Cop killer enters court wearing strange mask leaving family shocked seeing him for the first time
Callum Jones
Featured Image Credit: MSNBC
In a notorious case from nearly 20 years ago, a cop killer entered court wearing a strange mask, leaving his family and everyone present in complete shock.
The day of reckoning came on April 17 2005 when Esteban Carpio was being questioned by Providence Police Detective Sgt. James L. Allen and another detective at their law enforcement headquarters.
Carpio was being questioned for the stabbing of an 85-year-old woman, Madeline Gatta, but his crimes did not stop there.
When the second detective left questioning to get some water for the suspect, an altercation occurred between Allen and Carpio.
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The police officer was ultimately shot twice after Carpio grabbed his revolver and died a short while afterwards.
With the questioning taking place on the third floor of the building, Carpio jumped from that extremely high height.
Law enforcement eventually caught Carpio and he was arrested and charged for the police officer's murder.
In his first court appearance, Carpio made all the headlines for wearing a rather strange looking mask.
While it may have shocked his family, Carpio was forced to wear the mask because it was said 'here were concerns he would become combative.'
The mask really was a blast from the past, Joy Fox, a spokesperson for the Rhode Island Department of Corrections at the time, revealed the department had used the mask only about '10 times in 10 years'.
As per NBC News, manufacturers stated the masks would typically be used when officers feared infection from HIV.
Once proceedings had got underway, it was argued Carpio was under the influence of a psychosis, which meant he wasn't able to comprehend the 'wrongfulness of his actions.'
Just weeks before the deadly shooting, the killer was taken for a psychiatric evaluation by his mother, while his girlfriend took him to hospital after displaying concerning behavior.
Doctors ultimately attributed Carpio's bizarre symptoms to stress and drug abuse.
On June 27 2006, a jury found Carpio guilty of murdering Allen and stabbing Gatta. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Carpio appealed the ruling - something which was thrown out by the Supreme Court in 2012.
And then in 2017, a federal judge refused to overturn the serious conviction once more.
Carpio argued his lawyers were ineffective as they failed to provide genuine arguments on the grounds of appeal.
He also argued once more his mental health problems at the time meant he wasn't aware of the seriousness of his crimes.
However, the judge didn't buy it and the ruling stood.