Judge orders trial in fatal attack on family

FARMINGTON HILLS (AP) -- A judge ordered a murder trial last Friday for a young man accused of breaking into a Detroit-area home and killing his father in a baseball-bat attack that also severely injured his mother and brother. The April 16 attack in Farmington Hills shocked the community because of the extreme violence and the arrest of a family member. It also contributed to a crackdown on the retail sale of so-called synthetic marijuana after a witness said Tucker Cipriano smoked it before the rampage. Oakland County 47th District Court Judge Marla Parker found probable cause to send Cipriano, 19, and a buddy, Mitchell Young, 20, to trial on charges of murder and attempted murder. Robert Cipriano, 52, was bludgeoned to death after a pre-dawn attack at his home. His wife, Rose, and a son, Sal, were injured but survived. Two other children inside the home were not physically hurt. Police said Tucker Cipriano incriminated himself and Young after their arrest. A detective, Jason McDonald, said he informed Cipriano about his father's death. He "began crying, put his head down between his knees and asked for a garbage can because he thought he was going to be sick," McDonald testified. The elder Cipriano was a financial manager in the Dearborn school district, one of the largest in the Detroit area. Published: Tue, Jun 12, 2012