From the Eagle Tribune;
Family: Atkinson man died from assault Sister: Abate was victim of assault during home invasion
By Eric Parry
eparry@eagletribune.com
ATKINSON — Police said the death of a 42-year-old Atkinson man earlier this month was possibly caused by a drug overdose.
But family members said yesterday they believe Shawn Abate died from injuries he suffered after being assaulted in a home invasion six days before his death March 6.
Abate's younger sister, Alisa Chagnon of Methuen, acknowledged that her brother had been in trouble with the law, but said she doesn't believe he was using drugs the day he died.
"I'm worried his investigation is being pushed off because he did drugs on and off during his adult life," Chagnon said.
Atkinson police Detective Phil Farrar said police are investigating the assault, but no one has been arrested. Abate suffered a head injury in the assault and received 47 stitches, according to Atkinson police Chief Philip Consentino.
Consentino said police are awaiting toxicology reports from the state.
Chagnon said she spoke with her brother three hours before he died. He was with a longtime friend who didn't use drugs, she said. If her brother had taken drugs, Chagnon said, she would have known right away.
"You can tell right away from his voice," she said.
Abate was having a party at his condominium at 1 Rosewood Court on Feb. 28, when an argument broke out. Two people left the party and came back a short while later and beat Abate, Chagnon said.
She said her brother was sleeping when he was attacked by two men with a golf club and billy club. Chagnon said he had been taken to the hospital by the time police arrived.
Farrar would only say the assault was under investigation.
A few days after Abate was attacked, Chagnon said her brother complained of headaches and had passed out a few times, so he went to Lawrence General Hospital for a CT scan. He was awaiting the results when he died six days after the attack, she said.
"In the meantime, he was just helpless," she said.
Abate has had frequent run-ins with Atkinson police over the last several years.
After selling Haverhill Auto Wholesale on River Street in Haverhill, Abate bought a large home in Atkinson, but downsized to the Bryant Woods condominium over the last few years. He wasn't working at the time of his death, Chagnon said.
Abate's criminal record includes convictions for drug possession. He also faced several assault and criminal threatening charges.
Family members have set up a Web site for Abate's friends, www.shawnabate.info. In addition to his sister, Abate is survived by his parents, George and Alice Abate, of Lady Lake, Fla.
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46 comments:
It happened IN Atkinson who ever did it is safe, They have nobody that has any training. There to busy running there taxi service.CALL THE STATE POLICE
Oh boy, you clowns will have a field day with this one.
How much more going on never gets reported.
A whole lot.
Why no metion of Shawns children?
Hey anybody know why the conflict of interest committee had a private meeting with the selectmen last night? Whats goin on?
Shawn has kids?
hey didnt the criminal case against Atus get dismissed cause of bad investigation and no evidence?
Moderator:
Please don't accept comments here, it's disrespectful.
moderator don,t you want the people to know how screwd up our police are
I was in the town hall last night, and there wasnt any posting about a meeting with conflict of interest, but i did see them in there.
What is going on here?
it's a secret everythings a secret in atkinson
You people need to stop learning about law enforcement from watching law & order and CSI. Once the coroner's report is back, then you can rule out the head injury as the cause of death...and you can proceed forward with the investigation. No case is going to be solved in one hour with commerical interuptions.
Second, the victim is dead. Can someone answer whether or not you can prosecute as assault if the victim is dead? I don't know, but one of you jail house lawyers in Team Blog land surely must.
Third, any one who lived on Overlook Drive or Rosewood Court constantly saw police cruisers at the homes Mr. Abate lived in. I know I did.
Lastly, its a sad thing...but if the coroner's report comes back and says he died of an overdose will that quiet the nay sayers and police bashers in this town? Things take time. If they rushed this then Team Blog would be all over the APD...if they take their time and do it by the numbers...Team Blog still jumps all over them.
Damned if you do. Damned if you don't.
Remember...active investigation. You can't give out information that is going to compromise the case.
Can we please try to be fair? See this from both sides?
And, to the first post regarding the State Police. You're a dope...there is a state law that says that if a town has a population of over 3,000 then the State Police cannot even conduct police operations in that town without the approval of that town's police chief. Thye can enforce laws on state roads, but they cannot come in and take over investigations without permission. Now, if this is deemed a homicide, then their major crimes division is called in to investigate the murder.
JMHO.
