That's funny. They say they received a letter from him yet don't say WHY they chose not to publish it. And hate to break it to ya, Dave, but you DID respond. Ha ha. And yet again, it's denial denial denial from the DAs who shouldn't be held to too high a standard... Read it and WEEP. (Thank my lucky stars this isn't mine, hahahaha!!)
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Selenski claims to be political pawn
BY JAMES CONMY, CITIZENS VOICE STAFF WRITER
05/02/2007

The Citizens’ Voice received a two-page letter to the editor from Hugo Selenski last week. After reviewing its contents, the newspaper decided not to run the letter in its entirety, instead using excerpts for this story.

Accused murderer Hugo Selenski believes Luzerne County’s two top prosecutors are using him as a “scapegoat” to avoid public scrutiny in their quests for higher office.

District attorney and judicial candidate David Lupas and First Assistant District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll, a Democratic candidate to succeed Lupas, declined an invitation to a public question-and-answer session sponsored by the League of Women Voters of the Wilkes-Barre Area. Each cited busy schedules, including Selenski trial preparation, for not being able to make the only date offered by the organization.

Serving a four-year state prison sentence for burning two corpses and awaiting trial in two homicides, Selenski lashed out at Lupas and Musto Carroll in a two-page, handwritten April 22 letter to The Citizens’ Voice.

“I am nothing more than a convenient excuse that the public can relate to, a serious fabrication in a display of attempting to be politically correct, also giving Lupas and Carroll a plausible reason to avoid a public debate,” Selenski wrote in the letter.

Lupas had a different view.

“These are laughable, ridiculous rantings of someone who is seeking attention again,” Lupas said Tuesday, insisting that Selenski trial preparation was just part of a busy schedule that prevented him from attending the League of Women Voters event.

“I’m not going to respond to this nonsense. We’re pleased with the way the case has been going. Maybe Mr. Selenski isn’t.”

Selenski also claims in his letter that this is not the first time politics has intruded into his four-year criminal case.

Musto Carroll feared a loss in Selenski’s first trial could have political ramifications for Lupas’ career, Selenski wrote in the letter. The majority of Selenski’s assertion was corroborated by Demetrius Fannick, the attorney who helped clear Selenski of two murder charges in his first trial, but is not on the second case.

Selenski outlined in the letter how Musto Carroll approached Fannick to discuss a plea agreement and the case’s political implications.

“I’ll give you something to ponder by taking you back to early 2005,” Selenski wrote. “Jackie Musto Carroll walked up to attorney Demetrius Fannick in the courthouse and said, ‘Tim, is there any possibility of a plea agreement with Hugo? Dave (Lupas) knows his career is over if he loses this case.’ That sounds like a politically loaded question that only cares about furthering careers rather than being a protector of Luzerne County.”

Musto Carroll adamantly denied Selenski’s claims and said she feels it is “unethical” to disclose whether attorneys discuss a plea agreement in any case.

“The case is going to be tried in a courtroom, despite the defendant’s best efforts to get publicity,” Musto Carroll said. “I’m not going to comment further on any nonsense being spewed by this defendant. All I want to say is this case is progressing nicely and we’re preparing for trial.”

Fannick supported Selenski’s claims. He confirmed a conversation about a plea took place. Furthermore, Fannick claims Musto Carroll used the word “over” when talking about what a loss would mean to Lupas’ career.

“It was more of an off-the-cuff remark,” Fannick said. “It did not appear to me it was something Dave told her. It was like they knew this was a big case, and if they lost, there could be some problems for Dave’s political aspirations.”

Musto Carroll insisted she never discussed anyone’s political aspirations with Fannick.

Fannick said he told Musto Carroll there could be negative reaction from the public if Lupas did not prosecute the first murder trial. Lupas chose not to be on the prosecution team, instead appointing assistants Jim McMonagle, Chris O’Donnell and Sam Sanguedolce.

Fannick conceded Selenski could be taking Musto Carroll’s remarks out of context.

“I’m sorry I made the remark to Hugo,” Fannick said. “It’s certainly not anything I would have repeated to anyone else, but I’m not going to say it did not happen. It just seems to me Hugo still has this bone to pick with Dave Lupas and wants to make this some type of issue.”

Before I go to work, I'm throwing these updates at ya- catch!!

