(Credit: Manchester, NH Police Dept)
MANCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — A judge in New Hampshire denied bail Wednesday for a man accused of killing a woman following confrontations at a bar.
Justin Moura, 34, of Manchester, is charged with second-degree murder in the death of Tanya Hall. The charge carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.
Prosecutors said in a bail hearing Tuesday that Moura shot Hall in the back as her boyfriend, Jeremy Winslow, drove away from the Manchester bar on March 2. Defense attorneys said Moura accidentally fired his gun and that Winslow threatened him. Moura said the vehicle came toward him.
Moura's attorneys say he is cooperating in the case.
Judge Amy Messer wrote in her ruling that prosecutors presented evidence that Moura and Winslow had physical altercations both inside and outside of the bar. Prosecutors also presented a surveillance video showing Moura outside Winslow's vehicle, and that Moura was running after it as it was driving away.
Messer also noted prosecutors provided testimony that Moura pulled out a loaded gun and disengaged the safety mechanism prior to the firearm discharging. She said Moura went to police two days after the shooting and made statements acknowledging that he shot the gun that caused Hall's death. He gave the gun to police.
Messer said she found the state met its burden to show "the proof is evident or the presumption great" on the charge and that Moura shall be held without bail.
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