40-Year Prison For New Haven Man In Tayna Rodriguez, 26, Murder: Court

From the State’s Attorney for the Judicial District of New Haven:

NEW HAVEN, CT —John P. Doyle Jr., State’s Attorney for the Judicial District of New Haven, announced that the Honorable Elpedio N. Vitale today sentenced Leon Guerrero, age 34, to 40 years in prison for the 2023 murder of Tayna Rodriguez, 26, in New Haven.

A Superior Court jury in New Haven on June 5, 2024 found Guerrero guilty of the crime of Murder in violation of Connecticut General Statutes § 53a-54a. According to evidence introduced at the trial, Guerrero shot the victim in New Haven on April 23, 2023. The incident stemmed from an altercation the defendant had with two men that did not involve the victim. Numerous family members and friends of the victim spoke at today’s sentencing in New Haven Superior Court. The court also heard from family and friends of the defendant. Judge Vitale noted the “enormous sense of grief and loss for the family” of Ms. Rodriguez, noting that her parents lost a child and her own child lost a mother. Judge Vitale noted she was “attempting to be a peacemaker” when she was “tragically shot and killed” by the defendant.

The case was investigated by the New Haven Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant State’s Attorney Gregory Borrelli and Assistant State’s Attorney Melissa R. Holmes, who were assisted by Inspector Michael Mastropetre.