I'll comment later. (Yup, these aren't mine...)

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Saturday, April 28, 2007
Times Leader Local News
Selenski & Weakley want witness’s testimony out

Attorneys say they can’t further question Michael Kerkowski Sr. because he died in September.

By DAVID WEISS

WILKES-BARRE – Attorneys for homicide suspects Hugo Selenski and Paul Weakley said they have a host of new inquiries they need to pose on a key witness.

But because that witness, the father of slain pharmacist Michael Kerkowski, has died, the attorneys have no way of getting answers to those questions.

That, they said, is enough reason to stop prosecutors from using the elder Kerkowski’s testimony from a past hearing at the upcoming homicide trial for the duo.

But prosecutors said that past hearing gave the attorneys the necessary opportunity to ask their questions. It’s the attorneys’ faults, First Assistant District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll said, if they failed to ask the questions.

“If they sit there and they don’t open their mouth, it doesn’t matter,” she said. “(They) were given the opportunity.”

And because they had that opportunity, it means the past testimony can be used at the suspects’ homicide trial, she said.

Court of Common Pleas Judge Chester Muroski on Friday said he could decide within two weeks whether prosecutors can use a transcript of that testimony at the duo’s trial.

Selenski and Weakley are charged with homicide in the deaths of Kerkowski and Tammy Fassett. They went missing in May 2002 before Kerkowski was to be sentenced in Wyoming County Court on charges including illegal distribution of drugs and fraud.

Police found their bodies buried behind Selenski’s Mount Olivet Road residence in Kingston Township when they executed a search warrant on the house in June 2003.

The elder Kerkowski testified against the men at a preliminary hearing, saying Selenski bilked him out of tens of thousands of dollars. Selenski once fired a bullet past the elder Kerkowski’s head, too, he said.

Selenski and Weakley are awaiting trial and the elder Kerkowski was expected to testify, but he died in September.

Now, attorneys for the suspects want a judge to stop prosecutors from using a transcript of that past testimony. They say using a transcript will prevent them from having a full and fair opportunity to cross-examine the witness.

At a hearing on the issue Friday, Musto Carroll said Kerkowski’s testimony at trial would be the same as it was at the past hearing. And the defense attorneys were able to cross-examine him on that testimony at that hearing.

But a Weakley attorney, Joseph Nocito, said he was forbidden from asking certain questions at that hearing because rules at a preliminary hearing are not the same at the trial level. For instance, he was forbidden from questioning the elder Kerkowski on issues of credibility at that hearing. He would be allowed to ask those questions at trial, he said.

A Selenski attorney, John Pike, said prosecutors also objected to many questions at the past hearing, claiming the questions were being asked too early in the trial process. They claimed the questions being asked were more relevant to issues that arise during the evidence discovery phase, which comes after the preliminary hearing. That leaves Pike unable to get answers to those questions.

Muroski will also decide whether prosecutors can use evidence from a Monroe County robbery in the homicide trial.

District Attorney David Lupas said he wants to show the similarities between that robbery, allegedly committed by Selenski and Weakley, and the Kerkowski and Fassett slayings.

A Selenski attorney, Stephen Menn, argued against using the evidence, claiming there are more differences in the two cases than similarities. That makes using the items prejudicial against Selenski. Menn also noted how the Monroe County robbery victim did not identify Selenski as one of the assailants until two years after the incident.

Muroski will also decide whether the charges should be dismissed because of the delay it took in arresting the men.

David Weiss, a Times Leader staff writer, may be reached at 831-7397.

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Friday, April 27, 2007
Newswatch 16
Tighter Courthouse Security for Selenski and Weakley

By Sarah Buynovsky

Accused murderers Hugo Selenski and Paul Weakley were in Luzerne County court Friday and it was anything but business as usual.

The two are already considered high profile prisoners. They are accused of murdering two people and burying their bodies in Kingston Township in 2003.

Selenski broke out of the Luzerne County jail that same year and Weakley is accused of trying to do the same in Lackawanna County earlier this week.

Officials at the Luzerne County courthouse said they're stepping up security after Weakley's escape attempt.

"My concern was, if Mr. Weakley was going to escape, were there other people outside the facility waiting to assist Mr. Weakley? So therefore not being able to be aware of that we didn't want to take a chance, so we increased our levels of security," explained Luzerne County Sheriff Barry Stankus.

