Manhunt ends with discovery of gay lawyer's body (15071)

A prominent Leominster, Mass., lawyer apparently shot and killed his live-in boyfriend, sparking a daylong manhunt that ended after the suspect turned the gun on himself, prosecutors said Tuesday.

The body of Stephen M. CampoBasso, 53, was discovered Monday night in the woods off Route 140 in Princeton. He was shot once in the head, and the weapon was found at the scene, Worcester district attorney John Conte said.

CampoBasso became the target of a manhunt after the shooting Monday morning at his Leominster home. The victim, 29-year-old Ryan F. Curtis, lived with Campobasso, said Liz Stammo, a spokeswoman for Conte. Friends told the Telegram & Gazette of Worcester that Curtis had moved in with CampoBasso last summer and that the two had planned to marry next fall.

The CampoBasso family is a fixture in the community, Leominster mayor Dean J. Mazzarella said. Stephen CampoBasso hosted an election night cable access program and was an active member of the Massachusetts Lesbian and Gay Bar Association, representing gay men in civil rights cases. His brother Peter served as assistant city solicitor in Leominster and was a city councilor. Another brother, Vincent, also practices law in the city, and one of his sisters hosts a cooking program on cable access television. "I can't imagine the grief these two families are going through," Mazzarella said.

Paul Giorgio, former president of Worcester Publishing, called Curtis "a great, great person." He said Curtis had worked for him for about three years, selling advertising for Worcester Magazine. Curtis left the company about two years ago to study nursing and had been working at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, Giorgio told the Telegram. (AP)