Man Found Innocent Collapses And Dies

A man collapsed in a courtroom as a jury declared him innocent of sexual assault, and he died several hours later in a hospital.

Francis Cavaliere, 40, began breathing heavily as he stood Friday and faced the Superior Court jury. Then he stiffened and fell to the floor. His wife, a nurse, rushed to the defense table where Cavaliere had collapsed.

Cavaliere was found innocent of charges that he had sexually assaulted a 13-year-old boy, the son of a close family friend. He had been indicted in 1992 on four counts of sexual assault and two counts of attempted sexual assault.