Weakley's co-defendant, Hugo Selenski broke out of his Luzerne County jail cell in 2003 using bed sheets dangled from a window.

He talked to reporters Friday about Weakley's attempted jail break. "I just found out about it this morning. I don't know. I mean, I, what do you expect me to say? I have no idea. That's on him," Selenski.

Weakley had nothing to say about his alleged escape attempt, but the Luzerne County sheriff's department said from now on, whenever Weakley or Selenski are brought into the courthouse, security will be tight, with dogs, extra screening, and more deputies.

"It allows us to take look at other people and other things that we have to, observing different people here, the different people so now we're more aware of what's going on," Sheriff Stankus added.

At Friday's hearing a county judge heard more arguments leading up the Selenski and Weakley's murder trial.

There is no word yet on when that trial will start or whether the defendants will be tried together or separately.

Selenski remains at a state prison in Dallas and Weakley is at the Lackawanna County jail.

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More News

BY JAMES CONMY, CITIZENS VOICE STAFF WRITER
04/28/2007

WILKES-BARRE — Evidence in a 2003 Monroe County home invasion allegedly committed by Hugo Selenski and Paul Weakley also proves they are guilty of two murders, Luzerne County District Attorney David Lupas believes.

Selenski and Weakley are accused of storming into Samuel Goosay’s Chestnuthill Township home in 2003, binding his hands with plastic flex ties and covering his eyes with duct tape in order to rob him. Flex ties and duct tape also were found on the remains of Selenski and Weakley’s alleged Luzerne County murder victims Tammy Fassett and Michael J. Kerkowski.

Lupas said another similarity is the motive for both crimes — robbery.

“Proof of one tends to prove the other,” Lupas told Luzerne County Judge Chester Muroski on Friday morning.

Muroski has to decide whether testimony and evidence from the Monroe County case can be used against Selenski and Weakley in their upcoming double-murder trial. The judge is expected to rule on that and other pre-trial issues in the case in about two weeks.

Attorneys for both suspects made their cases by arguing there are many differences between the home invasion and the murders and, as a result, the Monroe County case should not come into play. For example, in Monroe County, assailants forced their way into the home and used handcuffs to restrain Goosay. There was another major difference.

“Mr. Goosay obviously was not murdered,” Galante said.

One of Selenski’s attorneys, Steve Menn, pointed out Goosay told investigators he did not get a good look at his attackers in 2004. Two years later, Goosay identified Selenski as one of the assailants. Lupas disagreed, saying Goosay’s credibility was an issue for trial, not a pre-trial motion.

“We don’t want the jury trying to decide two different cases,” Menn responded.

Another issue debated Friday was the preliminary hearing testimony of the late Michael S. Kerkowski, Michael J. Kerkowski’s father. In June, before he died, the elder Kerkowski said Selenski threatened him by firing one shot past his head while Selenski robbed him of $40,000. The elder Kerkowski also testified in June that Selenski extorted $60,000 by claiming he was in contact with his missing son.

Weakley’s attorney Joe Nocito argued his ability to cross examine the elder Kerkowski was limited at the preliminary hearing because he could not ask questions outside of what the prosecution asked.

Selenski’s lead counsel John Pike said he too wanted to ask the elder Kerkowski questions, including why the money was in bags from a local bank and why the elder Kerkowski ended his employment at the bank.

First Assistant District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll countered Nocito and Pike’s arguments by pointing out Michael S. Kerkowski was asked 146 questions at the preliminary hearing, but the defense raised only eight objections.

“Even if they don’t take that opportunity, that’s all they need,” Carroll said.

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Oooooh, what deduction abilities our astute DA has!! Yeaaaah, Davey, I don't think your logic holds aaaaaaaaaany weight!!! And Jackie's little line at the end makes me laugh- I bet she'd be crying "injustice!!!" if someone tried to say that to her!

Thanks to the Times Leader, we know what happened in court today, kinda....

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TIMES LEADER BREAKING NEWS Friday 4/27/07
Judge to mull testimony in Selenski/Weakley case
By DAVID WEISS

WILKES-BARRE – Attorneys for homicide suspects Hugo Selenski and Paul Weakley said they have a host of new inquiries they need to pose on a key witness.