Dear Team Blog (not a compliment),
You are “jailhouse lawyers” and are clueless. Sorry, reruns of Quincy and the Rockford Files don’t qualify for a criminal justice or law degree. A criminal investigation relies on facts, not conjecture, hearsay, and the rumor mill (most of the diatribe on this blog).
Be careful what you write “street lawyer”, libel is not protected by the first amendment.
Apparently you are on Team Blog as well, 'cause you're writing here.
(not a compliment)
Good luck with any investigation in Atkinson with so many under qualified on Team PD.
(not a compliment)
TEAM PD:
Chief: No education, no police academy training, no annual refresher training, is he even qualified to carry a gun?
Det. Farrar: 27 year cop. arrests on a complaint without any investigation to corroborate.
The Officers are more qualified than the leaders.
Deputy Dawg will come thru and do some detecting work to solve da crime! I sho is glad we have a full time detective wit all dese homo-cides and murders n such keepin hisself busy. Why have the State PD do the woik when we all can pay someone to do it?
Why we gots a thank you letta from TJ Maxx in Plaistow for his help in crackin that big time crime. Good job sellin it to da old people chief cause we need spend all dese tax dollars for a detective we sho don't need. But they get free rides so dey do what you say no matta what. Plaistow PD solves mo crime in Atkinson than Atkinson PD but dat secret is safe wit me. I sho won't tells none.
so funny
Look what was found in the Eagle Tribune archives.
October 31, 2006 11:57 am
—
ATKINSON - Police arrested three people Friday night on charges of cocaine possession, endangering a child's welfare and facilitating an underage drinking party.
Around 7:30 p.m., police received a complaint of a loud party at 6 Overlook Drive in the Bryant Woods Condominiums.
When Officer Emmanuel Fardella and two Plaistow officers arrived at the three-level townhouse, they found 15 or more juveniles gathered in a room with a large amount of alcohol. Some were drinking, police Lt. William Baldwin said.
The officers found the parents of one of the teens, Shawn Abate and Penny Boucher, and another adult, James Jaskot, in the master bedroom with what appeared to be cocaine and drug paraphernalia. Baldwin said police then obtained a search warrant to look for additional items, which turned up more drugs and paraphernalia.
Abate, 39, of 6 Overlook Drive, is charged with three felony counts of possession of a controlled drug/narcotic, one misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a child and one misdemeanor count of facilitating an underage drinking party. Boucher, 32, of 132 Klondike Ave., Haverhill, Mass., and Jaskot, 35, of 7 Riverdale St., Methuen, Mass., each face one felony count of possession of a controlled drug/narcotic, one misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a child, and one misdemeanor count of facilitating an underage drinking party.
All three were arraigned yesterday in Plaistow District Court. Abate is being held on $250,000 cash or surety bail and is due back in court on Nov. 16. Boucher, Abate's ex-wife, is being held on $250,000 cash or surety bail and is due back in court on Nov. 9. Jaskot is free on $50,000 personal recognizance bail and has a Dec. 10 court date.
The penalty for felony possession of a narcotic is three to seven years in jail and up to a $25,000 fine for each count. The misdemeanor charges carry up to one year in jail and a maximum fine of $2,000 per count.
Atkinson police are continuing to investigate the underage drinking party. Baldwin said officers confiscated beer, vodka and a funnel. He anticipates filing minor in possession of alcohol charges.
Parents of the 15 or so kids - all between the ages of 13 and 17 - were called to the house to pick up their children. Abate's two children were placed by the state Department of Children, Youth and Families, Baldwin said.
Salem, Plaistow and Hampstead police officers, as well as a Salem detective and the Plaistow dog officer, assisted Atkinson police at the scene. Derry police also went to Parkland Medical Center to help when Boucher and Abate were treated before going to the county jail. Baldwin said they complained of not feeling well at the time of the arrest.
Copyright © 1999-2010 cnhi, inc.
I hope you fell good about yourself now.
Moderator, are you kidding? This is Atkinson at it's worst.
Please don't post anything like this.
is it relevant to the story? Is it any different from some of the comments on the Eagle Tribune's own blog?
the chief got a gun because baldwin give,s the test
Definition of Wannabe (like wanting to be a cool lawyer or investigative reporter out to bust the 5-0) from the Urban Dictionary:
1. Wannabe: Poser, follower, a charlatan of sorts. One who copies or imitates all or most of the aspects dealing with their idol. They may wish to have certain clothing, skills, vocabulary, etc., of their idols instead of their own. Most likely a wannabe is lacking in self confidence and is looking for guidance.
