TWO HOMICIDE TRIALS TO START IN COMING DAYS March 17, 2008 The murders of a Dorchester woman and a Charlestown man who had just moved to Boston from New York are expected to go to trial this week, with their killers facing first-degree murder charges. Jury selection is expected to begin tomorrow for the trial of QUINCY BUTLER (D.O.B. 3/14/74) of Dorchester and WILLIAM WOOD (D.O.B. 4/17/74) of Roxbury in connection with the 2004 fatal stabbing of 49-year-old Betsy Tripp and the attempted murder of her longtime friend in the apartment they shared. Prosecutors allege that the men slit Tripp’s throat and shot the surviving victim in the face when he tried to help her – all for $40 to fuel the men’s crack habits. Meanwhile, empanelment began Friday and opening statements are expected as early as tomorrow in the murder trial of CARLOS MALDONADO, 26 (D.O.B. 2/23/82) of Charlestown. Maldonado is charged with fatally shooting 20-year-old Mark Parilla – a New York native who had moved to Charlestown six months earlier – on Monument Street shortly after Christmas 2006. In the Butler and Wood case, prosecutors expect to prove that the defendants robbed a man, then 47, whom Wood knew, late on the night of Feb. 12, 2004. They took his money and ordered him to drive them to his Monsignor Lydon Way residence with the intention of taking more money from him. Into the early morning of Feb. 13, they entered the apartment and hogtied both that victim and Tripp, who was present in the apartment. Butler and Wood, investigators believe, demanded Tripp’s bank card and password. If they were unable to retrieve money, they said, they would kill both victims. Evidence suggests that Butler stood guard with a handgun over the victims as Wood went to a Codman Square bank machine and withdrew $40 from Tripp’s account before being cut off because of insufficient funds. Wood returned to the apartment. At about 2:00 a.m., prosecutors allege, they used a kitchen knife to slash Tripp’s throat, causing fatal injuries. When the surviving victim managed to untie himself and tried to save her life, they shot him in the head and arm, causing irreparable damage to his left eye. The assailants were identified after bank surveillance footage showed Wood and others attempting to obtain money from Tripp’s account. Maldonado is charged with first-degree murder for Parilla’s slaying. Evidence suggests that the fatal shooting was precipitated by a large verbal altercation in which the defendant was not a party; the altercation subsequently escalated into a physical dispute at the Bunker Hill housing development. Prosecutors allege that, in the aftermath of the fight, Maldonado drew a handgun and chased Parilla onto nearby Monument Street. Maldonado allegedly fired multiple rounds at the victim, hitting him three times in the head and chest; he was transported to Massachusetts General Hospital and died after surgery. Multiple witnesses identified Maldonado to investigators in the course of a Special Grand Jury investigation, some by name and some by a distinctive tattoo. Assistant District Attorney David Fredette is prosecuting Maldonado before Judge Thomas E. Connolly in courtroom 806 of Suffolk Superior Court. The defendant is represented by attorney Robert Sheketoff. Assistant District Attorney Patrick M. Haggan is prosecuting Butler and Wood, who are represented by attorneys Shannon Frison and Michael Bourbeau. A courtroom will be announced prior to opening statements. Return to the Press Releases page.