Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

"First of all," Ferland told the jury, Gianquitti was in his bedroom when Pagano came to his door.

"Don't let him tell you otherwise," the assistant attorney general said. Establishing Gianquitti's location in the master bedroom "is important because that's where the gun is," Ferland said, suggesting Gianquitti went to the bedroom to get the gun when Pagano started banging on his door.

Gianquitti's wife, Ferland said, initially told the police she didn't see her husband carrying a gun until her left the bedroom to answer the door, but left that detail out of her written statement to police and denied it when she testified Monday.

"She's backed away from that because she understands the significance," Ferland said.

Addresssing the self-defense argument, Ferland told the jury, a homeowner is not allowed to use deadly force unless he faces imminent danger of death or great bodily harm.

Pagano, as a father, did "what any dad in (would do) when the neighbor swears at the kids," Ferland said, noting when Pagano went to Gianquitti's house he did not intend to kill Gianquitti.

"Is he going to give him the 'what for' for swearing at his kids?" Of course," Ferland said.

Pagano died from a single gunshot to the torso, according to autopsy results. Dr. Alexander Chirkov, the state's assistant medical examiner, who conducted the autopsy, testified last week that the bullet entered through Pagano's lower back and traveled at a 45-degree angle, tearing through Pagano's aorta, pancreas and liver.

As for the second shot, Ferland said, Gianquitti chose to forget the shot because it was in his best interest.

"He knew he hit (Pagano). He knew (Pagano) had a bullet in him," Ferland said. "You see, he can't remember that (the shot. If he remembers that, that demonstrates to you malice. His flimsy self-defense defense evaporates.

"So, conveniently he has no recollection of" shooting the gun a second time, Ferland said.

"That second shot is malice," he said.

Malice is one of the elements required to secure a murder conviction.

Gianquitti was indicted by a grand jury in August on charges of murder and discharging a firearm during the commission of a violent crime. He has been held at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston since his arrest.

Get the latest blog posts from the trial.

Extra:Our continuing report on the shooting of James Pagano.