LEWISTON — A local teen charged with manslaughter in the 2018 death of 38-year-old Donald Giusti posted bail Thursday.
Emmanuel Nkurunziza Androscoggin County Jail
Emmanuel Nkurunziza, 18, remains free on $500 cash bail and a pretrial supervised release agreement after a judge signed the paperwork in 8th District Court.
Earlier this week, the judge ordered that Nkurunziza be bound over from juvenile court to be tried as an adult on the Class A felony charge, which carries a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison.
Judge Rick Lawrence’s order came more than a month after a three-day hearing at which prosecutors argued there was probable cause that Nkunrunziza had committed manslaughter when he allegedly threw a rock that hit Giusti in the head on Knox Street on the night of June 12, 2018. The defense argued the teen should remain in juvenile court on the charge.
On Thursday, Lawrence offered Nkurunziza the options of posting $1,000 cash bail with no supervision or a $10,000 lien on real estate.
Nkurunziza’s parents live in a rented apartment in Lewiston near the victim’s family. Nkurunziza has been housed since his July hearing with family friends who live outside of Lewiston and where he remains under house arrest with electronic monitoring.
Giusti of Lewiston was apparently struck by a rock and knocked to the pavement during a brawl on Knox Street, near Kennedy Park on June 12, 2018, police said. He died three days later from blunt-force trauma to his head and torso, according to a medical examiner.
Witnesses said a group of largely Somali youths clashed that night at about 10:30 p.m., with more than a dozen white men who had congregated in Kennedy Park.
Conditions of Nkurunziza’s release include no contact with more than a dozen members of the victim’s family and co-defendants.
He may only come to Lewiston for court proceedings and pretrial preparation, the judge said.
Nkurunziza must continue counseling and refrain from access to social media, the judge ordered.
A bail hearing was scheduled for Oct. 11.
Comments are not available on this story.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
