Jury selection got underway Monday in Hartford in the murder case against Luis Laboy, the man police say gunned down 18-year-old Julius Rivera outside a convenience store in 2023 even though the two had never met. Laboy's full trial is expected to begin December 1, and Rivera's family says they are still waiting for the case to finally reach a resolution.
A Shooting Between Strangers
Police say Laboy shot Rivera as the teenager was walking out of a convenience store in 2023, according to WFSB. Investigators have said the two men did not know each other, and the station reported that Laboy was on probation at the time of the shooting. A separate report from the Hartford Courant identified Rivera as an 18-year-old from Plainville and noted that Laboy, then 23, was the second person charged in connection with his killing, which happened in January 2023.
The case sat unsolved for roughly a year before a witness came forward with information that police say led directly to Laboy's arrest in 2024. That cooperation set the legal process in motion: Laboy was charged with murder in March 2024, the same month the Courant first reported his arrest.
Two Plea Deals, Two Rejections
Laboy has twice been offered a chance to resolve the case without a trial, and twice turned it down. The station's report from April states he rejected a 38-year plea offer that October, and WFSB reported he was later offered a 30-year deal in April 2026, which he also declined. By turning down that second offer, Laboy now faces the possibility of up to 70 years in prison if a jury convicts him at trial.
Jury selection is scheduled to continue through the week of November 9 before opening statements are expected on December 1. For Rivera's family, the slow churn of pretrial proceedings has taken an emotional toll. Rivera's family says the judicial process has been emotional and hard on them, per the same WFSB account, and that they are still waiting for a resolution nearly three years after his death.