2. Someone who wants to be what they are not.
3. Someone who wants to be something else and fit in a crowd, someone who tries to act like someone they want to be even though it's obvious that they're just a stupid wannabe.
Here are the "facts" of the case as I see them.
1. An assault is alleged to have taken place at the victim's home.
2. The APD are called to investigate.
3. During the course of the investigation the victim dies of an apparent drug overdose.
4. Victim does have a criminal history and history of drug abuse
5. Victim is brought to coroner for an autopsy.
6. APD still has not received the coroner's report and is waiting for that report to come back to state cause of death before proceeding with charges, if any.
How can this possibly be spun to indicate that the Atkinson Police are to blame for this? I just don't get it.
And as for the people who post about the Artus case...it wasn;t dismissed for "bad investigating" it was dismissed on a legal technicality concerning the rules of discovery.
Artus was arrested on a warrant that was based on probable cause...warrants, affidavits, and compliants are public record.
Artus was afforded all his due process rights he absolutley has no grounds to file suit.
The people on this blog will do anything to bash the police and seek to cannonize everyone else.
The Abate case is still under invesitgation...why don't we wait to see what the coroner's report has to say and where the case will go from there before judgement is passed on how the case was invesitgated.
JMHO
To the poster at 10:52pm;
While I agree with you about the apparent facts and circumstances of this unfortunate case, I must correct you on your assertions about the Artus case, I have read all the Court filings and was present in court on both hearing dates.
Artus was arrested SOLELY on the Osborn's complaint. That was stated. Artus kept requesting discovery. He requested all the call logs from the day of his arrest, all the reports of his arrest, and all the investigative reports. Some of these were provided in a timely fashion, most were not. an investigative report was NEVER produced. When asked why, the answer was that there were no calls made, or people contacted in any effort to verify the Osborn's claims. Te call logs were produced only after a Court Order, and were hand written on a legal pad, and heavily redacted. The prosecutor tried to make the claim that there was "personal information like social security numbers in there". The Court's response was "then someone needs to teach the police dept. how to keep records." Court ORDERED the "original hand written, UNREDACTED log" to be produced. It wasn't. What was then produced was a typewritten log with some of the previously redacted time slots missing. The Court ordered the case dismissed because the prosecution and the police dept. could not produce simple discovery.
By the way, the arrest warrant the application for which was sworn by Det. Farrar, stated no "probable cause" other than the Osborn's complaint. As to his due process, well..... If the police dept. will arrest for a criminal complaint solely upon an allegation of wrongdoing, then you had better hope that you don't piss someone off who will file such a complaint against you.
This just in from the Eagle Tribune. Mr. Shawn Abate died from a drug overdose. It's on page 4. How interesting that when there is a chance that something makes the police department look bad its front page news, but when runs contrary it is buried in the paper.
Will the Blog run the page 4 article? I truly hope so...in the interest of open and honest debate, afterall.
So, the question remains for all you coffee house lawyers from Team Blog, can someone be arrested and successfuly prosecuted for an assault when the victim is dead?
Atkinson man died from drug overdose
ATKINSON — A 42-year-old Atkinson man who was assaulted in his home six days before his death died from a drug overdose, according to a toxicology report released yesterday.
Police Chief Philip Consentino said Shawn Abate died on March 6 from the toxic effects of ethanol, cocaine and opiates. The manner of death was an accident, according to the autopsy.
Family members acknowledge Abate used drugs off and on throughout his life, but some believed the injuries he sustained in a home invasion six days before his death killed him.
http://www.eagletribune.com/punewsnh/local_story_091003331.html
Poster’s remark: As you sow, so shall you reap.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2010/04/01/town_of_southborough_considers_suing_annonymous_online_commenter/
Interesting article on the Town Of Southborough, MA considering suing an anonymous poster on a blog. New topic on this blog?
Sorry, the page you have requested does not exist at this address.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2010/04/01/town_of_southborough_considers_suing_annonymous_on
"can someone be arrested and successfully prosecuted for an assault when the victim is dead?"
No, but Team Blog is very good at character assassination.
Then there's the lynching and character assault of residents by town officials put on TV. Look at the videos.
There may be something else for the family to consider.
