Guilty! Mom-Of-Two Nicole Addimando Convicted Of Murdering Boyfriend Christopher Grover
New York mom-of-two Nicole Addimando is convicted of murdering her boyfriend Christopher Grover.
She now faces up to 25 years behind bars despite the fact that she claimed she was subjected to years of abuse by the late gymnastics coach.
Addimando, 30, was charged with second-degree murder on Friday for fatally shooting gymnastics coach Christopher Grover at their apartment complex in Poughkeepsie, New York, in September 2017.
She admitted to fatally shooting Grover but claimed self-defense after he sexually abused and tortured her for years.
Addimando shot Grover, her live-in partner and the father of her two children, in the head while he was sleeping on the couch, according to prosecutors.
The killing came within 24 hours of Child Protective Services launching an investigation into the family.
On the night of the murder, Addimando flagged down a patrol officer in the area and told police that there had been an 'incident' with her boyfriend.
Officers arrived at the couple's apartment and found Grover dead from a gunshot to his head.
Addimando previously claimed that she had been sexually abused and tortured by Grover for years prior to the murder, and said she killed the head coach at Mr Todd's Gymnastics in self-defense.
New York prosecutors were challenged with disproving her self-defense justification of homicide beyond a reasonable doubt.
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"That wasn't self-defense," Chana Krauss, special prosecutor for the Putnam County District Attorney's Office, said during her closing statement.
"Chris Grover was sleeping on the couch. This was intentional murder."
During the trial, nearly 20 witnesses were brought before the jury as both sides painted starkly different portraits of Addimando.
The defense said Addimando had a justifiable, reasonable and legitimate belief that Grover was going to kill her.
However, the jury did not believe her case as the prosecution portrayed the defendant as a 'master manipulator' who concocted the domestic abuse story to justify killing the father of her children.
After the controversial trial many people in the courtroom burst into tears after the guilty verdict was read.
Addimando faces 25 years to life in prison at her sentencing in June.