A Massachusetts man allegedly killed his 80-year-old roommate over an argument while preparing their Thanksgiving meal.
Richard Lombardi, 65, is accused of involuntary manslaughter after admitting to shoving his roommate Frank Griswold, 80, because he was standing too close to their food in the kitchen.
Lombardi called 911 to their home in Marshfield, Massachusetts on Wednesday, where police said they found Griswold laying unconscious in a pool of blood.
The alleged killer told police that his elderly roommate was prone to sneezing, and had warned him not to go near to the food as he was preparing it.
He said he even drew a physical barrier using salt and pepper, but when Griswold crossed the threshold, Lombardi said he lost his temper and grabbed the pensioner by the collar.
He then ‘threw (Griswold) to the right, tossing him over the side’, prosecutor Joseph Presley said at Lombardi’s first court appearance Thursday.
‘The defendant did surmise that Mr. Griswold’s feet got tangled up and that he fell and hit his head on the floor,’ Presley said.
Lombardi’s attorney said the two men had been friends since the 1990s and lived together since 2001. He said his client was ‘devastated’ when he found out Griswold had died, and was only told the next morning.
Richard Lombardi, 65, is accused of involuntary manslaughter after admitting to shoving his roommate Frank Griswold, 80, over an argument about preparing their Thanksgiving meal
Lombardi was charged by the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office with involuntary manslaughter and assault and battery on a person over the age of 60 — causing serious injury.
He claimed that Griswold’s death was an accident, and said it came after the two had an argument earlier in the day about their Thanksgiving preparations.
Lombardi revealed to detectives that they argued over Griswold’s habit of sneezing, and told his longtime roommate that he didn’t want him to ‘contaminate’ the food ordered him to stay out of the kitchen, court records said.
After leaving a salt barrier the 80-year-old was not to cross, Lombardi said he left the kitchen and returned later to find Griswold washing dishes.
The sight of Griswold ignoring him and washing up right next to their food angered Lombardi, and he confessed to grabbing the elderly man and throwing him to the side.
Court records noted that Griswold was found ‘laying face-up on the floor in the kitchen in a pool of blood’, and also had several cuts on his face.
Presley added that it ‘appeared that the victim had sustained a broken nose as well as an injury to his neck.’
Lombardi’s attorney said the two men had been friends since the 1990s and lived together since 2001 (their home in Marshfield, Massachusetts is pictured)
Lombardi admitted to shoving his elderly roommate but claimed it was an accident, and his attorney said he has been left ‘devastated’ by the loss of his longtime friend and roommate
Lombardi’s attorney, Marshall Johnson, told the court at his first hearing: ‘It sounds like an accident based on what the evidence was that was revealed in court.’
‘What I heard and what I’m sure some of you heard in the courtroom was as close to an accident and nothing more as I have heard in a long time.’
Lombardi has been left devastated by the death of his friend of over 30 years, Johnson said, adding that they first knew each other in the 1990s when they worked in finance at Charles River Management.
He said Griswold previously served as the CIO of insurance firm John Hancock, but since the pandemic Lombardi had been helping him with most of his daily life.
‘To the extent that friends care for each other, yes. I wouldn’t say that he was a medical care proxy or personal care attendant, anything like that,’ Johnson added.
Johnson said police didn’t even tell the 65-year-old Griswold had died.
‘He’s resigned,’ Johnson told WBTS on Friday.
‘He’s shocked because no one had told him that his friend had passed away until I told him this morning. So naturally that’s had quite a devastating effect on him mentally.’
Lombardi was held without bail, and his next court appearance was scheduled for December 4.