Sounds like the man had enough damage done to his head to cause a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI).
I am surpirsed that he was released from the hospital before they had the cat scan results.
Some of his reported systems are what is seen in brain injury, not to mention confusion.
He could have died from an accidental drug overdose, but did the autopsy rule out brain injury?
Did the cat scan rule out brain damage?
The man is still entitled, as is his family, to a comprehensive accounting of his passing. I don't know if he got that or not.
To the poster who posted at 11:21 AM. It is not, "he could have" died. He DID die of an overdose. The autopsy report says so. Autopsies are performed by qualified medical examiners for the State of New Hampshire. The Abate family was free to have a second autopsy performed at their own expense, by an examiner of their choosing. Sorry folks, this isn’t a big police conspiracy. I know that sounds more exciting, but this isn’t Hollywood.
To: April 2 8:00 PM
You seem to be an expert on medical examiners in NH. I am not but I do know a few of them. I think that you may have read too many Hollywood magazines. Did you read what the autopsy said or are you taking the word of a reporter who was told what was on the death certificate?
Normally people with brain injury are held for surveillance, in case their brain swells.
Remember a few months back the movie star, Lean Nissan's wife, who incurred a minor bump on the head while skiing and died a few hours later. She had a brain injury, but I don’t know what was on the death certificate.
I don't know why you think I am a police conspiracist. Never came to mind.
I just think that it is possible that the man suffered a brain injury, which may have resulted in an impairment of the executive functioning of his brain, which allowed for an accidental overdose of drugs.
This whole story is sad. Nobody should have there life taken away from them. Let this be a lesson to all the kids that think it is just one time.
Would a person who had a traumatic brain injury be able to operate a motor vehicle? If not why was he able to drive?
You seem to be an expert on TBI in NH. I am not but I do know a few of them, because they are my fellow combat brother-in-arms from the Iraq War. They have confirmed TBI.
It seems you are saying that you do not believe what was reported in the news article, that he died of an overdose? Did you believe the first news report, when it said he died by a head injury (it appears you do), even though that report was based on conjecture and no factual evidence from the autopsy report?
I find it ironic, that the Eagle Tribune article regarding Mr. Abate’s death from an assault was on the front page, but the real news story regarding his death was on page four. Sounds like sensationalism. Sensationalism is so much more exciting than the facts.
Why are you so argumentative?
I am saying that the man could have died of an accidental overdose of drugs, possibly as a result of having sufferred a severe brain assault.
Some people with TBI can drive. It depends on what part of the brain is damaged. Often this isn't diagnosed properly in the short term.
I hope that the VNA is taking care of the service members that you know who have had a TBI. As we know veterans don't receive very good health care from our government.
I am a close friend of Shawn. The main point of what is frustrating the family and friends of Shawn is that he was brutally attacked in a home invasion 6 days before his death. Paige Maltby of Portsmouth is a witness that he was attacked, as she ran OUT of the house as the attackers ran IN, 2 of them, with a golf club and a billy club. (She did not call the police for help!)
UNLIKE some "reports", these attackers were NOT at the home earlier. Shawn was sleeping when he was clubbed over the head with the golf club..it is amazing that did not kill him immediately! It split his head open , from front to back, 47 stitches.
And UNLIKE some "reports", there was NOT an "altercation" with them before hand.
Don't people realize that reporters who report the "news" warp it and make stuff up? The first story had quotes that were NEVER made!
Within the next 6 days, he fainted twice and was constantly dizzy. He went for help at LGH on Wednesday, March 3rd. They did a CT scan, but told him he would have to wait 2 weeks for results.
He died 3 days later.
Now, YES, Shawn did some drugs...No one is arguing that. Did he do them the day he died? The medical examiner found TRACES of drugs in his system...She has NOT stated that there was enough for an overdose! AGAIN, "reports" in the news are b.s. Wish I could put up the death certificate for all of you to see.
The WHOLE question here, is that now that Shawn is gone... Why haven't his attackers been arrested? NOT for murder...but for AT LEAST home invasion and assault with intent to kill.
He CORRECTLY identified one of them out of a police lineup at the Lawrence police station. One of the attackers name is Freddy (last name unknown to me) and he lives in South Lawrence.
So, let's please focus on what the problem is... The police have not arrested violent, home invasion attackers. Blame the Atkinson police, the Plaistow police or the Lawrence police...but once a victim of a home invasion identifies his attackers, should they not then be arrested right then?
