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Background: Marcel Lagrange Jr. appears at his sentencing hearing remotely (via WMTW). Inset: Brittney Cockrell and Michael Hayter (Facebook).
A Maine man has been sentenced to life imprisonment after admitting to the murder of a couple in front of their young children.
Marcel Lagrange Jr., aged 26, participated in his hearing via video link on Thursday, where a judge issued a life sentence for the shooting deaths of Michael Hayter, 41, and Brittney Cockrell, 37. Additionally, Lagrange received a further 50-year sentence for the attempted murder of the couple’s 11-year-old son, Mason.
On the evening of June 19, 2023, Mason and his 7-year-old sister, Maddie, were with their parents when, according to prosecutors, Lagrange sought revenge after being spurned by a woman. This led to the tragic events that unfolded.
Local CBS affiliate WGME reported from the courtroom that prosecutor Jennifer Ackerman described how Lagrange, after being rejected, ominously declared that “multiple people would die because of what she was doing.” He subsequently targeted Hayter and Cockrell, ambushing them as they sat in their car outside a Portland Pie pizza establishment.
Law & Crime reviewed an affidavit in which Mason recounted the harrowing incident, stating that Lagrange appeared “out of nowhere” and shot his father in the neck. Cockrell attempted to flee but was pursued and shot by Lagrange. Maddie recounted to police that her mother was “running, screaming, and pointing” before being fatally shot. Police later discovered Cockrell with multiple gunshot wounds in the parking lot. Mason mentioned that Lagrange also attempted to shoot him, but he managed to evade the bullets by ducking.
During the sentencing, Jeff McKinney, the father of Cockrell and the grandfather of the children, read a statement from Mason. It conveyed the terrifying moment, stating, “There was just enough time so Maddie and I could duck.”
A third child, Cadence Cockrell, who was not in the car on the night of the shooting, said, “He killed my parents. And I hope he gets the two life sentences he deserves. No parole for taking my parents, for my siblings having to watch.”
Lagrange expressed remorse for the double murder and attempted murder, telling the court, “I was not in my right mind that day. I had stopped taking my medication and was drinking and smoking weed, and not getting the mental health that I needed.”
Lagrange was sentenced to life in prison for the murders of Cockrell and Hayter and 50 years for the attempted murder of their son.
