SALEM, Mass. (Court TV) — A Massachusetts woman was acquitted of charges she assaulted her husband, after a jury believed her claims that she was the victim and was only defending herself.

Lucy Medina was found not guilty of charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon after using a knife to cut the throat of her husband, Luis Medina. He survived the attack, but according to Lucy’s defense, her husband “has never given his account of what occurred” when he was stabbed on July 17, 2020.

Luis Medina did not appear on the witness stand, but his attorney, Murat Erkan, was called to testify. While on the stand, Erkan told the jury that Luis confessed to him that he frequently and violently beat his wife.

Ekhart was not allowed to discuss, as part of his testimony, a letter sent to the court, from Luis, that says, “Mr. Medina firmly believes that if Defendant was the source of his injuries, she acted in self-defense. He is adamant that Defendant committed no crime.”

Lucy’s coworkers also took the stand during her trial, describing her coming to work with bruises frequently that she would blame on falls; frequently, after the bruises appeared, flowers would be sent to her at work. Coworkers said Lucy never seemed happy about the flowers.

DAILY TRIAL HIGHLIGHTS

DAY 4 – 3/6/26

• The defense and prosecution delivered closing arguments.
• The jury began its deliberations.

DAY 3 – 3/5/26

• Ruth Nunez, Lucy’s cousin, who also worked with her
  • Saw bruising and other signs of physical abuse.
  • Lucy blamed falls, often missed work and blamed it on sleeplessness.
• Kirsey Roberts, Lucy’s friend and coworker
  • Met Lucy in a community job training program.
  • Saw bruises; Lucy blamed falls and medication.
  • Luis would send Lucy flowers after bruises would appear, but Lucy never seemed happy about them.
• Rosita Urena, Lucy’s coworker
  • Saw bruising on Lucy, including a severe instance of black-and-blue injuries that looked like a “car accident.”
  • Lucy often missed work.
  • Luis would send “beautiful” flowers to the office after Lucy showed up with bruises; Lucy was never happy about them.

DAY 2 – 3/4/26

• Francis Nova, Fmr. Lawrence Police Dept. patrolman
  • Dispatched to the Medina home after 911 call.
  • Jurors saw photos showing a trail of blood leading from the patio to the basement door; a grill was knocked over and the patio was in disarray.
  • The judge had to call a brief recess after the defendant’s crying caused a disruption.
  • Photos showed Lucy covered in blood.
  • Lucy was taken into custody and brought to the police department. During transport, she was distraught and crying in the backseat.
• Josh Dushame, Det. Sgt. Lawrence Police Dept. (Ret)
  • Responded to the Medina home after the 911 call.
  • Saw Lucy sitting on a small wall in the backyard, covered from head to toe in blood; he described Lucy as upset and crying.
  • Photos show bottles of alcohol on the patio.
  • Photos shown to the jury showed a kitchen knife with a black handle and a long silver blade.
  • On cross, Dushame said insufficient fingerprints were found on the knife for a match to anyone.
• Det. Kevin Nigohosian, Lawrence Police Dept.
  • Responded to the hospital to speak to Luis Medina, but he was unable to speak because of medical equipment in his throat.
  • Spoke to Maria Sanchez, but was unable to find other witnesses to speak to.
• Brian Cunningham, Massachusetts State Police Crime Lab, Supervisor, DNA Unit
  • Responded to the Medina home as a crime scene analyst.
    • Took swabs of red-brown stains
  • Later responded to the police department, where he was asked to examine Lucy. He noted she was covered with red-brown stains on her hands, arms, face and legs and had injuries to her hands, face, and forearms.
• The jury saw the defendant’s police interview.
  • Lucy told officers she had been drinking shots of tequila.
  • Lucy said that she and her husband had planned to cook outside when they got into an argument over their children.
  • Lucy told officers that she stabbed Luis after he hit her multiple times.
  • WATCH: Reluctant Victim Assault Trial: Jury Sees Lucy Medina’s Police Interview
• Jesus Melendez, EMT, Lawrence General Hospital
  • Dispatched to the Medina home after the 911 call.
  • Saw Lucy, screaming, covered in blood.
  • Luis was lying facedown on the ground, with lots of blood around him. He was breathing but his eyes were closed and he wasn’t able to talk.
  • Luis was placed on a stretcher and taken out of the home and placed into the ambulance.
  • In the ambulance, they were able to determine the source of the blood was a cut on the left side of his neck; Melendez described it as a puncture wound.

DAY 1 – 3/3/26

• Asst. District Attorney Patrick Burke delivered opening statements for the Commonwealth.
  • Urged jurors to question whether Lucy took reasonable steps to leave the argument with her husband rather than attack him.
  • Said that Lucy “made a choice” to get a knife and stab the victim in the neck.
• Hank Brennan delivered his opening statement for the defense.
  • Lucy was the victim of abuse for years, leading to her state of mind on July 17.
  • The government doesn’t know what happened in the home that night; photos show that Lucy was being beaten and unable to walk away.
  • Lucy did what she had to do to survive.
  • WATCH: Reluctant Victim Assault Trial: Opening Statements
• Maria Sanchez, Neighbor
  • Sanchez lived above the Medinas, and testified through an interpreter.
  • Sanchez said she did not hear the Medinas fighting or arguing, and did not observe the incident on July 17.
  • When the police arrived on July 17, Lucy was in disarray, bloody and was crying hysterically.
• Sgt. William Colantuoni, Lawrence Police Dept.
  • The jury heard the defendant’s hysterical 911 call.
  • The jury saw photos taken of Lucy’s face, hands and clothing after the incident, which were covered in blood.
    • WATCH: Lucy Medina’s Bloody Face, Hands Shown to Jury
  • On cross, Hank Brennan questioned Colantuoni repeatedly on whether he knew how the defendant got each of her injuries that was photographed.
    • Colantuoni repeatedly said that Lucy told them she thought she had been punched a couple of times.
  • Colantuoni said he did not know about the claim that Luis told a trauma doctor at the hospital that he had slit his own throat. He also did not know about the letter Luis’ attorney sent to the court or about statements made by Lucy’s friends about the abuse she suffered in her marriage.