Residents of Newton, Massachusetts plan to meet Wednesday night to discuss the triple murder that rocked the quiet community over the weekend.
The community meeting will be held at 7:00 pm in the Horace Mann Elementary School Auditorium at 225 Nevada St. A counselor from the Riverside Trauma Center will give a short presentation and help lead a community conversation.
Jill D’Amore, 73, and her husband Bruno D’Amore, 74, were found dead at their home in Newton, along with Jill’s mother, Lucia Arpino, 97, after they failed to report to a celebration of Bruno’s 50th wedding anniversary at Our Lady Help of Christians Church on Sunday.
“This is such a difficult time in our community,” Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller said in a statement announcing Wednesday’s community meeting. “The loss of these three individuals and the loss of our sense of security has been deeply upsetting.”
Christopher Ferguson, 41, pleaded not guilty Tuesday in Newton District Court to one count of murder in the death of Jill D’Amore, along with two counts of assault and one count of robbery. Additional charges in the deaths of Bruno D’Amore and Arpino are expected after those autopsies are completed.
Jill D’Amore had 32 blows and stab wounds to her upper body, including her head and face, prosecutors said in court.
Ferguson, also of Newton, was arrested Monday but appears to have had no other connection to the victims, prosecutors said. Investigators have yet to identify a motive in the killings.
Judge Mary Beth Heffernan ordered Ferguson held without bond until a probable cause hearing on July 25. During Tuesday’s arraignment, at least eight relatives of the victims listened quietly in court as prosecutors detailed their investigation. They left without speaking to journalists.
A mass was held Tuesday night, but reporters were not allowed inside.
“It was very heartfelt and sincere,” said Debbie Sylvester, who attended the Mass. “I hope it helps the family.”
“It could be anybody’s grandmother, aunt or uncle,” added Paul Hurney. “It’s important to be here to show your support for the family, for the community.”
“Difficult times reveal character, the character of the people here is… love, faith, caring for each other, they have not run away from uncomfortable feelings, but have embraced their friends, and I couldn’t be more proud them,” said Father Dan Riley, pastor of the church.
Riley added that Cardinal Sean O’Malley of the Archdiocese of Boston told the pope about the story.
“He and the Pope have asked for individual prayers for this family, the love has been immense,” he said.
Family members remembered the victims in a letter to the church community earlier this week.
“Bruno was known for his great voice and exuberant personality,” and for being treated as “head cook” at picnics, Paul and Ginny Arpino, who were related to the victims, wrote in the letter.
Jill D’Amore, they said, had taken on the ministry of beautifying the church grounds.
“Without a single day of liturgical training, she simply followed her heart, tending the flowers and decorating for the liturgical seasons,” they wrote.
A friend discovered the victims in a room shortly after they failed to show up for a 10 a.m. mass Sunday, prosecutors said. The friend called the police, who discovered signs of forced entry through a window. Investigators found bare footprints on the tile floor, along with drops of blood and fingerprints.
Surveillance video from a nearby home showed a shirtless and shoeless man staggering not far from the D’Amores’ home shortly before 5:30 a.m., prosecutors said. Several police officers identified the man as Ferguson, whose prints matched bloody prints found at the home, he said.
Investigators visited Ferguson’s father, who acknowledged that a photo he was shown might be of his son, according to charging documents. They then visited a former girlfriend of Ferguson’s, who detailed the mental health challenges she has faced since February. They eventually visited the house he shared with his sister and arrested him, the documents show. Ferguson was taken to Saint Elizabeth Medical Center for evaluation on him.
The Associated Press contributed to this article.
