The verdict: Pelley sheds tears upon conviction
E/C Annie
verdict was reached.
annie
Article published Jul 21, 2006
The verdict: Pelley sheds tears upon conviction
SOUTH BEND - From start to finish, Chief Deputy Prosecutor Frank
Schaffer said the case against Jeffrey Pelley was a jumbled jigsaw
puzzle.
After three days of deliberations and 17 years after the crimes, a St.
Joseph Superior Court jury determined Pelley himself was the missing
piece.
The five women and seven men found Pelley guilty of killing four family
members before he went to his prom on April 29, 1989.
The deliberations lasted 31 hours, from 4 p.m. Wednesday until 9 p.m.
Friday.
Pelley, 34, cringed and began to cry as Judge Roland W. Chamblee
announced the guilty verdicts about 9:30 p.m.
Pelley's wife, Kim, sobbed as she came to the defense table to hug
Pelley as Chamblee polled the jurors individually to confirm the
verdicts. Pelley then whispered into his wife's ear as the two cried
and held hands.
Pelley was handcuffed and taken into custody after spending a few
minutes inside an empty courtroom with his wife, sister and lawyers.
Despite the lack of physical evidence, the jury determined Pelley, as a
17-year-old, used a shotgun to kill his father, the Rev. Robert Pelley,
38; stepmother, Dawn, 32; and stepsisters, Janel, 8, and Jolene, 6.
Sentencing is set for 1 p.m. Sept. 15. Pelley faces up to 260 years in
prison.
The prosecution argued Pelley committed the crimes inside the
family's Lakeville home during a 20-minute window after pre-prom
visitors had left and before leaving to pick up his date.
Pelley's motive, the prosecution said, were father-son disagreements
about prom weekend restrictions.
The prosecution prevailed despite the challenges of a 17-year-old
circumstantial case that was filed by a previous administration.
"We knew we had an uphill battle the whole way because of the age of
the case," Schaffer said. "I think more than anything else it's
kind of a vindication for the families and the victims."
The defense was firm in its belief that the lack of evidence would lead
to Pelley's acquittal.
"Two weeks ago I was asked why I didn't request a change of venue
in this case and I said it was because I believed the people of St.
Joseph County would be fair and judge the case on the facts," said
Alan Baum, Pelley's lead attorney from Woodland Hills, Calif. "Now
I'm sad that I said that. This is not fair.
"This is absurd. There's no evidence," Baum said. "I'm
speechless. I don't have anything more to say."
In his closing argument, Baum adopted the puzzle theme of the
prosecution, pulling out a CSI-themed jigsaw puzzle and placed only
four pieces in front of the jury.
Baum said the pieces represented the four victims, but a lack of
evidence left the rest of the box empty.
Schaffer responded by saying Pelley was the big piece that would
complete the picture.
The three-day-long deliberations were the longest those familiar with
local courts could remember in St. Joseph County in the last 20 years.
The longer deliberations dragged on, the better the prosecution felt
about its chances for conviction.
"We gave it shot and fortunately we gave it a good shot, Schaffer
said.
Schaffer said the case succeeded because "the witnesses were so solid
on the time line. It was the telling point with this case."
Schaffer said the key witness was Matt Miller, a friend of Pelley's
who was adamant that Pelley's car was at home at 5:15 when Pelley
told police he had left before 5 p.m.
"It was pretty obvious (Pelley) was the only one who could have done
it and we proved that to the jury with the time frame and they believed
it," Schaffer said.
St. Joseph County police assistant chief John Botich, who was the lead
investigator on the Pelley case, described the verdicts as bittersweet.
"I always hoped it would go forward," Botich said. "I think it
needed to be tried. I'm glad it's over. I waited 17 years for this.
I'm glad for the families to have closure."
Pelley's local counsel, Andre Gammage, said the defense will look
into an appeal of the verdicts.
"Disappointed. Very," Gammage said. "We don't think the
evidence was there. But we respect the jury's decision."
Gammage, looking grim, said the wait for verdicts was difficult for
Pelley and his family.
"There's no way anyone can be prepared for this," Gammage said of
Pelley. "And he wasn't and neither was his family. ... He knew it
was possible it would happen and he might not see his young child (a
boy of 9) again."
After Schaffer conducted his media interviews in the foyer of the
courthouse, he met his wife, Andrea, for a tearful embrace. St. Joseph
County Prosecutor Michael Dvorak then walked over to offer a
congratulatory handshake.
"You did a great job," Dvorak said.
"Thanks, boss," Schaffer responded.
"Justice was served," Dvorak said. "It's difficult for both
families, Jeff's present family, and difficult for the victims'
family. This young man made a very poor choice to kill his family and
now justice is served."
The guilty verdict comes four months before Dvorak is up for
reelection, but the prosecutor said the verdict has little to do with
politics.
Schaffer thanked all the people who worked on the case or contributed
from his office, the police and the people of Lakeville who cooperated
with authorities.
