By Hank Russell
Three Nassau County juries returned guilty verdicts in three separate murder trials on September 26 in a span of less than three hours. These cases were prosecuted by the Nassau County District Attorney’s Homicide/Major Offenses Bureau. The three defendants — Thomas Massenburg, Mark Small, and Quay Sean Hines — were all found guilty on all counts after trial. The juries deliberated for approximately five hours in both the Massenburg and Small trials, and for less than two hours in the Hines trial.
Massenburg, 23, of Brooklyn, was convicted of Murder in the Second Degree (a Class A-I felony); Attempted Murder in the Second Degree and Assault in the First Degree (both Class B violent felony); and two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree (a Class C violent felony). He was accused of killing 21-year-old Rashawn Cummings and injuring another man when he shot at multiple partygoers during a Fourth of July party in 2020. He is due back for sentencing on December 5, 2024, and faces a potential maximum of 50 years to life in prison.
Small, 57, of Elmont, was convicted of Murder in the Second Degree (a Class A-I felony) and Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree (a Class C violent felony). He was accused of shooting his girlfriend, Marivel Estevez, in the head, killing her, in her Mineola penthouse apartment in July 2022. He is due back in court for sentencing on October 25, 2024, and faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
Hines, 33, was convicted of Murder in the Second Degree (a Class A-I felony) and two counts of Criminal Possession of a Weapon in the Second Degree (a Class C violent felony). He was accused of killing his ex-fiancée, Amelia Laguerre, as she walked to her car in an underground parking garage from her office in a New Hyde Park medical facility. He is due back for sentencing on October 29, 2024, and faces a potential maximum of 40 years to life in prison.
“Yesterday was a historic day for justice in Nassau County,” said Nassau County DA Anne Donnelly. “For the past few weeks, prosecutors in my Homicide Bureau have been painstakingly detailing our evidence of these defendants’ violent crimes across multiple jury trials, and yesterday afternoon after brief deliberations those juries convicted each of the defendants of murder and other charges in a whirlwind three hours in the Nassau County Courthouse. This remarkable afternoon is a testament to the compelling and formidable cases argued by the exceptional prosecutors in my office and my steadfast commitment to seeking justice for victims and ultimate accountability for defendants who violate the law.”