Suspect in murder of tech CEO Pava LaPere fights to suppress statement to police ahead of trial
BALTIMORE -- Jason Billingsley, charged in the murder of 26-year-old EcoMap Tech CEO Pava LaPere, appeared in a Baltimore courtroom Thursday where his lawyer fought to suppress statements Billingsley gave to police following the brutal crime.
The defense alleged to Judge Robert Taylor that police misstated Billingsley's Miranda rights and his videotaped statement was not freely made.
In court for a motions hearing in the case of Jason Billingsley, charged with the murder of tech CEO Pava LaPere. The defense wants to suppress a statement Billingsley gave, but the detective involved was unavailable this morning so it’s been pushed back to this afternoon @wjz
— Mike Hellgren (@HellgrenWJZ) July 18, 2024
Prosecutors argued the defense failed to file its motion to suppress the statements promptly and said the defense had the information for months. They also argued that "police were not ambiguous with Mr. Billingsley about what his rights are."
Defense attorney Jason Rodriguez said he "didn't want to get into specifics because it's a public filing" and cited "the high-profile nature of Mr. Billingsley's case."
Miranda rights "confusion"
In court, prosecutors played a portion of the taped questioning of Billingsley at police headquarters after his arrest where police instructed Billingsley of his right to remain silent and have an attorney present. He also signed off on a paper copy of the Miranda rights.
However, Rodriguez said Billingsley "expressed great confusion" in the video and called BPD's actions "very problematic."
The judge said he was concerned when Billingsley asked, "Am I waiving my rights?" A detective explained it was "a formality" so he could speak to him and explain the charges.
The judge ultimately decided the video questioning could be used at trial and handed prosecutors a victory.
He said he had concerns about police "ad-libbing" but determined "[Billingsley] understands very much what's going on."
Billingsley's approaching trial
Billingsley, 32, is set to stand trial in August.
Prosecutors did tell Judge Taylor they submitted a large amount of discovery information to the defense. "To call it voluminous would be an understatement," an assistant state's attorney said in court.
Pava LaPere's murder
Billingsley is charged with killing LaPere at her Mount Vernon apartment building in September 2023.
Just days before the murder, he is accused of sexually assaulting, slashing and setting a woman on fire in an attack at her apartment on Edmondson Avenue in Upton.
Police said he also attacked another man in the incident, which lead to a lawsuit against the property management company that hired Billingsley as a maintenance worker.
"Jason Billingsley literally tried to take my life. He tried to take my life, and this could have been prevented," the female victim told WJZ through tears earlier this year.
Baltimore police failed to immediately alert the public Billingsley was a suspect in that rape and arson in the days before LaPere's murder.
Bill eliminates good credit for violent crimes
Prior to these alleged crimes, Billingsley was found guilty of sexual assault in 2015 and received a 30-year sentence.
Sixteen of those years were suspended, and he ultimately served seven years before being granted early release for "good time credits," which at the time could net offenders 20 days off their sentences each month.
LaPere's family fought to pass the Pava Marie LaPere Act in Maryland's General Assembly earlier this year, which eliminated sentence reduction credits in first-degree rape cases. Governor Wes Moore signed it into law in May.
"There is no way in hell that he should be on the street, and yet he had already violated parole," Frank LaPere, Pava LaPere's father, previously told WJZ.