Opinion ID: 2494
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Murder of Dennis Cetter

Text: Yvonne Martinez, a Brooklyn prostitute, testified that sometime between 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. on November 1, 1991, Victor Acosta, whom she knew as Green Eyes, told her that he was going to catch a herb, street slang that Martinez understood to mean that Acosta was going to rob someone. [1] Soon thereafter, Acosta entered an abandoned factory building at North 10th Street and Kent Avenue and, armed with a knife, demanded money from Debra Perry, another prostitute who lived in the building, and Dennis Cetter, the man with whom Perry had spent part of the day. Perry testified that she knew Acosta from the neighborhood, having seen him almost daily for the last month, and having used drugs with him. As Acosta searched through the couple's clothing looking for money, Perry reached for a baseball bat, but Cetter took it from her and used the bat to hit Acosta. A fight ensued during which Acosta stabbed Cetter thirteen times, inflicting wounds that would ultimately cause Cetter's death. Darryl Higgs, a homeless drug user who lived with Perry at the factory and who was nearby at the time of the incident, testified to hearing Perry screaming and, moments later, seeing Acosta  whom he had known for several years as Green Eyes  flee the building. Soon after, Cetter also emerged from the building, covered in blood, and collapsed into Higgs's arms. Perry was hysterical and screaming about Green Eyes. Yvonne Martinez testified that approximately fifteen minutes after Acosta had first told her of his robbery plans, defendant returned to where they had spoken and breathlessly stated that he had just finished stabbing a guy up eight to ten times, likely killing him. Acosta gave Martinez a blood-stained knife and told her to clean it. Not wanting anything to do with the weapon, Martinez gave it to a friend, Patrick Wilson, who would give it to investigating police officers the following day, November 2. On the morning of November 3, police arrested Acosta for Cetter's murder. At a station house lineup conducted the same day, Higgs, Perry, and Martinez each positively identified Acosta as the person they had implicated in the murder. Later that day, Acosta himself admitted to a police detective that he had stabbed Cetter but explained that his actions were taken in self-defense.