents' home in England while awaiting his trial in the double slaying.
Neil Entwistle, 28, is accused of shooting his wife, Rachel, 27, and their daughter, Lillian, 9 months, after becoming despondent over rising debts and dissatisfaction with his sex life.
The defense motion for bail was denied by Middlesex Superior Court Judge Peter Lauriat.
Defense attorney Elliot Weinstein had argued the court could set strict conditions for Entwistle's release to ensure he would return to the United States for trial, set to begin in October.
Weinstein proposed that Entwistle be placed in the custody of his parents in Worksop, England, where he would be confined to their home 24 hours a day and wear a global positioning system device to track his movements at all times. His parents offered to post their home as collateral for his bail, meaning they could lose it if he violated conditions of his release.
"We're disappointed with the judge's decision," Weinstein said Tuesday. "We appreciate the hearing and the full and fair consideration that he gave our request."
The Middlesex District Attorney's Office declined to comment. In court last week, Assistant District Attorney Michael Fabbri argued Entwistle had shown "a clear pattern of flight and unreliability."
Rachel and Lillian Entwistle were killed Jan. 20 in the home the family rented in suburban Hopkinton.
Entwistle allegedly told a state police detective that he found his wife and daughter dead after he returned home from doing errands.
He said he drove to his father-in-law's house in Carver to get a gun so he could kill himself, but was unable to get inside the house and decided instead to return to England to be with his parents. He was arrested in London and did not fight extradition to the United States.
Prosecutors have said Entwistle may have planned to commit suicide after killing his wife and daughter. A search of his computer showed that in the days before the slayings he researched murder and suicide methods and trolled the Internet for escort services, according to investigators' affidavits.
