Fall River man killed in alleged police chase crash was out on bail on several charges

Mickey Rivera, who was allegedly being chased by police before the crash that killed him and another man in Mashpee, was out on bail and had several run-ins with police.

Gregg Miliote from the Bristol County District Attorney’s Office put together a timeline of events on the various charges he was facing and the decisions involved.

On Friday, March 20, 2015, Fall River Police Officers responded to several 911 calls reporting shots fired in the area of Whipple and Manton Streets. Additional 911 calls reported that a person was down at the intersection of Osborne and Ridge Streets behind St. Anne’s Hospital. Officers located Anthony Carvalho (12/02/1994), who was treated on scene then transported to St. Anne’s Hospital emergency room where he was pronounced deceased.

An investigation revealed that Kevin Lara, Tavon Pires, Mickey Rivera and a Juvenile allegedly went out that evening with the intention of robbing someone. However, during the robbery of the victim, defendants Lara and Pires are accused of shooting and killing him.

Mickey Rivera was indicted in June, 2015 on the following charges:

1. Armed Assault with Intent to Rob
2. Attempted Armed/Masked Robbery
3. Conspiracy Armed/Masked Robbery
4. Witness Intimidation – misleading police

–On July 2, 2015, Rivera was arraigned in Fall River Superior Court. Judge Raymond P. Veary set bail at $35,000 Cash / $350,000 Surety

–On January 12, 2016, additional conditions were added for the defendant to stay away from his co-defendants and witnesses in the case.

–On December 5, 2016, the defendant filed a Motion for Reduction of Bail Due to Changed Circumstances. The motion, which the Commonwealth opposed, was denied on December 22, 2016 by Judge Veary.

–On September 19, 2017, less than a month after the Supreme Judicial Court’s decision in the Hampden County case of Commonwealth v Brangan, the defendant filed a Motion to Reduce Bail to Amount that the Defendant Can Afford. The motion was allowed, over the Commonwealth’s objection, by Judge Thomas McGuire. Judge McGuire reduced the defendant’s bail from $35,000 to $1,000. The defendant then posted bail. His next court date for this matter was scheduled to be tomorrow for a pretrial hearing in Fall River Superior Court.

The SJC’s Brangan decision instructed lower court judges to set bail at levels defendants can afford. In the same decision, however, the SJC did state that judges could still set higher cash bail in cases as long as judges provide their reasoning for bail amounts that are beyond a defendant’s ability to afford.

“I was very disappointed the court reduced the defendants bail so drastically, based on the defendant’s criminal record and the serious nature of the charges,” Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III said.

Rivera was also involved in a 2015 Taunton stabbing case.

Rivera was charged in Taunton District Court in March, 2015 with armed and masked home invasion, armed assault and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon. The charges were connected to a stabbing of two women in Taunton involving several different defendants. The case against Rivera was dismissed by a Taunton District Court judge in December, 2015 because the victims could not identify Rivera and because the only other independent witness was granted a fifth amendment privilege in the case. This left the commonwealth with no good faith basis to go forward with the charges against Rivera. The Taunton stabbing incident occurred prior to the Fall River homicide.