Taunton man convicted in highway shooting

FALL RIVER, Mass. (AP) - A Taunton man has been convicted of murder for the shooting death of a passenger in car speeding along Route 24.

Jose Fernandes was found guilty Wednesday in Fall River Superior Court of charges including first-degree murder in the May 2009 death of Troy Pina.

He faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole at sentencing March 28.

Prosecutors say the 27-year-old Fernandes was in one of two vehicles driving south on the highway in Freetown from which shots were fired that killed Pina, a front-seat passenger in another moving car.

Prosecutors say the shooting stemmed from an ongoing dispute between two groups of men and Fernandes bragged about it after.

Two other men are awaiting trial.

Fernandes' lawyer said witnesses in the case were unreliable.

Cox Media Group