Glen Head convict faces death penalty

Christopher DiMeo, the Glen Head native convicted last week of murdering two people in a Connecticut jewelry store robbery, is trying to avoid the death penalty by getting an old Nassau County conviction vacated.

Wednesday in Nassau County Court, lawyers for DiMeo, 29, began calling witnesses in their effort to get the prior felony conviction overturned. DiMeo, a heroin addict, pleaded guilty to trying to steal a video game from a Best Buy store in Westbury on Sept. 26, 2001, according to court records. During his attempted escape, a store security guard tackled DiMeo after a tussle, according to court testimony.

DiMeo's guilty plea to the attempted robbery in January 2002 is the prior felony conviction that prosecutors in Connecticut say makes him eligible for the death penalty when paired with the double murder conviction in Connecticut according to court testimony.

DiMeo's other murder conviction and life sentence without parole for the murder of Glen Head jewelry store employee Thomas Renison in December 2004 is not the focus of the Nassau County Court hearing. The New York murder conviction could not be used as the prior felony because he was not convicted of it before committing the Connecticut murders.

Defense attorney Bruce A. Barket of Garden City is trying to show that DiMeo's legal representation in the 2001 attempted robbery case was ineffective, which would be potential grounds to vacate the attempted robbery conviction.

Wednesday, Barket called to the witness stand Lloyd J. Nadel, who represented DiMeo in 2001. Barket questioned Nadel about how thorough an investigation he did of the case against DiMeo at the time, including peppering Nadel with questions about whether the lawyer ever viewed a store videotape that recorded DiMeo stealing a video game.

Nadel defended his legal work, saying that he never viewed the tape because he had worked out a plea agreement with prosectors resolving the attempted robbery case and a separate burglary case.

Testimony resumes Thursday.