As one last note, Shawn had troubles in the past...He struggled with a lot...He did drugs sometimes to help cope with things when nothing else worked...WE ALL have done things that society tells us we should not have. WE have ALL done things we are sorry about. NOT ONE OF US who is reading this is innocent. So, please think about that before you throw the 1st stone. He was a wonderful, loving, funny, loyal friend, brother and son.
Thanks for that real good info. Better go get all current police reports about Shawn to see what got wrote down. If they cross out your info on ya, thats not allowed, anywhere, anytime so says a judge and police workin OUTSIDE this here wicked town! Heh, heh
Did ya read this one?
"The call logs were produced only after a Court Order, and were hand written on a legal pad, and heavily redacted. The prosecutor tried to make the claim that there was "personal information like social security numbers in there". The Court's response was "then someone needs to teach the police dept. how to keep records." Court ORDERED the "original hand written, UNREDACTED log" to be produced. It wasn't. What was then produced was a typewritten log with some of the previously redacted time slots missing. The Court ordered the case dismissed because the prosecution and the police dept. could not produce simple discovery."
And it ain't supposed to take a court order to get your stuff. Heh, heh.
I think that it is time to let this story go. It sounds as if there are no charges if there is no victim to testify. The coroners report put an end to the speculation. There is no case to be fought here. Let the dead rest in peace.
An arrest? The Keystone Cops have got piorities. Aunt Millie needs help. Can't get off the toilet and chief says
GET THERE AND SAVE THAT ELDERLY DONATION
To Anon April 4, 2010 4:20 PM
What does the toxicology report say the cause of death was? The Atkinson Police Dept. says it was an overdose of drugs. It would be important to know if that is stated as cause of death in the toxicology report. If not, than it could be cause for a lawsuit against the Town of Atkinson.
Please post the actual cause of death here on this blog.
It wouldn't be the first time our police chief hasn't told the truth, and it won't be the last.
My condolences to the family and hope they get this issued resolved soon. There is a time limit to file suit.
JMHO
You can submit public documents to the atkinson taxpayers website and the Mods will post them.
Publish documents to:
http://www.atkinsontaxpayers.org/
The report in the newspaper about Shawn dieing from a drug overdose was not only wrong, but it is shockingly disturbing that officials supposedly release that "information". I have seen the autopsy results AND the toxicology reports...Shawn did NOT have any lethal doses of ANY drugs in his system. He DID however have a cracked skull with 47 stitches and was awaiting a CAT scan result since he was fainting several times after being horribly assaulted...he was sleeping when 2 men entered his house and attacked him with a gold club and billy club. They left the golf club behind as they ran out. The Atkinson police never took finger prints NOR did they question the witness to the invasion - Paige Maltby - who saw the attackers and then ran without calling for help.
They refuse to pursue the attackers...Farrar did not like Shawn because Shawn did not care for the Atkinson police force...He DID take drugs now and then, BUT that whole stupid story about the teenage "drinking party" was TOTALLY embellished by the police.
ANYONE who lives in Atkinson KNOWS that the police lie and that they are corrupt. And ANYONE with a working brain knows that you can NOT believe "news reports".
The people who know the truth are his close family members, his close friends and the attackers. The police know, but will lie to their last day.
And, to the person who asked why Shawn's children were not mentioned... He did have children, arguably the younger one is suspected of not being his...However, they were not mentioned for very good reasons. THEY know why they were not mentioned...And they will have to answer to God on that one.
Final thought: Lawyer, doctor, construction worker, car salesman (Shawn's occupation)...apparently it does not matter what you do for work...If you did drugs at some time in your life (And MANY of us did them as teenagers,experimented once or twice, TELL THE TRUTH! ), then you can be attacked in your sleep and die from having your head cracked open...and the police do not care about justice.
The newspapers will come up with bizarre stories, misquotes and out right lies...And the police will make up outright lies to cover themselves for being incompetent (not taking fingerprints from the weapon, not questioning witnesses, ignoring the fact that Shawn identified one of the attackers in a line up, etc).
And if anyone stands up for the police or tries to say that drug use had anything to do with this, then they obviously are either an Atkinson policeman or are related to one.
Oh, lastly, Shawn did NOT have a party and then the attackers came back. He had a small get-to-gether, the attackers were NOT there. They came much later that night while he was asleep.
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