But because that witness, the father of slain pharmacist Michael Kerkowski, has died, the attorneys have no way of getting answers to those questions.

That, they said, is enough reason to stop prosecutors from using the elder Kerkowski’s testimony from a past hearing at the upcoming homicide trial for the duo.

But prosecutors said that past hearing gave the attorneys the necessary opportunity to ask those questions. It’s the attorneys’ faults for not asking them, First Assistant District Attorney Jackie Musto Carroll said Friday.

“If they sit there and they don’t open their mouth, it doesn’t matter,” she said. “(They) were given the opportunity.”

And because they had that opportunity, it means the past testimony can be used at the suspects’ homicide trial, she said.

Court of Common Pleas Judge Chester Muroski said on Friday he could decide within two weeks whether prosecutors can present a transcript of that testimony to the jury selected to hear the case.

For more details read tomorrow’s Times Leader.
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And this class-act dumbass left a comment that fries a couple of your brain cells every time you are subjected to reading it, so read at your own risk! I warned you!!

"Joe Bagodonuts's Comment on Article (from 4/2707, 1:46PM)

You should have asked when you had the chance. they can't help that the guy died. I guess that is Lupas's fault as well. I like this selenski case alot better thatn the other one. Why are these guys dying soo bad to escape? They are guilty. If they robbed that old man they could have robbed the pharmacist and killed him"

Hahahahahahahaaaaaaa!!! Damn, I hope his choice of name doesn't mean he's a cop... Apparently there's a reading comprehension problem with the poor guy- NEW questions, buddy!!! Yup, meaning, ya know, they weren't questions they would've or did ask before. And yet again, oooooooooof course, he's another judge and jury! Polly want a cracker? Can you say, get a life?????

As for Jackie-O's attitude, she's one to talk! She and her bossy are the ones who were "given the opportunity" to debate their opponents in their respective political races and seem to have chickened out. So did her little "about me" article matter?- I think not!! Man, ouch, gonna need some salve for that self-butt-bite, hahahahaha..

Ha ha, I try to come up with the craziest titles. Uhm, did I spell 'craziest' right??

Anyway, I bet I've said it before & now I'm gonna say it again but I gotta get outta here (where I am right now)!! Looking at the classifieds, the weekly 'Greater H-town Houses' thingy the Times Leader puts out (I looooooove that!!! btw, lol...), and always checking out what houses I like around town & looking for 'for sale' signs hasn't really panned out to too much, maybe a couple possible choices. No apartments to my liking in the classifieds, either. Dangit!!

My sis and her friend were apparently talking about doing the same as well recently. So lil' sis approached me with the idea of me still going ahead with the buying of said house (any house) and they'd pay me some rent and help with the utils and some furniture. Sweet. That would be nice, not alone in a big house (not that I can get a huuuuuge one, but for just me it would be big), I get along with the both of them (ok, my sister and I fight but we're sisters, it's normal, hahahaa ), and help with the things I mentioned above makes the whole idea of buying a house a little less scary. I think I have enough for a down payment for a mortgage...

Just think, me owning a hooooooooooouse, whoaaa!!

Heh, I told you I'm in a BAAAAAAAD mood. I still don't feel good, what the hell?!?!? Regardless, I'm going to work tomorrow, end of story.

Anywayyyyyyyy, I was reading the Times Leader today. I'm not gonna mention any particular articles but I bet you guys can guess which one I'm referring to and to whom I'm referring in my subject. Dude, maybe if you would be a man oops, sorry, woman, enough to debate your opponent then you wouldn't need to use a newspaper to try to say you're such a good assistant. Whaaaaatever, I say! Good grief is right!

If this person can't do something on their own, what makes anyone think anything will change if they get elected into office? Same ol' same ol' "look at my record", "attention getter", yadda yadda yadda- we've all heard these before!! Well, lemme tell ya something, I'm not curious like a cat, but when ya get me fired up I'm in 'heat' and I'll hiss like a cat! Haha.. (I'll meow and purr like a cat too if you're nice!! Heh, don't be getting any ideas now!)

And don't forget to... Drop it like it's hot!!!

Hahahahahaha... that had nothing to do with ANYTHING! NBC Nightly news was doing ANOTHER piece on the whole Imus thing, and that was one of the last song clips they played... I love that song, haha!!