"All along everyone was looking for one big piece of the puzzle,"
commented Schaffer. "And the way we presented the case was the
opposite that the big piece was missing and that Jeff was the only one
there."
http://www.southbendtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060721/News01/60721024/CAT=News01
E/C Annie
Pelley Trial: Jury weighing evidence in slayings
SOUTH BEND - Jeffrey Pelley is still waiting to hear his fate.
The panel of five women and seven men began pondering the evidence in
the quadruple murder trial at 4 p.m. Wednesday and asked to retire for
the night about 10:30 p.m.
St. Joseph Superior Court Judge Roland W. Chamblee Jr. told the jurors
to return at 9:30 a.m. today to continue their work.
A note sent out by the jurors said they "still had a lot of ground to
cover" and "want to give it our best effort."
Nearly 40 witnesses and more than 100 exhibits over six days provided
the jurors with plenty of material to discuss.
In his closing argument Wednesday, Chief Deputy Prosecutor Frank
Schaffer hammered on the unaccounted for 20 minutes on Saturday, April
29, 1989, during which the state argues Pelley used a shotgun to kill
his father, the Rev. Robert Pelley, 38; stepmother, Dawn, 32; and
stepsisters, Janel, 8, and Jolene, 6.
With Hollywood flair, lead defense attorney Alan Baum said that Pelley,
34, is innocent during an impassioned closing argument, during which
his voice cracked when he referred to the victims.
"He's innocent," Baum said. "He's not just not guilty. He's
innocent, and I know you know that."
Baum, an attorney from Woodland Hills, Calif., offered an alternative
theory of the crime involving two shooters as he focused on the
shortcomings of the police investigation and forensic pathologist.
The prosecution has maintained throughout the trial that Pelley, as a
17-year-old, killed his family members sometime between 4:55 p.m. and
5:15 p.m.
In that time, the prosecution maintains, Pelley confronted and killed
the victims, picked up and disposed of the spent shells and shotgun,
took a shower, put his clothes in the washer and left with his white
tuxedo to go the prom.
No one saw the four slain family members alive after 5:15 p.m.,
Schaffer said.
"And the only person who had contact with them during that time was
the defendant," Schaffer said. "The only person who had the means,
motive and opportunity was Jeff Pelley."
The four victims were found Sunday morning by members of the Rev.
Pelley's church, Olive Branch United Brethren, when the pastor failed
to show up for services.
The prosecution emphasized Pelley's dispute with his father over prom
weekend restrictions was the motive for the crimes.
The Rev. Pelley had told people he was driving his son only to the prom
and no other activities, yet Jeff told his girlfriend and others he was
going to all the activities, according to trial testimony.
But Baum pointed out testimony from Pelley's surviving stepsister,
Jessica Toronjo, who said she knew before leaving for a friend's
house Friday night that Pelley was going to the Great America theme
park, where police found him with his friends Sunday afternoon.
Schaffer also reminded the jury of what he called Pelley's "near
confession" to Brent Hemmerlein, a South Bend police investigator who
interviewed Pelley shortly after the slayings.
When accused of lying about his whereabouts and being involved in the
killings, Pelley asked Hemmerlein incriminating questions about if he
would go to jail or get the electric chair.
Baum argued shotgun wadding evidence from the scene suggests two
shooters killed the four family members sometime after Jeff Pelley left
the house about 5 p.m.
"Two people with two different guns," Baum said. "And I'm not
just saying that to cover for Jeff Pelley. That's what the physical
evidence and logic dictates."
To end his remarks, Baum pulled out a "CSI" TV show jigsaw puzzle
from underneath the lectern and placed four pieces on the ledge in
front of the jury.
The four pieces from the "Crime Scene Investigation"-themed puzzle,
Baum said, represented the victims.
But the pieces were the only ones in the 750-piece box, Baum said,
theatrically creating an analogy meant to demonstrate his argument that
the prosecution's case was weak and the evidence flimsy.
"A jigsaw puzzle is only as good as the number of pieces that you
have and there are too many pieces missing here," Baum said in an
interview as deliberations began.
The puzzle theme referred to the prosecution's opening statement,
when Schaffer said he was building the case from many little pieces.
Pelley did not testify during the trial.
"I felt there was nothing to be gained," Baum said after court.
"The jury heard a sworn statement from him in 1989. Nothing's
changed."
After Baum's closing argument, Schaffer's voice grew firmer and
louder as he outlined the case against Jeff Pelley.
"There was only one person who was inside that home after 5 p.m. and
he sits right here," Schaffer said, pointing two fingers at a stoic
Pelley seated at the defense table. "Only he knows."
Schaffer asked the jury to use common sense as it deliberates on a
verdict.
"Imagine what those girls went through," Schaffer said, in
reference to Janel and Jolene, "and what that family endured. They
scream to you for justice."
http://www.southbendtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060719/News01/60719013/CAT=News01