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Contractor guilty of manslaughter in fatal shooting of his boss

His boss owned Atlantic Coast Builders of South Florida

William Dabbs
William Dabbs

A former construction worker was found guilty in the fatal shooting of his boss.

A West Palm Beach jury convicted William Dabbs of manslaughter in the 2011 killing of Larry Modena, according to the Palm Beach Post.

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Dabbs was an employee of Modena’s construction company, Atlantic Coast Builders of South Florida. The company was based out of Dabbs’ home in Delray Beach, and Dabbs’ wife, Susan, was the office manager, the Sun Sentinel previously reported.

On Monday, a 12-person jury found that Dabbs didn’t intentionally kill his former business partner in 2011. It’s the second time Dabbs was tried for the fatal shooting. In 2015, a jury found Dabbs guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison, but an appeals court gave him a new trial two years later.

Modena helped Dabbs’ wife Susan get a restraining order against her husband, prosecutors said. And Dabbs’ attorneys said the shooting was an act of self-defense. After Dabbs refused to give Modena oxycodone, Modena allegedly pulled a gun on him, according to the Post. After Dabbs wrestled for the gun, he shot Modena five times in the back in Modena’s Lexus. [Palm Beach Post] – Katherine Kallergis

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ConstructionCrimeDelray Beach