Trial: Penny McGee Claims Self-Defense, Daughter Testifies Her Mother Was “Frantic, Erratic, Angry”
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Trial: Penny McGee Claims Self-Defense, Daughter Testifies Her Mother Was “Frantic, Erratic, Angry”
McGee, a Rhode Island native, had a career in politics, finance, and real estate, and she married Andrew Savitz, a former top consultant to Massachusetts Governor and presidential candidate Michael Dukakis.
READ BACKGROUND ABOUT THIS CASE HERE
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe two were married for 15 years, and it ended in a contentious divorce.
On a January night in 2020, Savitz died. Prosecutors claim McGee was responsible for his death and the star witness for the state in the couple’s daughter Zuzzie Savitz.
Zuzzie Savitz gave damaging testimony against McGee on Tuesday, calling her mother’s behavior “frantic, erratic, [and] angry.”
In the opening argument, the prosecutor, Jennifer Blair, Assistant District Attorney for Norfolk County, told the court, "You're going to hear from Andrew Savitz's daughter, Zuzzie Savitz. She's going to tell you what she saw happen that night on January 28th of 2020. Zuzzie heard her mother come over to the home at 40 Meadowbrook Road in Brookline, where she was living with her father and her younger brother, Harry. Zuzi Savage heard her parents arguing that night when her mother came to the house, and she could hear yelling and screaming, and when she went downstairs, she could see that her parents were in an argument.”
“She heard something break which we later found out the court will find out was a ceramic bowl. You'll see pictures of that broken bowl but Zuzzie is going to tell you she heard something break and she went back upstairs to get her phone to call 911," said Blair in her opening statement.
“She's going to tell you that she got her phone from her bedroom, called 911, and as she was coming down the stairs, she could see her parents in the hallway by the end of the stairs at the house towards the front door,” said Blair.
“And she saw her mother hitting and shoving her father against a wall where there was a sliding closet. And you're going to hear the 911 call, Your Honor. You're going to hear Zuzzie telling her parents to stop,” Prosecutor Blair added. “And then in the middle of that phone call, Zuzzie’s going to tell you she heard her father, she saw her father collapse to the ground. And Ms. McGee started trying to give him CPR. Zuzzie was calling the ambulance to come quickly.”
Blair added, “The paramedics arrived. The Brookline police arrived. You're going to hear from the paramedic. You're going to hear from the responding officer from the Brookline police, all of whom tried to administer CPR and tried to resuscitate Mr. Savitz. Mr. Savitz was brought to Beth Israel Hospital, where you're going to hear from the emergency room doctor that also treated him and tried to revive him, and ultimately pronounced him deceased at 12:14 AM in the early morning hours of January 29 of 2020."
Blair continued in the opening remarks, “Andrew Savitz was in ill health. His diabetes and cardiovascular disease was severe and Penelope McGee knew it. Despite Mr. Savitz's condition, Ms. McGee went over to his house on the night of January 28, 2020.
"She was yelling and screaming, hitting and shoving him. His heart couldn't handle the stress of the altercation and he collapsed and passed away. After you hear all of this evidence, Your Honor, I am confident that you will find Penelope McGee guilty as charged," said Blair.
McGee’s Attorney Claims It Was Self Defense
McGee’s attorney, Larry Tipton, disputed the claims in his opening argument.
The relationship had become very contentious at the end of 2019.
Savitz had somewhat ridiculed Ms. McGee about [her] eviction for Randolph Street, said Tipton.
It was a home owned by the Savitz family, and McGee had been allowed to live in it for some time, but she had been evicted a month earlier.
“And that is when he told Ms. McGee to get out of the house, and he raised his voice, and he demanded that she leave.," said Tipton. McGee got up from the living room and reached for her coat, which was laid over the back of the couch, and before she could reach it, Tipton said Savitz grabbed her at some point and pushed her into the living room wall said McGee’s attorney Tipton.
“Then soon after, there was a yelling match where Mr. Savitz demanded she leave, and began to push into the kitchen area, pushed her against some tables that contained, as the bowl smashed onto the floor, and he continued to push, and he continued to grab her,” said Tipton in his remarks.
Tipton claims that Savitz repeatedly pushed McGee to get her out of his home.
“And now he had [ahold] of her body. He had [ahold] of her hair. And he was simply trying to get her out of the house, and she was moving backwards, not understanding what was happening,” said Tipton.
“And as she tried to defend herself, Savitz collapsed right near the front door. He fell in the ground, said Tipton, who claims the evidence will show that McGee was defending herself.
Daughter’s Testimony Blows Up McGee’s Claims
Zuzzie Savitz's testimony claimed that it was her mother was the aggressor and was hitting her father.
The daughter said she came downstairs and that her parents were yelling and fighting. And she called 911.
When Blair asked what she saw as the fight escalated, Zuzzie Savitz said her mother was “shoving him.”
Blair asked, “And where was she shoving him?”
"His chest...multiple, but I don't remember the exact number," said Zuzzie Savitz.
“And besides shoving, did her hands touch him in any other way,” asked Blair.
"Yeah, his face..she slapped him,” said Zuzzie Savitz.
Then Zuzzie Savitz said her father collapsed.
McGee’s attorney, Tipton, claims that Zuzzie Savitz has changed her testimony from earlier statements with the police.